2021 North Texas Mean Green football team

2021 North Texas Mean Green football
Frisco Football Classic, L 14–27 vs. Miami (OH)
Conference	Conference USA
Division	West Division
2021 record	6–7 (5–3 C-USA)
Head coach	Seth Littrell (6th season)
Offensive coordinator	Mike Bloesch (2nd season)
Co-offensive coordinator	Tommy Mainord (3rd season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Phil Bennett (1st season)
Base defense	4–2–5
Home stadium	Apogee Stadium (capacity: 30,850)
Seasons ← 2020 2022 →

2021 Conference USA football standings
v t	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
Western Kentucky xy		7	–	1					9	–	5
Marshall		5	–	3					7	–	6
Old Dominion		5	–	3					6	–	7
Middle Tennessee		4	–	4					7	–	6
Florida Atlantic		3	–	5					5	–	7
Charlotte		3	–	5					5	–	7
FIU		0	–	8					1	–	11
West Division
UTSA xy$		7	–	1					12	–	2
UAB		6	–	2					9	–	4
North Texas		5	–	3					6	–	7
UTEP		4	–	4					7	–	6
Rice		3	–	5					4	–	8
Southern Miss		2	–	6					3	–	9
Louisiana Tech		2	–	6					3	–	9
Championship: UTSA 49, Western Kentucky 41
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from CFP Rankings

The 2021 North Texas Mean Green football team represented the University of North Texas during the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Mean Green played their home games at Apogee Stadium in Denton, Texas, and competed in the West Division of Conference USA (C-USA).

The Mean Green started the season 1–6 before winning five games in a row, including upset victories over UTEP and no. 22 UTSA, to finish the regular season at 6–6, 5–3 in C-USA play. The team was invited to the inagural Frisco Football Classic, losing 14–27 to the Miami RedHawks.

Previous season[]

The 2020 team finished the regular season with a record of 4–5, 3–4 in Conference USA play, finishing in fourth place in the West Division. The team was invited to the Myrtle Beach Bowl, losing 28–56 to Appalachian State. Defensive coordinator Clint Bowen was fired on January 1, 2021 after just one season, with the defense allowing an average of 42.8 points per game.^[1] Bowen was replaced by Phil Bennett.^[2]

Preseason[]

C-USA media days[]

The Mean Green were predicted to finish in sixth place in the West Division in the Conference USA preseason poll.^[3]

Media poll (West Division)
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	UAB	(15)
2	UTSA	(9)
3	Louisiana Tech
4	Southern Miss
5	Rice
6	North Texas
7	UTEP

Schedule[]

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 4	6:30 p.m.	Northwestern State*	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX	ESPN3	W 44–14	18,716
September 11	6:00 p.m.	at SMU*	Gerald J. Ford Stadium Dallas, TX (Safeway Bowl)	ESPN+	L 12–35	29,121
September 18	6:30 p.m.	UAB	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX	Stadium	L 6–40	17,731
September 25	6:30 p.m.	at Louisiana Tech	Joe Aillet Stadium Ruston, LA	Stadium	L 17–24	15,488
October 9	3:00 p.m.	at Missouri*	Faurot Field Columbia, MO	SECN	L 35–48	46,985
October 15	6:00 p.m.	Marshall	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX	CBSSN	L 21–49	13,123
October 23	3:00 p.m.	Liberty*	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX	ESPN+	L 26–35	13,454
October 30	1:00 p.m.	at Rice	Rice Stadium Houston, TX	ESPN3	W 30–24 OT	17,354
November 6	2:00 p.m.	at Southern Miss	M. M. Roberts Stadium Hattiesburg, MS	ESPN+	W 38–14	22,478
November 13	3:00 p.m.	UTEP	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX	ESPN+	W 20–17	20,056
November 20	6:00 p.m.	at FIU	Riccardo Silva Stadium Miami, FL	ESPN3	W 49–7	0
November 27	1:00 p.m.	No. 22 UTSA	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX	ESPN+	W 45–23	16,933
December 23	2:30 p.m.	vs. Miami (OH)*	Toyota Stadium Frisco, TX (Frisco Football Classic)	ESPN	L 14–27	11,721
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 24 released prior to game All times are in Central time

^[4]

Personnel[]

