NEVADA WOLF PACK (3-2, 0-1 WAC) vs. HAWAII WARRIORS (2-2, 0-1 WAC)
Saturday, Oct. 7, 2006 - 9:05 p.m. PT - Aloha Stadium (50,000) - Honolulu, Hawaii
TELEVISION: KREN (Dan Gustin and Chris Vargas).
RADIO: Wolf Pack Sports Network (ESPN Radio 630 AM, Reno); Don Marchand (play-by-play) & Bill Daniel (analyst)
SERIES HISTORY: Nevada leads 6-4.
LAST MEETING: Nevada won the first of five straight games to end the 2005 season with a 38-28 victory over Hawaii on Nov. 5 at Mackay Stadium in Reno
Nevada will have a three-game win streak in tow as it re-enters Western Athletic Conference play this week at Hawaii. The Wolf Pack is coming off a 31-3 routing of in-state rival UNLV as Nevada retained possession of the Fremont Cannon with its first victory in Las Vegas since 1998. After dropping its first two games - both on the road - to open the season, the Wolf Pack rebounded at home. Nevada made history at Mackay Stadium, beating Colorado State for the first time in school history before claiming its first-ever win over a Big Ten school with a 10-point victory over Northwestern. With 38 returning letterwinners and 14 returning starters, 22nd-year head coach Chris Ault and the Wolf Pack are coming off the team’s best season in nine years after turning in a 9-3 overall record and earning a share of the school’s first WAC title as well as an invitation to the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl last season. Nevada was picked to finish third in the WAC in this year’s preseason polls.
EXPOSURE
KREN will broadcast Saturday night’s game to a local television audience with Dan Gustin (play-by-play) and Chris Vargas (analyst) calling the action.
This is Nevada’s fifth appearance on television so far this season as Nevada will appear on television eight times this year, including four national television appearances. ESPN broadcast the season opener with Fresno State and ESPN2 televised the Northwestern game, while the Nov. 25 Boise State game will be on ESPN or ESPN2. Nevada’s flagship station, KREN, is scheduled to televise three games (ASU, Hawai’i and Idaho), while the new MTN network carried the UNLV game. ABC will broadcast the Oct. 21 San Jose State contest to a regional audience.
Nevada’s flagship radio station, ESPN 630 AM, will broadcast all 12 regular-season games this year with Dan Gustin (play-by-play) and Bill Daniel (analyst) calling the action, while fans can watch live video streaming of non-televised WAC games on the internet on a pay-per-view basis this season by logging on to www.WAC.tv.
IN THE SERIES WITH HAWAII
Since Nevada joined the Western Athletic Conference in 2000, the home team has been victorious in the Nevada-Hawaii series. Hawaii has won the even-year matchups in Honolulu, including a 48-26 game in 2004, while Nevada has taken all three of the odd-year games in Reno. The Wolf Pack won last year’s meeting 38-38 at Mackay Stadium
Hawaii is under the guidance of eighth-year head coach June Jones, who is 55-39 all-time with the Warriors. The school returns 17 starters and 51 lettermen from last year’s team, which went 5-7 overall and 4-4 in the WAC (fifth place). The Warriors are 2-2 on the year with both victories coming at home, including last week’s 44-9 victory over Eastern Illinois.
ALOHA MEANS HELLO (AGAIN)
Nevada is no stranger to playing at Aloha Stadium. Since 2000, when Nevada joined the WAC, it has played four times at the 50,000-seat stadium which has a FieldTurf surface just like Mackay Stadium.
The Pack’s most recent appearance at Aloha Stadium was Dec. 24 last year as Nevada’s “Christmas Team” took a 49-48 overtime victory over Central Florida in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. Nevada spent a week in Hawaii for the bowl game and practiced daily at Aloha Stadium.
HOMECOMINGS
This week’s game marks a homecoming for Nevada receiver Caleb Spencer, a Hawaii native who prepped at Kameameha Schools in Honolulu. The senior standout was a first-team All-WAC first-team selection last year. Spencer has 25 catches for 248 yards and is seventh in the WAC in receptions per game. He is still looking for his first touchdown of the year.
In two games at Aloha Stadium (2004 against Hawaii and last year against Central Florida), Spencer has a combined 15 receptions for a 205 yards.
Nevada has one other player from Hawaii on its roster in freshman linebacker Jared Silva (St. Louis School, Honolulu), who is redshirting this season. Hawaii does not have any players from Northern Nevada on its roster
TEAM CAPTAINS
Senior quarterback Jeff Rowe, senior tight end Anthony Pudewell, junior defensive tackle Matt Hines and senior cornerback Joe Garcia will serve as Nevada’s team captains this season as voted on by their teammates.
