Hajj-Malik Williams has been infinitely better than Matthew Sluka as the starting quarterback of the UNLV Rebels football team. The former made the latter look extremely foolish for bailing on his team.
Meanwhile, the coaching staff in Las Vegas is likely thrilled that he is gone!
Sluka made the shocking decision to enter the transfer portal after an upset win over Kansas in Week 3. UNLV was 3-0. The Rebels were in great position to make the College Football Playoff as the highest-ranked program from a conference outside of the ACC, SEC, Big Ten and Big 12.
Depending on who you ask, Sluka was promised NIL money that never hit his bank account. Circa, the largest sportsbook in the United States, offered to pony up whatever sum was necessary to keep him around. Head coach Barry Odom and UNLV respectfully declined. They didn’t want to negotiate.
As a result, Sluka decided to sit out the rest of the year with plans to transfer in the offseason and take advantage of his final year of eligibility in 2025 at a different school.
The Rebels are better off without him. Williams, a former four-year starter at Campbell, has been exceptional in the exact same amount of time. UNLV dominated Fresno State and Utah State but lost to Syracuse in overtime during his first three games as the starter.
Matthew Sluka was a fantastic runner but completed only 43.8% of his passes for 318 yards in three games. Williams is not only averaging the same amount of yards per carry, he is the most efficient passer in the country during this stretch.
The 6-foot-1, 205-pound quarterback is 47-of-61 for 642 yards and nine touchdowns with one interception. His passer efficiency rating is 210.87, which ranks No. 1 in all of college football.
- Hajj-Malik Williams — 210.87
- Jalen Milroe — 201.21
- Arch Manning — 200.49
- Jaxson Dart — 297.86
- Kurtis Rourke — 192.10
- Drew Allar — 187.56
- Cam Ward — 182.43
- Thomas Castellanos — 181.17
- Will Howard — 178.02
- Joe Fagano — 174.71
The Rebels are still on track for the Playoff at this point. Hajj-Malik Williams is balling.
Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea for Sluka to leave? Or, maybe, he got out ahead of an inevitable benching once the coaching staff realized its backup was better?