New Mexico State Aggies vs UTEP Miners Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 10/18/2023

Game Time: 9:00 pm ET, Wednesday, October 18, 2023

Venue:  Sun Bowl, El Paso, TX

Where to Watch:  ESPN2

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  NMSU -3, UTEP +3; Over/Under:  49 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  NMSU -3.5, UTEP +3.5; Over/Under:  49.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  NMSU -3, UTEP +3; Over/Under:  48.5 points

New Mexico State Aggies:  4-3 (2-1) (4th place, C-USA)

UTEP Miners:  2-5 (1-2) (7th place, C-USA)

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! Kyle Hunter is on a HOT STREAK in CFB as he is 87-46 his last 133 CFB Plays! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

New Mexico State Aggies:  won their last game at home against the Sam Houston State Bearkats 27-13.

UTEP Miners:  won their last game on the road against the Florida International Panthers 27-14.

New Mexico State is entering this game with a 4-3 record overall and they have a 2-1 record in their conference games too. They are 3-1 in their home games, 1-2 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be on the road for this game. They won their last game against Sam Houston State 27-13. Diego Pavia was the starting QB and he completed 20/36 passes for 286 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Diego Pavia led the team in rushing yards with 115 and 1 TD. Trent Hudson led the receivers with 122 receiving yards on 3 receptions and 2 TDs. Myles Rowser led the defense in that game with 5 solo tackles and 5 assisted tackles while no one on the defense recorded a sack in that one. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that game.

 

 

 

UTEP is entering this game with a 2-5 record overall and they have a 1-2 record in their conference games too. They are 1-2 in their home games, 1-3 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at home for this game. They won their last game against FIU 27-14. Cade McConnell was the starting QB and he completed 11/17 passes for 262 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Torrance Burgess Jr. led the team in rushing yards with 86. Kelly Akharaiyi led the receivers with 223 receiving yards on 8 receptions and 2 TDs. Tyler Williams led the defense in that game with 5 solo tackles and 4 assisted tackles while Maurice Westmoreland led the defense in sacks with 2.5. Torey Richardson came away with the only interception for them in that game.

The current betting odds have New Mexico State listed as a 3 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. New Mexico State is only 4-3 overall this season and they did have a rougher start to the year but they have been getting a lot better in their games lately since conference play started as they are 2-1 in their conference games. New Mexico State is starting to turn the jets on now as they get on a roll while UTEP has been terrible all year with their 2-5 record overall. They are 1-2 in conference games this season and their only 2 wins were against a team from the FCS and FIU in their last game who is still 0-4 in conference play. UTEP may have pulled out the win last week against a bad team but New Mexico State has been playing a lot better on both sides of the ball lately and UTEP will struggle on offense now that they are on their 4th string QB too. The best way to place a bet here is on New Mexico State to cover the spread in this game. 

New Mexico State UTEP Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Wednesday, October 18, 2023 (9:00 pm ET start time) is NMSU 28 UTEP 16.

Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks and expert football picks today. And if you enjoyed this New Mexico State Aggies UTEP Miners prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our weekly NCAAF predictions and previews.

New Mexico State Aggies: 9-2 ATS as a favorite. 13-5 ATS after a game where they forced 1 or less turnovers. 5-1 ATS against conference opponents. 10-3 UNDER after playing a game at home. 29-14 UNDER after a game where they forced no turnovers. 

UTEP Miners: 3-9 ATS when the line is +3 to -3. 15-25 ATS as a home underdog of 7 points or less. 5-10 ATS in a home game where the total is between 42.5 and 49. 9-3 UNDER when the line is +3 to -3. 10-5 UNDER in home games. 

New Mexico State Aggies:  None.

UTEP Miners:  M. Franklin (RB) Ques Wed - Undisclosed. T. Smith (WR) Ques Wed - Undisclosed. J. McNamara (QB) Ques Wed - Concussion. G. Hardison (QB) Ques Wed - Arm. J. Ezinwa (TE) out for season - Redshirt. T. Moore (CB) out for season - Redshirt. A. Dumas (RB) Out indefinitely - Eligibility.

"We still got a lot of football to be played and we'll get better. I tell our kids to play hard and the one thing they do is play hard." - Jerry Kill after his team’s win against Sam Houston State in their last game. 

"We did the things we need to do right and we didn't make the big mistakes, we made [FIU] make the big mistakes. We jumped on them early and did a good job with that and held on to the football. We didn't have any unforced errors to give opportunities to come back. Of course, the defense played so well and so many guys did some really good things." - Dana Dimel after his team’s win against FIU in their last game. 

WR Bellamy, Chris  

WR David, Kordell 

WR Brady, Jonathan 

TE Whitford, Thomaz 

QB Pavia, Diego 

RB Jones, Jamoni 

WR Bellon, Marcus  

WR Akharaiyi, Kelly 

WR Smith, Tyrin 

TE Fryar, Zach 

QB Hardison, Gavin 

RB Hankins, Deion 

FB Lopez, Julian 

Passing: D. Pavia (1615)

Rushing: D. Pavia (431)

Receiving: J. Brady (338)

Touchdowns: S. Thomas (5)

Passing: G. Hardison (947)

Rushing: T. Burgess Jr. (452)

Receiving: K. Akharaiyi (513)

Touchdowns: K. Akharaiyi (3)

Coaches:

New Mexico State Aggies: Jerry Kill (2nd season)

UTEP Miners: Dana Dimel (6th season)