Nevada fights back in loss to the Broncos

2009 Nevada Wolf Pack ... Head Coach: Chris Ault

2009 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 8-4
2009 Record: 8-4

9/5 at Notre Dame L 35-0
9/12 OPEN DATE
9/19 at Colorado St L 35-20
9/25 Missouri L 31-21
10/3 UNLV W 63-28
10/9 La Tech W 37-14
10/17 at Utah St W 35-32
10/24 Idaho W 70-45
10/31 HawJSU W 62-7
11/14 Fresno St W 52-14
11/21 at NMSU W 63-20
11/27 at Boise St L 44-33
12/5 OPEN DATE

2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 8-4
2008 Record: 7-6

8/30 Grambling St W 49-13
9/6 Texas Tech L 35-19
9/13 at Missouri L 69-17
9/20 OPEN DATE
9/27 at UNLV W 49-27
10/4 at Idaho W 49-14
10/11 New Mexico St L 48-45
10/18 Utah State W 44-17
10/25 at Hawaii L 38-31
11/1 OPEN DATE
11/7 at Fresno State W 41-28
11/15 San Jose St W 41-17
11/22 Boise State L 41-34
11/29 at La Tech W 35-31
Humanitarian Bowl
12/30 Maryland L 42-35

Nevada Wolf Pack

Nov. 27
at Boise State 44 … Nevada 33
Boise State got up 20-0 in the first quarter with Titus Young taking the opening kickoff 95 yards for a score and Dan Paul catching two of his three short touchdown passes, but Nevada didn’t go away quietly. Slowly, the Wolf Pack came back with two of Colin Kaepernick’s three touchdown passes and a 71-yard scoring dash from Vai Taua to get withing eight going into the fourth quarter, but Kellen Moore’s fifth touchdown pass of the game, a six-yarder to Kirby Moore put the game away. Nevada’s running game was held to 242 yards; over 130 fewer than its average.
Player of the Game: Boise State QB Kellen Moore completed 17-of-33 passes for 262 yards and five touchdowns.
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 12-22, 141 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Vai Taua, 24-160, 1 TD, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 4-58, 1 TD
Boise State: Passing: Kellen Moore, 17-33, 262 yds, 5 TD
Rushing: Doug Martin, 16-128, Receiving: Titus Young, 4-69
What It All Means: Boise State created the blueprint on how to slow down the Nevada offense, but it took a team this good to do it. The Broncos were able to get into the backfield on a regular basis and got to QB Colin Kaepernick before he could get the offense started. But even though the Broncos got up big early, the Pack kept fighting back and almost got within range of making things really interesting before Vai Taua lost a critical fumble. The loss might have been disappointing, but the team did a good job against a Bronco squad that belongs in the BCS. Oregon only wishes it could’ve played this well on the blue turf. 

Nov. 21
Nevada 63 … at New Mexico State 20
Nevada became the first team to have three 1,000-yard rushers in the same season while the ground attack ripped off 575 yards in the easy win. Colin Kaepernick ran for two scores and threw two touchdown passes, highlighted by a 56-yard pass play to Chris Wellington to spark a 28-point first quarter. Luke Lippincott was the third member of the Pack to hit the 1,000-yard mark, and ran for touchdowns from 28 to 32 yards out and Vai Taua scored from 23 and 16 yards away on the way to a 63-6 lead. NMSU got two late scores on passes from Jeff Fleming to Marcus Allen.
Player of the Game: Nevada RB Luke Lippincott ran 19 times for 162 yards and two touchdowns
New Mexico State: Passing: Jeff Fleming, 8-19, 77 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Tonny Glynn, 11-71, Receiving: Marcus Allen, 5-52, 2 TD
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 5-11, 96 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Luke Lippincott, 19-162, 2 TD, Receiving: Chris Wellington, 3-75, 1 TD
What It All Means: Unbelievable. Nevada’s offense cranked out three 1,000-yard rushers and is now averaging 373 yards per game, almost 60 more than Georgia Tech, but now comes the real test. The play of the offense has overshadowed a major improvement from the defense that has become tremendous at keeping points off the board over the last month, only allowing NMSU touchdowns when the game was long over. Can the ground game keep producing against Boise State? The WAC title is there for the taking, and yes, this team is good enough to pull off the upset and throw a wrench into the BCS. 

