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For the Rebels, a Day Among Legends

Harry

By Harry
in Mean Green Football

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Harry Veteran

Harry

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The crowd of 38,380 seemed sparse in the 92,100-seat Cotton Bowl, and seemingly more than 38,000 of those fans were wearing their North Texas green, filling the stands behind their team’s sideline from end zone to end zone, not surprising with the campus located about 45 minutes from the stadium. Small clumps of Rebel red did their best to buoy UNLV, a near-touchdown underdog.

The teams’ honorary captains were announced for the pregame coin toss, the first of many times the Rebels were outclassed on the field that day: UNLV’s representative was former cornerback Kevin Thomas, a decent enough player who had one interception in 24 career games with the Buffalo Bills. North Texas, meanwhile, was honored with the presence of Mean Green legend, Pro Football Hall of Famer and iconic Coca-Cola pitchman “Mean” Joe Greene, who still looked like he could sack someone at the age of 67. UNLV President Neal Smatresk gave Rebel fans the next cheer, though, one month before he takes over as North Texas’ president, when his ceremonial coin toss came up UNLV’s way.

The crowd was quiet early, when the Rebels drove 95 yards for a touchdown to take a 7-0 lead on their first possession. And when the Mean Green were stopped on their next drive, it seemed like it might be UNLV’s day. But then the Rebels’ Keith Whitely muffed the punt, and North Texas parlayed the gift into a game-tying touchdown. UNLV never did regain its swagger.

- See more at: http://vegasseven.com/2014/01/07/rebels-day-among-legends/#sthash.hZopVXWE.dpuf

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KRAM1 Newbie

KRAM1

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I like the last line in the first paragraph of the article. "Some how it seemed a more prestigious trip than the Las Vegas bowl... "

And that from a Las Vegas sports writer!

New Year's Day Bowls always seem to have a bit of a prestige about them.

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