Aggressive approach
Under Sanchez, Rebels aren’t going to wait around to only pick up recruits other programs don’t want
Bobby Hauck’s overall record made it easy for recruits to ignore UNLV during the season, but his recruiting philosophy made the Rebels a complete afterthought in the offseason. Utilizing a plan favored by many an underdog, Hauck would wait until most of the recruiting decisions had been made and then do what he could with a group highlighted by guys either overlooked by or ineligible to play right away at better programs.
Tony Sanchez, who became UNLV’s head football coach after Hauck stepped down at the end of a disappointing 2-11 season in 2014, favors a different approach, and it is now in full effect as UNLV’s assistant coaches hit the road for the spring evaluation period.
“That’s our lifeblood,” Sanchez said of recruiting. “We’re being aggressive, we’re making early offers and we’re letting people know who we offer. We don’t care who we have to fight with; we’ll win some and we’ll lose some. We’re not going to hide behind the blankets anymore and go grab kids at the end.”
The Rebels already have two player commitments for the class of 2016: offensive linemen Jaron Caldwell and Julio Garcia, both of whom will follow Sanchez from Bishop Gorman. Their recruitment isn’t over — in football, keeping kids can be just as difficult as getting them to commit in the first place — but assuming they stick with UNLV, it will be the most time before enrollment that anyone has committed to the program since at least 2004, the first year Rivals.com started tracking commitment dates.
Sanchez isn’t allowed to go on the road recruiting until the fall, but his staff already has boots on the ground and stopwatches at the ready in several states to find players who can compete right away. Because as much as Sanchez is willing to concede