College Football News Preview 2021: Previewing, predicting, and looking ahead to the Nevada season with what you need to know.
– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Keys To The Season
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Nevada Wolf Pack Schedule Analysis
– Nevada Wolf Pack Previews
2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2020 Record: 7-2 overall, 6-2 in MW
Head Coach: Jay Norvell, 5th year, 25-22 overall
2020 CFN Final Ranking: 57
2020 CFN Preview Ranking: 95
2019 CFN Final Ranking: 74
Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: Offense
– The offense was fun, it was explosive, and it finished second in the Mountain West averaging 441 yards and 31 points per game. It was very, very good – now it has to be unstoppable with all 11 starters expected back and a whole lot of talent ready to mature into something special, and it starts with …
– Carson Strong. The Wolf Pack have a rising pro prospect who started out his career trying to bail out the defense with lots of yards and big plays, but last season he was sharp throwing 27 touchdown passes and just four picks. The reigning Mountain West Player of the Year has the top targets back to keep it all going.
Romeo Doubs was unstoppable early last year and finished with over 1,000 yards, averaging over 17 yards per catch. He’s back along with field-stretching tight end Cole Turner – who finished second on the team in receiving and caught nine touchdown passes – and all of the young wideouts are back, too.
If that wasn’t enough, Elijah Cooks is back after leading the 2019 team with 76 catches for 926 yards and eight scores – but he missed last year. And …
– Again, everyone is expected to be back, and that includes the offensive line that didn’t have to do much for the ground game and was good enough for the passing attack. It’s a decent-sized front around 6-5, 310-pound all-star tackle Aaron Frost.
Toa Taua only seems like he’s been around since the Chris Ault era. The team’s top rusher over the last three seasons combines with 235-pound Devonte Lee to give the Wolf Pack a strong 1-2 punch that averaged over five yards per pop. Taua can catch, too.
– What You Need To Know: Defense
– Top Players | Keys To The Season
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Nevada Wolf Pack Schedule Analysis
NEXT: Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: Defense
4. Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: Defense
– For Nevada, the defense wasn’t bad. It’s the program that got hit for 415 points in the 13 games of 2019, allowed 30 points or more in nine of the previous 15 games before last year, and struggled year after year. The 2020 version was still a problem at times, but it only allowed more than 30 points once and was solid against the run.
And now ten starters are expected back – maybe 11 depending on the alignment.
– It starts up front with all-star defensive tackle Dom Peterson and end Sam Hammond, two active pass rushers who have been around long enough to anchor the D. There’s not a whole lot of size up front, but there’s returning experience and enough depth to come up with one of the better rotations the program has had in years.
– The secondary should be stronger. Tyson Williams was second on the team with 56 tackles, and there are more options for the other four spots with USF’s Bentlee Sanders and Wake Forest’s Isaiah Essissima coming in from the transfer portal to push for gigs. Berdale Robins is a good veteran corner to anchor one off the jobs.
Senior LB Lawson Hall led the team with 65 tackles on the inside, Daiyan Henley was third won the squad with 49 stops on the outside, and there’s depth for the 4-2-5 alignment. They can all get behind the line if needed.
– What You Need To Know: Offense
– Top Players | Keys To The Season
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Nevada Wolf Pack Schedule Analysis
NEXT: Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: Top Players
Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: Top Players
Best Nevada Wolf Pack Offensive Player
QB Carson Strong, Jr.
The 6-4, 215-pounder introduced himself to the world with a 295-yard, three touchdown performance in the shocking win over Purdue to start the 2019 season.
He was good, and then last year he went off, hitting 70% of his passes for 2,858 yard and 27 touchdowns with four touchdowns. He roared through the season, but the team didn’t win when he didn’t throw for more than 260 yards.
2. WR Romeo Doubs, Sr.
3. TE Cole Turner, Sr.
4. WR Elijah Cooks, Sr.
5. RB Toa Taua, Sr.
Best Nevada Wolf Pack Defensive Player
LB Lawson Hall, Sr.
Flip a coin between Hall and DT Dom Peterson for the top defensive player honor. Peterson has been a terror at getting into the backfield from the interior, but the 6-0, 235-pound Hall is the leader and star of the show with 180 tackles, 4.5 sacks, and 16 tackles for loss in his career.
The All-Mountain West performer is built for the inside as a tough guy who blasts against the run. Be shocked if he doesn’t lead the team in tackles again.
