Senior linebacker Sammy Brown and the Cougars overcame difficulties in the first half to beat UTEP 49-42 Thursday at the Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso. Joshua Siegel/The Daily Cougar
EL PASO – UH held on 49-42 in a back-and-forth battle against UTEP on Thursday at the Sun Bowl Stadium.
Both offenses produced a total of 1,248 total yards.
“I just knew what kind of game it was going to be,” head coach Kevin Sumlin said. “It’s always like that down here for whatever reason. For us to come back and tie the game, get ahead right before that, that’s attractive. For them, how they handle it, it’s tough on the road anytime.”
After falling behind 14-0 in the first quarter, UH (5-0, 1-0 Conference USA) scored 21 straight points in the second quarter behind the play of junior running back Charles Sims.
Sims gained 210 yards from scrimmage and scored three total touchdowns, the last of which, an 84-yard reception with 9:42 remaining in the fourth quarter gave UH the decisive lead.
“You want to use him on every play,” senior quarterback Case Keenum said. “He’s a heck of a player, heck of an athlete and to finish there on that last pass was huge.”
Sims traded blows with Miners running back Joe Banyard, who rushed for 240 yards and one touchdown on 22 carries.
Keenum threw for 471 yards and two touchdowns. He completed 30 of 46 passes.
Senior recevier Patrick Edwards recorded a game-high 144 yards and eight receptions. Senior Justin Johnson had seven receptions for 69 yards, and Tryon Carrier and E.J. Smith each caught five passes. Smith scored his first touchdown of the season in the third quarter.
Carrier was hampered by an injury and had several dropped passes.
“We kept going to him,” Sumlin said. “We got him out, he had a little leg injury too. It’s not like we’re going to put him on the shelf.”
The defense was banged up with starting defensive backs Chevy Bennett and D.J. Hayden out, and Colton Valencia missing time in the second half after a brutal collision.
“We got caught with twelve guys on the field because Colton Valencia was out,” Sumlin said. “We were down to Nick Sanez and Jacky Candy as the only two safeties that we had left. From that standpoint, we had a bunch of guys in there. But we’re in game five, we’re almost halfway through the season. Injuries are part of the game. Some guys need to step up and know what they’re doing and play as good as the starters play.”
Despite the absences, the defense stepped up in crucial moments. Candy and sophomore Kent Brooks each broke up potential game-tying passes in the red zone on the Miners final drive.
Senior linebacker Marcus McGraw scooped up a fumble and ran it in for his first career touchdown to put the Cougars ahead 21-14 in the second quarter. McGraw tallied six tackles total, two for a loss, and one sack.
“The difference, we didn’t turn it over and they did, and that was really the difference in the game,” Sumlin said.
This is the fourth time in school history that the Cougars have started 5-0, the first since 1990.
“It feels great,” Keenum said. “I’ve never been 5-0 before. I’ve never been 6-0 before either. We’ll worry about this next one now and hope to get another good one.”
Playing this sloppily surely won't show us going undefeated. I was underwhelmed nearly the entire game. The defense needs to play more aggressively and the offense needs to focus and play a full game of we'll see the Cougars' season cut short.
we are going undefeated this year