UNLV’s Football Players Battle Fresno State On Historic Presidential Day For USA; Final: Fresno State 40 UNLV 27
By Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com
The artificial playing rug is under the roof at Allegiant Stadium and that means the UNLV football team is back in the 65,000-domed palatial football house just off the Strip in Las Vegas. The Raiders use natural grass turf, while the football Rebels use an artificial surface with the “UNLV” arch in the center of the emerald field. The Raiders are in LA playing the Chargers Sunday.
The UNLV football team is off to an 0-2 start after losses to San Diego State in Southern California and Nevada, Reno at the first game at new Allegiant Stadium that had fans in the building to watch football during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic. The Raiders games at their stadium have no fans because of the pandemic. UNLV was allowed by the state to have 2,000 fans at this game, with ticket prices starting at $88 and students getting 200 free tickets.
The Fresno State Bulldogs have travelled to Las Vegas for this Mountain West Conference game and 50 years from now you wonder if the young men in their early 20s playing on both teams will remember actual plays from this game or whether they remember that today’s game was played on the day when Joe Biden was declared as the president-elect of the United States after a highly-contentious campaign.
Perhaps at the surface, a Fresno State vs UNLV football game might seem void of national politics but it’s hard to separate sports from a national election when so many athletes from the professional ranks and even at the college level urged Americans to get out in vote in campaigns large and small, from players’ tweets to NFL TV spots.
Election results showed young Americans in their 20s overwhelmingly supported Biden over President Donald Trump, especially men and women of color in their 20s. It should be noted that UNLV has one of the most racially diverse campuses in the country.
The game, which started at 12:30 p.m., happened after several media reports declared that Biden was elected as the 46th president. The news that Biden won the state of Pennsylvania meant Biden had 273 electoral college votes, three more than the 270 threshold for victory. Biden’s vice president running mate is the first woman of color to be the declared vice president-elect. Several media outlets also said Biden won Nevada and its six electoral votes, while Georgia and North Carolina were still counting votes.
UNLV lost to Fresno State, 40-27, after heading into the fourth quarter tied at 27 with the Bulldogs. Rebels quarterback Max Gilliam ran for a 71-yard touchdown to tie the score in the third quarter. But Fresno State took over in the final quarter and sealed the win to go to 2-1. UNLV is 0-3. At least UNLV had its first leads of 2020, 7-6, 10-6 and then 17-13 in the first half.
Fresno State piled up 487 total yards, split between running (243) and passing (244). The Bulldogs running back, Ronnie Rivers, had a double threat game. He ran for 133 yards and three TDs and caught six passes for 99 yards and another score.
Rebs QB Gilliam had a big running game with 139 net gain yards on 16 carries (despite losing 31 yards on six sacks.) UNLV senior running back Charles Williams ran for 89 yards and moved him past Kirk Jones (1983-86) into fifth place on UNLV’s career list with 2,713.
In the second half we had three turnovers. We didn’t execute how we needed to execute in a second half of football and that’s going to put you in a position that’s going to be tough to overcome. — UNLV Head Coach Marcus Arroyo
Through screens and digital boards, Allegiant Stadium can transform the venue from a Raiders home field to a UNLV home field.
UNLV football advertisers like Summerlin, Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers, Star Nursery, America First, Taco Bell and Coca-Cola get their brands advertised at UNLV home games via an electronic screen below fixed stadium ad signs hyping MGM Resorts and Coors on the stadium’s northern end near the Al Davis memorial flame.
After three Raiders home games with no fans in the building, it’s a unique sight to see fans at a concession stand at Allegiant Stadium.
UNLV Athletic Director Desiree Reed-Francois likes to add a tweet or two to hype the games she attends and her contribution for today.
