At its core, the 2024 UNLV football team looks a lot like the 2023 version, and that is a very good thing.
Last year’s Scarlet and Gray squad authored one of the most exciting seasons in program history, and all the familiar faces were back on the field on Saturday as UNLV opened spring practice.
Head coach Barry Odom stalked from one field to the next, overseeing the operation.
Offensive coordinator Brennan Marion put the quarterbacks, receivers and running backs through their paces.
Senior receiver Ricky White ran crisp routes and pulled down several impressive catches.
All three were question marks, in varying degrees, to return in 2024, so getting all of them back in place was a boon for an ascending program. That contributed to the buoyant mood on Saturday, as the team went through a two-hour session despite high wind gusts that made certain drills all but impossible to execute.
Though it has been more than two months since they last played a game, Odom noted that his team’s familiarity helped them hit the ground running.
“I think there is some positive energy when there is continuity coming back from year to year,” Odom said. “The habits, and really the speed and the tempo was where we need it to be.”
Odom was a constant presence in the coaching rumor mill after leading UNLV to the Mountain West championship game in his first year, and Marion was one of the hottest names among up-and-comers based on his go-go offense, which averaged 34.4 points per game in 2023.
Losing one or both would have set the program back, but White and junior linebacker Marsel McDuffie said they were not worried about either coach leaving.
“I had some nerves going, because they just got here, and when success comes, people want you,” McDuffie said. “But coach Odom told us from Day 1 that he was going to be here for this program with us. And as you can see, that hasn’t changed.”
White excelled in his first year in Marion’s offense, setting a school record for receiving yards, so he was especially thrilled to have the coordinator back, even if the high winds made it impossible for Marion to wear his trademark cowboy hat during practice.
“I’m very excited to have him back,” White said. “At no point was I worried about him or coach Odom going anywhere. They gave us their word that they were staying, and this is where they want to be. I had no worries about them leaving, and I respect them for that.”
White himself was the subject of a behind-the-scenes NIL bidding war, but he said ultimately money was not the deciding factor that kept him at UNLV.
“I feel like we have the best coaching staff in college football,” White said. “I just felt comfortable here. There was no reason for me to leave.”
Odom, Marion and White weren’t the only recognizable figures on the field at the Fertitta Football Complex. Senior linebacker Jackson Woodard commandeered the middle of the defense, looking ready to begin another All-Mountain West campaign, and senior cornerback Cameron Oliver locked down the top cornerback spot.
The entire offensive line returns as well, which should really frighten opponents, considering UNLV rushed for 39 touchdowns last year, good for second in the nation.
The one position where UNLV will likely lean on a newcomer is quarterback. After losing last year’s starter, Jayden Maiava, to the transfer portal, Odom brought in a pair of senior transfers in Hajj-Malik Williams and Matthew Sluka to duke it out for the starting job.
Sluka is a two-time finalist for the Walter Payton Award, which is given to the nation’s best player at the FCS level. He figures to be the favorite to win the quarterback competition, but he’s not on campus yet, as he’ll finish up the semester at Holy Cross before graduating and joining UNLV over the summer.
That left most of the reps for Williams on Saturday, and the sixth-year Campbell transfer showcased a live arm, even if the wind made accuracy difficult to achieve.
White isn’t sweating the quarterback situation either way. The go-go is fairly QB-friendly, and White believes he can develop a rapport with the No. 1 passer quickly.
“Not long,” White said when asked how long it would take to adjust to a new quarterback. “It’s just repetitions. Days we don’t have practice, we’re outside throwing routes on air. Days we are practicing, it’s knowing the timing and being at the right place at the right time.”
UNLV will have 14 more practices spread over the next five weeks, culminating in an open scrimmage on April 6.
Though the roster is loaded, the coaches are back, and expectations are high, McDuffie said he and his teammates are trying to focus on those 14 sessions, and not a potential postseason run with the newly expanded 12-team College Football Playoff format.
“We know it’s in front of us, and we know it’s out there, but that’s a long way down the line,” McDuffie said.
Maybe by next spring, UNLV will be familiar with a playoff push.
Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.
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