SAN JOSE — San Jose State’s turnaround from a 1-5 start to contention for a berth in the Mountain West championship game is surprising, but perhaps even more unexpected is the team that stands in the way of the Spartans’ conference championship hopes.
First-year coach Barry Odom has taken UNLV (9-2, 6-1 Mountain West) to its first nine-win season since 1984 and can put the Rebels in the conference title game with a home win on Saturday against the Spartans (12 p.m., Mountain West Network). It’s an unexpected accomplishment for a team that was picked to finish ninth in the Mountain West preseason poll.
Don’t count SJSU coach Brent Brennan among those surprised, though.
“They’ve done a really good job putting the right pieces of the puzzle together,” Brennan said. “When you watch them play, you can tell that they’re well coached and they’re doing all the right things.”
Odom’s tenure at UNLV didn’t have the best start. When he was hired last December, the Rebels were coming off their eighth consecutive year without a bowl game.
Despite saying he wanted players from the previous regime to stay, Odom overhauled a good chunk of the UNLV roster as he brought in over 50 new players through high school recruiting and the transfer portal. Bobby Petrino, Odom’s handpicked offensive coordinator, left to take the same position at Texas A&M 21 days after he agreed to be on Odom’s staff.
Entering the 2023 season, UNLV had more questions than answers.
On top of trying to create an identity for a team that was made up of mostly transfers and freshmen, Odom had to find a way to garner interest in a team that has been irrelevant for almost the entirety of its existence.
“My goal is to win and win now,” Odom said at his introductory press conference nearly a year ago.
But once UNLV was able to get on the field, there was a noticeable difference from the Rebel teams of old.
UNLV won six of its first seven games with the only loss coming against No. 3 Michigan in Ann Arbor. The only conference loss UNLV has is against Fresno State, who the Rebels played tough until the fourth quarter on the road.
Led by redshirt freshman quarterback Jayden Maiava, the Rebels offense is third-best in the Mountain West. Maiava is currently fourth in the conference in passing with 2,399 yards and 13 touchdowns despite starting just seven games this season. Ricky White leads the team and the conference in receiving with 70 catches for 1,189 yards and seven touchdowns.
Saturday’s game should be a good test for a Spartans secondary that is second in the Mountain West in passing defense and has 12 interceptions on the year.
“I really think our defensive staff has done a really nice job with that group,” Brennan said about his secondary. “You’ve seen a lot of growth and maturity from Chase (Williams) and Tre (Jenkins). It’s awesome to see the consistent development of (Jay’Vion Cole), Michael Dansby, DJ Harvey and Kenyon Reed. There’s a lot of guys that are contributing in that space.”
Odom’s background is on the defensive end, and while the Rebels have holes on that side of the ball, they are still among the leaders in the conference in stopping the run. UNLV allows 144.5 rushing yards per game and has forced 11 fumbles this season.
SJSU quarterback Chevan Cordeiro could be primed for a big game should the Spartans need him to throw the ball more frequently. During SJSU’s five-game winning streak, Cordeiro has thrown for 962 yards and nine touchdowns while completing 62% of his passes.
Both teams have a shot of getting to the Mountain West title game with a win, though UNLV’s path is much easier. The Rebels are guaranteed to host the championship game if they win.
“We’re thrilled to be in this position and our kids understand the magnitude of what’s at stake,” Odom said.
SJSU’s path is much harder as a victory will still not guarantee a spot in the title game. A win means that the Spartans will be in a three-way tie for first place with UNLV and the winner of the Air Force-Boise State game Friday. It will ultimately be up to computer rankings to determine who makes the title game should SJSU come out with a victory on Saturday.
“I just worry about what we can control,” Brennan said. “That’s something I tell the players all the time. I need to do the same because that part is totally out of our hands. None of that matters if we don’t play well on Saturday.”