UNLV Football: First Look At The 2020 Schedule

The first year of the Marcus Arroyo era won’t be an easy one for the Rebels.

UNLV Football: First Look at the 2020 Schedule

The first year of the Marcus Arroyo era won’t be an easy one for the Rebels.

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Year one has some tall orders.

The San Jose State Spartans took a big step forward that was a long time coming in 2019, but the new season will bring with it the toughest task yet for head coach Brent Brennan and his staff: Get back to bowl eligibility.

Here’s the week-by-week schedule with preseason SP+ and ESPN FPI rankings in parentheses (note: UNLV is ranked 121st and 117th, respectively, by the two metrics):

August 29 — vs. California (SP+: 52 | FPI: 30)
September 5 — vs. Louisiana Tech (SP+: 92 | FPI: 105)
September 12 — vs. Arizona State (SP+: 40 | FPI: 41)
September 19 — at Iowa State (SP+: 30 | FPI: 31)
October 3 — at San Diego State (SP+: 74 | FPI: 88)
October 10 — vs. Wyoming (SP+: 90 | FPI: 77)
October 17 — at San Jose State (SP+: 108 | FPI: 108)
October 24 — vs. Colorado State (SP+: 79 | 96)
October 31 — at Boise State (SP+: 38 | FPI: 51)
November 7 — vs. Fresno State (SP+: 94 | FPI: 93)
November 14 — at Hawaii (SP+: 99 | FPI: 119)
November 28 — vs. Nevada (SP+: 110 | FPI: 98)

What are the big takeaways from a first look at the 2020 schedule?

1. A big-time non-conference slate… but probably some big-time losses.

While we still don’t know 100% where all of UNLV’s home games will be played in 2020, it’ll be a pretty fascinating test case for how long it takes the novelty of a new stadium to wear off because finding early wins is… tough.

2. Actually, finding any surefire wins at all is tough.

If the above tweet didn’t make it clear, SP+ doesn’t favor UNLV in any games at all this season. Opening conference play in San Diego, of all places, is a pretty tough draw, and the Rebels might be staring at 0-6 before heading to San Jose for, at least by the numbers, their first reasonable chance at a W.

3. There aren’t that many gimmes.

Five wins might seem like a big deal for Spartans fans, but it’s easy to forget that they left a bit on the table by season’s end. Taking a step backwards isn’t out of the question, so avoiding the temptation to look past home dates against UC Davis (who beat San Jose State just two years ago) and UNLV (who stole a win last fall) to the bigger names on the schedule will be a test in itself.

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Hardest stretch: Arizona State, at Iowa State, at San Diego State

Easiest stretch: Wyoming, at San Jose State, Colorado State

Guaranteed wins: none

Guaranteed losses: California, Arizona State, at Iowa State, at San Diego State, at Boise State

Worse than 50/50 games: Wyoming, at San Jose State, Colorado State, Fresno State, at Hawaii

50/50 games: Louisiana Tech, Nevada

Better than 50/50 games: none

Preliminary projected record: 2-10

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