Nevada Football (2-8, 1-5) ended their conference win drought of nearly two years with a 55-10 demolition of the San Jose State Spartans (3-7, 2-4) on Saturday Nov. 15. This is the Wolf Pack’s largest margin of victory since its 72-19 season opening win against Portland State in 2018.
“A win is a win,” Head Coach Jeff Choate said in a postgame press conference. “It’s nice to get some other guys opportunities to get out there and play when you have a lop-sided margin, but I wouldn’t care if it was 6-3. I would be thrilled.”
The game started with the Wolf Pack winning the coin toss and deferring to the second half. The Spartans started their opening drive on the 35-yard line after the Nevada kickoff landed out of bounds. After a short run and an incompletion forcing third down, the Pack’s defense held strong as San Jose State quarterback Walker Eget missed his target to end their drive.
Following a punt that pinned Nevada back on their own 1-yard line, running back Caleb Ramseur took two consecutive rushes for a combined total of 2 yards. On third down, quarterback Carter Jones completed his first pass of the contest to fellow quarterback Chubba Purdy. However, the unorthodox play was unable to secure a first down, forcing a punt from Nevada.
After two short gains set up 3rd-and-5 for the Spartans, Eget ripped a pass to receiver Danny Scudero, good for 11 yards and the game’s first first down. Then two incompletions and one short pass gave the San Jose offense a fourth-down decision. Electing to go for it, Eget floated a pass to the flat, intended for receiver Matthew Coleman. The pass never reached Coleman though as mike linebacker Nakian Jackson intercepted the ball, returning it all the way back for a touchdown to give Nevada the lead early. This was the Wolf Pack’s first first-quarter touchdown of the season. 7-0, 9:24 left in the First Quarter.
“That was my first pick six of my career,” Jackson said. “So that was sweet to have, but I really couldn’t even hear nothing. All I heard was the fans cheering, and then once I cut back and the QB fell, it was a wonderful feeling.”
The Spartans started their drive on the 25-yard line, following a touchback on the kickoff. On the first play of the new drive, running back Lamar Radcliffe fumbled the ball after being hit, giving Nevada their second turnover in the first quarter.
The Pack started their drive only 30 yards away from their second touchdown of the match. After an 8-yard rush from Ramseur pushed the Spartan defense back even further, Jones took a quarterback keeper 12 yards to set up first and goal. From there, Jones made a quick touch pass to an already in-motion Purdy, who then took the ball into the end zone to extend Nevada’s lead 14-0. This was Nevada’s largest lead of the season. 14-0, 6:20 left in the First Quarter.
After the Wolf Pack defense forced a quick three-and-out, returner Marcus Bellon signaled a fair catch, putting his team at their own 22-yard line. Following two short runs that brought up third down, Jones threaded a ball 16 yards up the seam to receiver Dakota Thomas. Then three short rushes brought the offense to a 4th-and-1, where a weak-side rush to Ramseur netted the Pack a first down. Then a well-blocked screen pass from Jones to Ramseur led to a 30-yard touchdown for the pack. This brought Nevada’s lead three scores with over twelve minutes to play in the first half. 21-0, 12:21 left in the Second Quarter.
The ensuing Spartan drive started with running back Steve Chavez-Soto being swallowed at the line of scrimmage by the Nevada front seven. After a short scramble from Walker on second down, safety Murvin Kenion III intercepted Walker’s third-down toss, returning the ball all the way to the Spartans’ 13-yard line. On the first play of Nevada’s possession, Purdy capitalized on his Taysom Hill-esque roll in the offense as he took a direct snap all the way into the endzone for his second touchdown of the day. The touchdown brought the Nevada point total to 28, eclipsing their season high of 22 against New Mexico in late October. 28-0, 10:49 left in the Second Quarter.
A stalled San Jose drive gave Nevada the ball and an opportunity to extend its lead. That was easier said than done, though, as the Spartan defense halted the Pack’s drive with a sack on second down. This led to a punt from Bailey Ettridge that landed in the end zone for a touchback.
The following San Jose drive drained the clock all the way down to 23 seconds before a turnover on downs handed Nevada the ball back. After an 18-yard catch and run from Jones to Thomas put the Pack into field goal range, kicker Joe McFadden drilled a 50-yard attempt to put Nevada up 31-0 going into half. The kick tied McFadden’s career long. 31-0, Halftime.
The second half began with the Pack starting their drive on the 25-yard line following a touchback. Nevada gained three first downs in four plays to start their drive, highlighted by a 20-yard rush from Ramseur that also saw a 15-yard face mask penalty from San Jose State. This put the Wolf Pack in the red zone. Two short rushes and an incompletion set the Pack up for a field goal attempt, which McFadden pushed to the right and missed.
The ensuing Spartan drive started with an agile 10-yardrun from Chavez-Soto and a 17-yard completion to receiver Kyri Shoels, then, a third down deep shot that was dropped by Shoels forced the Spartans to attempt a field goal. Kicker Mathias Brown made good on his attempt to put his team on the board. 31-3, 8:12 left in the Third Quarter.
Nevada struck back with a 75-yard, eight-play drive, capped by a physical 11-yard touchdown run from Ramseur. 38-3, 2:53 left in the Third Quarter.
A 62-yard kickoff return from returner Jahari Johnson started the Spartan drive. The drive was short-lived though as Kenion III intercepted the nation’s leading passer for a second time. Eget threw a career-high three interceptions in the loss.
After an unsuccessful drive, the Pack was forced to punt the ball away. The Spartan drive didn’t start much better, though, as a penalty and sack set up second-and-36 for backup quarterback Robert McDaniel in his collegiate debut. The San Jose offense was unable to net a first down and punted the ball back to the Wolf Pack.
Starting their drive on their own 35-yard line, the Nevada offense had no problem moving down the field, scoring in just six plays. Running back Dominic Kelly ended the drive with his 5-yard rush, good for the Pack’s sixth touchdown of the contest. 45-3, 10:57 left in the Fourth Quarter.
San Jose’s responding drive ended quickly as McDaniel’s pass was intercepted by Nevada cornerback Bryson Snelling, marking Nevada’s fourth interception of the game. The Wolf Pack only had five interceptions all season coming into the match-up.
Nevada was able to net a field goal off McFadden’s leg after regaining possession. 48-3, 4:37 left in the Fourth Quarter.
San Jose State then brought in their third quarterback of the game, Tama Amisone. He led the Spartan offense to its first red zone trip of the game. There he scored the team’s first touchdown of the game, and the first of his young career. 48-10, 1:23 left in the Fourth Quarter.
Then, with just over a minute to play in the fourth quarter, return-man Ky Woods returned the kickoff 99 yards to the house after initially muffing it. 55-10, 1:10 left in the Fourth Quarter.
Nevada’s next challenge will come against the Wyoming Cowboys (4-5, 2-3) on Nov. 22 in Laramie, WY.
