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EL PASO -- UTEP and New
Mexico State will meet for the 90th time on Saturday at 6 p.m. in
the Sun Bowl.
The Last Meeting
September 17, 2011
Las Cruces, N.M.
THE BASIC FACTS - UTEP hosts NM State in the 90th
matchup of the I-10 rivalry series. - The series is the longest running
in UTEP football history.
- The winner of the game takes
possession of a pair of traveling trophies, the silver spade and the brass
spittoon. - UTEP is pursuing a fourth straight
win over NMSU. The Miners haven't
beaten the Aggies four consecutive times since a run of six victories in a row
from 1986-91. - The Miners are seeking their first
home win of the season after dropping a 24-7 decision to fourth-ranked Oklahoma
in the Sun Bowl on Sept. 1. - UTEP seeks to avoid its first 0-3
start since 2008. - Following Saturday's game, UTEP
will be on the road for three of its next four contests, including back-to-back
away games at Wisconsin (Sept. 22) and East Carolina (Sept. 29). HOW THEY GOT HERE - UTEP dropped to 0-2 with a 28-10
loss at Ole Miss on Sept. 8. - The Miners fell behind 21-0 at the
half and couldn't get closer than 11 points (21-10) after the break. - With starting tailback Nathan Jeffery
(groin) sidelined, UTEP was limited to 37 yards rushing on 30 carries. - Nick
Lamaison completed 21-of-33
passes for 213 yards for the Miners, but was sacked five times. - Ole Miss accumulated 538 yards of
offense (332 rushing, 206 passing), including 18 plays of 10+ yards. - Bo Wallace completed 15-of-22
passes for 174 yards and three TDs for the Rebels, and Jeff Scott rushed 13
times for 113 yards. - NM State's record was squared at
1-1 with a 51-24 setback at Ohio. - The Aggies were outscored 30-10 in
the second half after trailing by a touchdown (21-14) through two quarters. - NMSU yielded 584 yards to the
Bobcats (293 rushing, 291 passing) as Ohio's Beau Blankenship rushed for 168
yards. - NMSU QB Andrew Manley was 12-for-24
passing for 132 yards with a touchdown and an interception. - Ohio held NMSU to 206 yards while
posting nine tackles for losses and seven sacks. UTEP vs. NM STATE - UTEP leads the series 52-35-2. - The Miners hold a 35-16-1 advantage
in games played in El Paso. - UTEP has won 18 of the last 27
games between the rivals in the Sun Bowl. - The home team has been the victor
in 11 of the last 15 games. - The winning team has scored 30
points or more in 10 of the last 12 meetings. - UTEP is 6-2 against NMSU under
coach Mike Price. - Last year the Miners put together a
16-10 win in Las Cruces, as Dakota
Warren kicked three field
goals and a 60-yard run by Joe
Banyard off a fake punt
spurred UTEP's lone touchdown drive of the game. - UTEP held NMSU to 258 yards in last
year's meeting (242 passing, 16 rushing). - The 258 yards were the fewest by
NMSU at home versus UTEP since 1991. - The Miners' 16-10 win at NMSU last
season represented its first on the road when scoring fewer than 20 points
since a 12-7 triumph at Wyoming in 1971. Connections - UTEP junior OL Brander Craighead
and NMSU senior DL Donte Savage both played at Fork
Union Military Academy. - UTEP sophomore WR Ian Hamilton and
NMSU senior WR Kemonte' Bateman both started their
college careers at Pasadena City College. - UTEP senior OL James Martin and
NMSU senior TE David Quiroga were teammates at Ayala
High School in Chino Hills, Calif. - UTEP senior OL James Nelson,
UTEP senior K Dakota Warren, NMSU junior DL Kalvin
Cruz, NMSU junior LB Trashaun Nixon and NMSU senior K
Tyler Stampler all played at Ventura JC before
transferring into FBS programs. - Nixon is the younger brother of
former UTEP cornerback Travaun Nixon
(2010-11). - NM State has a total of 14 Texas
players on its 2012 roster, including three native El Pasoans
-- freshman DB Kedeem Thomas-Davis (El Dorado HS),
