Aztecs Toppled, 41-20, at UNLV

LAS VEGAS -- San Diego State was unable to stop UNLV’s potent offensive attack in a 41-20 loss Saturday night in Las Vegas. The loss put the Aztecs (3-7, 2-3 MW) out of bowl contention for just the second time since the 2009 season.

Hajj-Malik Williams threw a touchdown pass and ran for two more touchdowns for the Rebels (8-2, 4-1 MW), who snapped SDSU’s four-game winning streak in the series.

Williams finished 20-of-29 passing for 244 yards and ran for touchdowns of 12 and 7 yards.

Williams threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Kaleo Ballungay to open the scoring with 4:05 left in the first quarter.

Greg Burrell capped a nine-play, 70-yard drive with a 20-yard TD run early in the second quarter to make it a 14-0 game.

San Diego State attempted a fake pass on fourth-and-5, but punter Tyler Pastula’s pass to Deshawn McCuin was snuffed out by Ricky White and UNLV got the ball on the Aztecs 38. Six plays later, Jai’Den Thomas ran it in from four yards out to give the Rebels a 21-0 lead with 9:20 to go in the first half.

SDSU finally got on the scoreboard late in the second quarter after starting with good field position following a blocked punt by Chris Johnson. Starting on the UNLV 40, San Diego State finished a 5-play drive with a 29-yard touchdown pass by Danny O’Neil to Louis Brown IV. The 2-point try, however, failed and the Aztecs trailed, 21-6, with 3:25 left in the half.

The SDSU defense forced a punt, but Jalen Catalon picked off a pass from O'Neil to give the Rebels possession at their own 47. Six plays later Williams scrambled for a 12-yard touchdown to make it 28-6 at halftime.

San Diego State went three-and-out on the opening possession of the second half before Williams capped an eight-play, 73-yard drive with a 7-yard touchdown run.

The Aztecs answered when O’Neil found Ja’Shaun Poke with a 46-yard touchdown. It was Poke’s first touchdown at SDSU and first since playing for Kent State against Buffalo on Nov. 26, 2022.

UNLV quickly got into San Diego State territory on a 47-yard pass from Williams to Kayden McGee, but the Aztec defense was able to hold Caden Chittenden's to a 46-yard field goal with 6:46 left in the third quarter, stretching the lead to 38-13.

O'Neil's quarterback sneak on fourth-and-goal from the 1 made it 38-20 with 13:46 to play. It was the first career rushing touchdown for the true freshman and first rushing score by a SDSU player not named Marquez Cooper this season.

The Rebels closed the scoring with a 10-play, 72-yard drive, ending with a 21-yard Chittenden field goal.

Trying to punch it in from the San Diego State 1 on UNLV’s next drive, Aztec safety Eric Butler batted the ball out of Cameron Friel’s hands. Dalesean Staley recovered and ran it back 72 yards to the Rebel 28. Facing a fourth-and-1 from the Rebel 19, O’Neil’s pass went through the hands of wide receiver Jordan Napier in the end zone.

UNLV ran out the clock to secure the win.

O’Neil completed 13 of 22 passes for 162 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Marquez Cooper ran for 97 yards on 26 carries, becoming the first Aztec with a 1,000-yard rushing season since Greg Bell in 2021. Cooper became the first player in NCAA FBS history with a 1,000-yard rushing season with three different teams (1,080 and 1,326 while at Kent State in 2021 and 2022, respectively, and 1,043 last year at Ball State). Additionally, Cooper tied an NCAA FBS record with four 1,000-yard rushing seasons.

Johnson, Butler and Kyle Moretti all had eight tackles apiece for SDSU, while Brady Nassar chipped in with five tackles (three solo), including a sack and three tackles for loss.

Despite the loss, San Diego State has still won eight of the last 10 meetings (8-2) with UNLV, 11 of the last 14 (11-3) and 17 of the last 22 (17-5).