2021 UTEP Miners football

New Mexico Bowl, L 24–31 vs. Fresno State
Conference	Conference USA
Division	West Division
Record	7–6 (4–4 C-USA)
Head coach	Dana Dimel (4th season)
Offensive coordinator	Dave Warner (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Bradley Dale Peveto (1st season)
Base defense	4–2–5
Home stadium	Sun Bowl
Seasons ← 2020 2022 →

2021 Conference USA football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
Western Kentucky xy	7	–	1	9	–	5
Marshall	5	–	3	7	–	6
Old Dominion	5	–	3	6	–	7
Middle Tennessee	4	–	4	7	–	6
Florida Atlantic	3	–	5	5	–	7
Charlotte	3	–	5	5	–	7
FIU	0	–	8	1	–	11
West Division
UTSA xy$	7	–	1	12	–	2
UAB	6	–	2	9	–	4
North Texas	5	–	3	6	–	7
UTEP	4	–	4	7	–	6
Rice	3	–	5	4	–	8
Southern Miss	2	–	6	3	–	9
Louisiana Tech	2	–	6	3	–	9
Championship: UTSA 49, Western Kentucky 41
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant

The 2021 UTEP Miners football team represented the University of Texas at El Paso in the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Miners were led by fourth–year head coach Dana Dimel and played their home games at the Sun Bowl. They competed as members of the West Division of Conference USA (C–USA). For the first time since 2014, the Miners became bowl eligible.

Schedule

UTEP announced its 2021 football schedule on January 27, 2021.^[1]^[2] The 2021 schedule consisted of 6 home and 6 away games in the regular season.

Note: With the COVID-19 pandemic still ongoing, opponents and dates are subject to change.

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 28	7:30 p.m.	at New Mexico State*	Aggie Memorial Stadium Las Cruces, NM (Battle of I-10)	KVIA-TV/BSAZ/FloSports	W 30–3	19,034
September 4	7:00 p.m.	Bethune–Cookman*	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX	ESPN3	W 38–28	14,554
September 10	7:30 p.m.	at Boise State*	Albertsons Stadium Boise, ID	FS1	L 13–54	35,518
September 25	7:00 p.m.	New Mexico*	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX	ESPN+	W 20–13	15,069
October 2	7:00 p.m.	Old Dominion	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX	ESPN+	W 28–21	11,025
October 9	5:00 p.m.	at Southern Miss	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS	ESPN3	W 26–13	26,049
October 16	7:00 p.m.	Louisiana Tech	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX	ESPN+	W 19–3	18,468
October 30	4:00 p.m.	at Florida Atlantic	FAU Stadium Boca Raton, FL	ESPN+	L 25–28	16,432
November 6	8:15 p.m.	UTSA	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX	ESPN2	L 23–44	31,658
November 13	2:00 p.m.	at North Texas	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX	ESPN+	L 17–20	20,056
November 20	2:00 p.m.	Rice	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX	ESPN+	W 38–28	10,097
November 26	12:00 p.m.	at UAB	Protective Stadium Birmingham, AL	ESPN+	L 25–42	19,683
December 18	12:15 p.m.	vs. Fresno State*	Dreamstyle Stadium Albuquerque, NM (New Mexico Bowl)	ESPN	L 24–31	16,422
*Non-conference game Homecoming All times are in Mountain time

Schedule Source:^[1]^[3]

Game summaries

At New Mexico State

UTEP at New Mexico State
(Battle of I-10)

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Miners	17	3	10	0	30
Aggies	0	3	0	0	3

Date: August 28, 2021
Location: Aggie Memorial Stadium
Las Cruces, NM
Game start: 7:38 p.m. MDT
Elapsed time: 3 hours and 19 minutes
Game attendance: 19,034
Game weather: Temperature: 84 °F (29 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: NE 6 MPH
Referee: Kevin Brunette
TV announcers (KVIA-TV/BSAZ/FloSports/Comcast): Adam Young (play–by–play), Danny Knee (analyst) and Stephanie Shields (sideline)

Scoring summary

1	10:37	UTEP	Deion Hankins 5–yard run (Gavin Baechle kick) (5 plays, 80 yards, 2:54)	UTEP 7–0
	09:09	UTEP	Gavin Baechle 35–yard field goal (4 plays, 7 yards, 1:17)	UTEP 10–0
	01:49	UTEP	Ronald Awatt 34–yard run (Gavin Baechle kick) (6 plays, 80 yards, 3:16)	UTEP 17–0

2	13:48	NMSU	Ethan Albertson 27–yard field goal (10 plays, 66 yards, 3:01)	UTEP 17–3
2	00:00	UTEP	Gavin Baechle 27–yard field goal (12 plays, 58 yards, 4:50)	UTEP 20–3

3	13:48	UTEP	Jacob Cowing 59–yard pass from Gavin Hardison (Gavin Baechle kick) (3 plays, 75 yards, 1:12)	UTEP 27–3
3	04:02	UTEP	Gavin Baechle 33–yard field goal (10 plays, 65 yards, 5:38)	UTEP 30–3

Pregame line	Over/under
UTEP –9.5	59.5^[4]

Statistics	UTEP	New Mexico State
First downs	19	20
Total yards	452	190
Rushing yards	203	101
Passing yards	249	89
Turnovers	0	3
Time of possession	32:29	27:31

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	11/16, 249 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Ronald Awatt	11 carries, 74 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jacob Cowing	5 receptions, 158 yards, 1 TD
New Mexico State	Passing	Jonah Johnson	8/24, 82 yards
	Rushing	Juwaun Price	9 carries, 37 yards
	Receiving	Dominic Gicinto	2 receptions, 31 yards

Bethune–Cookman

Bethune–Cookman at UTEP

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wildcats	0	0	14	14	28
• Miners	10	0	7	21	38

Date: September 4, 2021
Location: Sun Bowl
El Paso, TX
Game start: 7:05 p.m. MDT
Elapsed time: 3 hours and 20 minutes
Game attendance: 14,554
Game weather: Temperature: 91 °F (33 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: E 8 MPH
Referee: Ed Ardito
TV announcers (ESPN3): Erik Elken (play–by–play) and Trevor Vittatoe (analyst)

Scoring summary

1	08:13	UTEP	Gavin Baechle 22–yard field goal (4 plays, 5 yards, 1:30)	UTEP 3–0
1	00:39	UTEP	Trent Thompson 2–yard pass from Gavin Hardison (Gavin Baechle kick) (12 plays, 78 yards, 5:05)	UTEP 10–0

3	13:33	BCU	Marcus Riley 4–yard pass from Shannon Patrick (Dylan Moghaddam kick) (2 plays, 6 yards, 0:42)	UTEP 10–7
	06:41	UTEP	Calvin Brownholtz 1–yard run (Gavin Baechle kick) (13 plays, 72 yards, 6:46)	UTEP 17–7
	03:31	BCU	Kemari Averett 7–yard pass from Shannon Patrick (Dylan Moghaddam kick) (6 plays, 89 yards, 3:04)	UTEP 17–14

4	12:59	UTEP	Jacob Cowing 6–yard pass from Gavin Hardison (Gavin Baechle kick) (10 plays, 83 yards, 5:27)	UTEP 24–14
	10:44	UTEP	Justin Garrett 8–yard pass from Gavin Hardison (Gavin Baechle kick) (3 plays, 49 yards, 1:15)	UTEP 31–14
	05:28	BCU	Que'shaun Byrd 2–yard run (Dylan Moghaddam kick) (9 plays, 87 yards, 5:12)	UTEP 31–21
	02:15	UTEP	Ronald Awatt 19–yard run (Gavin Baechle kick) (6 plays, 50 yards, 3:13)	UTEP 38–21
	01:17	BCU	Aaron Thompson 3–yard run (Dylan Moghaddam kick) (3 plays, 75 yards, 0:58)	UTEP 38–28

Pregame line	Over/under
UTEP –20.5	52.5^[5]

Statistics	Bethune–Cookman	UTEP
First downs	12	24
Total yards	333	472
Rushing yards	118	289
Passing yards	215	183
Turnovers	3	4
Time of possession	24:26	35:34

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Bethune–Cookman	Passing	Shannon Patrick	15/22, 215 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Que'shaun Byrd	12 carries, 98 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Kemari Averett	4 receptions, 72 yards, 1 TD
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	14/23, 183 yards, 3 TDs
	Rushing	Ronald Awatt	19 carries, 126 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Tyrin Smith	4 receptions, 76 yards

At Boise State

UTEP at Boise State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Miners	3	10	0	0	13
• Broncos	10	31	10	3	54

Date: September 10, 2021
Location: Albertsons Stadium
Boise, ID
Game start: 7:40 p.m. MDT
Elapsed time: 3 hours and 20 minutes
Game attendance: 35,518
Game weather: Temperature: 68 °F (20 °C) • Weather: Cloudy • Wind: E 4 MPH
Referee: Rodney Burnette
TV announcers (FS1): Alex Faust (play–by–play) and Petros Papadakis (analyst)

Scoring summary

1	10:36	UTEP	Gavin Baechle 33–yard field goal (9 plays, 59 yards, 4:24)	UTEP 3–0
	09:08	BSU	Jonah Dalmas 39–yard field goal (6 plays, 58 yards, 1:21)	TIE 3–3
	06:42	BSU	Stefan Cobbs 81–yard punt return (Jonah Dalmas kick)	BSU 10–3

2	13:26	UTEP	Gavin Baechle 21–yard field goal (15 plays, 72 yards, 8:16)	BSU 10–6
	11:33	BSU	George Holani 10–yard run (Jonah Dalmas kick) (6 plays, 75 yards, 1:53)	BSU 17–6
	11:15	BSU	Andrew Van Buren 3–yard run (Jonah Dalmas kick) (1 play, 3 yards, 0:04)	BSU 24–6
	08:43	BSU	Stefan Cobbs 61–yard pass from Hank Bachmeier (Jonah Dalmas kick) (1 play, 61 yards, 0:10)	BSU 31–6
	06:21	UTEP	Jacob Cowing 48–yard pass from Gavin Hardison (Gavin Baechle kick) (5 plays, 75 yards, 2:22)	BSU 31–13
	03:00	BSU	Jonah Dalmas 27–yard field goal (9 plays, 69 yards, 3:15)	BSU 34–13
	00:14	BSU	Andrew Van Buren 1–yard run (Jonah Dalmas kick) (5 plays, 48 yards, 0:33)	BSU 41–13

3	13:50	BSU	Tyneil Hopper 23–yard pass from Hank Bachmeier (Jonah Dalmas kick) (3 plays, 38 yards, 1:02)	BSU 48–13
3	04:19	BSU	Jonah Dalmas 29–yard field goal (4 plays, 7 yards, 1:52)	BSU 51–13

4	04:20	BSU	Jonah Dalmas 34–yard field goal (8 plays, 33 yards, 3:23)	BSU 54–13

Pregame line	Over/under
BSU –25	56.5^[6]

Statistics	UTEP	Boise State
First downs	20	21
Total yards	336	461
Rushing yards	104	121
Passing yards	232	340
Turnovers	6	3
Time of possession	34:36	25:24

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	15/24, 223 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs
	Rushing	Ronald Awatt	15 carries, 44 yards
	Receiving	Jacob Cowing	6 receptions, 112 yards, 1 TD
Boise State	Passing	Hank Bachmeier	17/24, 340 yards, 2 TDs
	Rushing	Tyler Crowe	7 carries, 45 yards
	Receiving	Khalil Shakir	7 receptions, 166 yards

New Mexico

New Mexico at UTEP

	1	2	Total
Lobos			0
Miners			0

Date: September 25, 2021
Location: Sun Bowl
El Paso, TX
Game start: 7:00 p.m. MDT
TV announcers (ESPN+): Erik Elken (play–by–play) and Trevor Vittatoe (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
NM –2.5	54^[7]

Statistics	New Mexico	UTEP
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
New Mexico	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
UTEP	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Old Dominion

