2024 Season Recap
Last year, led by then head coach Barry Odom, UNLV produced the school’s winningest season since the Rebels became a founding member of the Mountain West, way back in 1999. The Rebels won 11 games, including an LA Bowl victory versus Cal, Berkeley. In addition, the program procured its spot within the AP Poll for the first time ever after beating Oregon State in mid-October.
There was even a period in time in which the Rebels had a puncher’s chance of squeaking into the College Football Playoff. However, ultimately that dangling carrot proved to be out of reach as UNLV was unable to get the better of Mountain West stalwart Boise State in either of the schools’ two contests in 2024.
The Off-Season’s Coaching Carousel
The historic campaign that the Rebels went on — with a backup quarterback mind you — led to Barry Odom saying sayonara to Sin City for a chance at experiencing life in West Lafayette as the head coach of the Big Ten’s blundering Boilermakers of Purdue.
Needless to say, when Odom left, many were probably thinking that in the subsequent years to come, the Rebels would regress back to its historical means. However, that viewpoint may have changed when on December 12 UNLV performed a magic trick — one akin to that achieved by Vegas legend Lance Burton during his days at the Monte Carlo — by hiring Dan Mullen as Odom’s successor.
Mullen (52), comes to Las Vegas with a winning pedigree, and that from the Southeastern Conference no less. The one-time (2014) SEC Coach of the Year’s overall record is 103-61 — Mullen coached nine seasons at Mississippi State and four at Florida. Additionally, included in these totals are 10 winning seasons, seven bowl victories, and one SEC East title.