UAB Football Treks West to Face UTEP on Saturday

BIRMINGHAM - Sporting a program-best five game winning streak, the UAB football team travels to UTEP this Saturday for a Conference USA West Division matchup. Kickoff on ESPN+ is set for 6:30 p.m. CST/5:30 p.m. MST.

The Blazers (6-1, 4-0 C-USA) are off to their best start in school history and sit atop of the C-USA West standings. UAB is receiving votes in both the AP and Amway Coaches Poll Top 25 and earned bowl eligibility for a third-straight season with a stirring 29-21 victory over North Texas last Saturday at Legion Field.

Who: UAB (6-1, 4-0 C-USA) at UTEP (0-7, 0-3 C-USA)
Where: El Paso, Texas - Sun Bowl Stadium
When: Saturday, October 27, 2018 - 6:30 p.m. CST/5:30 p.m. local time
Watch: ESPN+
On the Call: Andy Morgan (Play-by-Play), Trevor Vittatoe (Color)
Listen: WJOX2 100.5 FM
On the Call: David Crane (Play-by-Play), Steve Irvine (Color), Mike Grace (Sideline)
Series: UAB leads, 4-1
Last Meeting: Nov. 25, 2017: UAB 28, UTEP 7

STORYLINES:

Fueled by a second half shutout, UAB outscored North Texas 19-0 after halftime for a come-from-behind 29-21 victory over the Mean Green to earn bowl eligibility. The Blazers are now 10-0 at Legion Field since returning to action in 2017.
The UAB defense has been lights out this season en route to owning the nation's 11th ranked defense. In four Conference USA games, the Blazers have surrendered just 35 total points (8.8/game) and rank seventh nationally in scoring defense at 15.1/game.
Applying pressure to the quarterback has been UAB's forte as the Blazers are second nationally in sacks per game at 3.86. UAB has 27 total sacks this year and is approaching the Division I program record of 34 set by the 2000 and 2014 teams (UAB had 36 sacks at the DIII level in 1993).
UAB is also third nationally in third down defense (.241), fourth in fourth down defense (.182) and seventh in passing yards allowed (163.3).
Sophomore running back Spencer Brown is the reigning Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week. Brown rushed for 100 yards and three touchdowns against North Texas and scored his eighth, ninth and tenth rushing touchdowns of the season.
Brown has 591 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns this season and will lead C-USA's No. 1 rushing offense into a matchup against UTEP, who is allowing over 200 yards per game on the ground.
In 20 career games, Brown has amassed 1,920 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns. He is approaching the single-season school record of 13 rushing touchdowns, and his 20 career rushing touchdowns are fifth all-time at UAB.
UAB had 203 rushing yards against the Mean Green and has now rushed for over 200 yards in six of seven games. The Blazers have also scored multiple rushing touchdowns every game this year and have had at least three rushing scores in six of seven contests. UAB's average of 228.4 rushing yards per game is 19th nationally.
Despite their winless record, the Miners have lost their first three conference games by a combined 19 points. In its last two games, UTEP fell at home to North Texas 27-24 and lost on the road at Louisiana Tech 31-24.

The game in El Paso will kick off at 5:30 p.m. local time and fans in Birmingham can watch the game at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+. Updates will also be available by following @UAB_FB on Twitter and Instagram.

Following UTEP, the Blazers return to Legion Field for consecutive home games against UTSA (11/3) and Southern Miss (11/10). Click here to purchase tickets.

UAB Football Treks West to Face UTEP on Saturday

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Players Mentioned

Spencer Brown

The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics