One-on-one sit-down with UTEP HC Scotty Walden; Miners travel to Fargo, face North Dakota State

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Coming off its bye week, UTEP will head to Fargo to take on a stout North Dakota State in Mountain West action on Halloween at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome. The Miners and Bison kick off at 1:30 p.m. MT.

The Miners and Bison can be heard on 600 AM ESPN El Paso and on the UTEP Miners app, and will be streamed on MW+. 

Before the game takes place Saturday afternoon, ABC-7's Max Zepeda sat down with UTEP Football Head Coach Scotty Walden, as his team now comes off their bye week for the final five games of the regular season starting this week.

UTEP (1-6, 0-3 MW) came up short against San José State, 24-11, on Oct. 17 in El Paso. Jaden Smith turned in a solid performance, hauling in a career-high 12 receptions for 90 yards against the Spartans. Kam Thomas recorded 96 yards on four receptions, including a 64-yard grab. Raymond Moore III came in relief, finishing 19-of-28 for 195 yards while adding 55 yards on the ground. Miles Sterling registered a sack, giving him a team-high 3.5 on the season. UTEP didn’t turn the ball over for a second straight game, making it the first time since 2023 the Miners went back-to-back games without giving the ball away.

North Dakota State (6-2, 3-2 MW) lost at New Mexico, 21-16, on Oct. 24. UNM took a 21-9 lead following a 56-yard pick-six, but Nathan Hayes responded with a 10-play, 75-yard scoring drive that got NDSU within five points (21-16) with 6:42 left to play. Hayes finished with 198 yards on 17-of-33 passing, including a pair of touchdown passes and two interceptions. The Bison possess one of the top defenses in the FBS, ranking tied for second in total defense (250.1) and third in scoring defense (12.5 ppg).