RENO, Nev. — After consecutive overtime victories over Arizona State and Iowa State, UNLV coach Mike Sanford is doing everything he can to make sure his Rebels stay grounded when Nevada arrives at Sam Boyd Stadium for Saturday night's rivalry game against Nevada.

"I would say there is some excitement (in Las Vegas), but to me, I am completely not even thinking about the last few weeks," said Sanford, whose Rebels are 3-1 and already have more victories than in any of the previous three seasons. "The only thing I'm thinking about is this game. And for us, this is the biggest game of the year."

Judging by posts to newspaper Web sites, as well as blogs and chat rooms, Rebel fans are ecstatic over the team's newfound success, which includes a 23-20 overtime victory over then-15th-ranked Arizona State in Tempe on Sept. 13.

Still, Sanford's message to his team is simple: pay no attention to the past, or the hype.

"First of all, we haven't done anything yet," said Sanford, whose Rebels will take on a Wolf Pack team that's lost two in a row, albeit to top-25 teams. "We're only four games into the season. So the first thing I would say is we haven't accomplished anything yet."

The message appears to be sinking in.

"We are (proud of the start), but we're not satisfied," said Frank "The Tank" Summers, the Rebels' 5-foot-10 senior tailback, who is listed at 230 pounds but looks closer to 250.

"We can do much better. We're improved, but those games are behind us," he told the Reno Gazette-Journal.

One thing, though, is clear. This is undoubtedly the Rebels' best chance to retake the cannon since Sanford was hired in 2005, one year after Nevada coach Chris Ault returned to the sidelines. Sanford, in his fourth season, is 0-3 in the instate rivalry game.

Those who set the lines in sportsbooks think so. The Rebels are a 4-point favorite. In 2005, UNLV was a 2-point favorite. The last two years Nevada was a 3.5 point favorite.

"I think we are an improved football team," Sanford said. "The reason, No. 1, is attitude, work ethic and leadership. And I think we have better players with better character."

Ault was asked if he thought this was UNLV's best chance to win since he returned to the sidelines. "I think it's their best team since I've come back," he said.

Ault was quick to point out that last season's game went down to the wire. Nick Graziano threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Sammons with 27 seconds left to give Nevada a 27-20 win at Mackay Stadium.

"You've got to remember, last year was a heck of a game," Ault said. "I think they faded a bit at the end of the year for whatever reason, but when they played us, they just beat Utah, 29-zip."

The loss at Nevada last year was the first of eight straight to finish the season.

This season it is the Wolf Pack that is struggling — at least in the win-loss column. The Pack is 1-2 with a lopsided win over Grambling State (49-13), a Football Championship Subdivision team; a tightly contested loss to Texas Tech (35-19), which was No. 12 at the time; and a blowout loss to Missouri (69-17), which was ranked sixth.

The record, given the opponents, is not surprising, but it's difficult to know yet if the feeling in Wolf Pack camp — that this squad is improved over last season's 6-7 team — is accurate or not.

It should come as no shock that Sanford is expecting a very good Nevada team to line up.

"I think they have really good players," he said. "I think they're very physical and very tough, and they're also athletic. We've got to bring everything we've got."