freshman LB Matthew Heard (Andress HS) and junior OL Davonte Wallace (Irvin HS). UTEP has no New Mexico products. - NMSU head coach DeWayne Walker and
UTEP defensive coordinator Andre
Patterson were on the New
England Patriots' staff together in 1997. UTEP vs. OLE MISS NOTABLES -
UTEP is 0-7 since the start of the
2010 season when attempting 40 or more passes in a game. -
The 37 yards rushing were the
fewest for UTEP since posting 30 in the second game of the 2011 season at SMU. -
The Miners have scored 10 points or
fewer in their first two games of the season for the first time since 1980 when
they opened with losses at Texas Tech (35-7) and New Mexico State (6-3). -
UTEP recovered three fumbles for
the first time since Sept. 27, 2008 against UCF (four fumble recoveries). The three fumble recoveries tied for
the third-top total of the Mike Price era. -
UTEP hasn't lost a fumble in
back-to-back games to open a season for the first time since 2009, and for the
third time in the last 19 seasons (2006, 2009, 2012). -
One turnover in two games matches
the best two-game start of the Mike
Price era. UTEP also had one turnover in its first two games of the
2009 campaign. -
UTEP dropped to 0-17 all-time on
the road versus BCS conference teams and 1-7 all-time against the SEC. The victory was over Ole Miss in the
1967 Sun Bowl, 17-14. -
The 28 points were the fewest
yielded by UTEP in a road game versus a BCS conference opponent (previous low
34 at Arizona in 1999). IN THE RANKINGS - Through the games of Sept. 8, UTEP
held national top-50 statistical rankings in net punting (17th, 41.5 avg.),
punt returns (28th, 14.0 avg.), turnover margin (32nd, 1.00) and sacks (tied
for 47th, 2.0 avg.). - Individually, Ian Campbell was
21st in punting (44.5 avg.), Josh Fely was
tied for 37th in tackles (10.5 avg.) and Michael
Edwards was 42nd in punt
returns (8.6 avg.). - UTEP is tied for second in C-USA in
sacks (four) and third in pass defense (214.0 ypg),
punting (41.5 avg.), punt returns (18.2 avg.), scoring defense (26.0 ppg) & turnover margin (1.00). - Richard
Spencer is tied for first in
C-USA in fumble recoveries (1.0 avg.), Edwards is second in punt returns (13.6
avg.) & third in kickoff returns (18.2 avg.), and Aubrey Alexius
and Spencer are tied for third in fumbles forced
(0.5 avg.). Captains - UTEP's 2012 captains are OL Eloy Atkinson
(offense), DB DeShawn Grayson
(defense) and DB Adrian James (special teams). - Mike
Price is in his ninth year as UTEP's head
coach (45-54 record) and 31st year as a collegiate head coach (174-176 mark). - Price is the third-winningest coach in UTEP history with 45 victories. Mack Saxon ranks first (66 wins) and Mike
Brumbelow rates second (46 wins). - Price and Mike Brumbelow are the
only coaches in school history to lead the Miners to three bowl games. - Price is the sixth-winningest active head coach in the FBS behind Virginia
Tech's Frank Beamer (253 victories), Texas' Mack Brown (229), Nevada's Chris
Ault (227), South Carolina's Steve Spurrier (199) and
Notre Dame's Brian Kelly (189). - Price is coaching in his 100th game
at UTEP on Saturday. Only Mack
Saxon (118) has coached more games with the Miners. - Price and Saxon (13 seasons) are
the only men to coach the Miners for more than seven seasons. UTEP IN THE SUN BOWL - UTEP is in its 50th season playing
in the Sun Bowl. - The Miners have posted an all-time
mark of 122-155-3 in the venue, which opened in 1963. - UTEP is 30-19 in the Sun Bowl under
coach Mike Price. - UTEP has won 11 of its last 17
games in the Sun Bowl. - UTEP is 11-6 in non-conference home
games in the Price era. Coaching Changes - New to the UTEP staff in 2012 are offensive line coach Brian
Natkin,
tight ends coach Chad Raymond and safeties coach Tom Williams. - Natkin
played for the Miners from 1997-2000 and became UTEP's only unanimous
