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1981 UNLV Rebels football
ConferenceIndependent
Record6–6
Head coach
Home stadium Las Vegas Silver Bowl
Seasons
←  1980
1982 →
1981 NCAA Division I-A independents football records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 4 Pittsburgh   –   –   11 – 1 – 0
No. 3 Penn State   –   –   10 – 2 – 0
No. 8 Miami (FL)   –   –   9 – 2 – 0
Southern Miss   –   –   9 – 2 – 1
No. 17 West Virginia   –   –   9 – 3 – 0
Colgate   –   –   7 – 3 – 0
Virginia Tech   –   –   7 – 4 – 0
Navy   –   –   7 – 4 – 1
Cincinnati   –   –   6 – 5 – 0
Florida State   –   –   6 – 5 – 0
Holy Cross   –   –   6 – 5 – 0
Tulane   –   –   6 – 5 – 0
UNLV   –   –   6 – 6 – 0
South Carolina   –   –   6 – 6 – 0
Temple   –   –   5 – 5 – 0
Boston College   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
East Carolina   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
Northeast Louisiana   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
Louisville   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
Notre Dame   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
Rutgers   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
William & Mary   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
Syracuse   –   –   4 – 6 – 1
Richmond   –   –   4 – 7 – 0
Army   –   –   3 – 7 – 1
North Texas State   –   –   2 – 9 – 0
Georgia Tech   –   –   1 – 10 – 0
Memphis State   –   –   1 – 10 – 0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1981 UNLV Rebels football team was an American football team that represented the University of Nevada, Las Vegas as an independent during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their sixth and final year under head coach Tony Knap, the team compiled a 6–6 record. [1] [2]

A notable win was the road victory over eighth- ranked BYU in October, who were without starting quarterback Jim McMahon, replaced by sophomore Steve Young. [3]

Approaching age 67, Knap retired after the season, [4] and was succeeded by Harvey Hyde, the head coach at Pasadena City College. [5] [6]

Schedule

DateOpponentSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 5at San Jose State
W 16–617,112
September 12 New Mexico
W 49–4225,605
September 19 West Texas State
  • Las Vegas Silver Bowl
  • Whitney, NV
L 17–2124,560 [7]
September 26 Long Beach State
  • Las Vegas Silver Bowl
  • Whitney, NV
W 32–3125,080
October 3at Wyoming
L 21–4523,793
October 10at No. 8 BYU
W 45–4139,852 [3]
October 24 Utah
  • Las Vegas Silver Bowl
  • Whitney, NV
L 28–6927,883
October 31at Hawaii
L 21–5746,153
November 7at Fresno State
L 26–4216,241
November 14 San Diego State
  • Las Vegas Silver Bowl
  • Whitney, NV
L 20–3823,090
November 21 Air Force
  • Las Vegas Silver Bowl
  • Whitney, NV
W 24–2122,574 [8]
November 28at UTEP
W 27–20  3,214
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1981 UNLV Rebels football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
FB 24 Mel Carver Sr
FB 21 Ray Crouse Sr
QB 12 Randall Cunningham Fr
QB 1 Sam King Sr
OT 71 Dan McQuaid Jr
RB 23 Michael Morton Sr
WR 11 Mike Reed Sr
TE 88 Jeff Spek Jr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DB 4 Bruce Cunningham Jr
DB 2 Wymon Henderson Jr
DB 43 Keyvan Jenkins So
DE Todd Liebenstein Sr
DT 76 Aaron Moog So
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

References

  1. ^ "1981 UNLV Rebels Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  2. ^ "UNLV 2020 Football Guide" (PDF). University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 2020. p. 130. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Vegas shocks BYU, 45-41". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). wire service reports. October 11, 1981. p. 6B.
  4. ^ "Knap resigns at UNLV, plans to grow apples". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. November 24, 1981. p. 3C.
  5. ^ "Pasadena City College Coach Harvey Hyde, 42, who guided..." UPI.com. (UPI archives). December 7, 1981. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
  6. ^ "Transactions: college". Reading Eagle. (Pennsylvania). December 8, 1981. p. 28.
  7. ^ "West Texas State 21, Nevada-Las Vegas 17". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 20, 1981. Retrieved May 2, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Nevada-Las Vegas 24, Air Force 21". The Arizona Republic. November 22, 1981. p. G2. Retrieved October 20, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
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