MACKAY IS BACK
The Wolf Pack’s 31-21 victory over Northwestern on Sept. 22 marked Nevada’s seventh consecutive win at Mackay Stadium. The Wolf Pack turned in a 5-1 record at Mackay Stadium last year, winning its last five home games after opening the season with a loss to Washington State. Since then-quarterback Chris Ault led the the Pack to a 17-13 victory over UC Santa Barbara on Oct. 1, 1966 in Nevada’s first game in the facility, the Wolf Pack has turned in a 156-45-2 (.773) record at Mackay Stadium.
In his 21-plus years as Nevada’s head coach, Ault has led the team to a 123-25-1 record at Mackay Stadium (.829), including a 12-2 mark over the last two-plus years since returning to the helm for the third time in 2004. He has guided the Wolf Pack to 15 seasons with one loss or less at home, including four undefeated campaigns at Mackay Stadium (1976, 1985, 1990, 1994).
SILVER AND BLUE CANNON
The Fremont Cannon will stay at "home" in Cashell Fieldhouse after Nevada's 31-3 thrashing of in-state rival UNLV. The cannon is billed as one of the largest and most expensive trophies in collegiate athletics. It is a replica of the howitzer that was abandoned in a Sierra snowdrift by Gen. John C. Fremont during his expedition of Nevada, Oregon and California in 1843-44.
Nevada reclaimed the cannon last year with a 22-14 victory in Reno and retained possession this year by routing the Rebels. It was Nevada's second straight victory in the series and it gives the Wolf Pack a 17-15 edge in the all-time series, which dates back to 1969. Nevada coach Chris Ault is now 9-7 all-time vs. UNLV.
GETTING DEFENSIVE
Nevada's three-game win streak has been led by inspired play from the defense, which has given up an average of just 257.3 yards and 11.3 points over the last three weeks. Nevada has forced 11 turnovers in those three games, with senior cornerback Joe Garcia on the receiving end of five of those turnovers (three interceptions and two fumble recoveries).
On the year, Nevada has allowed just 318.8 yards per game, which is second in the WAC and 53rd in the country. Last year, Nevada was fifth in the WAC in total defense as it allowed 410.6 yards per game.
BRANDON BLASTS OFF
With senior Robert Hubbard out with a sore knee, true freshman Brandon Fragger made his first career start at UNLV. And what a start it was. Fragger became the first Nevada freshman since Matt Milton in 2002 to rush for 100 yards in a game as he tallied 146 yards and two touchdowns on 18 carries. Fragger got his first career rushing score with a 5-yard run in the first half. In the second half, he reeled off a 66-yard TD scamper - the longest run by a Nevada back since Milton had a 71-yard against San Jose State in 2002. Entering the UNLV game, Fragger had gained just 23 yards on 12 carries
QUICK OUT OF THE GATE
First-quarter scoring has been pivotal to Nevada's success this season. In Nevada's three victories, the Wolf Pack has outscored its opponents by a combined 31-7 in the first quarter. In the two losses, Nevada was outscored 14-0 in the first quarter.
BLOCK THAT KICK
Nevada has blocked a kick in each of the last four games, though only three of those blocks are reflected in the official statistics. Junior nose guard Matt Hines and senior defensive end Charles Wilson have officially been credited with blocked kicks. Senior defensive end J.J. Milan got a piece of a field goal attempt by Colorado State and Nevada also blocked a field goal at UNLV, which was credited as a team block.
ROWE CLIMBING CAREER PASSING CHARTS
Senior quarterback Jeff Rowe has been remarkably efficient in Nevada’s last three games, completing 44-of-58 for 526 yards with five touchdowns and just two interceptions.
He helped Nevada get on the board quickly at UNLV, hitting Mike McCoy for a 79-yard scoring play on the Wolf Pack’s first drive of the game. Against Northwestern, Rowe had scoring strikes of 25 and 26 yards and misfired on just five attempts. Against Colorado State on Sept. 16, Rowe turned in one of the most efficient showings of his career, completing 19-of-22 pass attempts for 210 yards and two touchdowns. The effort marked the best single-game completion percentage of his career (86.4 percent). Rowe’s previous best was a 73.5 percent game (25-34 attempts for 252 yards and two TDs) Nov. 6, 2004 against San Jose State.
Rowe opened the season with 183 yards and two TDs on 18-of-34 passing Sept. 1 at Fresno State, while he completed 17-of-29 passes for 163 yards and a touchdown in the loss at No. 25 Arizona State.
Nationally, Rowe ranks 37th in passing efficiency with a rating of 141.0 and he is 48th in total offense at 201.2 yards per game. In the WAC, Rowe is fifth in total offense and efficiency and sixth in passing yards per game. His total of eight touchdown passes this season is the third-best total in the conference. Rowe has tossed at least one scoring strike in 25 of the last 29 games and all five games this season.
