Twenty-four players made their debut for UTSA in the season opener against Arizona State and it showed. The inexperience played a major role in the 49-7 blowout loss last week.

UTSA coach Frank Wilson pointed to things such as poor tackling, lack of communication and poor alignment on defense as the key factors that led to Arizona State’s seven touchdowns and 49 points. After their lackluster performance, the new S&P+ rankings have UTSA as the eighth worst team in the nation. Having beat Baylor last season in a big upset in Waco, the Roadrunners will have to make plenty of adjustments if they want to have a chance at doing it again.

Here are some of the keys to the game for UTSA if they want to have a chance at victory.

UTSA vs. Baylor details

Time: 6 p.m.

Date: Sept. 8, 2018

Location: The Alamodome in San Antonio

What channel is UTSA vs. Baylor on? 

UTSA vs. Baylor will be broadcast exclusively online through Stadium. Click here to access the Stadium Facebook page, where the game will be broadcast. 

How can I buy tickets to the UTSA vs. Baylor? 

Click here to buy tickets to the UTSA vs. Baylor at the Alamodome in San Antonio. 

UTSA vs. Baylor preview

Offensive Line needs to win the battle in the trenches

The Arizona State defense earned nine sacks and a whopping 15 tackles for a loss in the season opener against the Roadrunners. UTSA’s offensive line got beat at the line of scrimmage repeatedly, and as a result, UTSA only managed to earn two rushing yards throughout the entire game.

Granted, the offensive line is inexperienced, with only one returning starter. They will have to find a way to both run block and slow the pass rush if they want to have any kind of offensive success.

Establish the running game

Successful teams run the football well, and the offensive line is the key to any running game. The Baylor defense gave up 220 yards on the ground and allowed an average of 8.1 yards per carry against Abeline Christian. UTSA was unable to get any type of run game going against Arizona State, so they’ll have to change that this week in order to have success.

UTSA’s duo of B.J Daniels and Jalen Rhodes will have to find the holes and take advantage of Baylor’s weaker run defense. Rhodes got "nicked" in the Arizona State game, according to Wilson. We'll see if he's 100 percent against the Bears on Saturday. 

Protect the football/Force turnovers

UTSA turned the ball over three times against Arizona State, two of which came at key moments early on when the game was still well within reach. Turnovers are huge momentum shifters and when playing at home, momentum means a ton. Usually, the team with the least number of turnovers will come out on top.

On the other side of things, the Roadrunners need to find a way to slow down the Baylor offense by creating turnovers of their own after having zero last week. Baylor’s offense is dangerous and they’re going to come out firing, but if UTSA can force at least a couple of turnovers and give the offense an opportunity to capitalize on them, they’ll give themselves a chance.

What to Expect

Although Baylor’s offense was very impressive in their win against Abeline Christian, their defense was not. The offense might have put up 606 yards of offense, but the defense allowed 466 yards of their own. The Roadrunner defense and the Baylor defense allowed a combined total of 969 yards of offense in their season openers.

Based on those stats, the game has the early marking of becoming a shootout. However, the inexperience of UTSA’s offensive line, along with a new receiving core and a quarterback making his second ever Division I start will make it hard for the Roadrunner offense to find their rhythm.

Final score prediction: Baylor 33 UTSA 17