Nov. 14
at Nevada 52 … Fresno State 14
Nevada’s ground game kept on rolling with 461 yards with three touchdown runs from Luke Lippincott and two from Vai Taua. Fresno State started out how with a 57-yard Jamel Hamler touchdown catch and a three-yard Seyi Ajirotutu wrapped around a 50-yard Taua scoring dash, and then the turnovers started coming with four fumbles and an interception. The Wolf Pack scored 42 unanswered points with two scores in each of the last three quarters. Taua ripped off a 65-yard scoring dash in the third, Colin Kaepernick ran for touchdowns from six and 21 yards out, and Lippincott scored from one, six, and 21 yards away. Fresno State’s Ryan Mathews, the nation’s leading rusher, was held to 32 yards on eight carries.
Player of the Game: Nevada RB Vai Taua ran 17 times for 179 yards and two scores.
Fresno State: Passing: Ryan Colburn, 24-35, 362 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Lonyae Miller, 10-55, Receiving: Chastin West, 7-77
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 6-12, 45 yds
Rushing: Vai Taua, 17-179, 2 TD, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 3-25
What It All Means: And the train keeps on rolling. Fresno State’s run defense struggled all season long, but this was still a strong team that Wolf Pack ripped through like it wasn’t there. The defense forced five turnovers, to make up for the problems against the pass allowing 362 yards, but the running game is clicking on all cylinders. It’s going to run for 400 yards against New Mexico State, and then comes the showdown against Boise State for the WAC title. 

Nov. 7
Nevada 62 … at San Jose State 7
Four different Wolf Pack players ran for over 100 yards as part of a 517-yard, eight touchdown rushing day from the offense. It was the first time since 1984 (Army) when a team had four runners hit the century mark in one game. Colin Kaepernick ran for scores from 19, 15, and four yards out on the way to a 20-0 Nevada lead, and the machine kept on rolling with Vai Taua tearing off a 70-yard scoring dash with 13 seconds to play in the half. Kaepernick connected with L.J. Washington for a 46-yard score on the way to a 55-0 lead before San Jose State finally got on the board with a one-yard Patrick Perry run. Nevada converted 11-of-12 third down conversion attempts.
Player of the Game: Nevada QB Colin Kaepernick completed 9-of-14 passes for 122 yards and a touchdown, and he ran 11 times for 115 yards and three scores.
San Jose State: Passing: Jordan LaSecla, 19-28, 226 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Patrick Perry, 5-15, Receiving: Kevin Jurovich, 6-110
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 9-14, 122 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Vai Taua, 12-144, 1 TD, Receiving: L.J. Washington, 3-71, 1 TD
What It All Means: Nevada is unstoppable right now. San Jose State isn’t playing well, and the defense didn’t have a chance against the well-oiled machine, but the Pack took its running game to another level with four 100-yard runners. 11-of-12 third down conversions, 8.8 yards per carry, and 665 yards of total offense; everything worked. On a six-game winning streak, it’s Fresno State up next in the home finale, but all eyes will be on the Boise State game coming in three weeks.

Oct. 31
at Nevada 31 … Hawaii 21
Nevada overcame a 14-0 deficit with 28 straight points highlighted by two Colin Kaepernick touchdown runs and a 30-yard Vai Taua touchdown dash. Jovonte Taylor caught touchdown passes from 71 and four yards out for the Warriors, but couldn’t handle the Wolf Pack rushing attack that rolled up 312 yards.
Player of the Game: Nevada QB Colin Kaepernick completed 12-of-21 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns and ran 13 times for 114 yards and two scores.
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 12-21, 184 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Vai Taua, 19-127, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 4-45
Hawaii: Passing: Bryant Moniz, 29-49, 374 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Alex Green, 10-70, Receiving: Jon Medeiros, 9-92
What It All Means: The running game needed a little while to warm up, and it wasn’t razor sharp against a bad Hawaii defense, but it still ripped off 312 yards with Vai Taua and Colin Kaepernick each rolling for over 100 yards. However, the pass defense continues to stink, but it gets a break against San Jose State. Now at 4-0 in the WAC and on a five-game winning streak, the real work starts now with three road games in the final four. The chance is there to take the conference title, but the defense has to find something that works. 

Oct. 24
at Nevada 70 … Idaho 45
Nevada rolled up 662 yards, including 484 on the ground, with QB Colin Kaepernick throwing for two scores and running for four including dashes from 35 and 75 yards in the first five minutes of the second half to help the Pack pull away. In a game of big home runs, with the two teams combining for 1,156 yards, Nevada started out with Kaepernick touchdown runs from 11 and 61 yards, and Vai Taua running for an 89-yarder, on the way to a 21-0 lead. But Idaho kept fighting with Maurice Shaw catching two 73-yard touchdown passes in the second quarter and with Max Komar catching three scoring passes in the second half, but the Vandals weren’t able to keep up.
Player of the Game: Nevada RB Colin Kaepernick completed 13-of-21 passes for 178 yards and two scores, and he ran 15 times for 23 yards and four scores.
Idaho: Passing: Nathan Enderle, 15-26, 342 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Deonte Jackson, 7-88, 1 TD, Receiving: Max Comar, 10-136, 3 TD
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 13-21, 178 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Colin Kaepernick, 15-230, 4 TD, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 5-62
What It All Means: Idaho is playing well and will go to a bowl game, and Nevada ripped through the Vandal D like it wasn’t even there. Colin Kaepernick continues to play at an All-America level, while Vai Taua averaged 8.6 yards per carry highlighted by his 86-yard dash. No one’s stopping this offense right now, and while the secondary continues to be a disaster, it doesn’t matter too much when the attack is running for eight scores. Nevada might run for 500 yards against Hawaii next week. 