A 2005 second-team All-WAC selection, Rowe has thrown for over 2,500 yards in each of the last two seasons, including 2,925 yards last year. He ranked second in the league and 21st in the nation in total offense with 264.1 yards per game and was third in the WAC and 30th in the NCAA in passing efficiency at 137.8. Rowe tallied at least 200 passing yards in all but two games in 2005, including two 300-yard outings with a season-best 324 yards against Colorado State. Rowe also tossed at least one touchdown pass in all but one game last year, including three contests with three scoring strikes.
Rowe is one of 34 candidates on the preseason watch list for the 2006 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award, the Davey O’Brien Foundation announced on Aug. 28. The 2006 watch list for the award, which is presented annually to the nation's best college quarterback, is made up of 34 candidates, including 19 seniors, 12 juniors and three sophomores representing 11 conferences.
SPENCER MOVING UP ON NEVADA’S CAREER RECEIVING CHARTS
Senior wide receiver Caleb Spencer is in just his third season at Nevada, but he is certainly making his mark at the university. The Hawaii native is 10th in career receptions and 11th in career receiving yards, having played just 28 games for the Wolf Pack.
He is one of 51 players who have been named to the preseason watch list for the Fred Biletnikoff Award, which is annually presented to the top wide receiver in the country by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation.
A first-team All-WAC and Academic All-WAC honoree last season, Spencer led the team in receptions (67), yard (889) and touchdown catches (seven) in 2005. He also ranked among the WAC and national leaders in receptions and receiving yards per game.
The Biletnikoff Award watch list will be narrowed down later this fall with the award to be announced at the ESPN’s Home Depot College Football Awards Show in December. The winner will also be honored at a banquet in Tallahassee in February.
Spencer was among the nation’s leaders in consecutive games with a reception, but that streak ended at 27 games earlier this year. Entering Nevada’s game at UNLV, Spencer had caught a pass in every game he played at Nevada but he went without a reception against the Rebels, ending the streak. Spencer is tied for seventh in receptions per game (5.0) and the senior is making his way up the career receiving charts at Nevada.
JUMP FOR JOEY
Senior cornerback Joe Garcia has been instrumental in Nevada's three-game win streak. The first-team All-WAC selection from 2005 has been on the receiving end of five turnovers over the last three contests - an interception against Colorado State, two picks against Northwestern and two fumble recoveries against UNLV.
Garcia, who has seven career picks, is on the watch lists for two of the most prestigious honors in college football: the Bronko Nagurski Award and the Lott Trophy.
Garcia, who hails from Westminster, Calif., had 72 tackles and four interceptions last year en route to earning first-team All-WAC honors. In just four games, Garcia has already picked off three passes, including two interceptions in the Northwestern game. He is tied for third in the WAC and 20th in the NCAA with 0.60 interceptions per game this year.
He is one of 56 players on the watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Award, which is presented each year by the Charlotte Touchdown Club to the best defensive player in college football as voted on by the Football Writers Association of America. This year’s award will be presented on Dec. 4 at the Westin Hotel-Charlotte.
Garcia was also one of the 42 players named to the 2006 Lott Trophy Watch List. Named after Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott, the Lott Trophy is awarded to college football's Defensive IMPACT Player of the Year. Now in its third year, the Lott Trophy is the first college football award to equally recognize athletic performance and the personal character attributes of the player and is sponsored by The Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation. The winner will be announced at a gala black-tie banquet at The Pacific Club Dec. 10.
ALL HE DOES IS SCORE TOUCHDOWNS
Mike McCoy has been a touchdown scoring machine through five games this year. The sophomore has eight catches on the season and he has found the end zone with five of them. The latest touchdown was also the longest - a 79-yard catch-and-run for Nevada's first touchdown in a 31-3 rout of arch-rival UNLV. That play marks Nevada's longest catch and longest play from scrimmage since a 95-yard pass play between quarterback Zack Threadgill and receiver Nate Burleson on Sept. 14, 2002
DEFENSE GETTING TURNOVERS, CREATING POINTS
Nevada is ninth in the nation in turnover margin as the Wolf Pack is plus-7 on the year and plis-1.40 per game this year. The differential between Nevada and its opponents - the Wolf Pack has 14 takeaways and just seven giveaways - has been a big part of the team’s success so far. Nevada has scored 48 points off the turnovers it has created and twice the defense has scored on its own as Ezra Butler and Joe Garcia both have interception returns for touchdowns this season. Last week against UNLV, Nevada scored 10 of its points off UNLV turnovers. Against Northwestern, 24 of Nevada’s 31 points came off turnovers.
MILAN FINDING HIS GROOVE
Senior defensive end J.J. Milan missed all of last season with a foot injury that required three surgeries to repair, but the Reno native is making up for lost time this season. Milan leads the team and Western Athletic Conference with five sacks, all of which have come in the last four games. His average of a sack per game ranks 12 nationally.
