UTEP's Secret Weapon

Last week, Tech played UTSA, a bad football team.

This week, Tech plays UTEP, possibly the worst team in college football.

The Miners have started to show signs of improvement over the course of the year, but the team has pretty bad for pretty long. But just how bad for just how long? Well, the last time the Miners won a football game, Ryan Higgins was under center for the Bulldogs. And the last time the Miners had a winning season, Tech was lead by Cody Sokol.

UTEP has many weaknesses, but their one-dimensional offense tops that list. Texas-El Paso ranks 13th (out of 14) in C-USA in passing yards. This has led to the Miners' scoring offense ranking 128th (out of 130) in FBS.

The bright side for UTEP is that their one dimension is surprisingly pretty decent. The school ranks 5th in C-USA with 159.2 rushing yards per game. The Miners have gathered more rushing than passing yards so far this season. One other program in C-USA gains more on the ground than in the air: UAB (that should ring some alarm bells).

UTEP's running game is a bit unusual, in that the quarterback still carries the team. University of Texas transfer QB Kai Locksley ran the ball 98 times, the same as the total of the Miner's top two running backs combined.

But UTEP's secret weapon is one of the running backs that Locksley seems to outshine: Quadraiz Wadley.

The starting running back isn't usually a "secret" weapon, but when that starting running back doesn't even register the most carries for a team, I think he qualifies.

Quadraiz Wadley stands out on team without many standouts for a couple reasons.

First, the junior RB has rushed for 5.6 yards per attempt, ranking him 4th in C-USA (just after Jacquis Dancy). And of those Top Four running backs, only Marshall's Tyler King has more attempts.

Another way Wadley has made an impact for UTEP is catching passes out of the backfield. The rusher has only tallied four receptions, but has averaged 20.8 yards per reception. It may simply be a small sample size, but it's safe to assume Wadley is dangerous in space.

But maybe Tech will be able to stifle UTEP's running game. But on the other hand, from one of the most explosive runners in C-USA, maybe we'll see something like this:

Nathan is also a contributor to gtpdd.dog, a lighthearted Louisiana Tech blog. Be sure to follow @gotechplsdntdie on Twitter.