Oct. 17
Nevada 35 … at Utah State 32
In a fun firefight, Nevada, down 24-14, scored 21 unanswered points with Luke Lippincott tearing off a 69-yard touchdown run and with Brandon Wimberly scoring on a 49-yard play. Utah State pulled within three on a 14-yard Nnamdi Gwacham catch with 2:35 to play, but the Wolf Pack, after a penalty, recovered a second onside kick attempt and put the game away. Nevada and the nation’s leading rushing attack ran for 313 yards, but the secondary allowed 353 yards.
Player of the Game: Nevada RB Vai Taua ran 21 times for 147 yards and a score
Utah State: Passing: Diondre Borel, 25-42, 353 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Diondre Borel, 21-48, Receiving: Omar Sawyer, 6-38
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 10-24, 189 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Vai Taua, 21-147, 1 TD, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 2-73, 1 TD
What It All Means: The ground game keeps on rolling. Colin Kaepernick had one of his worst passing games of the year, but he was his normal terrific self running the ball, and Vai Taua and Luke Lippincott each ran for over 100 yards. On the down side, the secondary just isn’t going to stop anyone this year. It was ripped up by the Utah State passing game, and it’s going to get pushed at home by Idaho and Hawaii over the next two weeks. But as long as the offensive line is producing, the Pack will be in the WAC title hunt. 

Oct. 9
at Nevada 37-14
Nevada r  gave head coach Chris Ault his 200th career win as Colin Kaepernick ran for two scores and threw for three more in the surprisingly easy win. Tech scored first on a 15-yard Daniel Porter run, and then it was all Wolf Pack with 23 straight points with Kaepernick throwing for two scores and running for a five-yarder. Porter tried to get the Bulldogs back into the game with a 64-yard touchdown run, but Kaepernick answered with a 67-yard touchdown dash. Nevada outgained Tech 511 yards to 256.
Player of the Game: Nevada QB Colin Kaepernick completed 15-of-21 passes for 166 yards and three touchdowns, and he ran 12 times for 89 yards and two scores.
Louisiana Tech: Passing: Ross Jenkins, 8-17, 129 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Daniel Porter, 11-99, 2 TD, Receiving: Dustin Mitchell, 2-21
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 15-21, 166 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Vai Taua, 17-107, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 5-73, 1 TD
What It All Means: Building off the tremendous performance against UNLV, Nevada kept the ground game rolling against a not-that-bad Louisiana Tech defense. Not only was the rushing attack starting to get it into gear last week, but now it has Vai Taua back. With Taua, Luke Lippincott, Mike Ball, who was only used for three carries after ripping up UNLV, and Colin Kaepernick, there are more weapons than most teams will be able to handle. Now one's stopping this attack until the regular season ender against Boise State.

Oct. 3
at Nevada 63 … UNLV 28
Nevada rolled for 773 yards of total offense with 559 on the ground. The onslaught started early with Luke Lippincott and Mike Ball running for scores, but UNLV fought back and tied it at 21 going into the locker room on Channing Trotter’s second touchdown run of the half. It was all Nevada the rest of the way with 42 second half points as Ball ran for scores from 32, four and 89 yards out, finishing with five touchdowns, but he was hardly the only Wolf Pack runner to roll. QB Colin Kaepernick ran for 173 yards and Luke Lippincott ran for 170.
Player of the Game: Nevada RB Mike Ball ran 15 times for 184 yards and five scores.
UNLV: Passing: Mike Clausen, 26-50, 276 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: C.J. Cox, 2-19, 1 TD, Receiving: Phillip Payne, 10-112
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 15-18, 208 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Mike Ball, 15-184, 5 TD, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 5-71
What It All Means: Now that’s the Nevada offense everyone was waiting for. The line opened up huge holes against the porous UNLV defense, and Mike Ball, Luke Lippincott, and Colin Kaepernick were happy to take advantage with huge run after huge run. The ground game averaged 10.2 yards per carry, while Kaepernick’s passing was on completing 15-of-18 passes. This was a perfect game pitched by the Nevada offense, but the team committed 15 penalties and lost four fumbles. That was all that was keeping the Pack from hitting 100. 

