The UTEP football team begins the October mid-week games portion of the schedule Thursday against Sam Houston in the Sun Bowl, and count Miner coach Scotty Walden as a fan of the prime-time, nationally televised games to come.

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Should UTEP be extended an invitation and opts to leave Conference USA, the MWC would have eight members with seven holding full-time status (Hawai'i is a football-only member). The NCAA requires eight full members for a league to be recognized as an FBS conference.

According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the Mountain West is in “deep discussions” with UTEP to join the conference. No agreement has been made quite yet but the Miners are expected to provide their decision in the near future.