All-American in 2000. He led all
tight ends nationally with 64 catches for 787 yards that year. - Raymond was also a member of Mike Price's
staff as a program coordinator from 2008-10. - Williams was the head coach at Yale
from 2009-11 and was also a defensive assistant with the NFL's Jacksonville
Jaguars from 2007-08. The Roster - UTEP's 101-man roster includes 21
seniors, 17 juniors, 22 sophomores and 41 freshmen (10 redshirts/31 true
freshmen). - UTEP has 43 returning lettermen (20
offense/20 defense/three special teams). - Center Eloy
Atkinson leads all offensive
players with 19 career starts. - The bulk of UTEP's offensive
starting experience is in the line with Atkinson, LT Brander Craighead
(14 starts), LG Jerel Watkins
(13) and RT James Nelson (10). - On defense, UTEP has two players
with 20+ career starts in FS DeShawn
Grayson (28) and 3 Tech Germard Reed (22). - UTEP averages 6-4, 302 pounds
across the starting offensive line and 6-2, 268 pounds across the starting
defensive line. OFFENSE NOTABLES -
First-time starters for the Miners
at Ole Miss were TE Craig Wenrick and
RB Xay Williams. FRESHMAN PICKS UP THE RUN -
Autrey
Golden became the fourth
freshman to lead UTEP in rushing in a game during the Mike Price era
with 52 yards. The other players
were Donald Buckram at Marshall in 2006 (33 yards), Vernon Frazier versus UCF
in 2008 (73 yards) and Nathan Jeffery at USF in 2011 (39 yards). Lamaison Bounces back -
The 21 pass completions by Nick Lamaison
tied the second-top total of his career.
He completed 24 passes against Stony Brook last year and 21 versus
Southern Miss a year ago. -
Lamaison registered the fourth
200-yard passing game of his UTEP career, but the Miners are 1-3 in those
games. THE receiving corps - Seven players registered a reception in UTEP's game versus
Oklahoma. Six registered at least two receptions. - The TD catch by Jordan Leslie
in the third quarter of the Ole Miss game was the third of his career, with all
coming in road games. Leslie also
had TD receptions at Rice and UCF last season. - Leslie's 80 yards in receptions at Ole Miss was his
second-best career effort. He recorded 119 yards versus Tulsa in 2011. - A week after failing to register a reception against
Oklahoma for the first time in his career, senior WR Mike Edwards
had a career-best nine catches against Ole Miss. He had two contests with seven
receptions in 2011. - Edwards' 88 yards receiving against the Rebels marked his
second-best career-effort. He registered 187 yards at Rice last season. - Freshman RB Autrey Golden
recorded two receptions for 21 yards at Ole Miss. DEFENSE THE RUNDOWN -
DB Richard Spencer
was credited with a career-high 13 tackles at Ole
Miss. His previous best was nine
stops versus Southern Miss in 2011. - The two fumble
recoveries by Richard
Spencer versus the Rebels
were a career best and the most by a UTEP player since Chris Moore also had two
at Rice in 2007. - The Miners are making good
adjustments out of the locker room. UTEP has only yielded three points in the
third quarter this season, recovering a pair of fumbles and giving up a total
of 232 yards in the period. - For the third time of the Mike Price
era, UTEP has forced at least two fumbles in consecutive contests. The Miners
also did so in 2004 (four at San Jose State, 10/30 & two versus Rice,
11/13) and 2011
(two at SMU, 9/10 & three at NM State, 9/17). - UTEP has been swarming to the ball,
with 10 different players contributing at least eight tackles on the year. Five
of those individuals have reached double figures in stops, in the form of Josh Fely (21), Richard
Spencer (18), DeShawn Grayson (16), Aubrey Alexius
(12) and Gage Sharp (11). - The Miners' frenzied approach of
flocking to the ball carrier has resulted in seven fumbles by the opposition.
