LAS VEGAS — Ka’Deem Carey rushed for 171 yards and two touchdowns in his much-anticipated return Saturday night for Arizona, leading the Wildcats to a 58-13 win over UNLV.
The junior all-American, who was suspended for the team’s season-opener as discipline reportedly stemming from a pair of off-field incidents during the offseason, didn’t enter the game until the second quarter, but outrushed UNLV’s entire team by halftime, 110-69.
The Wildcats wasted no time in establishing its presence, scoring on three of its first four possessions – all in the first quarter.
With his team ahead 17-6, Carey scored on his first touch of the season, powering through UNLV’s defensive line and finishing the run untouched for a 58-yard score with 14:28 left in the first half. Carey, last season’s NCAA-leading rusher with 1,929 yards, then capped an 11-play, 63-yard drive on Arizona’s next possession with a 12-yard scoring run.
Arizona quarterback B.J. Denker wasn’t named the team’s official starter after the season-opener against NAU last week, but coach Rich Rodriguez gave him the nod against UNLV. Denker may have locked up the job for the season after rushing for 60 yards and two touchdowns in addition to completing 8 of 21 pass attempts for 81 yards. Daniel Jenkins added 82 yards on 17 attempts for the Wildcats.
Arizona (2-0) tallied 306 yards rushing in its season opener against Northern Arizona last week and followed that with 397 yards on the ground against the Rebels (0-2), who allowed Minnesota to rush for 221 yards in their season opener.
The Wildcats’ defense came up big for a second-straight week as well. Both of UNLV quarterback Nick Sherry’s interceptions were returned for touchdowns, including Tra’Mayne Bondurant’s third pick of the season.
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