Marcus Arroyo isn't inheriting a lifeless, broken UNLV program like his successor Tony Sanchez did in 2015. There's significant work to be done at one of college football's historically bad programs, and the Rebels won't return to the postseason in 2020 for just the second time in the last 20 years, but this isn't another desperate and hopeless coaching change in Vegas.
When Sanchez arrived from Bishop Gorman, UNLV had nothing. They were just one year removed from an out-of-nowhere seven-win season, their third seven-win season in the last 30 years, but with bad facilities, awful recruiting classes, no national or regional identity, and four two-win seasons in the last five years, UNLV was going nowhere. Five years later, UNLV is still chasing Mountain West relevance but the Rebels, with a new $35-million football facility, are recruiting at a higher level and have 17 wins in four years, their highest four-year since 2000-03.
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The abbreviated offseason for a first-year, first-time head coach won't lead to immediate results for a team that didn't do anything well in 2019. UNLV ranked among the nation's worst in several areas on both sides of the ball, including yards per play (99th), third-down conversions (128th), interception rate (101st), opponents' yards per play (113th), and opponents' yard per rush (119th).
With the return of senior running back Charles Williams (above), receiver Randal Grimes, and some experience on the offensive line, there's strong optimism Arroyo and offensive coordinator Glenn Thomas (a former Matt Rhule assistant who developed Charlie Brewer at Baylor) will improve the offense. Defensively…it's gonna be ugly.
It's sad UNLV, ranked 113th in the HERO Sports Preseason College Football Rankings, isn't in a better position to handle this year's schedule because it's a beauty for a Group of Five program. There are several winnable games on the second half of the schedule, but even with a road upset over San Jose State, UNLV may struggle to win three games.
| Date | Opponent | Prediction |
|---|---|---|
| Aug. 29 | vs. Cal | Loss (0-1) |
| Sept. 5 | vs. Louisiana Tech | Loss (0-2) |
| Sept. 12 | vs. Arizona State | Loss (0-3) |
| Sept. 19 | at Iowa State | Loss (0-4) |
| Oct. 3 | at San Diego State | Loss (0-5) |
| Oct. 10 | vs. Wyoming | Loss (0-6) |
| Oct. 17 | at San Jose State | Win (1-6) |
| Oct. 23 | vs. Colorado State | Win (2-6) |
| Oct. 31 | at Boise State | Loss (2-7) |
| Nov. 7 | vs. Fresno State | Loss (2-8) |
| Nov. 14 | at Hawai'i | Loss (2-9) |
| Nov. 28 | vs. Nevada | Loss (2-10) |
