The UTEP Miners and New Mexico State Aggies will do battle on the turf at Aggie Memorial Stadium. This afternoon matchup gets underway at 4:00 p.m. ET and spectators can tune in to the action on FLOF. When these two squads faced each other last year, New Mexico State won by a touchdown 27-20.
Betting Preview: UTEP Miners vs. New Mexico State Aggies
UTEP is a live dog in this one and is currently getting 8 points. The Miners are also receiving +250 moneyline odds while the Aggies are -330. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 55.5 points, and if one squad can create a bunch of points early, it will likely produce a solid betting opportunity in-game.
Odds have shifted slightly from when they were originally posted. The opening line was -7 while the game’s over/under was set initially at 55.
The Miners are 3-6-1 against the spread (ATS) and have lost 4.2 units so far. The team has posted an O/U record of 5-5.
The Aggies are down 4.0 units for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 4-6 ATS and have an O/U record of 4-6.
The Miners have gone 1-9 straight up (SU) in 2019 while the Aggies are also 1-9 SU.
The Miners lost to UAB 37-10 in a blowout where the passing game could’ve been sharper as Gavin Hardison completed only 16-of-37 passes for 222 yards and one touchdown. Jacob Cowing (five receptions, 85 yards) and Justin Garrett (two catches, 23 yards) shared the receiving duties in the defeat.
New Mexico State just earned a 41-28 win over UIW. The let the Cardinals put up 243 passing yards and 39 rushing yards. Mark Sullivan had a good showing in the defeat for UIW, posting 48 yards and a score on three catches. For New Mexico State, Josh Adkins completed 28-of-38 passes for 316 yards and two touchdowns. Jason Huntley (174 yards on 25 rush attempts, one TD) and Christian Gibson (115 yards on 14 carries, one TD) spearheaded the running game while Robert Downs III (six receptions, 71 yards) and OJ Clark (five catches, 47 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the win.
UTEP has run the ball on 58.8 percent of its offensive possessions this year while New Mexico State has a rush percentage of 46 percent. The Miners have run for 136 yards per game and have 16 touchdowns on the ground this year. The Aggies are putting up 130.8 rushing yards per game and have 11 total rush TDs.
The Miners offense has averaged 172.1 yards through the air overall and has six passing TDs so far. The Aggies have recorded 225.6 pass yards per game and have 11 total pass scores.
Defensively, UTEP has allowed opponents to rush for an average of 190 yards and throw for 245.8 yards per game. The New Mexico State D has allowed 212.2 yards per game to opposing passers and 259.4 yards per game on the ground. The Aggies are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of 7.24 to opponents, while the Miners have allowed a whopping 9.20 ANY/A.
Offensively, Hardison is up to 222 passing yards this season. The signal-caller has completed 43 percent of his 37 attempts with one passing scores and has yet to throw an interception. Hardison’s got a 5.77 adjusted net yards per pass attempt.
We expect the UTEP offense to mix it up in this one. As a group, Jacob Cowing, Kai Locksley and Treyvon Hughes have combined for 394 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns over the last couple of outings.
Josh Adkins has completed 214-of-337 passes for 2,113 yards, 11 TDs and 14 INTs for New Mexico State. His ANY/A stands at 4.25 for the season and 5.82 over his last two outings.
We’re thinking the Aggies will control tempo by pounding the defense with their running backs. Along with WR Tony Nicholson (570 receiving yards, five receiving TDs this season), Jason Huntley (749 rush yards, six rush TDs, two receiving TDs) and Christian Gibson (373 rush yards, one rush TD) have really been key factors in the New Mexico State offense.
UTEP Miners vs. New Mexico State Aggies Betting Prediction
SU Winner: New Mexico State, ATS Winner: New Mexico State, O/U: Over
Betting Notes
- The Miners offense has created three pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Aggies have put up six such plays.
- The UTEP defense has allowed 10 pass plays of 40 or more yards, while New Mexico State has given up nine such plays.
- The UTEP offense has created 16 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while New Mexico State has created 13 such runs.
- The Miners defense has allowed 13 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Aggies have given up 22 such runs.
- The New Mexico State defense has created 12 sacks on the year while UTEP has 10.
- As a team, UTEP has rushed for 4.2 yards per attempt over its last three outings and 4.0 over its last two.
- New Mexico State has averaged 4.6 yards per carry over its last three games and 5.1 over its past two.
- Over its last three matches, New Mexico State is 1-2 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
- The Over/Under for UTEP’s previous game going into it was 42.5. The over cashed in the team’s 37-10 loss to UAB.
- In its last three matchups, UTEP is 1-2 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- The Over/Under for New Mexico State’s previous outing was 60. The over cashed in that 41-28 win over UIW.
