The defense didn’t allow anything
It would have been relatively easy to allow UTEP to gain some traction in this game. With an early 21-0 lead, the defense was anything but lackadaisical. Maybe the pass rush wasn’t what some had thought it would be against an inferior opponent, but defenders didn’t make it easy on the Miners offense. Even when Gavin Hardison tried to throw it away, the Longhorns made on play on that.
Josh Thompson takes the ball away pic.twitter.com/wiN82tflDI
— Longhorns Wire (@LonghornsWire) September 13, 2020
As a whole, UTEP was held to 33 yards rushing, although they had to abandon the run after falling behind early. However, looking at their third down defense, the Longhorns allowed UTEP to convert three times on 17 chances. They were getting off the field and putting the ball back into the hands of their offense.