After yet another loss on the road for the UTEP football team (1-7, C-USA 1-4), the Miners returned to the Sun Bowl to take on the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (MTSU) (2-6, C-USA 1-3).
Entering Saturday’s game, the Miners sat at the bottom of the conference standings tied with New Mexico State who is 1-4 in conference play and 2-6 overall.
Despite the loss against LA Tech (3-5, C-USA 2-3) last week, the Miners managed to keep racking defensive milestones. UTEP allowed only seven yards per carry, 17.5 points per game in the last two matchups while leading the conference in sacks and tackle for loss metrics.
After the Oct. 22’s loss to LA Tech, Head Coach Scotty Walden praised the team’s defensive play.
“I thought our defense played at a championship level all the way,” said Walden. “They played physical and played our brand of football. The ‘D’ gave us every chance to win that game.”
In its first drive Saturday, the Blue Raiders stormed their way downfield following the Miners’ opening drive. But after a goal line stand from the UTEP defense, MTSU walked away with just a field goal from senior kicker Zeke Rankin after a failed run-pass option (RPO) and a failed pass attempt.
The Blue Raiders were up 3-0 with 7:29 left in the first quarter.
The Blue Raiders would get the ball back following a UTEP three-and-out, but after a key tackle in the backfield from UTEP on second down, the Miners’ defense rushed junior quarterback Nicholas Vattiato forcing a tipped pass into the hands of senior defensive back Josiah Allen, his first career interception.
This placed the Miners in prime field position inside MTSU territory. Following a first down conversion and a penalty against the Blue Raiders, the Miners were able to convert on the MTSU turnover with a field goal of their own from sophomore kicker Buzz Flabiano.
The score at the end of the half was tied 3-3.
The second quarter started off quiet as both teams exchanged punts up until the Miners’ offense found some momentum thanks to a pair of rushes from junior running back Jevon Jackson and freshman quarterback JP Pickles.
The 17-yard rush from Pickles resulted in a Miners touchdown with 7:31 putting UTEP push 10-3.
After a few more exchanged punts, MTSU answered with a touchdown of its own with 3:40 left in the half. Vattiato connected on a 61-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Myles Butler.
MTSU was teetering around field goal range but an interception from graduate student linebacker Dorian Hopkins nixed that scoring opportunity and closed the half.
The score at the end of the half was tied 10-10.
The Blue Raiders were set to receive the ball to start the second half but thanks to a fumble recovery from UTEP sophomore cornerback Amier Boyd-Matthews, the Miners were in prime scoring position.
This placed Pickles and the UTEP offense on the MTSU 15 yardline resulting in another Flabiano field goal.
This put the Miners on top 13-10 to start the second half.
Midway through the third quarter, the Blue Raiders mounted a long and methodical drive spanning 10 plays and 57 yards culminating in a game-tying field goal.
To finish the third quarter, both teams remained tied at 13-13.
Both teams tried to get the upper hand on the other in the fourth quarter, but the only team to score in the final moments was MTSU.
The touchdown came on a nine play, 47-yard drive resulting in a one-yard rushing touchdown from the quarterback Vattiato.
This score gave the Miners just under two minutes to answer back but the offense stalled at the MTSU 19-yardline.
Unable to score, the Miners lost once again 20-13.
UTEP drops to 1-8 on the year remaining at the bottom of the conference.
True freshman quarterback JP Pickles got the start for the Miners thanks to injuries to both junior Cade McConnell and sophomore Skyler Locklear.
In his first CFB game, Pickles threw 18 of 33 for 145 yards and finished the game with a 16.8 QBR (quarterback rating).
The Miner defense held the Blue Raiders to 333 yards of total offense while stuffing the running game to under 100 yards.
This game marks UTEP’s sixth loss to MTSU, last defeating the team back in 2014.
Following the game, Walden made it clear his offense still needs work.
“Defensively and on special teams, I am very proud of the way they played. At times on offense, I was proud of the way we played, but we have to play better,” said Walden. “I talked about it in the locker room; we have to stay together for these seniors and finish for them. They know they have three guaranteed weeks of football left.”
The Miners now await the Kennesaw State Owls (1-7, 1-3 C-USA), a C-USA newcomer, at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 9 at the Sun Bowl.
Emmanuel Rivas Valenzuela Armendariz is the editor-in-chief and may be reached at [email protected]: @rivasemmanuel2 on Instagram.
