Offense was hard to come by in El Paso a season ago, especially after switching from Sean Kugler’s pro- style offense to a run-first spread. But with a year of continuity in the system, offensive coordinator Mike Canales sees a path to being competitive.

“Consistency – we have to eliminate the turn- overs,” Canales said. “The turnovers cost us in some critical games. We feel like there were a couple of games that we could have won if we don’t make so many mistakes.”

Those games aren’t hard to find. The Miners played four games between September and October that were decided by 10 points or fewer. In those matchups, UTEP turned the ball over eight times. In fact, the Miners tied UConn for last nationally in turnover differential. In the lone win of the season over Rice, no surprise, UTEP won the turnover battle.

Losing the turnover battle is killer for any offense, but especially at UTEP. Dana Dimel comes from the Bill Snyder ball-control tree. That system doesn’t allow much leeway for giving up extra offensive possessions. In three of the four single-digit losses, the Miners allowed a touchdown off a turnover. UTEP has to give the defense a chance.

Luckily, there are leaders back on offense to help build more consistency. Quarterback Kai Locksley, now healthy, is the entrenched starter. Wide receiver remains a question mark, but four of five offensive linemen are back. Elijah Klein and Bobby DeHaro should only improve after playing as freshmen.

If the offense is going to work, running back has to be the reason why. Quardraiz Wadley is back for his senior season with Treyvon Hughes to help. But the X-factor of this offense will be El Paso Parkland running back Deion Hankins, the leading rusher in the history of the city. Hankins is a freaky athlete who opted to stay home over major offers. His development could push the rebuild ahead of schedule.

“When we can keep our offense on the field and our defense off it, man they’re deadly,” Canales said. “It’s just moving the ball and moving the chains. When we do that, we give ourselves a great chance to win.”