ESPN Believes The UNLV Rebels Are "Making An Early Case" For The College Football Playoff

The UNLV Rebels dealt the UCLA Bruins a crushing loss in Week 2, which could both propel the Rebels' season and send UCLA's season into a spiral. This was a season-altering game; it's always made a bigger deal when a Mountain West Conference team knocks off a team from the Big 10.

Rebels' head coach Dan Mullen and starting quarterback were both thrilled with the win despite the fact that after dominating in the first half, they allowed the Bruins to sneak back into the game.

However, it wasn't a happy night for everybody. UCLA head coach DeShaun Foster came away from the game frustrated with the loss. What seemed to frustrate him the most was the fact that they showed what they were capable of in the second half, but just couldn't get anything done in the first half.

This was a huge win for the Rebels, and ESPN believes that this win is helping their case to be a College Football Playoff team when it's all said and done at the end of the regular season. That would be huge for this program on the rise.

UNLV Rebels Head Coach Dan Mullen On The Rebels' Week 2 Win

“We're trying to build this program to be one of the best programs on the West Coast,” Mullen said. “I think that was a huge win for us. That's a talented football team we played, and we found a way to win.”

Rebels Quarterback Anthony Colandrea On Getting The Big Win

“I feel like tonight we executed at a really high level in the first half. In the second half, I was getting out of the pocket too early. But at the end of the day, we got the win. That was the biggest deal.”

UCLA Bruins Head Coach DeShaun Foster On The Loss To The Rebels

“I’m just frustrated because when you know we can execute better than we were and put together two halves like I wish we could've done, the outcome would’ve been different."

ESPN's Take On The Rebels Potentially Making The College Football Playoffs

"The Rebels are making an early case to be the Group of Five representative for the College Football Playoff. They nearly made it last season before losing the Mountain West championship to Boise State."

More UNLV Rebels On SI News