EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — The UTEP football team held No. 10 Tennessee scoreless in the first quarter but that was as close as things would get as the Miners lost 56-0 Saturday, Nov. 23 to the Volunteers at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee.
The Miners fell to 2-9 on the season, while the Volunteers improved to 9-2.
“The kids played extremely hard and I’m really proud of them. I told them there’s no such thing as moral victories but let’s be real, they’re one of the top football teams in the nation and will compete in the national football playoff and (I’m) very proud of our kids’ fight,” UTEP Head Coach Scotty Walden said. “There was not one time these kids back down or lay down.”
Kenny Odom tied his career best with eight receptions for 70 yards, while JP Pickles finished 10-of-15 for 72 yards in relief. Defensively, Dorian Hopkins, Lantz Russell and Xavier Smith each tallied seven tackles to lead the Miners. UTEP tallied three sacks as Maurice Westmoreland, Kyran Duhon and Nate Dyman each tallied one. Westmoreland leads the team with 5.5 sacks, while Duhon has 5.0 and Dyman 1.5 on the season.
UTEP will close year one of the Scotty Walden era at rival NM State in the 101st Battle of I-10 on Nov. 30 at Aggie Memorial Stadium in Las Cruces. The Miners and Aggies are set to kick off at 2 p.m. MT, while the contest will be streamed on ESPN+ and can be heard on 600 AM ESPN.
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