2. DT Dom Peterson, Sr.
3. DE Sam Hammond, Sr.
4. S Tyson Williams, Sr.
5. CB Berdale Robins, Sr.
Top Incoming Nevada Wolf Pack Transfer
(tie) CB Isaiah Essissima & CB Bentlee Sanders
The Wolf Pack have veteran quarters, and Berdale Robins is a good one, but the pass defense needs more playmakers. Sanders comes in from USF and could end up working at safety, but Essissima is a corner from Wake Forest who should be an instant impact factor.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Keys To The Season
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Nevada Wolf Pack Schedule Analysis
NEXT: Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: Keys To The Season
Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: Keys To The Season
Nevada Wolf Pack Biggest Key: Offense
It would be nice if the running game could do a bit more. It’s impossible to not want an NFL-caliber passer like Carson Strong winning it around all game long, but the Wolf Pack have running backs, too.
Strong doesn’t add anything to the ground game, but with all five starters expected back up front, and with Toa Taua and Devonte Lee in the backfield, it’s okay to keep feeding the big backs the ball.
However, the Pack lost to Hawaii when it ran for 208 yards – it only ran for over 200 yards in the bowl win over Tulane. The program is 6-1 over the last two years when it hits the 140 yard mark.
Nevada Wolf Pack Biggest Key: Defense
The pass defense has to be tighter and make more big plays. Nevada is built to bomb away with everyone, but its two defeats came on two of the roughest days of the year by the secondary.
The Pack came up with three interceptions in the bowl win over Tulane, and three over the other eight games of the regular season.
More than that, the pass D got hit for too many big plays in the loss to San Jose State – it was the only time all year that the it allowed over ten yards per pass – and Hawaii had the second best yard-per-pass day on Nevada as Chevan Cordeiro hit 81% of his throws for 246 yards and a score in the win.
Nevada Wolf Pack Key Player To A Successful Season
OT Jacob Gardner, Soph.
Too much is put on the left tackle to keep the quarterback in one piece. It takes all five starters in the modern football world to keep defenses out of the backfield, but it’s still the guy on the left side who has the spotlight on.
The 6-4, 300-pound Gardner got thrown to the wolves right away last year and showed off his upside as a potential star. The talent is there to be special.
Nevada Wolf Pack Key Game To The 2021 Season
at San Diego State, Nov. 13
Yeah, the Mountain West opener at Boise State is going to be a tone-setter as a possible preview of the conference title game, and yeah, beating San Jose State this time around might matter as much for the West Division title as it did last year.
However, as good as SJSU might be, and as big as several of the other games are going to be, the trip to San Diego State in mid-November should be the Wolf Pack’s most important date. Nevada beat the Aztecs last year 26-21, making it three in a row after losing three in a row in the series.
– Nevada Wolf Pack Schedule Analysis
2020 Nevada Wolf Pack Fun Stats
– Penalties: Nevada 72 for 625 yards – Opponents 49 for 400 yards
– Fumbles: Nevada 11 (lost 5) – Opponents 6 (lost 3)
– Passing Yards Per Game: Nevada 319 – Opponents 240
NEXT: Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: What Will Happen, Season Prediction
Nevada Wolf Pack College Football Preview 2021: What Will Happen, Season Prediction
Was that the real Nevada or was that a mirage?
It was a strong 2020 under Jay Norvell. The passing game was wonderful, the defense had improved, and the building that had been done over a few years started to pay off.
There were two road losses – one was a close battle at Hawaii and the other a good fight against eventual Mountain West champ San Jose State – and the bowl win over Tulane was a potentially great tone-setter going forward.
However, outside of the win over the Green Wave, there wasn’t a whole lot to chirp about. There was a win over a mediocre Fresno State squad, and ….
That was about it. None of the seven victories came against a team that finished with a winning record.
Set The Nevada Wolf Pack Regular Season Win Total At … 8
Norvell has been strong since taking over, getting through a rough first season to go 22-13 over the last three seasons.
Now he’s got a loaded team in place with – potentially – 21 starters returning along with a few all-star kickers. He’s also got a rising NFL prospect in Carson Strong to go with what might be the best receiving corps of any Power Five program.
Even so, going on the road to Cal, Kansas State, Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Colorado State will all be challenging. However, if this is the Nevada team it should be – with all the talent and experience coming together – it should be able to win at least half of those.
Getting seven wins or more for a fourth straight season is a must, going to a bowl game should be a given, and winning the Mountain West title for the first time ever is the realistic expectation.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Keys To The Season
– Nevada Wolf Pack Schedule Analysis