Sept. 25
Missouri 31 ... at Nevada 21
Missouri QB Blaine Gabbert threw for 414 yards and three touchdowns with two going to Danario Alexander from 31 and 74 yards out. Nevada, down 21-13, was driving deep into Tiger territory, but a Luke Lippincott fumble led to an 11-play, 97-yard drive ending with a four-yard catch from Jared Perry. Got an 11-yard touchdown run from Colin Kaepernick and, with 2:32 to play, a six-yard touchdown catch form Brandon Wimberly, but it was too late.
Player of the Game: Missouri QB Blaine Gabbert completed 25-of-40 passes for 414 yards and three touchdowns.
Missouri: Passing: Blaine Gabbert, 25-40, 414 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Derrick Washington, 16-75, Receiving: Danario Alexander, 9-170, 2 TD
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 17-28, 146 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Luke Lippincott, 23-114, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 6-76, 1 TD
What It All Means: The Nevada offense is built to control games in the second half and especially late, but Missouri owned the fourth quarter controlling the ball for 10:27 and keeping drives alive. Colin Kaepernick ran relatively well, but he didn't come up with any big dashes with his only quality run a slippery 14-yard gain. He needs to get going to get the offense into more of a groove to make up for the absence of Vai Taua, who's out with a dislocated elbow. Defensively, at some point, the corners need more help. The secondary has been torched by anyone who can throw, but fortunately, there aren't any good passing teams on the slate until the Hawaii game on Halloween.

Sept. 19
at Colorado State 35 … Nevada 20
John Mosure ran for a short score and Dion Morton threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Eric Peitz and caught a 49-yard scoring grab in the surprisingly easy Colorado State win. Grant Stucker threw two touchdown passes and ran for another as part of a 21-point run that gave the Rams a 35-6 lead before Nevada got back on the board with the second of two Vai Taua touchdown runs. Nevada’s vaunted ground game was held to 169 yards.
Player of the Game: Colorado State RB John Mosure ran 18 times for 99 yards and a score.
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 25-38, 251 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Vai Taua, 14-95, 2 TD, Receiving: Brandon Wimberly, 7-104, 1 TD
Colorado State: Passing: Grant Stucker, 10-20, 165 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: John Mosure, 18-99, 1 TD, Receiving: Rashaun Greer, 3-47
What It All Means: 169 rushing yards? 11 penalties? 5 turnovers? Nevada had two weeks off after the Notre Dame debacle and played just as poorly in the blowout loss to Colorado State. The offense hasn’t gotten going yet with QB Colin Kaepernick being held under wraps and Vai Taua not picking up the slack. There passing game is just good enough to get by, but it couldn’t get the Pack back in the game against the Rams. Now comes the home opener against Missouri, and the defense has to suddenly be far, far better to have any sort of a chance. The running game has to be the Nevada running game again over the next few weeks before the WAC opener against Louisiana Tech.

Sept. 5
at Notre Dame 35 … Nevada 0
Notre Dame was razor sharp and extremely explosive with Jimmy Clausen throwing four touchdown passes with three to Malcolm Floyd indulging strikes from 70 and 88 yards out. Armando Allen added a one-yard score late in the first half for a 28-0 halftime lead. The Wolf Pack rushing attack, expected to be among the best in the nation, was held in check gaining just 184 yards and converted just 2-of-11 third down chances.
Player of the Game: Notre Dame WR Malcolm Floyd caught four passes for 189 yards and three touchdowns
Nevada: Passing: Colin Kaepernick, 12-23, 149 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Vai Taua, 18-114, Receiving: Tray Session, 5-51
Notre Dame: Passing: Jimmy Clausen, 15-18, 315 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: Armando Allen, 15-72, 1 TD, Receiving: Malcolm Floyd, 4-189, 3 TD
What It All Means: This was as dream come true for Notre Dame fans anxious for the opener. The offense was thrilling with big play after big play, Jimmy Clausen was nearly perfect, and the defense swarmed all over the Nevada running game that’ll end up averaging over 250 yards per game. The team let up a wee bit in the second half, but the defense kept the heat on and the offensive line did a great job of putting the game away with the ground game. Nevada had one of the best pass rushes in the nation last year and was held without a sack. However, before getting all giddy, Nevada was dead last against the pass last season.
What It All Means: Utter disaster. The Notre Dame offense might be the real deal and it might turn out to truly be special, but for one game, the pass defense didn’t show any improvement after being the worst in America last season. The running game never got going and Colin Kaepernick never got room to move. This was an awful performance with no big plays, few stops on defense, and nothing to get excited about going into next week. Throw this game out; Nevada is better than this. At least that’s the hope, but now the team has to prove it can beat someone with a pulse.