There’s a lot is on the road when No. 20 UNLV Rebels journey to the blue turf in Boise to tackle No. 10 Boise State in Friday night time’s Mountain West championship sport.
For the Broncos, the stakes are magnified contemplating their latest CFP ranking. Remember the fact that the 4 highest-ranked convention champions earn a first-round bye within the expanded 12-team Faculty Soccer Playoff. Because the Broncos are forward of the eventual Massive 12 champion in both No. 15 Arizona State (10-2) or No. 16 Iowa State (10-2), there’s a clear path for Boise State (11-1) to be a high 4 seed and earn the bye that comes with it.
Enjoying in entrance of a nationwide viewers beneath the lights, all eyes might be on Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty. With 2,288 dashing yards this season, Jeanty enters convention championship weekend trailing the FBS single season dashing yards document holder Barry Sanders by 340 yards, per Sports-Reference.
Though Jeanty nonetheless managed to account for 128 rush yards and a TD when the 2 groups met earlier this season on Oct. 25 — a sport Boise State received, 29-24 — Jeanty was held to a season-low 3.9 yards per carry.
Other than that slender loss to the Broncos, UNLV (10-2) has come out on high of its different convention video games. The Rebels’ solely different defeat was to Syracuse (9-3), 44-41 in additional time.
UNLV additionally depends on a robust run sport. According to NCAA.com, the Rebels have the fourth-best dashing assault within the nation (254.1 YPG) with Boise State ranked sixth (253.5 YPG).
Whereas he didn’t start the season because the workforce’s beginning QB, Hajj-Malik Williams has used his dual-threat capability to his benefit and fully taken over video games. Williams has been efficient throwing the ball (17 TDs and 4 interceptions). On the bottom, Williams has 768 yards, 9 TDs and has rushed for 100 or extra yards on 4 events.
Though UNLV will doubtless not obtain the first-round bye with a win because of their placement within the rankings under the Massive 12 title sport opponents, a win ought to put them within the playoff discipline.
The 5 highest-ranked convention champions earn a spot within the playoff together with the following seven highest-ranked groups, according to ESPN’s Heather Dinich. Since Military (10-1), ranked twenty fourth within the nation, is the closest workforce enjoying on convention championship weekend under UNLV, a win ought to vault the Rebels into the CFP.
One thing has to offer with Boise State driving a 10-game successful streak and UNLV possessing eight straight highway wins courting again to the 2023 season. The Broncos are additionally attempting to win back-to-back Mountain West title video games, which has by no means occurred in program historical past.
Whereas this matchup could get ignored contemplating the opposite convention title video games and the groups showing in them, the stakes couldn’t be larger — to not point out the importance of certainly one of these packages successful their means into the Faculty Soccer Playoff.