Week #2 - Nevada Wolf Pack (1-0, 0-0 MW) at No. 16/18 Oregon Ducks (0-1, 0-0 Pac-12)
Date: Saturday, Sept. 7
Kickoff: 4:30 p.m. PT
Stadium: Autzen Stadium
Location: Eugene, Ore.
TV: Pac-12 Network
Radio: Wolf Pack Radio Network (Flagship: ESPN Radio 94.5 FM/630 AM); TuneIn app
Series: Oregon leads, 6-1
Last Meeting: Sept. 10, 2011; L, 69-20

PUR-DON'T
Trailing 31-14 with 6:19 remaining in the third quarter in its season-opener against Purdue, some late-game heroics gave Nevada its second win all-time over a Big Ten program. Led by freshman quarterback Carson Strong, Nevada rallied all the way back, including scoring 10 points in the final minute of play capped by a 56-yard field goal by true freshman Brandon Talton to give Nevada the 34-31 victory. The comeback was the second-largest since 1996, and improved Nevada to 6-1 in its last seven season openers.

DUCK HUNT
Nevada will hit the road this week to face No. 16/18 ranked Oregon in Eugene on Sept. 7 at 4:30 p.m. PT. The Ducks lead the all-time series 6-1, with the Wolf Pack's only victory coming in their first-ever meeting in 1947. All but one match up has taken place in Eugene. The Ducks will host the Pack with a 0-1 record after falling to Auburn to open their season.

SEWELL REUNION
For senior LB Gabriel Sewell, Saturday's contest at Oregon will serve as somewhat of a family reunion. Sewell's younger brother, Penei Sewell, is a starting left tackle for the Ducks as a sophomore. Football runs deep in the Sewell family as another of the Sewell brothers, Nephi, is a defensive back at Utah and formerly of Nevada before transferring at the end of the 2018 regular season.

THE FORCE IS STRONG WITH THIS ONE
For the first time since 1998, a freshman started at quarterback for the Wolf Pack. Redshirt freshman Carson Strong was named the starting QB for week one midway through fall camp and led the Nevada offense against Purdue, making him the first freshman since Mo Jones in 1998 to get the nod under center in week one. Strong dazzled in his debut, completing 30-of-51 passes for 295 yards and three touchdowns, including orchestrating a game-tying and game-winning drive in a come-from-behind victory over Purdue to open the season.

JAY NORVELL VS. THE PAC-12
Jay Norvell has faced one Pac-12 opponent in each season he has coached at Nevada, and is 1-1 against the conference as he enters his third season. He was victorious in his last meeting against the conference, knocking off Oregon State 37-35 at home in 2018. His game against No. 18 Washington State in his first season at the helm is the only ranked opponent he has faced until this game.

Date    Opponent    Result
Sept. 15, 2018    Oregon State    W, 37-35
Sept. 23, 2017    at No. 18 Washington State    L, 45-7

RELIABILITY IS KEY
Senior offensive lineman Jake Nelson has been a reliable component to the Union in each of the last two seasons. Not only has Nelson established himself as one of the top offensive linemen in the conference, earning preseason All-MW honors, but Nelson has started in 26 consecutive games. For reference, Nelson has only played in 26 games with the Pack.

VAST IMPROVEMENT
In his second season at the helm of the program, Jay Norvell turned the Wolf Pack around in a big way. Nevada went from three wins in 2017 to eight wins in 2018, the most it had won since joining the Mountain West. To put it in perspective, Nevada improved by 4.5 games in 2018 to rank as the seventh-best improvement mark in the NCAA. The Pack posted a 5-3 conference record as well to finish second in the West Division. Norvell and the rest of the team capped off the year with a thrilling come-from-behind overtime victory in the 2018 NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl, the program's sixth bowl win.

Now in his third season, Norvell has already led Nevada to its second-ever Big Ten victory with a season-opening victory against Purdue. Norvell is 2-1 in season openers.

TAUA AND NELSON NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-MOUNTAIN WEST TEAM
Senior offensive lineman Jake Nelson and sophomore running back Toa Taua were selected to the Mountain West's Preseason All-Conference team, which was voted on by coaches at MW media days in Las Vegas.

Taua was the Mountain West's Freshman of the Year in 2018 after bursting on the scene with 872 rushing yards last season. He's been named to the national watch lists for the Maxwell Award (national player of the year) and Doak Walker Award (top running back) for the upcoming season. In the season-opener, he notched his seventh career rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, a 7-yard run. He also led the team with a career-high eight receptions for 64 yards.

