Why are you a fan of UTEP?

[Autograph Boy]

I'm curious to know why you all are UTEP fans. Did you graduate from UTEP? From El Paso? Another reason?

I am from El Paso and graduated from UTEP in 2010 and have been following UTEP sports for over 25 years.

 

[UTEPMiners8106]

I went to the football games as a kid in the 80s with my parents so I am partial to UTEP football over UTEP basketball. By my teens I hated watching UTEP lose so I was a fan of Notre Dame but then I attended UTEP and I felt like it was stupid if I rooted for a college I did not attend.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

I was a fan of Notre Dame but then I attended UTEP and I felt like it was stupid if I rooted for a college I did not attend.

Did you ever play for the Cowboys? How is it stupid to root for a college you didn’t attend?

 

[UTEPMiners8106]

Did you ever play for the Cowboys? How is it stupid to root for a college you didn’t attend?

Obviously not, but it’s my school so I’m going to support them. I tried watching Notre Dame as I got older and I just couldn’t get into it as much as when I was younger, and as awful as UTEP is I enjoy supporting them more than another school.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

Obviously not, but it’s my school so I’m going to support them.

Doesn’t mean you can’t support other schools. Notre Dame isn’t a rival. If you can be a fan of teams in other cities you never played for, you can be a fan of other colleges too.

 

[UTEPMiners8106]

Doesn’t mean you can’t support other schools. Notre Dame isn’t a rival. If you can be a fan of teams in other cities you never played for, you can be a fan of other colleges too.

Fair enough. I’ll watch a game every once in a while but That WAC Co-Championship in 2000 and the 04 and 05 football seasons were better than any ND win that I’ve seen in 20 years because it’s my Alma mater.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

Fair enough. I’ll watch a game every once in a while but That WAC Co-Championship in 2000 and the 04 and 05 football seasons were better than any ND win that I’ve seen in 20 years because it’s my Alma mater.

I hear you. I just think you should like who you like. A lot of people like the Patriots, Ravens, and others here in El Paso, and few have ever been to Boston or Baltimore. Nobody should tell you the team you’re supporting is wrong because of whatever.

Some “hardcore” UTEP fans would get upset when El Pasoans supported or liked Texas. Just because you live in El Paso doesn’t mean you’re required to like UTEP. Replace El Paso with any city and UTEP with the local team and the rule is the same.

If someone was a big North Texas fan and also a UTEP fan, I mean that’s fine. When UNT moved to CUSA, I could see most stopping be a fan of one of them.

I don’t think you can be a fan of 2 rivals though. Like you really can’t like the Eagles and the Cowboys or Oklahoma and Oklahoma St, Michigan and Ohio St, etc. The only exception would be having 2 kids playing for both teams in the same sport.

Point being - be a fan of any team you want, don’t let someone else tell you who you can or can’t root for.

 

[unihorn]

Grew up here. Like going to basketball games more than football. I support them out of the kindness of my heart more than anything.

 

[Rocketsr]

Grew up in El Paso, and went to every football including the annual Sun Bowl, and basketball game from the age of 5 till I was around 18. Parents had season tickets. Kept watching them on TV when I could after that.
Really do not have much family left there, so I only see UTEP on the road where our paths cross.

 

[FarWestTexas]

Born and Raised 915. UTEP BBA Finance & Marketing 2008. Exposure to higher education started really early. Field trips to UTEP were major when I was in elementary. For me, two UTEP players did their student-teaching at my elementary school, some lineman and Mike Perez. Coach Perez was so dope, he’d have us run routes and make punt us the ball. Then, ‘92s Sweet Sixteen run, I was only 6 but the buzz of the town was unforgettable. These consistent losing seasons in everything have been so detrimental to creating new Miner fans in an aged fan base.

 

[Autograph Boy]

Born and Raised 915. UTEP BBA Finance & Marketing 2008. Exposure to higher education started really early. Field trips to UTEP were major when I was in elementary. For me, two UTEP players did their student-teaching at my elementary school, some lineman and Mike Perez. Coach Perez was so dope, he’d have us run routes and make punt us the ball. Then, ‘92s Sweet Sixteen run, I was only 6 but the buzz of the town was unforgettable. These consistent losing seasons in everything have been so detrimental to creating new Miner fans in an aged fan base.

