COLLEGE FOOTBALL : What’s Defense? Nevada Victory Features 1,334 Yards of Offense

Mike Maxwell threw his fifth touchdown pass of the game to Alex Van Dyke with 14 seconds left Saturday to give Nevada a 49-45 Big West Conference victory over Louisiana Tech.

It was a game of staggering numbers for Nevada (5-2, 2-0), which had scored 115 points in its last two games, and Louisiana Tech (4-2, 1-3), which had surrendered 95 points in its last two.

The teams combined for 1,334 yards of total offense--727 for Nevada, 607 by Louisiana Tech--in a quarterback duel in which Maxwell finished with 535 yards and Tech’s Jason Martin with 455. Each had a 200-yard receiver, Van Dyke for Nevada and Chad Mackey for Tech.

The game-winning touchdown pass, which covered 13 yards, marked the third lead change in the last 1:31. After Nevada went ahead 42-38 on an 86-yard touchdown pass play from Maxwell to Van Dyke, Tech drove 80 yards in 17 seconds to take a 45-42 lead on Billy Thomas’ one-yard run.

After Thomas’ touchdown, Tech was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct and penalized 15 yards on the kickoff and Nevada took over at midfield. It took the Wolf Pack just four plays to score.