UNLV vs. Fresno Line Movements Have Been Crazy

BetOnline has released its line movement on the UNLV vs. Frenso State game, featuring quite the swing.  And this was all before Thursday.

Timeline of UNLV vs. Fresno spread (courtesy of BetOnline)...

9/22 afternoon: UNLV -4.5 (open)

9/22 evening: UNLV -4

9/23 morning: UNLV -3.5

9/24 evening: UNLV -3

9/25 midnight: UNLV -2.5

9/25 early morning: UNLV -1

9/25 morning: Fresno -2

9/25 lunch: UNLV -1

9/25 current: UNLV -1.5

And here's the best part.  Sagarin Ratings suggests UNLV should be a -7.5 favorite.

The Sagarin number does not take into account the chaos occurring in Las Vegas. The wild line swings are more reflective of what is going on.

UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka has decided to sit out the rest of the season over a $100,000 NIL payment that was promised but never paid after he agreed to transfer to the Rebels from Holy Cross last winter, Sluka’s agent told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

“I think there was some kind of breakdown in communication,” Bob Sluka, Matthew’s father, told AP.

Sluka’s decision sent shockwaves throughout major college football, where the old rules of amateurism have fallen, leaving schools and the NCAA grappling with how to regulate the way players can be paid. Just how much regulation is part of a $2.8 billion antitrust settlement agreement involving the NCAA and the nation’s top conferences that is before a federal judge in California.

UNLV issued a statement accusing Sluka’s representative of making “financial demands upon the university and its NIL collective in order to continue playing.”

“UNLV athletics interpreted these demands as a violation of the NCAA pay-for-play rules, as well as Nevada state law,” the school said. “UNLV does not engage in such activity, nor does it respond to implied threats. UNLV has honored all previously agreed-upon scholarships for Matthew Sluka.”

The Rebels (3-0) have already beaten two power conference schools (Houston and Kansas). 

Hajj-Malik Williams, a record-setting passer and runner in the FCS, will start for the College Football Playoff-chasing Rebels on Saturday against Fresno State.