I'll give it a shot:
1. Tony Sanchez is well known in the UCLA community because the Bruins have recruited Bishop Gorman well over the past few years. How has his transition been to UNLV? Are the fans content with how he's approaching the program's turnaround?
The transition from Coach Sanchez at Gorman to Coach Sanchez at UNLV has gone as good as anyone could have realistically hoped for. If you would have taken a poll of Vegas residents when the rumors were flying that he might be the next man to lead the program, most would have told you that Coach Sanchez was the right hire for one reason only: money connections with Las Vegas' rich and powerful. The expectation was that he would come in and there would be an immediate influx of cash for facilities, cost of attendance for students, recruting budget, etc.
However, from the press conference in December 2014 to today, Coach Sanchez continues to prove that he is a great coach, and the right guy for this team and city to rally around to bring UNLV football into relevance and, eventually, prominance. While last season only brought 3 seasons with it, the team was competitive (within one touchdown) in the 4th quarter of 9 of 12 games, and there were other signs that the program is trending upward. A road win at rival Reno brought the Rebels a victory in the most important game in Nevada. Additionally, the 80-8 drubbing of lowly Idaho State suggested that losses and/or 1-point wins against inferior opponents are a thing of the past. This year's 63-13 win in week 1 over JSU continued the trend.
While many in Las Vegas hope for nothing more than UNLV to win a few games a year to hold us over until basketball season, there is a growing force that believes the football program under Coach Sanchez has a chance to be the standard bearer for UNLV athletics.
2. Outside of Johnny Stanton, who's also well known out in the UCLA area for his time at Santa Margarita, who are some of this team's players on both offense and defense that the Bruins must stop on Saturday?
When the Rebels are on offense, sophomore Lexington Thomas and true freshman Charles Williams provide a 1-2 punch at running back that has the potential to gash the defense with the smallest of openings. Both are smaller, "scat backs" with Williams having a bit more bulk, but both flashing impressive speed. When Johnny Stanton drops back to pass, he will most likely be looking for his favorite receiver, the Mountain West's best wideout, junior Devonte Boyd. Stanton and Boyd connected for 3 touchdowns last week, with Boyd scoing on short, mid-range, and deeper throws, using his speed after the catch to get into the endzone.
On defense, the linebackers are the Rebels' strength. Seniors Tao Lotulelei and Ryan McAleenan anchor the backers in the middle, with young and old talent on the outside and inside providing depth to Coach Baer's defense. Behind the linebackers, the secondary has shown an ability to play tight coverage in man-to-man and create turnovers. While CBs Tory McTyer and Darius Mouton are the designated starters, backups Hough, Miles, Jackson are capable replacements if additional support is needed. The biggest issue for the Rebels last year was its inability to generate a pass rush (only 9.5 sacks in 2015), and even the best secondary can only stay with wideouts for so long. If the Rebels do not find ways to create pressure on opposing QBs, the above average secondary and defense as a whole will struggle.
3. What are some of the strengths and weaknesses of this year's UNLV team, both offensively and defensively?
Offensively, there is not an obvious weakness that has been exposed yet. Clearly a low-level opponent on week 1 had something to do with that, but the Rebels' 6 touchdowns on its first 6 drives was impressive nonetheless. Saturday's game against UCLA will certainly provide a better barometer for this unit's progress and abilities. One area to watch is the Rebels will only have 4 wideouts available on Saturday, as Kendal Keys went down before the season with a season-ending leg injury, and sophomore Brandon Presley was injured in week 1.
Defensively, as discussed above, the Rebels must find a way to create pressure and not allow opposing QBs to get comfortable and pick apart the secondary. Ideally this would be done with the front 3 or 4 linemen, but Coach Baer will almost certainly need to include a linebacker or 2 if the Rebels want to put a man in Josh Rosen's face.
4. From a UNLV perspective, what is the opinion of UCLA football heading into this week's game?
The loss at TAMU last week showed that UCLA is not an unbeatable opponent, but the Rebels know they will have to play a complete, 60-minute game of football if they want to walk out of the Rose Bowl with a victory. In my opinion, I would have much preferred that UCLA beat TAMU last week, in hopes that the Bruins might look past the Rebels in week 2. With the loss, the Bruins will almost certainly have laser focus on the team from Las Vegas.
5. What's your prediction (be realistic here please!) for the game?
It's almost a given that the Rebels will get the ball first, based on Coach Sanchez always electing to receive, and other teams almost always deferring. I'm going to go out on a limb and predict that we take a 7-0 lead to start the game. UCLA will recover, settle in, and respond. UCLA will lead at the half, but it will be a one-score game.
In the second half, the Rebels still-lacking depth and UCLA's athletes will show, and the Rebels will likely fade. Las Vegas books set the line at UCLA -27; I think we cover. I see us losing by 17-21 points, but 27 seems a bit much.
I'll go UNLV 24 - 41 UCLA
