UNLV Rebels year 2 - awkwardmoment's Dynasty

awkwardmoment's Dynasty Blog

UNLV Rebels year 2

Posted on July 20, 2011 at 11:22 AM.

(0)

In the final year of head coach Bobby Hauck's 3 year contract, the Rebels showed major improvement but the results did not transpire much into the standings as the team ended the year 3-9, only one more win than the previous two years. The Rebels were however much more competitive this year, losing to Hawaii in overtime and forcing the Boise State Broncos to score 17 points in the last 3 minutes to avoid a loss.

With Caleb Herring transferring away and Nick Montana unable to play due to transfer rules, the Rebels were very thin at QB with only sophomores Nick Sherry and Taylor Barnhill on the roster. Sherry showed promise last year but a major back injury cut his season short. The scrambler from California was still sidelined this year but managed to play in 9 of the Rebels' game, accumulating 1692 passing yards while keeping defenses on their toes with his scrambling abilities. He ended the year with 9 TD passes and 6 interceptions. After disappointing the coaching staff with his lack of improvement in 2011, Taylor Barnhill certainly made up for it in 2012 as he excelled in the four games he started, throwing 10 TDs and completing 47.1% of his passes. While the team adjusted to his pocket passer skills, Barnhill was not afraid to scramble ahead with his bulky body and his ability to find TE Hawk in traffic allowed him to pull off an upset win vs Air Force.

Tim Corbett continued his development in his junior year by combining for an average of 8.7 yard per carry and scoring 7 TDs in only 65 rushing attempts. Corbett also became a vocal leader for the team but a major collarbone injury cut his season short. Bradley Randle took over the workhorse role and manage 5 TDs on the ground and was a constant threat for outlet passes.

2012 saw the emergence of Kurt Davis and Trey Mays as main targets. Marcus Sullivan was expected to be the receiver number 1 but the 5'9 sophomore from North Las Vegas struggled with more attention from defensive backs and ended the year with a disapointing 450 yards and only 1 TD. Sophomore Kurt Davis became the favorite target as the season progressed and ended the year with 6 TDs and an average of 22.5 yard per reception.

However, the real emerging player among the receiving corps was freshman tight end Chris Hawk who provided the Rebels with a big target in the middle and a sneaky ability to get past safeties for big gains. Buck struggled early in the year with numerous dropped passes but additional work in practice paid dividend and the 6'2 245 lbs Oregonian gained confidence as the year went along and his first college season was a success with 880 total yards and 8 TDs.

With the Rebels unable to find any starters for their offensive line among the 2011 recruiting class, the team saw some minor improvement through development of linemen but the presence of Hawk and Cornett really allowed the skilled players to bail out many linemen with lost battles in the trenches.

2013 will be a make or break year for the Rebels as the team will field an offensive line filled with seniors and will see the arrival of Nick Montana and WR Dres Anderson on the field after sitting out due to transfers. Tim Cornett will also be a major part of the offense in his senior year as he will try to prove he belongs in the conversation for best running back of the MWC.

**** Allright, we are now caught up with this dynasty so there will be more entries and details from this point forward.

Upcoming:
- 2013 freshman class preview
- 2013 season preview