Sports Illustrated’s tribute to Jerry Tarkanian places UNLV within his wider coaching career and the history of college basketball. The Runnin’ Rebels’ success made Las Vegas a recurring part of the national conversation long before the city became an NFL and NHL home.
The piece also examines Tarkanian’s relationship with the college sports establishment. That tension is part of the historical record, alongside the players, style of play and championships. A UNLV history limited to a trophy date misses why the programme drew such strong attention. This remembrance supplies context for the era and a route into the magazine’s college basketball reporting.
Always A Rebel: Jerry Tarkanian was college sports' original honest man
Sports Illustrated
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