Who Saw This Coming? UNLV Football Has Become Las Vegas’ Football Team As Raiders Lose Again; Rebels Have Path To National 12-Team Tournament While Raiders Have Won Two Of 11 Games
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LAS VEGAS, Nevada — Remember the old days when the UNLV football team was ridiculed and the Raiders were an elite NFL team?
Now the teams that share Allegiant Stadium have swapped roles, with UNLV a win away from playing Boise State in an epic Mountain West Conference championship game while the Raiders are playing the Denver Broncos inside the domed stadium today with a mere two wins in the their first ten games.
After the Rebels scored a win in San Jose last night for the first time in three decades, UNLV improved to nine wins in 11 games and a number 21 ranking in college football. With a win against in-state rival Nevada Saturday, the Rebs will be off to Boise, Idaho for a conference title rematch Dec. 6 and a potential berth in college football’s inaugural 12-team championship tournament.
But there’s more.
Under the coaching wisdom of old-school, former linebacker Barry Odom, UNLV’s football team has matured into Las Vegas’ football team. It’s the team the Las Vegas community buys into watching at Allegiant Stadium, while Raiders games have become tourist attractions for fans of opposing teams like the orange-clad Broncos fans this afternoon.
It’s Year 4 for the Raiders in Las Vegas.
Raiders team president Sandra Douglass Morgan often tells local groups that the NFL franchise wants to become part of the Las Vegas community fabric. It’s tried everything from dishing out free equipment to high school football teams to awarding free media exposure to local small businesses that have won Raiders-sponsored marketing contests.
But many locals who bought Raiders season tickets and paid for personal seat licenses that helped the Raiders finance their contribution to building the stadium routinely sell their tickets on the secondary market as an investment.
Today, the Raiders are playing one of their better games of the season, with nice contributions from Dylan Laube on an impressive kickoff return, former number one draft pick Tyree Wilson on a sack of Broncos quarterback Bo Nix and punter A.J. Cole and linebacker Divine Deablo who teamed up on a fake punt and successful throw-and-catch to keep a Raiders drive going.
The Raiders led Broncos, 10-6, in the first half before Denver’s kicker, Wil Lutz, and Vegas PK Daniel Carlson traded field goals for a Raiders’ 13-9 lead at intermission.
Then, the miscues before an announced crowd of 62,460.
Raiders quarterback Gardner Misnhew II threw an interception, setting Nix’s 18-yard touchdown strike to Courtland Sutton. Denver forged ahead, 16-13. Lutz and Carlson traded field goals and the Broncos were ahead 19-16 midway through the fourth.
A short Nix-to-Sutton TD connection and Denver was up by ten, 26-16.
With 4:32 left in the game, a “Let’s Go Broncos” chant was heard in the stadium.
This gorgeous 62,000-seat stadium and its revenue-generating power has boosted the Raiders’ franchise value to a stunning $6.7 billion.
But you would never see so many Broncos orange shirts at the Coliseum in Oakland.
A Carlson 22-yard FG — his fourth — made the score, 26-19.
Raiders’ backup QB Desmond Ridder relieved Minshew who was hurt, but fumbled. It set up a Lutz 33-yard FG and Denver was back in front, 29-19.
That was it. Final: Broncos 29 Raiders 19. Las Vegas has two of 11 games this season.
In six days, this stadium will be open again for football and the UNLV football team will roll in the red-painted cannon for its game against Nevada.
Broncos fans were still leaving this stadium ten minutes after the game ended.
Las Vegas’ football team will be using this venue in less than a week.
