Memphis, UNLV Open Season Saturday Night on FOX

Memphis and UNLV kick off Week 0 of the college football season Saturday night at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, with kickoff scheduled for 10 p.m. ET. The game airs on FOX and streams live on FOX One. It marks the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

Both teams enter the season under conditions of change. Memphis begins the Charles Huff era after an offseason overhaul that added 81 newcomers, including 61 transfers, leaving the Tigers with an almost entirely reshaped roster. UNLV, by contrast, brings back head coach Dan Mullen for his second season after the Rebels went 10-4 in 2025 and reached the Mountain West Championship Game. Neither team has settled its starting quarterback situation heading into the opener, shifting early attention to the running backs, defensive linemen and safeties expected to carry the offensive and defensive loads. real match

Memphis will lean on redshirt senior running back Dallan Hayden, who has 1,185 career rushing yards and eight touchdowns, to provide stability behind an unproven quarterback room. On defense, the Tigers bring in J'Mond Tapp, who followed Huff from Southern Miss after recording 7.5 sacks and earning first-team All-Sun Belt honors last season. UNLV counters with running back Jai'Den Thomas, who rushed for 1,036 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2025 while averaging 7.0 yards per carry and adding 39 catches for 237 yards. Senior safety Jake Pope, who finished last season with 81 tackles, three tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, an interception and five pass breakups, anchors the Rebels' secondary against Memphis' retooled offense.

With no prior meetings between the programs, Saturday's opener offers an early measure of both coaching staffs' rebuilding efforts. UNLV aims to build on last season's Mountain West title-game appearance, while Memphis looks to establish an identity under Huff before Group of Five conference play intensifies later this fall.