Old Dominion at UTEP

	1	2	3	4	Total
Monarchs	0	7	14	0	21
• Miners	3	14	3	8	28

Date: October 2, 2021
Location: Sun Bowl
El Paso, TX
Game start: 7:00 p.m. MDT
Elapsed time: 3 hours and 9 minutes
Game attendance: 11,025
Game weather: 79 °F (26 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: N 2 MPH
Referee: Rodney Burnette
TV announcers (ESPN+): Erik Elken (play–by–play) and Trevor Vittatoe (analyst)

Scoring summary

1	09:55	UTEP	Gavin Baechle 29-yard field goal (7 plays, 33 yards, 3:24)	UTEP 3–0

2	11:08	UTEP	Justin Garrett 7-yard pass from Gavin Hardison (Gavin Baechle kick) (16 plays, 80 yards, 8:10)	UTEP 10–0
	00:51	UTEP	Tyrin Smith 7-yard pass from Gavin Hardison (Gavin Baechle kick) (15 plays, 87 yards, 8:06)	UTEP 17–0
	00:10	ODU	Ali Jennings III 20-yard pass from D. J. Mack Jr. (Nick Rice kick) (8 plays, 75 yards, 0:41)	UTEP 17–7

3	11:37	UTEP	Gavin Baechle 40-yard field goal (8 plays, 64 yards, 3:19)	UTEP 20–7
	05:27	ODU	D. J. Mack Jr. 5-yard rush (Nick Rice kick) (19 plays, 75 yards, 6:10)	UTEP 20–14
	04:27	ODU	AC White 11-yard punt returned (Nick Rice kick) (5 plays, 72 yards, 0:55)	ODU 21–20

4	06:59	UTEP	Deion Hankins 3-yard rush (Gavin Hardison two-point conversion pass to Justin Garrett) (9 plays, 63 yards, 4:47)	UTEP 28–21

Pregame line	Over/under
UTEP –5.5	48.5^[8]

Statistics	Old Dominion	UTEP
First downs	19	17
Total yards	282	333
Rushing yards	88	142
Passing yards	194	191
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	25:32	34:28

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Old Dominion	Passing	D. J. Mack Jr.	20/34, 194 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Blake Watson	13 carries, 35 yards
	Receiving	Zack Kuntz	8 receptions, 54 yards
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	10/20, 191 yards, 2 TDs
	Rushing	Deion Hankins	23 carries, 75 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jacob Cowing	4 receptions, 118 yards

At Southern Miss

UTEP at Southern Miss

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Miners	7	7	7	5	26
Golden Eagles	7	0	0	6	13

Date: October 9, 2021
Location: M. M. Roberts Stadium
Hattiesburg, MS
Game start: 6:00 p.m. CDT
Game attendance: 26,049
Television network: ESPN3

Pregame line	Over/under
UTEP –2	44.5^[9]

Statistics	UTEP	Southern Miss
First downs	16	17
Total yards	392	254
Rushing yards	265	15
Passing yards	127	239
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	30:48	29:12

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	7/17, 127 yards, INT
	Rushing	Ronald Awatt	18 rushes, 159 yards, TD
	Receiving	Tyrin Smith	1 reception, 55 yards
Southern Miss	Passing	Jake Lange	20/31, 239 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Frank Gore Jr.	16 rushes, 43 yards
	Receiving	Jakarius Caston	4 receptions, 94 yards

Louisiana Tech

Louisiana Tech at UTEP

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	0	3	0	0	3
• Miners	14	2	3	0	19

Date: October 16, 2021
Location: Sun Bowl
El Paso, TX
Game start: 7:00 p.m. MDT
Game attendance: 18,468
Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 73 °F (23 °C)
Referee: Joe Lehring
Television network: ESPN+

Pregame line	Over/under
N/A	N/A

Statistics	Louisiana Tech	UTEP
First downs	14	18
Total yards	288	385
Rushing yards	92	102
Passing yards	196	283
Turnovers	3	4
Time of possession	23:17	36:43

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Louisiana Tech	Passing	Austin Kendall	14/28, 174 yards, 3 INT
	Rushing	Marcus Williams Jr.	7 rushes, 42 yards
	Receiving	Marcus Williams Jr.	2 receptions, 59 yards
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	19/29, 283 yards, INT
	Rushing	Deion Hankins	15 rushes, 55 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Jacob Cowing	9 receptions, 166 yards

