Date Opponent Site Result Attendance Source September 5 at San Jose State W 16–617,112
September 12 New Mexico W 49–4225,605
September 19 West Texas State Las Vegas Silver Bowl Whitney, NV L 17–2124,560 [ 7]
September 26 Long Beach State Las Vegas Silver Bowl Whitney, NV W 32–3125,080
October 3 at Wyoming L 21–4523,793
October 10 at No. 8 BYU W 45–4139,852 [ 3]
October 24 Utah Las Vegas Silver Bowl Whitney, NV L 28–6927,883
October 31 at Hawaii L 21–5746,153
November 7 at Fresno State L 26–4216,241
November 14 San Diego State Las Vegas Silver Bowl Whitney, NV L 20–3823,090
November 21 Air Force Las Vegas Silver Bowl Whitney, NV W 24–2122,574 [ 8]
November 28 at UTEP W 27–20 3,214
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
1981 UNLV Rebels football team roster
Players
Coaches
Offense
Defense
Special teams
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
^ "1981 UNLV Rebels Schedule and Results" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved December 20, 2020 .
^ "UNLV 2020 Football Guide" (PDF) . University of Nevada, Las Vegas. 2020. p. 130. Retrieved December 20, 2020 .
^ a b "Vegas shocks BYU, 45-41" . Eugene Register-Guard . (Oregon). wire service reports. October 11, 1981. p. 6B.
^ "Knap resigns at UNLV, plans to grow apples" . Lewiston Morning Tribune . (Idaho). Associated Press. November 24, 1981. p. 3C.
^ "Pasadena City College Coach Harvey Hyde, 42, who guided..." UPI.com. (UPI archives). December 7, 1981. Retrieved August 13, 2022 .
^ "Transactions: college" . Reading Eagle . (Pennsylvania). December 8, 1981. p. 28.
^ "West Texas State 21, Nevada-Las Vegas 17" . Fort Worth Star-Telegram . September 20, 1981. Retrieved May 2, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
^ "Nevada-Las Vegas 24, Air Force 21" . The Arizona Republic . November 22, 1981. p. G2. Retrieved October 20, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .