SAN ANTONIO — UTSA (1-3, 0-0) will open its sixth season of Conference USA play when it hosts UTEP (0-4, 0-0) on Saturday, Sept. 29. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at the Alamodome and the game will air on ESPN+ and Ticket 760 AM.

The Roadrunners are coming off a 25-21 victory against Texas State on Saturday night in the H-E-B- I-35 Showdown. The Miners have lost their last 16 games, as their last win came in the 2016 season finale. Saturday's league opener will mark the sixth meeting and the road team has been victorious in the previous fivematchups, including UTSA's 31-14 triumph on Oct. 28, 2017, in El Paso. The Roadrunners have won six of their last nine home games and they are 3-3 all-time in conference lid-lifters, including a 2-3 mark in C-USA and a perfect 2-0 mark against UTEP.

UTSA Roadrunners (1-3, 0-0)

vs.

UTEP Miners (0-4, 0-0)

6 p.m. | Sept. 29, 2018

Alamodome (36,582) | San Antonio, Texas

TV: ESPN+

Radio: Ticket 760 AM San Antonio

Opening drive

• Saturday's game will mark the sixth meeting between UTSA and UTEP.

• The road team has been victorious in each of the previous five matchups in the series.

• The Roadrunners posted a 31-14 win on Oct. 28, 2017, in El Paso in the last meeting.

• UTSA is 3-3 all-time in conference openers, including 2-3 in Conference USA lid-lifters.

• The Roadrunners have opened C-USA play twice before against UTEP and have won both contests.

• UTSA has won six of its last nine home games.

• Saturday's game will air on ESPN+, marking the 65th straight UTSA game to be broadcast.

Setting the scene

UTSA (1-3, 0-0) will open its sixth season of Conference USA play when it hosts UTEP (0-4, 0-0) on Saturday, Sept. 29. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at the Alamodome and the game will air on ESPN+ and Ticket 760 AM. The Roadrunners are coming off a 25-21 victory against Texas State on Saturday night in the H-E-B- I-35 Showdown. The Miners have lost their last 16 games, as their last win came in the 2016 season finale. Saturday's league opener will mark the sixth meeting and the road team has been victorious in the previous five matchups, including UTSA's 31-14 triumph on Oct. 28, 2017, in El Paso. The Roadrunners have won six of their last nine home games and they are 3-3 all-time in conference lid-lifters, including a 2-3 mark in C-USA and a perfect 2-0 mark against UTEP.

Tuning in

The game will air on ESPN+ (subscription required). Doug Anderson (play-by-play), LaDarrin McLane (analyst) and Megan Birdsong (sideline reporter) have the call. The contest will air live on the Roadrunners Sports Network and can be heard in the San Antonio area on Ticket 760 AM. Andy Everett (play-by-play), Jay Riley (analyst) and Pat Evans (sideline reporter) will call all the action. The pregame show will begin at 4 p.m. and there will be a 45-minute postgame show. The broadcast also can be heard live online at goUTSA.com and Ticket760.com and via the free iHeartRadio app.

About ESPN+

ESPN+ is a direct-to-consumer (no cable or satellite subscription needed) streaming service that will cost $4.99 per month. As part of the launch, ESPN+ was integrated as part of a completely redesigned ESPN app (and also via http://ESPN.com). Subscribers will receive thousands of additional live events, and original shows and films, and an on-demand library, which is not available on ESPN's linear TV or digital networks. ESPN+ is not included with your cable/satellite subscription, and ESPN+ does NOT include other ESPN content (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SEC Network, ESPN3, etc). It is a completely standalone subscription. For more information and to subscribe, please visit http://plus.espn.com.

Game 88

Saturday's matchup with UTEP will mark the 88th game in UTSA football history and its 44th home contest. Now in their eighth season of play, the Roadrunners are 39-47 overall and 23-20 at the Alamodome. By comparison, this will be the 992nd game in the Miners' history, which dates back to 1914. UTEP owns a 385-579-28 all-time record.

Home sweet home

UTSA has won six of its last nine games at the Alamodome and totes a 23-20 all-time record at home. The Roadrunners held off Texas State for a 25-21 win in their last home contest on Sept. 22. UTSA is 8-5 at home under the direction of third-year head coach Frank Wilson .

UTSA in conference openers

The Roadrunners are 3-3 all-time in conference openers, including a 2-3 mark in Conference USA lid-lifters. UTSA won its first-ever league contest in a 35-14 decision in its inaugural Western Athletic Conference contest at New Mexico State on Sept. 29, 2012, in Las Cruces, N.M. The Roadrunners downed UTEP by a 32-13 score in their first C-USA game on Sept. 21, 2013, in El Paso, and they also claimed a 25-6 road triumph over the Miners in the 2015 league opener. Saturday's C-USA opener versus UTEP will mark just the second time UTSA has opened the league schedule at home.

A look at UTEP

The Miners are 0-4 and have lost their last 16 games and they last won in a 52-24 decision against North Texas in the 2016 season finale. UTEP opened the Dana Dimel era with a 30-10 home setback to Northern Arizona, and they suffered road defeats to UNLV (52-24), Tennessee (24-0) before falling to New Mexico State, 27-20, last Saturday. The Miners are averaging 13.5 points and 295.0 yards of offense per game and they are allowing 33.2 points and 418.5 yards per contest. Junior running back Quardraiz Wadley paces the ground attack with 283 yards and two touchdowns on 43 carries, while junior quarterback Kai Locksley has thrown for 410 yards and a TD and rushed for 257 and three scores. Senior Warren Redix leads the receiving corps with 11 catches for 96 yards. Senior linebacker A.J. Hotchkins is the top tackler with 39 stops, including 2.5 tackles for loss and a pair of sacks. Senior defensive back Kahani Smith has posted 31 tackles and three pass breakups.

Series history

Saturday will mark the sixth all-time meeting between UTSA and UTEP. The Roadrunners lead the series, 3-2, including a 31-14 victory in the last matchup on Oct. 28, 2017, in El Paso. The road team has been victorious in the previous five meetings, including a 52-49, five-overtime win for the Miners in the last matchup at the Alamodome on Oct. 22, 2016. This will mark the third time UTSA has faced UTEP for its Conference USA opener and the Roadrunners have won the previous two such contests.

Last meeting

UTSA used a ball-control offense and a stiff defense to cruise to a 31-14 victory over UTEP on Oct. 28, 2017, at the Sun Bowl. The Roadrunners rushed for 205 yards and threw for another 188 in tallying more than 34 minutes in time of possession, while they held the Miners to 243 total yards. Nate Gaines and Devron Davis each recorded a pick and helped the Birds limit UTEP quarterback Zack Greenlee to just 8-of-29 passing for 133 yards. La'Kel Bass and King Newton posted five tackles apiece to lead the defense. Meanwhile, Tyrell Clay (71 yards), Dalton Sturm (67 yards) and Jalen Rhodes (66 yards) provided a potent ground attack for the visitors. Sturm also threw for 188 yards and a touchdown on 18-of-30 passing. Greg Campbell Jr. led all receivers with five catches for 40 yards.

Campos' ties to UTEP

UTSA Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Lisa Campos has ties to the Roadrunners' opponent on Saturday. She spent as total of nine years in the Miners' athletics department and served as senior associate athletic director from 2006-12 before being named Director of Athletics at Northern Arizona. Campos also earned her doctorate degree in educational leadership from UTEP.

