With the college football regular season slowly approaching its conclusion, the race to decide which teams earn an appearance in the Conference USA championship game is starting to heat up.
The outcome of this weekend’s showdown between Houston and Texas-El Paso at 8:05 p.m. Saturday at the Sun Bowl in El Paso could play a huge factor in that race.
Houston (4-3, 3-1 C-USA) and UTEP (4-3, 2-1) are one and two in the C-USA West Division, and the winner of this contest will be in the best position to represent the division in the conference championship game on Dec. 1.
"This is it. This Houston game is kind of for all the marbles or at least puts us in the driver’s seat with a win," UTEP head coach Mike Price said at a press luncheon on Monday.
The Cougars and the Miners are both in the top 25 in the nation in total offense – Houston (518 yards per game) is sixth and UTEP (448.1) is 22nd – and both have running backs in the top 15 in the nation in rushing. UH senior running back Anthony Alridge (122.7 yards per game) and UTEP senior running back Marcus Thomas (118) are ranked 12th and 14th, respectively.
Between Alridge and UH senior wide receiver Donnie Avery (51 catches, 933 yards, 5 TDs), Price will have his hands full containing the Cougars’ top two offensive threats.
UTEP is coming off its bye week, which came on the heels of a 45-42 overtime loss to East Carolina on Oct. 13.
The Miners have had two weeks to prepare for the Cougars, and Price said the extra week has helped him and his team to get over the loss to ECU.
The Cougars have the edge going into Saturday’s contest because of their defense, which is significantly better than the Miners’ defense. The Cougars (352.7 yards allowed per game) lead C-USA in total defense while the Miners (492.3) are second-to-last in the conference.
The Cougars also have one of C-USA’s top pass rushers in senior defensive end Phillip Hunt, who is tied with another player for second-most tackles for loss (9.5) and who is the league’s fourth-leading sacker (4.5 sacks).
"Phillip Hunt is one of the best players we’ll play against all year," Price said. "We have to get some kind of special package to protect our quarterback (redshirt freshman Trevor Vittatoe)."