That figure is the most through two games since 1989 (10). - For the second straight season,
UTEP has kept the opposition to fewer than 30 points in each of the first two
games. It marks the initial time
since a four-year streak (1986-89) and the third occasion since 1960 that the
Miners have achieved the feat in consecutive years. Current UTEP Director of
Athletics Bob Stull was the head coach for the Orange and
Blue from 1986-88. UTEP also had a
three-year stretch (1963-65). - UTEP is vying to hold its foes
below 30 points through the initial three tilts of the year for a second
consecutive campaign. If the Miners are successful at
keeping NM State from cracking the 30's, it would be the first time since the
1950's that they accomplished the task. The Orange and Blue strung together
four straight seasons with the feat (1955-58) during that dominant defensive
era. - UTEP registered a sack at Ole Miss
(9/8), bringing its seasonal sum to four. That figure ties as the third-most to
this point in a campaign during the Mike
Price era. The Miners piled up 12 sacks
through two games in 2005 while tallying six in 2004 and a quartet in 2008. PATTERSON's STOP TROOPS - In 27
games since Andre
Patterson took over as UTEP's defensive coordinator, UTEP has
yielded 24 points or fewer on 14 occasions. The Miners had surrendered 24 points or less 13 times in 48
games over the previous four seasons prior to Patterson's arrival. - The
Miners have also limited opponents to under 300 yards
of offense seven times under Patterson, a feat they achieved six times in the
previous four years. - UTEP's
defensive balance under Patterson is evidenced by the fact that the Miners
haven't had a 100-tackle player in back-to-back years for the first time since
the evolution of the statistic in 1969. UTEP had at least one 100-tackle
performer in 25 straight seasons from 1985-2009. SPECIAL TEAMS CAMPBELL RETURNS AS SPECIAL TEAMS STANDOUT - Punter Ian Campbell
was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award last year. - Campbell punted seven times for 301
yards at Ole Miss, including four that landed inside the Rebel 20-yard line. It
marks the first time since 2006 (Ryan Hotchkiss versus SMU) and the second time
under Mike
Price that a punter has landed four punts inside the 20. - Campbell's long of 67 yards against Oklahoma tied for his
third-best career effort. Campbell's long was a 72-yard boot versus Rice in
2010. The California native has already had four punts over 50 yards in 2012.
He recorded 18 in 2011 and 17 in 2010. VALADEZ HAS A CAREER NIGHT - Sophomore Steven Valadez
kicked his first career PAT against Ole Miss. Valadez
also made his second career field goal attempt, giving the San Antonio native
four of the Miners' 10 points against Ole Miss. Veterans return for punt and kick returns - Senior WR Mike Edwards
registered three kickoff returns for a career-best 52 yards at Ole Miss. His
kickoff yardage exceeded his total for the entire 2011 season (37). - Junior TE Kevin Perry had
one kickoff return for 18 yards versus the Rebels. It was the second attempt of
his career. Perry registered a kickoff return for 10 yards in the Miners' 2011
season opener versus Stony Brook. 2011 Rewind - UTEP finished 5-7 overall and 2-6
in Conference USA, fifth place in the league's Western Division. - The Miners were playing for bowl
eligibility in each of their last two games but lost at home to Tulsa (57-28) and
on the road to UCF (31-14). - UTEP was 3-3 at home and 2-4 on the
road. - UTEP ranked fourth in the country
in kickoff returns (26.4 avg.) and sixth in net punting (40.5 avg.). - The Miners averaged 154.9 yards
rushing per game, their high water mark of the Mike Price era. - UTEP tied for fourth nationally in
offensive plays of 70+ yards (four), tied for sixth in plays of 60+ yards
(seven) and tied for 17th in plays of 50+ yards (nine). - UTEP returns players who accounted
for 13.8 percent (258-of-1,866) of the team's rushing
yards last season, 88.2 percent (2,387-of-2,707) of the passing yards and 60.2
percent (1,630-of-2,707) of the receiving yards. - On defense, UTEP returns 60.7
percent (516-of-850) of its tackle production from 2011, 87 percent (20-of-23)
of its sacks, 65.8 percent (39.5-of-60) of its tackles for losses, 61 percent
(25-of-41) of its pass break-ups and 50 percent (6-of-12) of its
interceptions. - UTEP returns its regular punter (Ian Campbell), field goal kicker (Dakota Warren) and kickoff man (Steven Valadez), as well as players who accounted for 30.3 percent (391-of-1,291) of the kickoff return yards and 37.3 percent (82-of-220) of the punt return yards. | ||||||||||||
Dakota Warren booted three field goals and UTEP set up a touchdown with a 60-yard run on a fake punt in a 16-10 victory over New Mexico State on Saturday night.
