Meet 5 UTEP football players who could make an impact on offense for 2024 season

This UTEP football team is going to be a hard group to predict, but here is a reliable prognostication: Fans are going to see a lot more plays in the Miners’ “Blue Blaze” offense than they did in the past.

New coach Scotty Walden is bringing a high-tempo offense that aims to snap the ball every 12 seconds, so the days of ground and pound and grinding the clock are gone.

As for who is going to be doing that, it’s a largely new group Walden brought in, though the few holdovers include several of their top players.

Here are some offensive players to watch.

Cade McConnell, quarterback

Of all the things that went wrong last year, having three quarterbacks go down in quick succession at the midpoint of the season seemed like it should have been a death blow. It wasn’t because the fourth man up, Cade McConnell, ended up being a find.

In six starts he threw for 1,437 yards and six touchdowns against four interceptions and UTEP won two of those first three games with McConnell under center. He was fantastic in the spring game.

Meet the players: UTEP football defense under head coach Scotty Walden

Skyler Locklear, quarterback

UTEP’s fall camp will be defined by the quarterback battle between McConnell and Locklear. McConnell’s advantage is game experience while Locklear’s is experience in Walden’s system. Locklear was a backup at Austin Peay last year and did get in two games.

Locklear’s other advantage is his mobility, he’ll be more of a running quarterback than McConnell.

For what it’s worth, Locklear has been appearing in television commercials as part of UTEP’s NIL deal.

More: Meet UTEP football’s new defensive staff under head coach Scotty Walden

Jevon Jackson, running back

Jackson was a star at Austin Peay last year, a first-team all-conference player who received some FCS all-American mention. He rushed for 1,373 yards on 252 attempts (a 5.4-yard average and 10 rushing touchdowns. Last season he had 100-yard games in seven of the 12 games he played in.

Jackson stepped in as a starter and he’ll be the featured back.

Trey Goodman, receiver

A first-team all-conference player at Austin Peay last year, Goodman had 721 yards on 34 receptions, including seven touchdowns. That works out to 21.2 yards per catch, tops on his team.

Goodman was the offensive player Walden took with him to Conference USA media days and Goodman is being put forward as the face and voice of the program.

Otis Pitts, guard

UTEP lost its top six offensive linemen from last year’s team. Pitts was the seventh, starting in two games while playing in all 12. That makes him the most experienced lineman on the team.

Pitts could also end up at tackle but he’ll start at right guard and be expected to lead the Miners’ new front.

More: Meet UTEP’s new offensive coordinators, staff under head coach Scotty Walden

2024 UTEP FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Home games in bold

Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: UTEP football players who could make an impact offensively