You went around the same time as me. I graduated with a BBA in Human Resource Management in 2010.

 

[JCorona]

I hear you. I just think you should like who you like. A lot of people like the Patriots, Ravens, and others here in El Paso, and few have ever been to Boston or Baltimore. Nobody should tell you the team you’re supporting is wrong because of whatever.

Some “hardcore” UTEP fans would get upset when El Pasoans supported or liked Texas. Just because you live in El Paso doesn’t mean you’re required to like UTEP. Replace El Paso with any city and UTEP with the local team and the rule is the same.

If someone was a big North Texas fan and also a UTEP fan, I mean that’s fine. When UNT moved to CUSA, I could see most stopping be a fan of one of them.

I don’t think you can be a fan of 2 rivals though. Like you really can’t like the Eagles and the Cowboys or Oklahoma and Oklahoma St, Michigan and Ohio St, etc. The only exception would be having 2 kids playing for both teams in the same sport.

Point being - be a fan of any team you want, don’t let someone else tell you who you can or can’t root for.

I personally can’t support any teams I have no connection to. A lot of people I knew growing up liked Manchester or Barcelona and I just never could. Maybe it’s because I’ve never been to those cities. Even with college football, I’ve tried to like the Longhorns and I don’t feel it.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

I personally can’t support any teams I have no connection to. A lot of people I knew growing up liked Manchester or Barcelona and I just never could. Maybe it’s because I’ve never been to those cities. Even with college football, I’ve tried to like the Longhorns and I don’t feel it.

And that’s your choice. As it was for your friends to like ManU or Barca. People have no right to tell someone who they should root for. The reason doesn’t matter.

 

[JCorona]

And that’s your choice. As it was for your friends to like ManU or Barca. People have no right to tell someone who they should root for. The reason doesn’t matter.

You’re right but it’s also my right to think that it’s stupid to root for a team one has zero connection to. Most people like those types of teams cuz those teams win championships. I prefer to stick with my loser hometown teams.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

You’re right but it’s also my right to think that it’s stupid to root for a team one has zero connection to. Most people like those types of teams cuz those teams win championships. I prefer to stick with my loser hometown teams.

That’s fine, nothing wrong with that thinking. Most people gravitate to sports when they’re young and if you don’t have a local team, you have to pick someone or follow your dad or whatever. The El Paso sports stereotype is - Cowboys, Lakers, and Yankees, especially if they’re 40 +. There’s nothing wrong with that, as long as you stick with that.

I only have a problem with people switching because of winning. You “can’t” like the Patriots and Warriors one year, then the Raptors and Panthers the next. I disagree with that stuff, but again, their choice. They just look like a total idiot because of it.

 

[JCorona]

That’s fine, nothing wrong with that thinking. Most people gravitate to sports when they’re young and if you don’t have a local team, you have to pick someone or follow your dad or whatever. The El Paso sports stereotype is - Cowboys, Lakers, and Yankees, especially if they’re 40 +. There’s nothing wrong with that, as long as you stick with that.

I only have a problem with people switching because of winning. You “can’t” like the Patriots and Warriors one year, then the Raptors and Panthers the next. I disagree with that stuff, but again, their choice. They just look like a total idiot because of it.

Sometimes I don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. I want to see UTEP win a bowl game and a NCAAT game.

When I was in elementary school there was a man in our church who was mentally handicapped. He was a huge raiders fan. During the raiders super bowl run all he kept saying was “the raiders won” and he was genuinely happy.

I want to feel those same feelings. After years and years of watching my team lose I wonder how it’s going to feel when we finally win.

That’s a feeling bandwagon fans will never know.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

That’s a feeling bandwagon fans will never know.

That’s one of my points. If all you do is win, it doesn’t really mean much because that’s all you know. Being an occasional winner, just means the wins mean more. If the Warriors win a couple of titles in the next few years, it’s just another trophy. The fans are used to it. The 2016 Championship for the Cavs was monumental for the team and the city, because they had never won.

