UTEP Miners vs Arizona Wildcats Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 09/16/2023

Game Time: 11:00 pm ET, Saturday, September 16, 2023

Venue:  Arizona Stadium, Tucson, AZ

Where to Watch:  Pac-12 Network

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  UTEP +18, Arizona -18; Over/Under:  57 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  UTEP +18, Arizona -18; Over/Under:  57 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  UTEP +17.5, Arizona -17.5; Over/Under:  56.5 points

UTEP Miners:  1-2 (0-1) (7th place, C-USA)

Arizona Wildcats:  1-1 (0-0) (10th place, Pac-12)

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UTEP Miners:  lost their last game on the road against the Northwestern Wildcats 38-7.

Arizona Wildcats:  lost their last game on the road against the Mississippi State Bulldogs in overtime 31-24.

UTEP is entering this game with a 1-2 record overall and they have a 0-1 record in their conference games too.  They are 1-0 in their home games, 0-2 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 lost their last game against Northwestern 38-7. Gavin Hardison was the starting QB and he completed 17/25 passes for 192 passing yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions. Torrance Burgess Jr. led the team in rushing yards with 34. Jeremiah Ballard led the receivers with 92 receiving yards on 4 receptions. Tyrice Knight led the defense in that game with 11 solo tackles and 3 assisted tackles while Maurice Westmoreland led the defense in sacks with 1. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that game.

 

 

 

Arizona is entering this game with a 1-1 record overall and they have a 0-0 record in their conference games too.  They are 1-0 in their home games, 0-1 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 lost their last game against Mississippi State in OT 31-24. Jayden de Laura was the starting QB and he completed 32/46 passes for 342 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions. Jayden de Laura led the team in rushing yards with 44 and 1 TD. Tetairoa McMillan led the receivers with 161 receiving yards on 8 receptions and 1 TD. Jacob Manu led the defense in that game with 4 solo tackles and 8 assisted tackles while Jacob Manu and Ta'ita'i Uiagalelei each led the defense in sacks with 1. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that game.

The current betting odds have Arizona listed as an 18 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Arizona is only 1-1 to start the season but they played really well in their last game despite losing. They lost on the road to Mississippi State in OT but they were very close to winning that game and making history since they have never beaten a team from the SEC on the road before. Now they are back at home against UTEP and UTEP has done nothing but struggle in their first 3 games of the season. UTEP opened their season with a conference loss on the road to Jacksonville State who is new to the FBS this year, then they won at home against a team from the FCS after trailing to start that game, and finally in their last game they were blown up by a terrible Northwestern team who beat them 38-7 as the road troubles from last year continue into this season for UTEP. Now they are on the road again but this time playing Arizona who came close to pulling off a big win last week and will now be back at home with a team that has improved a lot under Jedd Fisch. This is going to be a big test for Arizona since this is a game they should win easily and with the way UTEP has been playing on the road, Arizona will crush them at home here. The best way to place a bet here is on Arizona to cover the spread in this game.

UTEP Arizona Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, September 16, 2023 (11:00 pm ET start time) is Arizona 38 UTEP 17.

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UTEP Miners: 7-2 ATS off a road loss. 6-0 ATS after a game where they committed 3 or more turnovers. 7-1 OVER as a road underdog. 32-21 OVER as an underdog of 10.5 to 21 points. 

Arizona Wildcats: 13-27 ATS as a favorite of 10.5 to 21 points. 55-95 ATS after 1 or more consecutive wins against the spread. 9-3 OVER after 2 consecutive games where they forced 1 or less turnovers. 26-18 OVER after 2 or more consecutive wins against the spread.

UTEP Miners:  M. Bellon (WR) Out indefinitely - Leg. A. Dumas (RB) Out indefinitely - Eligibility.

Arizona Wildcats:  C. Hunter (WR) Ques Sat - Undisclosed. B. Johnson (RB) Ques Sat - Undisclosed.

“His source of his struggles are (a result of) bad play calling by me. We’re not going to pin anything on Gavin. I’m not going to do that because the kid’s a really good player and the pro scouts like what he’s doing. It’s a part of the (quarterback) position. When a team isn’t doing what people (want) us to do, you’re going to blame Gavin. But I’ve been pleased with Gavin and I think he’s doing a great job. I got to give him better plays and put him in better situations." - Dana Dimel on Gavin Hardison’s struggles after their first 3 games of the season.

“We had a chance to make history. Arizona has never won on the road in the SEC, last time they had an SEC win was 1976, and we had a chance to do that. We certainly had our chances. We were in spots to win that game.” - Jedd Fisch after his team’s loss against MS State in their last game. 

WR Bellon, Marcus  

WR Akharaiyi, Kelly 

WR Smith, Tyrin 

TE Fryar, Zach 

QB Hardison, Gavin 

RB Hankins, Deion 

FB Lopez, Julian 

WR McMillan, Tetairoa 

WR Lemonious-Craig, Montana 

WR Cowing, Jacob 

TE McLachlan, Tanner 

QB de Laura, Jayden 

RB Wiley, Michael 

Passing: G. Hardison (494)

Rushing: D. Hankins (255)

Receiving: K. Akharaiyi (161)

Touchdowns: K. Akharaiyi (1)

Passing: J. de Laura (627)

Rushing: J. de Laura (91)

Receiving: T. McMillan (226)

Touchdowns: J. Cowing (2)

Coaches:

UTEP Miners: Dana Dimel (6th season)

Arizona Wildcats: Jedd Fisch (3rd season)