It was, in a word, debilitating.
UNLV’s football team, with pretty high hopes in Coach Tony Sanchez’s fourth year, was destroyed by a middling Wyoming team last weekend.
Of course, Sanchez isn’t the only coach who did great at lower levels only to fail at UNLV. Why can’t UNLV get it right? And will Sanchez be here next year as UNLV plays in the new stadium?
“We have to remember [Tony Sanchez] is responsible for a lot of this, for the relationship with the program and the Raiders, for the new facilities here in Las Vegas. Without him, the Fertitta’s are probably not going to open up their checkbooks and say, 'Here you go!' How many millions is it going to take because of the relationship between Sanchez? That was kind of the whole tie-in,” said Mitch Moss, host of “Follow the Money” on V-SIN, the Vegas Stats and Information Network.
Moss does believe the Rebels are going to have another losing season and he doubts they'll go to a bowl game. With that in mind, he doesn't believe there will be much enthusiasm for going to see the games next year - even in the new stadium.
“If you had to give everybody a lie-detector test they would say, ‘Yeah, the reason I’m at the game today is because I want to see the stadium and I could get a ticket because nobody else is going to come.,’” he said.
The real question going forward for the program could be money to pay for a new coach's salary.
“How many coaches want to come and be the head coach of this Division 1 program for $725,000 a year? It sounds like a lot of money but when other jobs are going to be open across the country where you can live in a spot that is a really cool spot to live in and probably get paid $2 million or more. They laugh at that kind of thing," Moss said.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL TOP TEAMS
“It’s still tough to go against Alabama and Clemson, although Clemson struggled against North Carolina this past weekend… I will say the teams in the top six, maybe even top seven, are closer to Clemson and Bama then we thought at the beginning of the year,” he said.
Moss said he would lean towards Alabama but he wouldn't count out Georgia, LSU, Ohio State and Oklahoma.
THE RAIDERS AND COLIN KAEPERNICK
“I think we’re at that point now where it’s beyond Kaepernick ever having a chance again in the NFL. Which team is going to take that chance?”
Some people, i ncluding his attorney, have suggested that if the Raiders current quarterback Derek Carr were to get injured, the team could turn to Kaepernick, who hasn't played in the NFL since 2016 after he knelt during the national anthem to protest racial inequality while he was playing for the San Francisco 49s.
Moss doesn't believe that is going to happen. He pointed out that eight other teams are without their first-string quarterback and their backup QBs are not nearly as good as Kaepernick, but nobody has signed him.
Moss also believes the Raiders' fans would not like the idea of Kaepernick playing for them.
LOS ANGELES DODGERS
“I’m going to lean no. The National League is suddenly looking very difficult to get out of first of all because now they get the Nationals. It was a miracle that the Nationals beat the Brewers in the wild card.”
Moss believes the Nats win over the Brewers could be enough of a springboard to push the team to a win over the Dodgers in the National League Division Series.
If the Dodgers do beat the Nationals, they have to take on the Cardinals or the Braves. In the World Series, Moss believes they'll have tough competition from either the Astros or the Yankees.
VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
“I can make the case that last year’s team was better than the team that made it to the Stanley Cup. They just lost on a really bad call. And if they don’t lose to San Jose – I can say this because I can’t prove it – I’m convinced they come out of the West again.”
Moss believes the Knights are again heavy favorites to the Western Conference.
The Knights home opener is Wednesday against the Sharks.
Mitch Moss, host of "Follow The Money", Vegas Stats and Information Network