The Reno native had three tackles and a sack in Nevada’s rivalry win over UNLV. Against Northwestern, Milan recorded two tackles, one of which was a sack, and he broke up a pass and recovered a fumble in Nevada’s 31-21 victory over the Wildcats. On the year, Milan’s five sacks have totaled 32 yards in losses for Nevada’s opponents and he is tied for second in the WAC in tackles for loss.
ROWE AMONG LEADERS IN CONSECUTIVE STARTS
Senior quarterback Jeff Rowe is ranked among the nation’s leaders in consecutive games started. Rowe has started 29 straight games dating back to the start of the 2004 season, which puts him in seventh nationally.
2006 Division I-A Quarterback Consecutive Starts
Kevin Kolb, Sr., Houston 41
Brady Quinn, Sr., Notre Dame 38
Chris Leak, Sr., Florida 38
James Pinkney, Sr., East Carolina 30
Jared Zabransky, Sr., Boise State 30
John Stocco, Sr., Wisconsin 30
Jeff Rowe, Sr., Nevada 29
Jordan Palmer, Sr., UTEP 28
Chad Henne, Jr., Michigan 28
Bret Meyer, Jr., Iowa State 28
AULT MOVING UP CAREER VICTORIES LIST
After leading his team to a 9-3 record last season, College Football Hall of Fame inductee Chris Ault has moved into 15th among active Division I-A coaches in winning percentage (.705). Among active coaches with five years of Division I-A experience, he also ranks fifth in career victories with 180. In his third stint as the head coach of the Wolf Pack, Ault now holds a 180-75-1 record in 21-plus years as a head coach, all at Nevada.
The winningest coach in school history, Ault was named the WAC Coach of the Year in 2005 for his efforts in leading the Wolf Pack to a share of the league title and the school’s first bowl appearance in nine years. During his tenure, Ault has won eight conference championships and taken Nevada to postseason play nine times (three bowl games).
Top Five Winningest Active Division I-A Coaches
1. Bobby Bowden, Florida State 362-108-4 (.768)
2. Joe Paterno, Penn State 357-118-3 (.750)
3. Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech 192-103-4 (.649)
4. Jim Tressel, Ohio State 190-70-2 (.729)
5. Chris Ault, Nevada 179-75-1 (.704)
HUBBARD SLOWED BY SORE KNEE
Senior running back Robert Hubbard was just starting to heat up when a sore knee sidelined him for the UNLV game last week.
Hubbard put up a career-best 156 yards in Nevada’s victory over Northwestern and scored two touchdowns, one rushing and one receiving.
The Emeryville, Calif. native has four 100-yard efforts in his last six games, dating back to last season. In four games this year, Hubbard has tallied 418 yards on the ground on an average of five yards per carry.
Hubbard’s 104.5 yards per game ranks third in the WAC and 19th nationally. He is fourth in the conference and 25th nationally in all-purpose yardage with 121.8 yards per game.
So far this year, Hubbard has tallied 103, 71, 88 and 156 yards in the four games he has played. His performance against Northwestern came on a career-high 32 carries. He also has six receptions for 48 yards and a touchdown so far this season.
Hubbard was hurt for much of last year but started to come into his own toward the end of the season, spelling WAC Offensive Player of the Year B.J. Mitchell down the stretch. In Hubbard’s last seven games, going back to the Utah State game on Nov. 19, 2005, he has rushed for 740 yards (105.7 yards per contest) and 10 touchdowns.
JAEKLE’S GOT A LEG
Sophomore kicker Brett Jaekle made a slight adjustment in his approach on kickoffs earlier this season, and the move is certainly paying off. Since changing to a nine-step approach prior to the Arizona State game, Jaekle has recorded 11 touchbacks in his last 21 kickoffs. He did not have a touchback in the season opener at Fresno State.
WAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Senior cornerback Joe Garcia received the WAC Defensive Player of the Week award on September 25th for his play in Nevada’s victory over Northwestern.
Garcia picked off two passes in the game, returning the second one 24 yards for a touchdown to clinch the 31-21 victory. Garcia was the first Nevada player to win one of the weekly awards and the 27th Wolf Pack honoree overall since Nevada joined the WAC prior to the 2000 season.
UP NEXT
After playing four road games in its first six games and against four 2005 bowl teams in the first six weeks, Nevada will get a much-needed bye week next week.
This week marks Nevada’s fourth trip to play Hawaii in Honolulu since the Wolf Pack joined the WAC prior to the 2000 season. This marks the first time, however, that the schedule-makers have been kind enough to give Nevada a bye week after the long jaunt to the middle of the Pacific.
Following the bye week, Nevada will play the first of two straight home games at Mackay Stadium with San Jose State coming to town on Oct. 14 for Homecoming. That game will be televised regionally on ABC.