2021 North Texas Mean Green football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class RB 27 Oscar Adaway III  Fr RB 39 Ayo Adeyi  Fr TE 89 Asher Alberding  Fr QB 2 Austin Aune So TE 40 Edward Bautista  Fr OL 65 Gabe Blair Fr OL 70 Kade Bond Fr OL 56 Jacob Brammer Fr OL 73 Cole Brown So WR 11 Detraveon Brown Fr OL 79 John Brunner  Fr WR 14 Roderick Burns So WR 5 Tommy Bush So OL 68 Daxton Byers  Fr OL 78 Daizion Carroll So OL 60 Chris Cassiday  Fr QB 15 Bryce Drummond Fr OL 64 Jett Duncan Fr OL 74 Nick Gallo So QB 8 Amani Gilmore  Fr WR 20 Evan Greene Fr TE 30 Var'Keyes Gumms Fr WR 0 Bryson Jackson So OL 52 Dane Jackson Fr RB 21 Keith Jackson Fr WR 19 Caleb Johnson Fr RB 23 Isaiah Johnson Fr TE 46 Xzavier Kauti Fr TE 84 Christian Lee Fr WR 13 Khatib Lyles  Fr QB 17 Kason Martin So WR 80 Zhighlil McMillan Fr OL 77 Kaci Moreka So WR 18 Dorian Morris  Fr OL 72 Manase Mose Jr RB 44 Dawson Nobriga So OL 66 Febechi Nwaiwu Fr TE 88 Jason Pirtle Sr RB 25 Ikaika Ragsdale Fr OL 62 Caden Reeves Fr TE 87 Jake Roberts Fr QB 10 Jace Ruder So WR 16 Jyaire Shorter So WR 6 Loronzo Thompson Fr RB 3 DeAndre Torrey Sr OL 58 Teeshaun Turpin Jr WR 83 Damon Ward  Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 46 Grady Brewer Fr LB 19 Jordan Brown Fr DT 93 Roderick Brown Fr DL 3 Caleb Colvin Sr DB 22 Keelan Crosby So LB 47 Jacob Daulong Jr DB 8 John Davis Jr LB 1 K. D. Davis Jr LB 5 Tyrele Davis Sr DL 99 Kenneth Dotson  Fr LB 25 Sean-Thomas Faulkner Jr DB 2 Deshawn Gaddie So DL 54 Kevin Greene Fr DB 41 Alphie Guillory  Fr DB 29 Braelon Hill Jr DE 42 Kameron Hill Sr LB 34 Kyleb Howell Sr DL 94 Kalvin Hutchings So DL 96 Enoch Jackson  Fr LB 37 Taylor Jacobs  Fr LB 40 Jacobi Johnson Fr DB 31 Robert Johnson Fr DL 90 Ta'Shoyn Johnson Fr LB 15 Carson Kropp So DL 91 Dayton LeBlanc So LB 59 Sifa Leota Fr LB 45 Landon Maston Jr DL 98 Davontae McCrae Jr LB 20 Cole McCrary So DE 11 Gabriel Murphy  Fr DE 9 Grayson Murphy  Fr DB 38 Jordan Nichols Fr LB 30 Larry Nixon III So DL 97 Dion Novil Sr DB 43 Trey Perdue Fr DL 16 Jonathan Pickett Fr DL 95 Kortlin Rausaw Fr DB 13 Jordan Rucker So DB 10 Makyle Sanders Sr LB 44 Blake Slaughter Fr DB 36 Jaylen Smith Fr DB 7 Upton Stout Fr DB 26 Ridge Texada Fr DL 51 Fatafehi Vailea Fr DL 50 Trent Ward Fr DB 27 Harold West Fr DB 24 Quinn Whitlock Jr DB 17 Cinque Williams Fr DB 4 Dillion Williams Fr LB 21 Kevin Wood So LB 35 Chris Wright Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 49 Aaron Beckham Fr DS 29 Nate Durham Jr K 48 Caden Gilmore Fr P 47 Caden McNeese Fr K 0 Ethan Mooney Jr DS 57 Brandon Oldham Fr P 32 Bernardo Rodriguez Jr	Head coach Seth Littrell Coordinators/assistant coaches Tommy Mainord Associate head coach/Co-offensive coordinator/Receivers Mike Bloesch Offensive coordinator/Offensive line Phil Bennett Defensive coordinator/Safeties Patrick Cobbs Running backs Jim Gush Linebackers Jarred Holley Cornerbacks Blake Joseph Quarterbacks Adrian Mayes Tight ends Matt Passwaters Defensive line Chris Petrilli Outside linebackers/Special teams Steven Haunga Offensive quality control Zack Womack Strength and conditioning Ethan Gold Assistant strength and conditioning Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: October 31, 2021