Nelson, a senior, was an honorable mention All-Mountain West selection a year ago. He's started 25 games in his career and last year led the Wolf Pack to a ranking of 14th nationally in pass protection as the Union allowed just 1.17 sacks per game. Against Purdue, Nelson and the Union allowed only one sack on rookie quarterback Carson Strong in Nevada's 34-31 victory.

COMEBACK KIDS
Nevada rallied from a 17-point deficit midway through the third quarter of its game against Purdue to stun the Boilermakers and tie the second-largest comeback in Nevada history since 1996. The Wolf Pack's other 17-point comeback was during the Miracle at Mackay, when it came back to defeat No. 3 Boise State in overtime. This is the second game and win in a row by a Jay Norvell coached team that has come back and won after trailing in the third quarter, after the Pack was down 7-3 in the 2018 NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl. Nevada won that game in overtime, 16-13.

GIVE THEM SOMETHING TO TALTON 'BOUT
True freshman kicker Brandon Talton drilled the third-longest field goal in program history with three seconds left against Purdue in the season opener to complete a 17-point second-half comeback. His 56-yarder was one of two made on the day, as he also drilled a 34-yard field goal in the third quarter. The 56-yard kick was the fourth-longest in Mountain West history and the longest ever hit by a MW freshman. Talton was awarded a scholarship after the game thanks to his heroics.

Talton was named the Mountain West Co-Special Teams Player of the Week for his efforts in week one.

TURNOVER TOWEL
Nevada currently leads the Mountain West with a +5 turnover differential, after recording two interceptions and recovering three fumbles against Purdue while never giving the ball away. The Wolf Pack was the only team in the nation in the opening week to post a +5 turnover margin. Three teams, Boston College, Colorado and Arizona, rank tied for second behind Nevada at +4.

TAUA OF POWER
The reigning Mountain West Freshman of the Year has picked up right where he left off. Toa Taua led Nevada with eight receptions for 64 yards out of the back field as well as rushing with 56 yards on the ground in its season-opening victory against Purdue. He scored his seventh-career rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter to bring Nevada within one score of the Boilermakers on a seven-yard scamper.

BROTHERLY LOVE
After earning a new role in the offseason to coach the Pack's running backs this year, assistant coach Vai Taua is now the only coach in the FBS to be coaching his brother, sophomore back Toa Taua. The Taua's are becoming a household name with Wolf Pack fans as Toa became Nevada's first 'of the year' award winner since joining the Mountain West, notching the conference's freshman of the year honor. Vai on the other hand has his name scattered throughout the Nevada record book, ranking second all-time in rushing yards and fourth in rushing touchdowns.

SCHOLARSHIP ALERT
There were not as many scholarships to award as there typically has been in the past, but one member of the Wolf Pack did hear his name called during fall camp. Junior offensive lineman Nathan Edwards, a local product out of Galena High School, was offered a scholarship midway through camp. Edwards is projected to become more of a force with The Union and get the start at center in week one against Purdue. True freshman placekicker Brandon Talton was also awarded a scholarship recently, as Coach Norvell put him on scholarship after his game-winning 56-yard field goal against Purdue in week one.

LOCK-DOWN BROWN
Defensive back Daniel Brown has not skipped a beat coming off his breakout campaign, recording two interceptions in Nevada's season-opening victory against Purdue. The second interception came with under a minute left in regulation with the game tied, which set up the game-winning field goal. Brown recorded five tackles and a pass breakup to go along with his huge game.

COOKIE MONSTER
Wide receiver Elijah Cooks played a huge role in Nevada's season-opening victory, hauling in a career-high seven receptions for 60 yards and tying his single-game best with two touchdowns. The first was a leaping acrobatic catch midway through the third quarter for Nevada's second score of the game, while the biggest of his career came with 52 seconds left in regulation to tie the game against the Boilermakers.

TEAM CAPTAINS
Last season, Coach Norvell and his program chose three captains to lead the team, one from each unit of offense, defense and special teams. This year, Coach Norvell and the Wolf Pack have selected four team captains to lead the squad into 2019. The four team captains are seniors Kelton Moore, Kaleb Fossum, Hausia Sekona and Lucas Weber.