At Florida Atlantic

UTEP at Florida Atlantic

	1	2	Total
Miners			0
Owls			0

Date: October 30, 2021
Location: FAU Stadium
Boca Raton, FL
Game start: 6:00 p.m. EDT
Television network: ESPN Networks

Pregame line	Over/under
N/A	N/A

Statistics	UTEP	Florida Atlantic
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTEP	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Florida Atlantic	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

UTSA

UTSA at UTEP

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Roadrunners	16	14	7	7	44
Miners	6	3	7	7	23

Date: November 6, 2021
Location: Sun Bowl
El Paso, TX
Game start: 8:15 p.m. MDT
Game attendance: 31,658
Game weather: Sunny
Referee: Scott Hardin
TV announcers (ESPN2): Clay Matvick (play-by-play), Rocky Boiman (analyst) and Tiffany Blackmon (sideline)

Pregame line	Over/under
N/A	N/A

Statistics	UTSA	UTEP
First downs	28	20
Total yards	561	374
Rushing yards	275	127
Passing yards	286	247
Turnovers	0	0
Time of possession	33:41	26:19

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTSA	Passing	Frank Harris	22/34, 286 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Sincere McCormick	21 carries, 161 yards, TD
	Receiving	Zakhari Franklin	10 receptions, 114 yards, 2 TD
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	13/30, 247 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Ronald Awatt	16 carries, 83 yards
	Receiving	Jacob Cowing	5 receptions, 112 yards

At North Texas

UTEP at North Texas

	1	2	3	4	Total
Miners	0	7	0	10	17
• Mean Green	0	3	14	3	20

Date: November 13, 2021
Location: Apogee Stadium
Denton, TX
Game start: 3:00 p.m. CST
Game attendance: 20,056
Television network: ESPN+

Pregame line	Over/under
N/A	N/A

Statistics	UTEP	North Texas
First downs	14	22
Total yards	382	423
Rushing yards	109	183
Passing yards	273	240
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	29:45	30:15

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	15/29, 273 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Ronald Awatt	17 rushes, 85 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jacob Cowing	5 receptions, 174 yards, TD
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	15/33, 240 yards, TD
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	18 rushes, 81 yards
	Receiving	Roderic Burns	5 receptions, 93 yards, TD

Rice

Rice at UTEP

	1	2	Total
Owls			0
Miners			0

Date: November 20, 2021
Location: Sun Bowl
El Paso, TX
Game start: 2:00 p.m. MDT
Television network: ESPN Networks

At UAB

UTEP at UAB

	1	2	Total
Miners			0
Blazers			0

Date: November 26, 2021
Location: Protective Stadium
Birmingham, AL
Game start: 1:00 p.m. CST
Television network: ESPN Networks

Pregame line	Over/under
N/A	N/A

Statistics	UTEP	UAB
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTEP	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
UAB	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

References

^ ^a ^b "UTEP Miners unveil their 2021 football schedule". KVIA. January 27, 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
^ "UTEP Football Announces 2021 Schedule". University of Texas at El Paso Department of Athletics. January 27, 2021. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
^ "2021 UTEP Miners Football Schedule". FBSchedule. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
^ "UTEP Miners vs New Mexico State Aggies". Odds Shark. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
^ "Bethune–Cookman Wildcats vs UTEP Miners". Odds Shark. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
^ "UTEP Miners vs Boise State Broncos". Odds Shark. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
^ "New Mexico Lobos vs UTEP Miners". Odds Shark. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
^ "Old Dominion Monarchs vs UTEP Miners". Odds Shark. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
^ "UTEP Miners vs Southern Miss Golden Eagles". Odds Shark. Retrieved October 5, 2021.

v t e UTEP Miners football
Venues	Kidd Field (1938–1962) Sun Bowl (1963–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games New Mexico State: Battle of I-10
Culture & lore	Paydirt Pete Miners Fight Sound of the Southwest Marching Miner Regiment KROD
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Rice	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
UTEP	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving