Best and worst of WAC meet as streaks on line for UTEP, Nevada

RENO, Nev. (AP) - The best and the worst of the Western Athletic Conference collide Saturday as Texas El-Paso looks to match its longest winning streak in 12 years and Nevada tries to snap its longest losing streak since 1964.

UTEP's Miners, 6-2, 5-0 in the WAC, are bidding for their first bowl trip since 1988 and are on track for a league title showdown in the season finale at No. 9 Texas Christian, 7-0, 4-0.

''They've really been dominant in league play,'' said Coach Chris Tormey, in his first year of a rebuilding effort at Nevada, 1-7 and 0-4.

''They are a team that is going to come in here with a lot of confidence. It's going to be a real challenge for us,'' he admitted.

The Miners have won five straight in the WAC. But first-year Coach Gary Nord said it was a pair of early non-conference losses at Oklahoma and Texas A&M that might have been most important.

''We competed and went toe-to-toe with them up front, which really built a lot of confidence in our team,'' Nord said.

''We played Oklahoma and we moved the ball on them very well. We contained them probably as good as anybody has contained them this year on the defensive side of the ball,'' he said.

''I think our team improved drastically after we played those two teams. ... We've controlled the tempo of pretty much every game we have played. And we've played some good football teams.''

UTEP's balanced offensive attack is led by a hot-handed quarterback, Rocky Perez, who has thrown for more than 200 yards in each of the last seven games, and a pair of elite receivers.

Brian Natkin enters the game leading all tight ends in the nation in receptions per game (5.88), total receiving yards (585) and receiving yards per game (73.1), while speedy wide receiver Lee Mays is 11th and 14th respectively in receiving yards and receptions per game.

Chris Porter leads a quartet of rotating backs with an average of 61 yards rushing per game.

''They've got it going offensively and I think it starts with their offensive line,'' Tormey said. ''They've got an outstanding quarterback in Rocky Perez.''

Nevada will be without its own star quarterback David Neill, who is sidelined with shoulder and hip injuries. Brett Staninger, a sophomore who played the second half at last week's 21-7 loss at SMU, will start in his place.

''The last two weeks we've been in the game in the last quarter and in a place to win,'' Tormey said.

''We're playing with tremendous enthusiasm. We just need to compete a little better in the fourth quarter.''

Nord said it will be important for UTEP to establish its running game and ''get to the quarterback because they are going to be throwing the ball.''

Most important, ''we have to take care of the football, we can't turn it over,'' he said, noting UTEP was leading Texas A&M in the third quarter before turnovers cost them the game.

The last time the Miners went 5-0 in conference play was 1956 when they finished with a perfect 6-0 mark in the Border Conference. They've clinched their first winning season in the WAC since they went 6-2 in 1988 and earned a berth in the Independence Bowl.

Meanwhile, the Wolf Pack has lost five in a row, the worst streak since 1964 when the team won its season finale to finish 1-9.

The streak is also a career worst for Tormey, formerly the coach at Idaho.

But Tormey remains upbeat about his young team. Eleven of his starters are freshmen - seven on defense. And he's kept his sense of humor.

He told Nevada boosters at his weekly luncheon at a Reno hotel-casino this week that his late Irish father used to emphasize three important things when he was growing up:

''Know thyself and to thine own self be true,'' Tormey recalled.

''Be the best you can with the tools you have, and the main thing is, don't panic,'' he said.

''I've put all three of those things to use in the last eight weeks.''