Last time out

Josiah Tauaefa posted nine tackles and two-and-a-half sacks and UTSA held off Texas State, 25-21, in the H-E-B I-35 Showdown on Saturday night at the Alamodome. The junior linebacker had 3.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and a key forced fumble that was returned for a touchdown on the first possession of the evening to help lead the Roadrunners to their third win in as many meetings with the Bobcats. Tauaefa helped lead a defense that limited Texas State to 248 yards of offense, including just 26 on the ground. Meanwhile, Jalen Rhodes rushed for a game-high 76 yards on 17 carries and Greg Campbell Jr. caught seven passes for 71 yards to pace the UTSA offense. The Roadrunners led by two scores in the fourth quarter but had to hold off the Bobcats in the final minutes to secure their first victory of the season. Sophomore place-kicker Jared Sackett drilled a 44-yard field goal with 10:14 left to play to give UTSA a 23-14 lead. Texas State pulled to within two points after reserve quarterback Tyler Vitt found Hutch White open over the middle for a 13-yard touchdown pass with just over five minutes left on the clock. The visitors would get the ball back one more time, as UTSA was forced to punt with a little more than two minutes remaining. Senior punter and Ray Guy Award watch list member Yannis Routsas pinned the Bobcats at their own 2-yard line, and on the first play from scrimmage, senior Kevin Strong Jr. tackled Vitt in the end zone for a safety to make it 25-21. UTSA recovered the onside kick with 1:49 left and only had to kneel it three times to seal the win.

Sackett tabbed C-USA Player of the Week

UTSA place-kicker Jared Sackett was named Conference USA Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance in the win against Texas State. The sophomore, who is on the Lou Groza Award watch list, booted three field goals, all from 40-plus yards, and made both extra-point attempts to help lead the Roadrunners to a 25-21 victory over the Bobcats. He was a perfect 3-for-3, including splitting the uprights from 40 yards twice in the first half before connecting from 44 in the fourth quarter. He matched his career high of three field goals in a game and is now 6-of-7 on the season with five coming from 40-or-more yards. It marked the second weekly award for Sackett, who was named C-USA Special Teams Player of the Week on Nov. 20, 2017, after he made all three attempts, including the game winner from 40, in the 9-7 victory against Marshall.

Routsas named William V. Campbell Trophy semifinalist

UTSA senior Yannis Routsas was named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy®, the National Football Foundation & College Football Hall of Fame announced Sept. 26. The award recognizes an individual as the absolute best football scholar-athlete in the nation. Fidelity Investments is a proud partner of the Campbell Trophy®. One of 63 semifinalists from the Football Bowl Subdivision, Routsas graduated in May with 3.51 GPA and a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering with a minor in mathematics. A two-time member of the UTSA Dean's List, he has appeared on the Conference USA Commissioner's Honor Roll four times. The Houston native has been involved in several engineering projects, including a pressure and force application kicking cleat and a level-wind guided winch that earned first place at the Center for Innovation and Technology Entrepreneurship Competition $100K Student Technology Venture Competition at the UTSA College of Engineering Technology Symposium. Active in community service, Routsas has volunteered at Haven for Hope and with the For The Kids Dance Marathon. He also is a member of the UTSA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and has participated in UTSA's Rowdy Readers program. A member of the Ray Guy Award watch list, Routsas has punted 22 times for an average of 43.2 yards per punt this season and four of his punts have sailed 50-plus yards, including a career-long 63-yarder against Baylor. One of 10 semifinalists for the Ray Guy Award last season, he has pinned opponents inside their own 20-yard line five times and five of his punts have resulted in a fair catch.

Filling seats

UTSA welcomed 42,071 fans to the Alamodome for the home opener against Baylor on Sept. 8. The attendance figure marked the second-largest home crowd in UTSA history behind the 56,743 fans who watched the inaugural game on Sept. 3, 2011. It also ranks as the largest home attendance figure in Conference USA this season. The next closest is 32,349 for Marshall's home game against North Carolina State on Sept. 22. It also was the biggest crowd to take in a UTSA game at the Alamodome since the 2013 game against Oklahoma State when 40,977 fans filed into the facility. UTSA drew 29,205 fans for the H-E-B I-35 Showdown victory against Texas State on Sept. 22 and leads Conference USA with an average home attendance of 35,638, more than 7,000 ahead of Marshall (28,327). That average also stands fifth among all Group of 5 teams behind BYU (52,913), UCF (43,763), East Carolina (38,969) and San Diego State (37,098). The Roadrunners now have drawn 1,190,875 fans for 43 all-time home games, an average of 27,695 per contest.

Up next

UTSA will make the short drive to Houston to face Rice (1-3, 0-1) on Saturday, Oct. 6. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Rice Stadium and the game will be broadcast on ESPN3.