The UNLV football team has won three straight games, but its more impressive streak has come on the scoreboard outside of town.

Thanks to a fortunate string of losses to playoff rivals across the country, UNLV now has its postseason fate in its own hands as it heads to Saturday’s home opener against UNR (5 p.m., CBS Sports Network).

Last weekend was a big one for the Scarlet and Gray as Army lost at Notre Dame and Colorado State fell at Fresno State. And Thanksgiving brought another bounty as Tulane lost its home finale to Memphis 34-24.

Just like that, three teams ahead of UNLV – either in the Mountain West rankings or in the College Football Playoff rankings – have fallen behind in the last six days, giving Barry Odom’s team a very sudden and very direct path to first place in the CFP. field: two wins and UNLV is there.

Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than to do good. Of course, UNLV is good too. The Scarlet and Gray enter the Fremont Cannon game at 9-2, and their conference record of 5-1 means they are one win away from securing a spot in the MWC title game, Dec. 6 in Boise State will be held.

Odom has been consistent throughout the year, from media day in July to his press conference in Week 12, that the Mountain West champion will be in the CFP field of 12, and he was ultimately proven correct.

UNLV entered the CFP rankings last week at No. 24, trailing only then-No. 12 Boise State, No. 19 Army and No. 20 Tulane among the Group of 5 teams. Army’s loss at Notre Dame eliminated the Knights from the rankings, leaving only Tulane for a possible play-in game between UNLV and Boise State.

Tulane entered Thursday’s game against No. 17 Memphis, five spots ahead of No. 22 UNLV. Had the Green Wave won that contest and the AAC championship game, UNLV probably wouldn’t have been able to surpass them; Luckily for the Scarlet and Gray, Memphis took a 17-10 halftime lead and extended its lead to 34-13 early in the fourth quarter, no doubt sparking a bit of a celebration at the Fertitta Football Complex.

UNLV still has its game against UNR to worry about on Saturday, but it’s hard to imagine Odom allowing his team to stumble in the process, especially with so much at stake. The Scarlet and Gray are 18-point favorites and beat UNR 45-27 last year in Reno.

Odom doesn’t want his players calculating playoff scenarios; He just wants them to play well on Saturday, win the cannon and check the table after everything is sorted out.

“We’re working hard to get to the point where we’re just playing our best ball,” Odom said. “If we can do that here, I think the results will take care of themselves.”

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or (email protected). Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.