Sterling Miles strip-sacked Texas Southern quarterback Cam’Ron McCoy, and Shay Smith recovered at the Tigers’ 13. EJ Colson Jr. threw a touchdown to Carver Cheeks on the next play. UTEP turned both takeaways into touchdowns in its 51-10 win over Texas Southern. That is the exchange to pull for again Saturday. The defense gives Colson a short field, and the offense makes it count.
UTEP visits No. 19 Michigan on September 19 at 1:30 p.m. Mountain on BTN. The Miners have a 2.7% chance to win in the interactive guide, with the model explained in the methodology. An upset would be enormous.
Miles returns to his home state after growing up in West Bloomfield and previously playing at Eastern Michigan. He gives UTEP fans a particularly personal reason to watch the pass rush. The broader reason predates last Saturday. UTEP recorded 28 sacks and 86 tackles for loss in 2025. Against Texas Southern, the Miners added seven tackles for loss and two sacks. But Oklahoma scored on its first eight possessions against UTEP in the opener. Against Michigan, the Miners need the pass rush to end drives as well as create occasional short fields.
Michigan has supplied one opening through its own mistakes. The Wolverines committed 11 penalties for 90 yards against Oklahoma; coach Whittingham said defensive penalties extended possessions and offensive penalties put Michigan behind the chains. If that repeats, UTEP needs to keep those extended drives alive and attack the longer passing downs. Michigan’s defense has allowed only one touchdown through two games and recorded 14 tackles for loss, making any help toward the end zone especially valuable.
Colson’s response gives the Miners more to work with. Against Texas Southern, he threw for 239 yards and four touchdowns without an interception, adding a rushing touchdown. At Oklahoma, he passed for just 52 yards, and UTEP converted two of 13 third downs. Avoiding interceptions in both games is encouraging after UTEP threw 20 in 2025; Michigan will demand that Colson also sustain possessions.
The running game can help him do that. Tavorus Jones supplied 104 of UTEP’s 252 rushing yards against Texas Southern, a welcome contribution after the Miners averaged only 115.6 rushing yards last season. Ball security still needs work. UTEP lost two fumbles at Oklahoma, then fumbled twice against Texas Southern and lost one. Colson protecting his passes cannot compensate for teammates giving possessions away.
Scotty Walden credited preparation, execution around halftime and the offense capitalizing on defensive takeaways, while acknowledging more to clean up. Sustaining that cooperation is the next step for a coach whose first two UTEP seasons finished 3-9 and 2-10. UTEP’s July move to the Mountain West after 21 years in Conference USA restored familiar western connections; fans deserve competitive progress to accompany that homecoming. Saturday offers a specific thing to demand. Protect the ball, give the defense’s stops a chance to matter, and finish when the field gets short.
Michigan may not offer many such possessions. If Miles or another defender delivers one, Colson turning it into seven points would give the Miners something tangible to build a game around.