Tag: North Texas Mean Green

North Texas, Tulane to slug it out in American final

Posted on | by Field Level Media

North Texas and Tulane are both losing their coaches.

But before they leave Eric Morris will coach the No. 24 Mean Green (11-1, 7-1) and Jon Sumrall will coach the No. 20 Green Wave (10-2, 7-1) in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game on Friday night in New Orleans.

And the winner’s tenure could continue into the College Football Playoff. If Tulane wins it will almost certainly get the Group of 5 bid to the CFP while Florida awaits Sumrall’s full-time arrival.

If North Texas wins it could get the Group of 5 bid depending on the outcome of the Sun Belt Championship Game between No. 25 James Madison and Troy. Either way Morris’ full-time arrival at Oklahoma State will wait for the conclusion of the Mean Green’s season.

“Ultimately I think it’s really cool that we’re in the same position right now,” Morris said, “and that we’re both still able to lead these teams that have fought so hard for us.”

Morris and Sumrall are friends and both said they have spoken in recent weeks about the challenge of listening to schools interested in hiring them without allowing the potential distraction to derail their teams’ drive to the title game.

“I asked our players, ‘are ya’ll good with me coaching this game,’” Sumrall said. “They were like, ‘Heck yeah, Coach. We’ve been there together this whole process.’ I’m committed to our team. Our team’s committed to playing this game the right way.”

Morris said “it’s not ideal” to try and finish one job while beginning another, but added “I haven’t missed a beat in preparing this team.”

This is the fourth straight season that the Green Wave have played for the American title, the first two under Willie Fritz before he went to Houston and the last two under Sumrall after he arrived from Troy.

“For our university to be doing it four years in a row is amazing,” Sumrall said. “To get an opportunity to do it any year is special.”

The forecast for Friday night in New Orleans, where Tulane is 6-0 this season, includes the potential for heavy rain. Sumrall said he kind of hopes the rain gets really heavy and slows down the Mean Green’s explosive passing game.

Morris joked that he asked Sumrall if the game could be moved indoors in order to avoid a slow track.

North Texas, which has scored 50 or more points eight times this season, is seeking its first 12-win season ever in Morris’ third and final season.

The Mean Green’s offense has gotten more balanced as the season has gone along. Freshman running back Caleb Hawkins leads the FBS with 23 rushing touchdowns and has four games with four rushing scores.

“I think our offense is really built that we’re going to take what the defense gives us,” said Morris, who calls the team’s offensive plays. “Us being able to run the football at such an efficient rate, I think it’s really become pick your poison.”

Redshirt quarterback Drew Mestemaker set an American freshman record with 3,835 passing yards this season.

BYU transfer Jake Retzlaff set a Tulane record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback with 14.

-Field Level Media

Jan 3, 2025; Dallas, TX, USA; Texas State Bobcats quarterback Jordan McCloud (3) throws a pass against the North Texas Mean Green during the first quarter at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

Texas State outlasts North Texas for 2nd straight bowl win

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Lincoln Pare ran for two touchdowns, including a 73-yard scamper late in the fourth quarter, to help Texas State beat North Texas 30-28 on Friday in the First Responder Bowl in Dallas.

Pare finished with 143 yards on 21 carries for the Bobcats (8-5), who won the First Responder Bowl for the second straight season. Jordan McCloud completed 26 of 35 passes for 307 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Jaden Williams caught eight of McCloud’s throws for 155 yards and a score.

Drew Mestemaker, a former walk-on quarterback pressed into starting duties for the Mean Green (6-7) because of transfer portal defections, finished 26-of-41 for 393 yards with a pair of touchdowns and two interceptions. He also ran for a 70-yard score to trim the North Texas deficit to two with 1:49 left in the game.

The Mean Green forced a punt after Mestemaker’s scintillating run, but the freshman signal-caller was intercepted on fourth down from his own 7-yard line to seal the game.

It was Mestemaker’s first college start and his first of any kind since his freshman year of high school.

The Bobcats struck first, moving 58 yards in 11 plays to a 34-yard field goal from Mason Shipley at the 8:58 mark of the opening quarter. Mestemaker hit Miles Coleman with a 46-yard touchdown pass two and a half minutes later to push North Texas in front at 7-3.

