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American college football season
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]
Date Opponent Site Result Attendance Source September 5 at 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 3 at Wyoming L 21–4523,793
October 10 at No. 8 BYU W 45–4139,852 [ 3]
October 24 Utah Las Vegas Silver Bowl Whitney, NV L 28–6927,883
October 31 at Hawaii L 21–5746,153
November 7 at 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 28 at UTEP W 27–20 3,214
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
1981 UNLV Rebels football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Defense
Special teams
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
^ "1981 UNLV Rebels Schedule and Results" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 20, 2020 .
^ "UNLV 2020 Football Guide" (PDF) . University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 2020. p. 130. Retrieved December 20, 2020 .
^ a b "Vegas shocks BYU, 45-41" . Eugene Register-Guard . (Oregon). wire service reports. October 11, 1981. p. 6B.
^ "Knap resigns at UNLV, plans to grow apples" . Lewiston Morning Tribune . (Idaho). Associated Press. November 24, 1981. p. 3C.
^ "Pasadena City College Coach Harvey Hyde, 42, who guided..." UPI.com. (UPI archives). December 7, 1981. Retrieved August 13, 2022 .
^ "Transactions: college" . Reading Eagle . (Pennsylvania). December 8, 1981. p. 28.
^ "West Texas State 21, Nevada-Las Vegas 17" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . September 20, 1981. Retrieved May 2, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "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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