Gear Up For Game Day: UNLV Rebels

LARAMIE -- Does Laramie's elevation play a part in UNLV's preparation for Saturday night's tilt?

Dan Mullen said on his weekly radio show that it takes up to 72 hours to get acclimated. His team will be in town for just 36 total hours. The team's first-year head coach then proceeded to joke that he told his players the Rebel basketball team gets off much easier when they come to the high plains -- "they get to play inside."

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All kidding aside, Mullen knows full well what a game can be like inside War Memorial Stadium. He was the offensive coordinator at Utah back in 2004 when the lights went out for more than 100 minutes on a frigid night in the Gem City.

"I do remember it being so cold," he recalled during Mountain West Media Days last July. "I had such big gloves on. I told (Alex Smith), If you don't see the signals, call whatever you want. It's too cold."

Smith, the future No. 1 selection in the NFL Draft, managed things just fine. The No. 7 Utes rolled to a 45-28 victory, claiming the program's second consecutive Mountain West crown.

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How will Mullen's latest signal caller handle the elements?

Anthony Colandrea, raised in balmy St. Petersburg, Fla., began his college career at Virginia. The elevations of those two places are 44 and 594 feet, respectively.

Is the junior worried about lining up at 7,220 feet above sea level?

"It's big time," Colandrea told a reporter who asked if that will be a major factor if at all. "So, for that, I got me, the running backs and the receivers elevation masks. So after practice we'll run with those and get used to that elevation, just because it's at 7,000 feet, I think. So, that's pretty high. We're only at 2,000 feet here, so it's huge."

NIL money well spent?

We'll see.

Lucas Conti, a 290-pound sophomore defensive lineman, said his focus is more on the rabid fanbase that awaits inside War Memorial Stadium.

"I've heard that their fans really stick by their team and it's going to be a loud and an awesome environment," he told reporters. "I think we're all excited just to get out there and have another chance to prove ourselves, especially in conference play."

UNLV hasn't won inside this venue since 2003. That equates to six straight losses. The Cowboys have averaged better than 38 points per game in those outings.

That's exactly the number of points the Rebels are currently putting on the scoreboard through four weeks of the season.

Who will blink first?

Notable UNLV Alums, Ties:

Guy Fieri, celebrity chef, is a UNLV alum. He also knows his way around Laramie. He was in town filming his show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, stopping by restaurants like J's Prairie Rose Cafe, Sweet Melissa, Born in and Barn and others. You can find those episodes on YouTube right HERE.

Comedian and talk show host Jimmy Kimmel was (is) a Rebel. So is Suge Knight (Death Row Records), Kenny Mayne (ESPN) and Dan Reynolds (Imagine Dragons).

On the football side of things, you all recall names like Randall Cunningham, Keenan McCardell and Ickey Woods, right? How about on the hardwood? Remember those amazing Grandmama commercials in the 90's? Larry Johnson starred at UNLV, helping lead the program to its first and only national championship in 1990.

He was helped by the likes of Stacey Augmon and Greg Anthony.

Other future NBA players like Shawn Marion, Reggie Theus, Joel Anthony and Anthony Bennett, among many others, played their college ball in Sin City.

Rebel baseball has had its fair share of stars, too. Cecil Fielder, Ryan Braun, Matt Williams and the Stottlemyre brothers, Mel and Todd, went on to have long MLB careers. The current second baseman for the Phillies, Bryson Stott, also stayed in his hometown for college.

Bring a Toy or 10:

This Saturday, Oct. 4, will be a special day at the University of Wyoming as the Wyoming Cowboy Football team hosts the UNLV Rebels in a 5 p.m. kickoff at Wyoming's War Memorial Stadium. Wyoming fans can also make the day a special one for children and families in Albany County by donating to Toys for Tots prior to the game from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Fans may donate either by providing new, unwrapped toys at toy collection bins at the stadium or by making cash or card donations to UW student-athletes and volunteers. Toy collection bins will be located at Gates 8, 6, 4 and 3 at War Memorial Stadium and at the entrance to the Wildcatter Stadium Club and Suites. UW student-athletes and volunteers will also be available at the collection locations to accept cash or card donations.

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Injury Report:

Here is all you need to know -- and the links -- for Saturday Night's tilt vs. UNLV:

WHO: UNLV (4-0, 0-0) at Wyoming (2-2, 0-0)
WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 4 at 5 p.m. MST
WEATHER: High of 62, Low 36, Scattered Thunderstorms, Wind 16 mph
WHERE: War Memorial Stadium, Laramie, Wyo. (25,000-plus capacity)
TRAVEL: WyoRoad.info
STREAMING: CBS
TV: CBS Sports Network
RADIO: Cowboy Sports Network
TICKETS: Wyoming Ticket office
BOX SCORE: ESPN
ROSTERS: Wyoming / UNLV
HISTORY: Wyoming leads all-time series, 14-12
BETTING ODDS: UNLV -3.5, O/U: 50.5
HEAD COACHES: Jay Sawvel / Dan Mullen

Stripe Out:

A Stripe Out is again being planned for our homecoming game as Wyoming takes on UNLV. Wyoming Athletics is asking all Cowboy fans to participate in the Stripe Out of War Memorial Stadium by wearing Brown or Gold apparel based on their seat location.  Use the map to find out what to wear - all students are encouraged to wear gold.

- University of Wyoming’s Top 50 Football Players