1971 UNLV Rebels football team

1971 UNLV Rebels football
1971 UNLV Rebels football
Conference	Independent
Record	5–4–1
Head coach	Bill Ireland (4th season);
Home stadium	Butcher Field; Las Vegas Stadium
	Seasons ← 1970 1972 →

The 1971 UNLV Rebels football team was an American football team that represented the University of Nevada, Las Vegas as an independent during the 1971 NCAA College Division football season. In their fourth year under head coach Bill Ireland, the team compiled a record of 5–4–1.^[1]

1971 NCAA College Division independents football records
v t e	Conf.			Overall
Team	W	L	T	W		L		T
No. 1 Delaware		–		10	–	1	–	0
No. 5 Tennessee State		–		9	–	1	–	0
No. 2 McNeese State		–		9	–	1	–	1
Samford		–		8	–	1	–	0
Colorado College		–		7	–	1	–	0
No. 8 Akron		–		8	–	2	–	0
No. 3 Eastern Michigan		–		7	–	1	–	2
Arkansas AM&N		–		7	–	2	–	0
Indiana (PA)		–		7	–	2	–	0
Kentucky State		–		8	–	3	–	0
Appalachian State		–		7	–	3	–	1
Northern Michigan		–		7	–	3	–	0
Hawaii		–		7	–	4	–	0
Illinois College		–		5	–	3	–	0
Ashland		–		6	–	4	–	0
Santa Clara		–		6	–	4	–	0
Southern Illinois		–		6	–	4	–	0
Tampa		–		6	–	5	–	0
UNLV		–		5	–	4	–	1
Bucknell		–		5	–	5	–	0
Central Michigan		–		5	–	5	–	0
Milwaukee		–		5	–	5	–	0
Nevada		–		5	–	5	–	0
St. Norbert		–		5	–	5	–	0
Wayne State (MI)		–		4	–	4	–	0
Hofstra		–		5	–	6	–	0
Cortland		–		4	–	5	–	0
Northeastern		–		4	–	5	–	0
Portland State		–		4	–	5	–	0
Ball State		–		4	–	5	–	1
Chicago		–		3	–	4	–	0
Northeast Louisiana		–		4	–	6	–	1
Eastern Illinois		–		4	–	6	–	0
Indiana State		–		4	–	6	–	0
Saint Mary's		–		3	–	5	–	0
Rose-Hulman		–		3	–	6	–	0
Boston University		–		3	–	7	–	0
Drexel		–		2	–	6	–	0
Chattanooga		–		2	–	9	–	0

Rankings from AP small college poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 18	Adams State	Butcher Field Las Vegas, NV	W 38–0	6,200
September 25	at Utah State	Romney Stadium Logan, UT	L 7–27	10,640
October 9	Santa Clara	Butcher Field Las Vegas, NV	W 23–14	6,000
October 16	at Northern Arizona	Lumberjack Stadium Flagstaff, AZ	L 7–20	3,000–4,500	^[2]
October 23	Weber State	Las Vegas Stadium Whitney, NV	L 17–30	10,200	^[3]
October 30	New Mexico Highlands	Las Vegas Stadium Whitney, NV	W 55–31	5,500
November 6	Cal Poly	Las Vegas Stadium Whitney, NV	L 3–13	4,762–6,500	^[4]^[5]^[6]
November 13	North Dakota	Las Vegas Stadium Whitney, NV	T 17–17	7,600
November 20	at Nevada	Mackay Stadium Reno, NV (Fremont Cannon)	W 24–13	5,200–6,000	^[7]
November 27	University of Mexico	Las Vegas Stadium Whitney, NV	W 63–6	5,400–5,500

The following Rebels were drafted in the 1972 NFL draft.^[9] ^[10]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL team
16	403	Nate Hawkins	Wide receiver	Pittsburgh Steelers

↑ "UNLV 2020 Football Guide" (PDF). University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 2020. p. 129. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
↑ "Loggers like snow, ground Nevada, 20–7". The Arizona Republic. October 17, 1971. Retrieved December 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Butler leads Wildcats past Nevada–Las Vegas by 30–17". The Ogden Standard-Examiner. October 24, 1971. Retrieved December 14, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "San Jose St. Shocks San Diego St., 45-7". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. November 7, 1971. p. D-18. Retrieved February 22, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
↑ "Final 1971 Cumulative Football Statistics Report (Cal Poly)". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
↑ "Cal Poly Football; 2016 Media Guide". Retrieved January 12, 2017.
↑ "Final 1971 Cumulative Football Statistics Report (Nevada)". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved May 23, 2022.
↑ "Cumulative Football Statistics Report (UNLV)". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
↑ "1972 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 3, 2026.
↑ "UNLV Drafted Players/Alumni". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 3, 2026.