As has been the case for more than two decades, UNLV will, once again, start more than one player under center in a season.
Monday night, UNLV confirmed that Armani Rogers will be sidelined indefinitely because of a foot injury. The quarterback sustained the injury in the fourth quarter of the Sept. 22 loss to Arkansas State.
While Rogers is 123rd (out of 125 listed by the NCAA) in passing efficiency, his 122 yards rushing per game are eighth nationally at the FBS level. Per the school, the sophomore is already second in program history for rushing yards by a quarterback with 1,268.
With Rogers sidelined for the foreseeable future, the Rebels will turn to Max Gilliam as their next starter. Gilliam was originally a four-star member of Cal’s 2016 recruiting class who transferred from the Golden Bears in May of last year and, after spending one season at the junior college level, ultimately ended up at UNLV.
Gilliam has attempted just one pass this season.
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Rogers’ injury continues an unwanted trend at the position for the Rebels. “Not since Jon Denton in 1996 has a UNLV quarterback started every game of a season,” the newspaper wrote.
The 2-2 Rebels, coming off their bye, will open league play this weekend as they play host to Mountain West Conference foe New Mexico.