If 2017 was a pivotal year of transition for UTEP athletics, 2018 is where the changes set in.
On the three biggest faces in the department — athletic director, football coach and men's basketball coach — two were hired in the final two months of '17 and the other was filled in March.
Hopes of instant turnarounds vanished soon enough, though the sense of optimism generated by all the change is still largely in place.
Across the board, UTEP claimed one Conference USA title, in women's cross-country, and one individual national championship, from sophomore track star Michael Saruni, who later signed with Adidas and went pro.