Matthew Sluka spoils debut of Houston coach Willie Fritz as UNLV rolls past Cougars 27-7 in opener

HOUSTON (AP) — Matthew Sluka threw for 71 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 59 yards as UNLV beat Houston 27-7 Saturday night in the season opener for both teams and Willie Fritz’s first game as the Cougars’ coach.

Sluka, who was 6-of-13 passing, threw touchdown passes of 13 and 24 yards to Jacob De Jesus in the first half as the Rebels (1-0) led 14-0 at the half.

“I thought he managed (the game) well and … it seemed like on the headsets, the things I was hearing the offense talk about, I thought he made good decisions,” UNLV coach Barry Odom said of Sluka. “We’ve got a number of playmakers on that side of the ball, and the thing we need the quarterback to do is we need him to be a playmaker as well but also distribute the ball, be efficient with it, don’t turn it over and make really good reads.”

Jalen Catalon, who finished with two interceptions, had a 36-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter.

“He’s a playmaker,” UNLV linebacker Jackson Woodard said of Catalon. “He went out and made a play.”

Michael Allen rushed for 65 yards and Jaden Braden caught two passes for 60 yards. UNLV outgained Houston 308-247 yards.

UNLV got its first win over a Big 12 team since beating Iowa State 34-31 in overtime on Sep. 20, 2008.

“It’s good to see a win on the road,” Odom said. “I’m more excited about that than I am the logo of the school.”

Donovan Smith finished 15-of-30 passing for 135 yards with two interceptions. Mekhi Mews caught three passes for 57 yards for Houston (0-1).

“Very disappointing,” Fritz said. “I thought we’d play better than that. I did a poor coaching job as a head coach. Poor job by my assistant coaches and poor job playing. I didn’t see much good out there.”

The Cougars avoided a shutout on a 2-yard touchdown pass from sophomore backup Ui Ale to Joseph Manjack IV with a minute left in the fourth quarter. Ale was 7 of 8 for 74 yards and a touchdown on the drive.

THE TAKEAWAY

UNLV: The Rebels dominated both lines of scrimmage. UNLV rushed for 195 yards. The UNLV defense finished with 10 tackles for loss, including six sacks. Jackson Woodard finished with 11 tackles, including three sacks.

“I thought defensively, we played relentless all night,” Odom said. “I thought up front on the offensive line, we controlled the game.”

Houston: The Cougars struggled with UNLV’s rush throughout. Houston had 59 yards in the first half. The Cougars finished 2 of 15 on third downs.

“We didn’t tackle really well at the beginning of the game,” Fritz said. “That hurt us. We didn’t get some knock-backs. They knocked us back. Then, offensively, boy, we had a hard time protecting.”

UP NEXT

UNLV: Hosts Utah Tech on Saturday.

Houston: At No. 16 Oklahoma on Saturday.

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Jeremy Rakes, The Associated Press