Game summaries[]

Northwestern State[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Demons	0	14	0	0	14
Mean Green	7	17	17	3	44

Statistics	NWST	UNT
First downs	21	29
Total yards	418	527
Rushing yards	261	345
Passing yards	157	182
Turnovers	4	2
Time of possession	32:49	27:21

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northwestern State	Passing	Kaleb Fletcher	13/22, 134 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Scooter Adams	12 rushes, 92 yards, TD
	Receiving	Kendrick Price	1 reception, 65 yards, TD
North Texas	Passing	Jace Rudder	10/21, 131 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	25 rushes, 244 yards, 3 TD
	Receiving	Roderic Burns	6 receptions, 114 yards, TD

at SMU[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	3	3	6	0	12
Mustangs	0	7	14	14	35

Statistics	UNT	SMU
First downs	23	20
Total yards	506	536
Rushing yards	122	225
Passing yards	384	311
Turnovers	2	4
Time of possession	36:06	23:54

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Jace Rudder	32/51, 366 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	16 rushes, 71 yards
	Receiving	Roderic Burns	12 receptions, 141 yards
SMU	Passing	Tanner Mordecai	21/33, 311 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ulysses Bentley IV	10 rushes, 141 yards, TD
	Receiving	Rashee Rice	4 receptions, 99 yards, TD

UAB[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Blazers	17	13	3	7	40
Mean Green	0	0	0	6	6

Statistics	UAB	UNT
First downs	17	18
Total yards	407	220
Rushing yards	173	121
Passing yards	234	99
Turnovers	0	1
Time of possession	32:06	27:54

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UAB	Passing	Dylan Hopkins	6/7, 202 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Jermaine Brown Jr.	16 rushes, 58 yards
	Receiving	Gerrit Prince	3 receptions, 136 yards, 2 TD
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	8/21, 65 yards
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	24 rushes, 82 yards
	Receiving	Roderic Burns	2 receptions, 21 yards

at Louisiana Tech[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	0	7	0	10	17
Bulldogs	14	10	0	0	24

Statistics	UNT	LT
First downs	24	20
Total yards	333	286
Rushing yards	241	79
Passing yards	92	207
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	29:25	30:35

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	12/27, 79 yards, TD
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	26 rushes, 119 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jason Pirtle	4 receptions, 26 yards
Louisiana Tech	Passing	Aaron Allen	14/18, 137 yards
	Rushing	Marcus Williams Jr.	17 rushes, 73 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Samuel Emilus	2 receptions, 69 yards, TD

at Missouri[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	0	7	7	21	35
Tigers	14	17	0	17	48

Statistics	UNT	MIZ
First downs	21	22
Total yards	493	474
Rushing yards	188	306
Passing yards	305	168
Turnovers	4	0
Time of possession	28:12	31:48

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	16/26, 305 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	24 rushes, 85 yards
	Receiving	Damon Ward Jr.	2 receptions, 81 yards, TD
Missouri	Passing	Connor Bazelak	22/33, 168 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Tyler Badie	17 rushes, 209 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	J. J. Hester	1 reception, 41 yards, TD

Marshall[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Thundering Herd	14	28	0	7	49
Mean Green	0	7	0	14	21

Statistics	MRSH	UNT
First downs	24	18
Total yards	477	411
Rushing yards	154	277
Passing yards	323	134
Turnovers	2	2
Time of possession	32:14	27:46

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Marshall	Passing	Grant Wells	24/32, 323 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Rasheen Ali	20 rushes, 109 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Xavier Gaines	5 receptions, 77 yards, TD
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	16/31, 121 yards, 2 INT
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	20 rushes, 179 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Jason Pirtle	5 receptions, 35 yards

Liberty[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Flames	0	14	14	7	35
Mean Green	7	13	6	0	26