Shipley booted a 21-yard field goal with 2:45 left in the first quarter to bring Texas State to within 7-6. Mestemaker responded with a 16-yard scoring pass to Landon Sides on the first play of the second quarter to move the Mean Green ahead 14-6.

Shipley added a 47-yarder with 11:02 to play in the first half to trim Texas State’s deficit to five points. The Bobcats roared to the lead when McCloud connected with Williams on a 24-yard TD with 3:27 to play until halftime.

Pare’s 1-yard touchdown plunge on the opening possession of the second half increased the Texas State advantage to 23-14.

The Mean Green pulled to within two points after a 1-yard scoring rush by Mackenzie McGill II with 3:20 to play. But Pare provided the key run two snaps into the ensuing possession, bursting through a hole in the left side of the line and outsprinting the defense to boost Texas State’s lead back to nine points.

–Field Level Media

Nov 9, 2024; Denton, Texas, USA; Army Black Knights quarterback Bryson Daily (13) carries the ball against the North Texas Mean Green during the first half at DATCU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images

No. 25 Army grinds past North Texas for 13th straight victory

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Army quarterback Bryson Daily engineered a 21-play drive and scored his second touchdown as the No.25 Black Knights pulled away in the second half to topple North Texas 14-3 on Saturday in an American Athletic Conference game in Denton, Texas.

Following his first touchdown to take a 7-3 lead in the first half, Daily created separation with a TD after leading a 94-yard drive that took 13:54 off the clock.

In winning for the 13th straight time, the Black Knights (9-0, 7-0 AAC) used multiple long drives to extend the nation’s longest winning streak and frustrate the Air Raid attack of the Mean Green (5-4, 2-3).

Daily rushed for a game-high 153 yards on 36 carries and finished 2-for-4 passing for 15 yards and an interception. Kanye Udoh had 65 yards on 13 carries, while Noah Short added 41 yards on six rushes.

Army rushed for 293 yards on 64 attempts and held the opposition to a field goal for the second consecutive game.

North Texas quarterback Chandler Morris was 24 of 37 for 214 yards with two interceptions.

The Black Knights’ impressive 12-game streak of not trailing came to an end when North Texas got a 31-yard field goal from Kali Nguma after a massive 18-play, 62-yard drive over the first 6:50 on its first possession.

Army responded by using a short field to go 48 yards in nine plays for the lead. Daily called his own number on second down and went untouched for 10 yards and a 7-3 advantage.

The visitors’ defense stood strong in the second quarter as the front forced a turnover on downs, stuffing Makenzie Gill II at the 2 for a perfectly executed goal-line stand.

On the final snap of the half as Army lined up for a 31-yard field-goal attempt, the Black Knights tried a fake, but the Mean Green stopped holder Matthew Rhodes on the run to trail by four at the break.

In the second half, Daily was picked off by Brian Nelson II, but the quarterback cashed in on the second possession.

Army held the ball for 10:38 of the third quarter, and the series carried over into the fourth when Daily plunged in on the 21st play from two yards at 11:44.

The Mean Green moved inside the red zone in the final minutes, but Justin Weaver made a sliding interception in the end zone for a touchback.

–Field Level Media

Sep 14, 2024; Lubbock, Texas, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders wide receiver Jordan Brown (4) runs the ball against North Texas Mean Green defensive back Jaylen Smith (36) in the first half at Jones AT&T Stadium and Cody Campbell Field. Mandatory Credit: Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images

Behren Morton (5 total TDs), Texas Tech wallop North Texas

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Texas Tech took a week’s worth of frustration out on in-state foe North Texas on Saturday in a 66-21 home romp that was decided by halftime.

Stung by a lopsided loss at Washington State the week before, the Red Raiders clicked on all fronts on the way to a 598-yard offensive explosion.

Ahead 17-7 after an efficient first quarter, Texas Tech (2-1) scored 35 points in the second quarter to match a school record for points in a quarter. That led to a 52-point half, which equaled a school record.

