UTEP faces steep challenge against No. 9 Oklahoma with focus on improvement

Ideally, this is the week the UTEP football team would like to play an FCS team, an opponent the Miners could build some confidence after its 31-13 face plant against North Texas.

That isn't the way of it. The opponent is No. 9 Oklahoma, and the nice way to put it is this is a chance for UTEP to set everything right. More realistically, it is an opportunity for the Miners to get in front of a spotlight and show the improvement they will need to compete in the final 10 games.

Actually, the situation UTEP finds itself in is something it has experience in, which wasn't the case a week ago when the Miners were dealing with prosperity and expectations.

"We can handle adversity I promise you, we've…