LAS VEGAS — UNLV trounced San Diego State University 41-20 Saturday night at Allegiant Stadium behind a record day for quarterback Hajj-Malik Williams.
Williams completed 20-of-29 passes for 244 yards, his highest mark as a Rebel. He also threw for a touchdown and rushed for 29 yards and two TDs in the win.
Freshman Greg Burrell headed the UNLV ground game, rushing for 58 yards and a score on 10 carries. Jai’Den Thomas chipped in 55 yards and a TD of his own on 11 tries. In total, eight rushers combined for 253 yards and four TDs.
Wide receiver Jacob De Jesus was the top target of the night, catching seven passes for 75 yards. Ricky White III went for 65 yards on four catches.
The Aztecs offense was led by QB Danny O’Neil, who passed for 162 yards and two TDs, and ran for 10 yards and a rushing TD. He was also sacked twice and threw two interceptions in the first half, with Rebels’ defensive backs Cameron Oliver and Jalen Catalon on the receiving end.
Late in the first quarter, UNLV got the scoring started as Williams found tight end Kaleo Ballungay in the end zone for a 2-yard score. The Rebels took over at midfield and De Jesus immediately found space for a 43-yard end around before the Ballungay touchdown.
After forcing the Aztecs into a three-and-out, Burrell broke free for a 20-yard touchdown to cap off a nine play, 70-yard drive and put the Rebels up two scores.
White’s special teams display continued for UNLV as he snuffed out a fake punt and made an open-field tackle to force a turnover-on-downs in enemy territory.
“I’m not joking, I should’ve trained him at corner[back],” coach Barry Odom said of White. “He’s an All-American, an elite player, and he continues to make big time plays.”
The offense capitalized with another TD run as Thomas punched it in from four yards out on fourth down.
SDSU broke up the shutout before halftime as O’Neil connected with Louis Brown IV for a 29-yard pitch and catch.
UNLV responded immediately, however, with a 12-yard TD run from Williams and took a 28-6 lead into the break.
Williams threw for a touchdown and 145 yards in the first half, more than SDSU gained in total yards (133). De Jesus led the other two phases of the Rebel offense, rushing for 42 yards and catching six passes for 56 yards before half.
It was his first game back on the field since UNLV lost to Boise St. on Oct. 25, as he missed last week’s matchup with Hawaii due to a leg injury.
De Jesus also lost his father the same day of his injury and, despite the unbelievable grief he’s experiencing, has continued to show up and perform for his teammates.
“People could never understand how he’s truly feeling, but the way he’s shown up everyday throughout this whole week, it was almost like he’s a superhero,” Williams said. “He’s the one breaking the huddle down, having energy on offense, running on special teams making plays.
“It’s just so motivating and inspiring to see a guy like that, to go through something and still put the team first. We’ve got so much love as a team for that guy.”
De Jesus’ dominance continued to start the second half, catching a 25-yard pass to set the Rebels up in the red zone. A few plays later, Williams extended a play, escaping the pocket and evading two tacklers for another TD run.
The Aztecs refused to lay down and O’Neil responded with a 46-yard TD pass to Ja’Shaun Poke to finish a quick 75-yard drive. After a Caden Chittenden field goal for the Rebels, O’Neil broke through on a QB sneak to get within three scores.
That was all the scoring the Aztecs could muster, though, and a Chittenden field goal sealed the 41-20 victory.
UNLV takes on San Jose State University Friday before closing the season out with the University of Nevada, Reno on Nov. 30.
With just two games remaining and still a realistic path to the Mountain West championship, Odom is focused on finishing November strong.
“We’ve got 14 days to go make the most of it,” Odom said. “And then whatever happens, happens from there and we’ll let the chips fall.
“But if we don’t do our part then it doesn’t matter. We understand the mission and we understand what we have to do to get ourselves in a position to play winning ball.”
