Game 2: The UTEP Miners at the Houston Cougars
(The Specifics: September 10, 2010, 8:15 pm MST, ESPN 2)
We all know the stakes here. We all know the back story. We all know the game will be on national television. This one has all the makings of a shoot-out, one of those ESPN week night games that gives fans far more than their money's worth. We'll know early in the coming season whether or not this UTEP team has what it takes to compete with the C-USA's best.
On one side, you'll have the likely Top 25 Houston Cougars, at home, in front of what should be a monster home crowd thirsty to see Houston in their first real test of the season. On the other side, you'll have a UTEP team anxious to prove last year's 58-41 stunner wasn't a fluke. More than that, the Miners will be playing to reassert themselves back in the C-USA championship race for the first time since 2005.
Both teams will have new defensive coordinators. Both teams will have veteran quarterbacks, Case Keenum and Trevor Vittatoe, who own or will own most all of their school's passing records. On the sidelines, we'll have a young, upstart, in Kevin Sumlin, who has his whole career ahead of him. On the other, we'll have the veteran Mike Price, a man who has tasted success, but wants one more big season before he hangs 'em up.
So, again, we all know the stakes. Who you got?
Want more on the 2010 Cougars? Check out the Rush's Houston Preview Here.
How do you see this one playing out?