From the UTEP website
Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 3:06 pmCourtesy: UTEP
Sophomore running back Marcus Thomas has had three straight 100-yard rushing games. The UTEP football team can clinch a spot in the Dec. 3 Conference USA Championship Game as Western Division champion with a victory at SMU on Saturday.
Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. MST at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. The game will be televised in El Paso on Time Warner Cable MetroSports Southwest Channel 24.
The circumstances are simple for the Miners -- win and they face UCF in the title game at Orlando, lose and they finish second in the division behind Tulsa.
"Our destiny is in our own hands now," UTEP coach Mike Price said. "Our goals at the beginning of the season were to have a winning record, win the Western Division and go to a bowl game. We still feel unfulfilled, but if you look at it we've got some things to be proud of."
With a win on Saturday, UTEP would have nine victories in a season for just the third time. The Miners won 10 games in 1988 and nine in 1956.
SMU (4-6, 3-4 C-USA), meanwhile, is trying to win its third straight game on Saturday and log five victories in a season for the first time since 1997.
The Mustangs are coming off wins over Rice at home (27-7) and Houston on the road (29-24). SMU has lost three games by seven points or less at Marshall (16-13 in OT), East Carolina (24-17) and Tulsa (20-13).
SMU handed TCU its only loss of the season on Sept. 10, and won at UAB on Oct. 8.
The Mustangs haven't been dominant statistically -- they rank 73rd nationally in total defense and 109th in total defense -- but they have been competitive in all but two games this season.
"They're capable of beating anybody in the country if they're playing well," Price said. "They're running hot and they're feeling good about themselves."
SMU senior quarterback Jerad Romo has thrown for 1,570 yards and six touchdowns. His top target has been junior receiver Bobby Chase (35-564-3), and freshman DeMyron Martin has run for 737 yards and seven TDs on the ground.
Defensively the Mustangs are led by junior strong safety Joe Sturdivant, who has 98 tackles. Four Mustang defenders have three interceptions on the year, including Sturdivant. SMU has 13 picks in 2005 and a turnover margin of +2 for the season.
Price said his team is trying to forget about last week's 35-23 loss to UAB in the Sun Bowl.
"We cleaned the windshield in dramatic fashion on Sunday," he said. "We talked about where we've been, and what we've done this season.
"If we don't win this game [Saturday], then we haven't accomplished our goals," Price said. "But we're going to decide it, and not Tulsa. We'll be fresh, healthy and mentally prepared."
Sophomore running back Marcus Thomas has had three straight 100-yard rushing games. The UTEP football team can clinch a spot in the Dec. 3 Conference USA Championship Game as Western Division champion with a victory at SMU on Saturday.
Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. MST at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. The game will be televised in El Paso on Time Warner Cable MetroSports Southwest Channel 24.
The circumstances are simple for the Miners -- win and they face UCF in the title game at Orlando, lose and they finish second in the division behind Tulsa.
"Our destiny is in our own hands now," UTEP coach Mike Price said. "Our goals at the beginning of the season were to have a winning record, win the Western Division and go to a bowl game. We still feel unfulfilled, but if you look at it we've got some things to be proud of."
With a win on Saturday, UTEP would have nine victories in a season for just the third time. The Miners won 10 games in 1988 and nine in 1956.
SMU (4-6, 3-4 C-USA), meanwhile, is trying to win its third straight game on Saturday and log five victories in a season for the first time since 1997.
The Mustangs are coming off wins over Rice at home (27-7) and Houston on the road (29-24). SMU has lost three games by seven points or less at Marshall (16-13 in OT), East Carolina (24-17) and Tulsa (20-13).
SMU handed TCU its only loss of the season on Sept. 10, and won at UAB on Oct. 8.
The Mustangs haven't been dominant statistically -- they rank 73rd nationally in total defense and 109th in total defense -- but they have been competitive in all but two games this season.
"They're capable of beating anybody in the country if they're playing well," Price said. "They're running hot and they're feeling good about themselves."
SMU senior quarterback Jerad Romo has thrown for 1,570 yards and six touchdowns. His top target has been junior receiver Bobby Chase (35-564-3), and freshman DeMyron Martin has run for 737 yards and seven TDs on the ground.
Defensively the Mustangs are led by junior strong safety Joe Sturdivant, who has 98 tackles. Four Mustang defenders have three interceptions on the year, including Sturdivant. SMU has 13 picks in 2005 and a turnover margin of +2 for the season.
Price said his team is trying to forget about last week's 35-23 loss to UAB in the Sun Bowl.
"We cleaned the windshield in dramatic fashion on Sunday," he said. "We talked about where we've been, and what we've done this season.
"If we don't win this game [Saturday], then we haven't accomplished our goals," Price said. "But we're going to decide it, and not Tulsa. We'll be fresh, healthy and mentally prepared."