HOUSTON -- Joel Klatt threw a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown passes and the Colorado defense limited UTEP to seven second-half points as the Buffaloes rallied for a 33-28 victory over the Miners in the Houston Bowl.

UTEP took a 28-19 lead on a three-yard TD pass from Jordan Palmer to Johnnie Lee Higgins just 40 seconds into the fourth quarter. From there, Klatt and the Buffaloes took control of the game.

Colorado (8-5) responded just 18 seconds later when Klatt fired a 78-yard scoring strike to Joe Klopfenstein to pull the Buffaloes within 28-26.

A bit of trickery set up Colorado's game-winning TD later in the final quarter. Punter John Torp raced 22 yards on 4th-and-3 from the Buffaloes 35 to give the offense a first down in UTEP territory.

Klatt took advantage less than a minute later as he hit Evan Judge for a 39-yard TD, giving CU a 33-28 lead.

Klatt finished 25-of-34 for 328 yards and no INTs.

"I've never had a young team that has achieved as much as this team has," Colorado head coach Gary Barnett said. "If these kids can take this kind of approach when they're older, then they've really got a lot ahead of them."

UTEP scored 21 points in the first half and led by as many as 11 but was unable to generate any offense in the second half. The Miners picked up only 25 yards and had two turnovers on their first three possessions of the half.

Palmer completed 22-of-41 passes for 328 yards and two TDs. He also was intercepted twice and constantly harassed by the Colorado defense in the second half.

"It has been a rough year for this team and for this program," offensive lineman Sam Wilder said. "Things did not always go the way we wanted them to this year, but this team has kept fighting."