UCLA's Week 2 Opponent Holding In-Season QB Battle

UNLV won't know its starting quarterback until after its first game of the season.

September 10, 2016; Pasadena, CA, USA; UNLV Rebels quarterback Johnny Stanton (4) looks to pass against the UCLA Bruins during the second half at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

UCLA's Week 2 opponent, UNLV, has yet to name a starting quarterback and will take the battle into the season, according to head coach Dan Mullen.

The Rebels take on Idaho State in Week 0 on Saturday to kick off the season and will feature both Michigan transfer Alex Orji and Virginia transfer Anthony Colandrea

Michigan quarterback Alex Orji (10) warms up before the Michigan State game at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“They have similarities, but they have differences in their games,” Mullen said on McElroy and Cubelic In The Morning. “Both guys will play in Game 1 for us, for sure. It’s a long season. But I want to make sure on gameday that what I see in practice they can do on the field in a game and see how people respond to that.”

This is an important situation to monitor as the Bruins take on the Rebels in Las Vegas one week after opening the season against Utah on Aug. 30.

Virginia quarterback Anthony Colandrea (10) looks for an open receiver during a NCAA college football game against Notre Dame at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, in South Bend. | MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Analyst Previews UNLV

Want to know more about the Rebels going into the season? Well, ESPN's Bill Connelly previewed them ahead of the season, here's what he had to say:

"After an almost complete roster teardown (the second in three years), UNLV could be just about anything in 2025. If Mullen and company can generate some immediate traction and upside, this one could easily be within reach for the Rebels. One way or the other, we'll learn what we need to know about the Rebels pretty quickly."

Nov 20, 2021; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen on the sidelines against the Missouri Tigers during the first half at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

"While Deion Sanders earned most of the publicity two years ago when he came to Colorado and flipped almost the entire roster in a single offseason, Barry Odom basically did the same thing at UNLV, and with better immediate results. It took a year for CU to generate any real progress, but Odom's Rebels immediately surged from 5-7 to 9-4 in 2023, then fielded what was, per SP+, their best ever team in 2024.

"In 28 years before Odom's arrival, UNLV had averaged a dire 3.3 wins per season with 13 years at two or fewer wins and only three at six wins or more. Then the Rebels won 20 in two years under Odom. Now he's at Purdue.

"When you overachieve dramatically compared to your historic norm and then lose the head coach who engineered said overachievement, that's usually an ironclad guarantee of immediate regression. But with transfers and immediate rebuilds becoming more of the norm, history might mean a little bit less than it used to. UNLV replaced Odom with just about the most proven coach available -- in 13 seasons at Mississippi State and Florida, Dan Mullen won at least eight games eight times with six SP+ top-15 finishes -- and he'll oversee a roster loaded with former blue-chippers and/or power-conference signees.

"By my count, there are 16 former blue-chippers on the roster. And almost none of them have played with each other before. It's easy to see how this all comes together beautifully, especially on offense, where Mullen teams have almost always been solid and Mullen hired an intriguing young coordinator in Corey Dennis. But this is also a giant chemistry experiment that could go awry in pretty obvious ways. The uncertainty makes UNLV one of the country's more intriguing teams; it also makes them pretty hard to project with confidence."

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