Texas football vs. UTEP ready for kickoff after COVID-19 testing results

After their latest round of COVID-19 testing concluded prior to kick off of Week 1, it appears that Texas football and UTEP are ready to go.

The season opener for the Texas football program has arrived on Sep. 12, as head coach Tom Herman and his squad is set to take on the UTEP Miners at home at Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium under the lights. Kick off for tonight’s game is set for 7 p.m. CT. And Texas is looking to get their first win since knocking off the Utah Utes in the Alamo Bowl to cap the 2019 season, by a convincing final score of 38-10.

UTEP already has their first win of the 2020 college football season, which came last weekend, in a 24-14 home triumph in El Paso at the Sun Bowl over the FCS Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks. That was only the third win in the last three years for the Miners.

Texas finished up the 2019 season with a record of 8-5 (5-4 Big 12), with the No. 25 ranking in the final AP Poll. This year, they enter Week 1 with the No. 14 slot in both the AP Poll and Coaches Poll. And both the major preseason polls still included the teams from the PAC-12 and Big Ten that won’t be playing their usual football season this fall.

However, there will be the constant challenge this season of trying to push through in the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The Longhorns have apparently gotten to Week 1 unscathed by a lack of practices, or positive COVID-19 testing results, but they still have nine more weeks to go after for this regular season.

Of the 10 Big 12 teams that were supposed to open their season this weekend, three already had to push their games back. The Oklahoma State Cowboys were delayed against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, SMU Mustangs and TCU Horned Frogs pushed back, and the Baylor Bears are awaiting what lies ahead against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.

Now, the Longhorns and Miners are reportedly set to open the 2020 season tonight under the lights at DKR. There were no reported positive COVID-19 tests that would cause this game to get pushed back.

Texas got in more than a month of full fall practice before this season opens up. And UTEP got a similar amount of practice time in, and already have one win under their belt. At least that gives Texas some game film to work off of for tonight.

Texas is more than a 40-point favorite in the season opener. Despite UTEP beating SFA in Week 1, Texas is still an extremely heavy favorite to take care of business to open up the season.