UNLV’s first football team took the field on Sept. 14, 1968, when the school was still known as Nevada Southern University. The Rebels were coached by UNR graduate Bill Ireland.

Playing its opener at the old Cashman Field, NSU defeated St. Mary’s College from California 27-20 before 8,000 fans. Ireland’s squad was led by quarterback Bill Casey, who also punted for the Rebels in his one year with the team. The team would win its first eight games over teams such as Auzasa Pacific, San Francisco, and UC San Diego. The 69-0 drubbing of Cal Tech on Oct. 26 still stands as the biggest victory margin in UNLV history. Hopes for a perfect season were spoiled, however, in the season finale when Cal Lutheran came to Las Vegas and downed the upstart Rebels 17-13 on Nov. 23.

The Rebels of 1968 wore a silver helmet with a logo shaped like a football filled with a Confederate Flag design. However, that decal was quickly replaced with a more appropriate emblem in time for the next season as NSU officially became UNLV in 1969.

(Below) The inaugural team celebrates the end of the season with Mr. Las Vegas himself, Wayne Newton.