Tulane at UTEP Open Gamethread

The UTEP Miners (1-6, 0-3) and the Tulane Green Wave (1-5, 1-1) get together for a Conference USA matchup on homecoming night in El Paso, TX. The Miners enter the contest off a loss on the 11th to Tulsa, 33-11. The Wave enter fresh off their first win in 13 months as they dropped SMU 27-26 last week in New Orleans.

One thing is for sure, while Tulane has struggled mightily for the majority of the season, they are better now than they were even two weeks ago. Much of that can be attributed to the return of their senior leader Ryan Griffin. However, this is still a game that the Miners should win.

The Wave have given up more than 255 yards per game on the ground, while averaging only 18 yards rushing themselves. With a solid running back, and a very good defense, this is something that the Miners should definitely be able to take great advantage of.

There's no doubt that Ryan Griffin's ability to pass the ball will open things up a bit in the run game, but still this defensive unit should be able to get pressure on him, and create problems for the Wave in the pass game and the run game.

If I'm Mike Price, I run Nathan Jeffery as much as he possibly can. Of course, there's no reason to overdo it, but if he's good for 28-30 carries, then give him those 28-30 carries. He will torch this defense, and hopefully take some pressure off the quarterbacks as we know there have been plenty of issues there.

While the Miners sit at 1-6, there's still plenty to play for. The door to a bowl game is almost completely shut, but that doesn't mean this season is over. This here could be the game that gives the Miners a boost, and helps them win a few more games to at least end the season on a high note. This team is better than what we've seen. Its time for them to start showing it.

Miners 41, Green Wave 21.