On August 10, 2020, the Mountain West Conference suspended all fall sports competitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] On September 24, 2020, the Mountain West Conference resumed all fall sports competitions. Due to scheduling issues with the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium, UNLV moved its September 5, 2020 home game to Sam Boyd Stadium, but the game was later canceled.[3]
On November 18, the Mountain West canceled UNLV's scheduled game on November 21 against Colorado State due to contact tracing of COVID-19 cases within the UNLV program.[6] On December 2, the conference canceled the Rebels' scheduled game on December 4 against Boise State due to COVID-19 protocols.[7]
The Mountain West media days were originally scheduled to take place from July 27–29, 2020 virtually, but were canceled.[11]
Media poll
The preseason poll was released on July 21, 2020. The Rebels were predicted to finish in sixth place in the MW West Division.[12] The divisions were later suspended for the 2020 season.