College Football Preview – UTEP Miners vs. UTSA Roadrunners

The UTSA Roadrunners are unbeaten through the first two months of the college football season. That accomplishment has led to Jeff Traylor getting a massive 10-year contract extension, making him one of the highest paid coaches in the Group of Five. UTSA has a good chance to run the table and finish 12-0, but the UTEP Miners would love to hand them their first loss of the season.

College Football Betting Odds

UTSA -11

UTEP +11

Total 53

UTSA went on the road to upset Illinois in its season opener. The Roadrunners also secured a big road win over Memphis before conference play kicked off in earnest, and then survived scares from UNLV and Western Kentucky. They absolutely blitzed Rice and Louisiana Tech in their last two games though, winning by a combined score of 90-16 and easily covering the college football betting odds in the process.

The Miners are bowl eligible at 6-2, but they have played one of the weakest schedules in college football. Their five wins over FBS opponents came against teams with a combined record of 9-31. They were hammered by Boise State early in the year, but they nearly knocked off Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton last week despite being a double-digit underdog.

When UTSA Has the Ball

Frank Harris has been one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the country. He is completing 68.6% of his passes for 8.1 YPA with 16 touchdowns and three interceptions. Harris is the second leading rusher on the Roadrunners too, and he has three talented receivers to target in the passing game.

The ground game is led by Sincere McCormick. McCormick should surpass 1,000 yards for the season on Saturday, and he is averaging 4.7 YPC for UTSA. He has an outside chance to run for 4,000 yards in his first three seasons with the Roadrunners, and he will go down as the greatest running back in the school’s short history.

UTEP has a very good defense at first glance. The Miners are allowing 19.3 PPG and 290.4 YPG, ranking among the top schools in the country. They are surrendering just 2.9 YPC, but they rank 97^th in Defensive SP+.

When UTEP Has the Ball

The Miners don’t do a great job moving the ball on offense. Gavin Hardison is completing 55.9% of his passes for 9.2 YPA with 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Jacob Cowing is easily his top receiver, and Justin Garrett is the only other real option despite Tyrin Smith’s breakout game last week against the Owls.

UTEP is averaging just 3.9 YPC. That has led to the Miners ranking 110^th in Offensive SP+. Leading rusher Ronald Awatt started the season strong, but he has averaged more than 3.1 YPC just once in the Miners’ last six games.

The Roadrunners are allowing just 2.5 YPC. UTSA does not have a great pass defense, surrendering 8.0 YPA and 285.7 YPG through the air, but they have made opponents one-dimensional. If UTEP can’t throw the ball against this secondary on Saturday, it will be a long day for the Miners.

Prediction

It might feel unwise to lay double digits on the road with UTSA, but the Roadrunners are a much better team and should cover with ease in El Paso.

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