Do you think Duke fans celebrate first round NCAA tournament wins? No, because it happens all the time. When your team is a “loser”, the feeling of joy is greater when you finally win.

 

[Rocketsr]

That’s one of my points. If all you do is win, it doesn’t really mean much because that’s all you know. Being an occasional winner, just means the wins mean more. If the Warriors win a couple of titles in the next few years, it’s just another trophy. The fans are used to it. The 2016 Championship for the Cavs was monumental for the team and the city, because they had never won.

Do you think Duke fans celebrate first round NCAA tournament wins? No, because it happens all the time. When your team is a “loser”, the feeling of joy is greater when you finally win.

The only problem is that UTEP has almost become a perennial loser. And there is little joy.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

The only problem is that UTEP has almost become a perennial loser. And there is little joy.

That is the problem. Then you add on higher ticket prices and a conference that nobody give a F about, and you have shit.

How times have you done other things than watch a UTEP game? Assuming it was available to you. Now, I watch Alabama vs Mississippi St and will take peeks at UTEP vs Charlotte because it’s not fun or entertaining. I would have to be a UTEP dad or homer to watch a whole UTEP game. I did in the past, but not anymore.

 

[JCorona]

I don’t care if it’s #1 Alabama vs #2 Texas, if UTEP is on, that’s the game I’m watching.

 

[MinerInWisconsin]

Saw my first Texas Western football game in 1950 vs Arizona. Kidd Field had a full house with full bleachers behind each endzone. The Miners won 14-13. Been a fan ever since.

 

[TXPrepMiner02]

Grew up in El Paso, still have family there. Became a Miner fan as my dad is a UTEP grad and would always take me to miner games. I attended UTEP for a few years as part of the TexPREP program.

Peak miner fandom was during the Billy Clyde era and the Nord-Price era. I have never been to more louder, rowdier crowd in both basketball and football games than at UTEP. Still hoping for one day to be able to see UTEP in a bowl game and a Tourney game. As an adult, I'd love to go to those games and be there instead of watching on TV during orchestra class.

 

[FiliUTEP]

That's and easy answer you a fan of utep if you from el Paso or if you went to Utep. Why else would someone be a fan ???

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

That's and easy answer you a fan of utep if you from el Paso or if you went to Utep. Why else would someone be a fan ???

Same reason people who have never been to Seattle or have a family connection to the Seattle Seahawks like them and consider them their team. BECAUSE THEY CAN.

 

[FiliUTEP]

Same reason people who have never been to Seattle or have a family connection to the Seattle Seahawks like them and consider them their team. BECAUSE THEY CAN.

Pro team vs CUSA team is different. I could understand Duke or Notre dame. But schools like UTEP and NMSU dont get outsider fans.

 

[JCorona]

That's and easy answer you a fan of utep if you from el Paso or if you went to Utep. Why else would someone be a fan ???

Good point. I’ve never met a UTEP fan that didn’t grow up in EP, attended school there, or has a connection to the city/university.

 

[FiliUTEP]

Good point. I’ve never met a UTEP fan that didn’t grow up in EP, attended school there, or has a connection to the city/university.

Only outsider fans I can think of is Russel Westbrook he wore a Texas Western Jersey. Oh and Jeff Van Gundy wore Utep gear on TV

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

Good point. I’ve never met a UTEP fan that didn’t grow up in EP, attended school there, or has a connection to the city/university.

That’s probably a fair statement. However, if UTEP experienced their basketball success in the late 90s/2000s, you would probably see some. Back in the 80s, if the WAC wasn’t on ESPN, you had to live in WAC territories to watch WAC games. Now you can watch almost any team, wherever you live, as long as you have the right subscription.

How would a guy in Florida watch UTEP in 1986? Couldn’t. A guy in El Paso can watch every single Florida Gators game if he chooses in 2020.

