Believe it or not: UNLV in Jan. 1 bowl

[Harry]

Rest assured, there isnt an ounce of dismay around UNLV today.

Four years after he arrived from one of those deep fishing holes in Montana, the ones were he might stand in the middle of a blizzard to cast his line for a trout he most always would release, Bobby Hauck has led UNLV into somewhat uncharted waters.

This is just the fourth time in program history the Rebels will go bowling and the first in nearly three decades they will do so in another state, thanks to a 7-5 record in which Haucks team won more games than the previous three years combined.

The opponent is also one of college footballs feel-good stories of 2013, a program much like UNLV that has rebuilt itself from the ashes of obscurity. North Texas finished third in the West Division of Conference USA and won six of its last seven games.

It seems like a good time, then, to learn a little about the Mean Green:

▶ The University of North Texas is located in Denton, near the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex between Oklahoma and Texas on Interstate 35. It lies on the southern end of what is commonly referred to as Tornado Alley, meaning Smatresk could move into his new house one day and be a modern-day Dorothy flying his way to Oz the next. Which I suppose would make Gerry Bomotti the Wicked Financial Witch of the East.

▶ You can drive from the middle of campus to Cotton Bowl Stadium in 50 minutes on a clear day, meaning the Mean Green should have a decided advantage in seats filled. Hauck on a conference call Sunday evening said he hopes North Texas brings all of Denton and any neighboring counties, because if one thing looks better on television than a New Years Day bowl, its one with actual people cheering it.

Read more: http://www.reviewjournal.com/columns-blogs/ed-graney/believe-it-or-not-unlv-jan-1-bowl

[Christopher Walker]

That was some actually entertaining writing for once.

[THOR]

Love vegas...got married there...read their paper o line almost daily...The wife already said she was buying a unlv shirt at the bowl game...After she buys a north Texas shirt...

Hell.. I'm trying to get one of my kids to go to unlv...love the city...but the football team sucks donkey balls!!!

Edited December 11, 2013 by THOR

[Greenrex]

I spent tree weeks there one night.

[oldguystudent]

I freaking love Vegas. Used to go about every other month. Knew the staff at The Plaza poker room personally, and usually paid about $20 a night for rooms on weekends.

Some people get all zen empty headed reduced stress and anxiety by doing pilates, meditating, seeking spiritual enlightenment.

I always found that a nice three-day drinking/smoking/gambling/high starch buffets/footlong hotdogs of questionable makeup/no sleeping binge always did the trick to clear my head right up. Given that Vegas was a short four-hour jaunt up I-15, and that it was pretty cheap to go, the thought of the next trip on the calendar generally served to soothe even my most stressful workdays.

Somehow, Winstar just doesn't have the same effect, and the $4 billion dollar rooms in Shreveport make that place lose luster.

The locals actually do follow UNLV football there. Not like they do UNLV basketball, but they do follow football, although it's more of a Fouts era tailgate/drunken/scantily clad coed with beer sales in the stadium bacchanal type deal than it is about actual football.

[foutsrouts]

"The University of North Texas is located in Denton, near the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex between Oklahoma and Texas on Interstate 35."

Wow, I never even noticed that our campus is located under the I-35 Red River bridge.

[Cerebus]

The locals actually do follow UNLV football there. Not like they do UNLV basketball, but they do follow football, although it's more of a Fouts era tailgate/drunken/scantily clad coed with beer sales in the stadium bacchanal type deal than it is about actual football.

Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

[oldguystudent]

Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

I had to shut down my newsletter after losing 80% of my subscribers when I declared the Heart of Dallas bowl to be of intrigue.