The Mean Green (2-1) had no answer for the Red Raiders’ offense, which generated 415 total yards in the opening 30 minutes, paced by Behren Morton’s 15-of-19 passing for 273 yards and four touchdown passes. Morton also ran for a 10-yard score. Tahj Boyd, back in action after missing last week’s loss, gashed UNT for 109 yards on the ground. Neither played a down in the second half as the Red Raiders unloaded the bench.

Not to be outdone, Texas Tech’s beleaguered defense also delivered. After allowing 89 points in the first two games, the Red Raiders frustrated Chandler Morris into three first-half interceptions, one that Bralyn Lux rambled 44 yards the other way with for the second of three Texas Tech touchdowns in a 52-second span of the second frame.

Morris and the high-octane Eagles’ offense never got into a rhythm, with the quarterback throwing for a season-low 162 yards on 15-of-27 passing. Morris threw two touchdowns to give him nine on the season.

UNT was in position to whittle the lead to 17-10 early in the second but Kali Nguma’s 26-yard field goal went wide right. Two plays later, Morton zipped a pass to Coy Eakin on a sideline fly and he turned into a career-long 70-yard touchdown reception to pop the cork on the record-setting scoring onslaught.

Texas Tech got rolling quickly with a touchdown on their opening series when Morton rifled a picture-perfect 10-yard touchdown pass to Josh Kelly on a post pattern, finishing off a 56-yard drive that got a boost when the Eagles were flagged for fair catch interference.

–Field Level Media

Oct 22, 2022; Berkeley, California, USA; California Golden Bears head coach Justin Wilcox during the first quarter against the Washington Huskies at FTX Field at California Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

Familiarity all around when Cal visits North Texas

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There still will be familiarity between two distinctly different programs when California hits the road to face North Texas at Denton, Texas, on Saturday.

Cal’s new run-game coordinator and offensive line coach Mike Bloesch was the offensive coordinator at North Texas under Seth Littrell, who was fired after last season and is now an offensive analyst with Oklahoma.

North Texas’ new head coach Eric Morris was the offensive coordinator at Washington State, which defeated Cal 28-9 last year at Pullman, Wash.

The low score in that game was indicative of Cal’s offensive execution last season.

Cal head coach Justin Wilcox fired former offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave on Nov. 13 after the Golden Bears lost six straight games and were ranked 99th in total offense. Later that week, Cal pulled off a 27-20 home victory over rival Stanford.

Wilcox hired former Texas State head coach Jake Spavital as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

Spavital served in the same role at Cal in 2016 when the Golden Bears’ offense and quarterback Davis Webb set several school records while ranking fourth in the nation in passing offense and 10th in total offense.

As an offensive coordinator at Cal, Texas A&M and West Virginia, Spavital’s teams finished in the top 20 in the country in total offense six times.

“We know that the margins are extremely thin,” said Wilcox, who has endured three consecutive losing seasons. “Everything that we do, it all matters.”

Spavital has announced Sam Jackson V, a redshirt sophomore and TCU transfer, as the starting quarterback against North Texas.

Jackson, who has attempted only six passes in college, was selected over North Carolina State transfer Ben Finley and redshirt freshman Fernando Mendoza.

“Sam’s the starter and we want to get him out there and get him into a rhythm,” Wilcox said.

Morris, who coached Incarnate Word at San Antonio before leaving for Washington State before last season, has announced Stone Earle is the Mean Green’s starting quarterback.

Earle, a junior, rushed for 110 yards mostly out of the wildcat formation last year and added 45 yards on 5-for-8 passing with one touchdown.

“His intermediate stuff was really good,” Morris said about Earle’s performance in fall camp. “He was also able to push the ball down the field at times and create explosive plays. He has done a great job of not revamping his game but of fitting more into our offense by becoming a better and more accurate passer.”

–Field Level Media

Oct 9, 2021; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers wide receiver JJ Hester (13) scores as North Texas Mean Green defensive back Upton Stout (7) makes the tackle during the first half at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Tyler Badie, big plays propel Mizzou past North Texas

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Running back Tyler Badie rushed for 217 yards and scored three touchdowns as the Missouri Tigers outlasted the North Texas Mean Green 48-35 in a nonconference game in Columbia, Mo.

Connor Bazelak completed 21 of 32 passes for 160 yards and two touchdowns for Missouri (3-3).

