With spring football and the portal movement slowing down (fingers crossed) forecasting the 2024 season becomes an easier proposition. The 13 FBS programs in the Lone Star State share a common feeling heading into June: Hope. New faces and new opportunities provide a fresh slate for rosters and coaching staff. 

The 2024 season is a new day for the Great State. Texas reunites with Texas A&M in the SEC and SMU joins the P4 as ACC members. But what are the best- and worst-case scenarios for each team in the upcoming season? We’ll breakdown at each one.

Previous best/worst case scenario pieces for 2024: Texas | Texas A&M | UTSA | Texas State | TCU | Rice | Texas Tech | SMU | North Texas | Baylor | Houston | Sam Houston 

UTEP MINERS

2023 results: 3-9 
2024 schedule 
Aug. 31                  at Nebraska
Sept. 7                  vs. Southern Utah
Sept. 14                at Liberty
Sept. 21                at Colorado State
Oct. 3                    vs. Sam Houston 
Oct. 10                  at Western Kentucky
Oct. 16                  vs. FIU 
Oct. 22                  at La Tech
Nov. 2                   vs. Middle Tennessee
Nov. 9                   vs. Kennesaw State
Nov. 23                 at Tennessee
Nov. 30                 at New Mexico State 

Best case for 2024: Expectations determine success. Winning eight games and flirting with a conference championship game berth in Year 1 of the Scotty Walden might be a fever dream. But if Walden & Co. start at what they control, El Paso will come around. That includes presenting a fun product with a fast-paced offense that scores points. A team that creates a buzz and pulls an upset or two. A team that plays hard for four quarters. 

The schedule is tough, especially early, and the roster was overturned in dramatic fashion. Results might not come as fast as they want it, but the Miners can set the tone for the immediate future and build momentum into the staff’s first full offseason by closing strong and hanging tough. The first six games include trips to Nebraska, Liberty, Colorado State, and Western Kentucky. Reaching a bowl game and six wins won’t be easy, but that is the best-case scenario.  

Worst case for 2024: Ask a UTEP fan and they’ll tell you it wasn’t the end results that caused them to lose faith in former head coach Dana Dimel’s vision – it was the process. The fan base isn’t delusional. El Paso knows 10 wins and conference championships aren’t lurking around the corner. But the city does want the team to be competitive and to reach bowl games and eventually flirt with the upper echelon of a top-heavy CUSA. 

The worst-case scenario for the Miners in 2024 has little to do with the record. It’ll come down to the buzz. The atmosphere at the Sun Bowl. The ticket sales in November. The amount that the community does, or doesn’t, talk about UTEP football at season’s end. The fans want to know that the hope they feel right now in the new staff is justified and that a brighter future is ahead.