Miners play better, still lose to UCF

http://origin.elpasotimes.com/minersmania/ci_7552746

 

ORLANDO -- At the end of a lost season, UTEP proved a whole lot better at playing for pride than it did for a bowl.

Against a lesser opponent than Central Florida, that might have been good for a happy ending. As it was, the Miners' best November game was good for a 36-20 loss against a 9-3 Knights team that secured a spot as the host of next week's Conference USA title game against Tulsa.

"I thought we had two good games against two of the best running backs in the country," linebacker Adam Vincent said of UCF's Kevin Smith and Tulane's Matt Forte, who are the two national rushing leaders. "It sucks that we didn't come out with a win. It was awesome playing with these guys (UTEP's seniors); we played a good game. If we had made a few more stops and the offense cold have scored a few more points, we could have won."

Bret Bloomquist / El Paso Times