Austin Aune completed 16 of 26 passes for 305 yards and four touchdowns in his first start of the season for North Texas (1-4) of Conference USA.

Running back DeAndre Torrey added 126 yards rushing and receiving for the Mean Green.

Missouri forced three turnovers and converted two of them into touchdowns to win their Homecoming Game.

Kris Abrams-Draine intercepted Aune at the North Texas 26, setting up Badie’s 12-yard touchdown run just 4:23 into the game.

Badie’s 50-yard run propelled the Tigers to their second touchdown, a 3-yard pass to Badie with 4:14 remaining in the first.

North Texas marched 75 yards to cut their deficit to 14-7 with 13:04 left in the first half. Isaiah Johnson finished the drive with a 4-yard TD run.

Bazelak lofted a 41-yard touchdown pass to JJ Hester to push the Tigers’ lead to 21-7. Missouri made it 28-7 with Badie’s 52-yard burst through the left side of the line.

Harrison Mevis hit a 48-yard field goal to give Missouri a 31-7 halftime lead.

On their second possession of the second half, the Mean Green mounted a 70-yard TD drive capped by Aune’s 35-yard pass to Torrey coming out of the backfield.

Badie’s 42-yard run set up a 40-yard field goal by Mevis — his 16th consecutive make — as Missouri took a 34-14 lead with 13:29 left to play.

Mekhi Wingo intercepted a tipped Aune pass and returned it 40 yards for a touchdown as Missouri boosted its lead to 41-14.

But Aune responded with a 22-yard TD pass to Jason Pirtle and a 52-yard touchdown pass to Roderic Burns as North Texas cut its deficit to 41-28.

Dawson Downing raced 60 yards for a Missouri touchdown, but Aune’s 77-yard pass to Damon Ward got the Mean Green within 13.

–Field Level Media

Dec 21, 2020; Conway, SC, USA; Appalachian State Mountaineers running back Nate Noel (20) is grabbed by the face mask by North Texas Mean Green defensive back Cam Johnson (11) at Brooks Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Yeazell-USA TODAY Sports

Peoples (5 TDs) leads App State to victory over North Texas

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Cam Peoples scored five touchdowns and rushed for a school-record 317 yards as Appalachian State overwhelmed North Texas in a 56-28 romp to win the inaugural Myrtle Beach Bowl on Monday at Conway, S.C.

Peoples scored on runs of 3, 64, 62, 1 and 11 yards. The sophomore running back’s final points came with 9:03 remaining for his second touchdown of the fourth quarter. He carried the ball 22 times.

His five rushing touchdowns tied a school record. He also matched a bowl record for any team for the number of rushing touchdowns.

The Mountaineers (9-3), who ended a sixth consecutive season with a bowl victory, compiled 636 yards of total offense, including 500 on the ground, in the first meeting between the teams. This was the most points they’ve ever scored in six all-time bowl appearances, though they’ve posted more than 30 points in each of those outings.

Appalachian State opened a 14-0 first-quarter lead, with Henry Pearson catching a 22-yard touchdown pass from receiver Malik Williams on a trick play. Williams also threw a TD pass in the 2018 New Orleans Bowl.

Appalachian State quarterback Zac Thomas was 8-for-16 for one touchdown and 114 yards through the air. Teammate Marcus Williams Jr. ran for 101 yards on six attempts.

North Texas (4-6) had various offensive scoring sources, with Loronzo Thompson putting up the team’s first points on a 16-yard pass play from Kason Martin.

The Mean Green pulled within 28-14 on Oscar Adaway’s 4-yard run with 27 seconds left in the first half. Peoples responded on the next snap with a 64-yard scoring run that allowed the Mountaineers to regain momentum before the break.

Austin Ogunmakin scored on a 34-yard pass from Jason Bean for North Texas’ third touchdown. Bean finished 21-for-36 passing for 215 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

Tre Siggers gained 120 rushing yards on 17 carries for the Mean Green.

The game was marred by 21 penalties totaling 207 yards, many of them personal fouls and unsportsmanlike penalties.

The game was played on Coastal Carolina’s campus, where Appalachian State lost a regular season game a few weeks ago to the undefeated Chanticleers.

–Field Level Media