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CORVALLIS, Ore. (FOX5) – UNLV (6-1/2-0) football won its school-record sixth consecutive road game Saturday night, 33-25 over Oregon State (4-3/0-0), to become bowl-eligible in consecutive seasons for the first time ever. Trailing by 11 early, the Rebels posted 27 unanswered points to take control in front of 35,195 fans at Reser Stadium.
UNLV, which improved to 4-0 on the road to start a season for the first time ever, also downed its third Power Five opponent this fall – also a first.
OSU scored on its first three possessions to build a 17-6 lead with under three minutes remaining in the second quarter but UNLV QB Hajj-Malik Williams found the end zone from two yards out, which spurred the rally. His nine-yard sprint to the end zone in the third quarter gave the visitors their first lead of the night.
Williams’ lone touchdown throw, a 22-yarder to Ricky White III, ballooned the lead to 33-17 in the fourth quarter before OSU scored a TD and made a two-point conversion. The Beavers eventually got the ball back on a turnover and finished the game on the UNLV six-yard line when time ran out and the Rebels earned their first victory over a Pac-12 Conference school since winning at Arizona State in 2008.
UNLV, which had six QB sacks compared to just one by OSU, was led defensively by Antonio Doyle’s 3.0 sacks to go with 10 total tackles. Safety Jalen Catalon also had 10 tackles and ripped the ball loose from a runner to force UNLV’s only turnover of the night. That fumble, recovered by Cameron Oliver set up the Rebels to take a lead they would never relinquish.
“We took a step forward today as a program. I’m really happy for our team finding a way to get that win against what I think is a good football team. I thought our offense handled the atmosphere, the noise and the things with the crowd in the great environment,” said UNLV Head Coach Barry Odom.
STAT OF THE GAME:
WR Ricky White III blocked his school-record third punt of the season. It was also UNLV’s fourth punt block as a team in 2024. White’s key play set up a Rebel field goal right before halftime to bring them to within one point at the break, 17-16.
REBEL OF THE GAME:
True freshman kicker Caden Chittenden continued his All-America-level season by scoring 15 points – nailing all four field goal attempts along with three extra points. He now has made 17-of-19 attempts on the year to continue to build on his UNLV freshman season-total record.
NOTABLE:
-UNLV improved to 4-2 all-time vs. Oregon State but downed the Beavers for the first time since 1991
-The Rebels faced a Pac-12 opponent for the first time since going to Cal in 2022
-UNLV improved to 14-0 under head coach Barry Odom when leading after the third quarter
-Because of a one-year scheduling agreement with the Pac-12, UNLV was the fourth of a total of seven MW teams the Beavers are facing in 2024
-WR Ricky White III finished with nine catches for 88 yards and moved up to sixth all-time at the school in receptions with 185
-The receiving TD was White’s 21st as a Rebel, moving him into a tie with Sam “Disco Kid” Greene (1979-80) in fourth place at the school
-DB Jalen Baldwin led all tacklers with 11 and had two TFL, including half a sack
-WR Jacob De Jesus led all players with 153 all-purpose yards, hitting double digits in rushing, receiving, kick returns and punt returns
-Punter Marshall Nichols finished with an average of 47.7 on three attempts
UP NEXT: The Rebels host arguably one of the biggest games in school history on Friday vs. Boise State in a battle of two undefeated Mountain West teams. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are available by visiting UNLVTickets.com The game will be shown nationally by CBS Sports Network.
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