Because UTEP sucks now, there isn’t much reason for someone to become a fan, unless they like Orange, Bryson Williams, or throw a dart to pick a random team.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

Only outsider fans I can think of is Russel Westbrook he wore a Texas Western Jersey. Oh and Jeff Van Gundy wore Utep gear on TV

Doesn’t mean they’re fans. Do you really think RW watches UTEP games? Or could name a player on the current roster?

 

[TXPrepMiner02]

Doesn’t mean they’re fans. Do you really think RW watches UTEP games? Or could name a player on the current roster?

To be fair, with constant turnover it's hard to keep track

 

[Autograph Boy]

Pro team vs CUSA team is different. I could understand Duke or Notre dame. But schools like UTEP and NMSU dont get outsider fans.

True. But there are parents and others family members that could become fans of UTEP because their sons or daughters played here.

 

[FeralFelidae]

I grew up in El Paso and had season tickets to FB and BB through the '80s and early '90s. I left El Paso for my undergrad (but always cheered for UTEP), then came back to El Paso and earned my master's at UTEP during the Mike Price years. I left El Paso again, so it's tough to attend games now. The last football game I attended in person was the New Mexico Bowl under Kugler. If nothing else, I have to thank Kugler for that: for extending UTEP's season so that I could attend a game in December. A bowl game!

 

[FarWestTexas]

Peak miner fandom was during the Billy Clyde era and the Nord-Price era. I have never been to more louder, rowdier crowd in both basketball and football games than at UTEP. Still hoping for one day to be able to see UTEP in a bowl game and a Tourney game. As an adult, I'd love to go to those games and be there instead of watching on TV during orchestra class.

Ditto. Man I remember going to Gator Camp or whatever they called freshman orientation and getting to meet and hear Nord speak. Hell even Teich said a few words. Nord was fired that fall... But it really got us pumped for the season.

 

[UTEPMiners8106]

That UTEP bb game in 04 when they beat Rutgers was the best atmosphere I saw. UTEP put the clamps on Rutgers in the first half and that team had just come off an upset of number 1 ranked UCONN. That was an amazing night may only be topped by that comeback vs Western Kentucky in 2016. That was insane.

 

[Rot]

I grew up in EP and got my undergraduate BBA from UTEP. I was introduced to both UTEP football and basketball when I was a teenager. I got to see the Miners in their glory years in basketball in the 80’s and 90’s under Haskins and during the Gillespie and Barbee eras. Like many here I saw terrible football teams during that same time period. I was excited to see the football team win under Stull and get to a bowl game. I often wonder if Stull had stayed at UTEP if the Miners would have turned into a Boise State. The Price hire was amazing and got to see the Miners win and play Colorado in the bowl game in Houston. We traveled to Houston and got to meet and party with many Miner fans. The UTEP football team was very competitive and played exciting football. It was great to see the excitement in EP with a packed Sun Bowl rocking during those early Price years. Price was also able to bring UT, TT, BSU and other great teams to the SB. I thought the Miners had finally turned the corner under Price, but we all know the outcome. The last few years have been pretty miserable for Miner fans. I’m hoping we can turn the corner and start winning in both major sports.

 

[UTEPMiners8106]

Ditto. Man I remember going to Gator Camp or whatever they called freshman orientation and getting to meet and hear Nord speak. Hell even Teich said a few words. Nord was fired that fall... But it really got us pumped for the season.

What year did you attend freshman orientation? I was there in 2000 and I don’t remember Nord or anyone from the Athletic Dept. talking to us. I do remember Price and the football team having a homecoming pep rally in front of the Under Graduate building and it was packed and everyone was going crazy. I never saw that again either.

 

[FarWestTexas]

Summer 2003. It was in that theatre room across from the old bookstore in the union, first floor. Nord and Teich were in there for sure. It was Gator Camp, which was the fancier of the freshman orientations. I think there was the option to even spend a night in the dorms.

 

[unihorn]

Same reason people who have never been to Seattle or have a family connection to the Seattle Seahawks like them and consider them their team. BECAUSE THEY CAN.

They can, but they’re suckers in your view — got it.

 

[NoNCAAWinsSince1992]

They can, but they’re suckers in your view — got it.

Huh?