UNLV lost the first Battle for Nevada to UNR in 1969 but the first coat of paint on the prized Fremont Cannon was red.
That’s because the cannon — awarded to the winner of the annual rivalry game, aka the Battle for the Fremont Cannon, who paints it either red or blue — wasn’t built until 1970, when the Rebels prevailed 42-30 in the first of eight wins in the next 11 meetings between the state’s only two football-playing universities.
The schools will square off for the 42nd time at 1 p.m. Saturday at Sam Boyd Stadium, where college football’s largest and most expensive rivalry trophy — it weighs 545 pounds and cost $10,000 to build in 1970 — will be on the field.