UTEP defended a title it would rather not have defended.
ESPN's Bottom 10 rankings, put together by ESPN senior writer Ryan McGee, crowned UTEP No. 1 in its final edition of 2018, as last week's top team, Rice, won its final game of the year against Old Dominion.
That left UTEP as one of five one-win teams, and after a mythical playoff using ESPN's Football Power Index, the Miners were declared No. 1.
Rice's win "opened the door for once-dismissed UTEP. It seized upon that opportunity and successfully defended its championship. Just like Alabama one year ago.