Statistics	LIB	UNT
First downs	21	29
Total yards	350	454
Rushing yards	45	242
Passing yards	305	212
Turnovers	0	2
Time of possession	24:10	35:50

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Liberty	Passing	Malik Willis	12/18, 217 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	T. J. Green	5 rushes, 25 yards
	Receiving	C. J. Daniels	7 receptions, 130 yards, 2 TD
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	22/35, 212 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ayo Adeyi	16 rushes, 99 yards, TD
	Receiving	Damon Ward Jr.	4 receptions, 57 yards

at Rice[]

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Mean Green	3	7	7	7	6	30
Owls	0	3	7	14	0	24

Statistics	UNT	RICE
First downs	20	25
Total yards	314	368
Rushing yards	193	97
Passing yards	121	271
Turnovers	0	0
Time of possession	21:21	38:39

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	11/22, 121 yards
	Rushing	Austin Aune	6 rushes, 65 yards
	Receiving	Bryson Jackson	3 receptions, 50 yards
Rice	Passing	Jake Constantin	16/30, 242 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Khalan Griffin	14 rushes, 47 yards
	Receiving	Jake Bailey	10 receptions, 143 yards, TD

at Southern Miss[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	0	7	21	10	38
Golden Eagles	14	0	0	0	14

Statistics	UNT	USM
First downs	25	11
Total yards	537	229
Rushing yards	321	113
Passing yards	216	116
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	34:14	25:46

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	16/30, 216 yards, INT
	Rushing	Isaiah Johnson	17 rushes, 119 yards, TD
	Receiving	Detraveon Brown	4 receptions, 85 yards
Southern Miss	Passing	Jake Lange	17/25, 116 yards, TD
	Rushing	Frank Gore Jr.	12 rushes, 82 yards
	Receiving	Jason Brownlee	4 receptions, 53 yards, TD

UTEP[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Miners	0	7	0	10	17
Mean Green	0	3	14	3	20

Statistics	UTEP	UNT
First downs	14	22
Total yards	382	423
Rushing yards	109	183
Passing yards	273	240
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	29:45	30:15

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTEP	Passing	Gavin Hardison	15/29, 273 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Ronald Awatt	17 rushes, 85 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jacob Cowing	5 receptions, 174 yards, TD
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	15/33, 240 yards, TD
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	18 rushes, 81 yards
	Receiving	Roderic Burns	5 receptions, 93 yards, TD

at FIU[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	7	28	14	0	49
Panthers	0	0	7	0	7

Statistics	UNT	FIU
First downs	25	12
Total yards	611	245
Rushing yards	378	58
Passing yards	233	187
Turnovers	0	1
Time of possession	31:11	28:49

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	6/12, 219 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	DeAndre Torrey	18 rushes, 109 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Roderic Burns	3 receptions, 106 yards, TD
FIU	Passing	Max Bortenschlager	15/32, 167 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Shaun Peterson Jr.	5 rushes, 30 yards
	Receiving	Tyrese Chambers	3 receptions, 79 yards, TD

No. 22 UTSA[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 22 Roadrunners	3	10	0	10	23
Mean Green	17	14	14	0	45

Statistics	UTSA	UNT
First downs	16	27
Total yards	366	456
Rushing yards	205	340
Passing yards	161	116
Turnovers	3	2
Time of possession	23:16	36:44

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UTSA	Passing	Eddie Lee Marburger	2/4, 74 yards, TD
	Rushing	Frank Harris	10 rushes, 97 yards, TD
	Receiving	Tre'Von Bradley	1 reception, 67 yards, TD
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	10/17, 116 yards
	Rushing	Ikaika Ragsdale	20 rushes, 146 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Khatib Lyles	3 receptions, 50 yards

vs. Miami (OH) (Frisco Football Classic)[]

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	7	7	0	0	14
RedHawks	10	10	7	0	27

Statistics	UNT	MIA
First downs	18	26
Total yards	317	431
Rushing yards	89	203
Passing yards	228	228
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	21:39	38:21

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Austin Aune	15/32, 228 yards, 2 INT
	Rushing	Austin Aune	9 rushes, 28 yards, TD
	Receiving	Roderic Burns	4 receptions, 87 yards
Miami	Passing	Brett Gabbert	22/31, 228 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Kenny Tracy	14 rushes, 92 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jack Sorenson	7 receptions, 116 yards

References[]