North Texas Outlasts Florida Atlantic 48-41 as Mean Green Move to 4-0 in American Play

North Texas survived a Thursday night shootout in Denton, holding off Florida Atlantic 48-41 to stay perfect in American Conference play. The Mean Green improved to 6-2 overall and 4-0 in the league, their first 4-0 conference start since 2004, when the program played in the Sun Belt, according to UNT Athletics. Florida Atlantic fell to 5-3 and 2-2.

The game was a matchup of the conference’s top two offenses, and it played like one. The Associated Press reported it was the first FBS game this season with two 400-yard passers, as the teams combined for 1,167 yards of offense.

North Texas vs. Florida Atlantic: how the game unfolded

FAU struck first in the scoring race that mattered most early. After a North Texas field goal, Caden Veltkamp hit Branden Hoch for an 18-yard touchdown, and the Owls led 10-3 after one quarter.

The second quarter was a back-and-forth sprint:

• Tayven Jackson found Baron Tipton for an 8-yard score to tie it 10-10.
• Veltkamp answered with a 27-yard touchdown to Easton Messer for a 17-10 FAU lead.
• Jackson hit Kyle Koch from 3 yards out to tie it again.
• Jahiem White broke a 59-yard touchdown run for a 24-17 North Texas edge.
• Veltkamp and Messer connected from 12 yards with 39 seconds left, on a fourth-and-4, to tie it 24-24 at halftime.

North Texas took control in the rain-soaked third quarter. A 48-yard Dominic De Freitas field goal and a 4-yard Jackson touchdown pass to Justin Stevenson, which followed an FAU turnover, made it 34-24. After Veltkamp’s 22-yard scoring pass to Kaden Shields-Dutton, White punched in a 1-yard run late in the quarter for a 41-31 lead.

FAU pulled within 41-38 on a 34-yard Veltkamp-to-Messer strike with 8:26 left. Jackson responded with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Koch to push the lead back to 10. Collin Rogers hit a 43-yard field goal to make it a one-score game, but FAU’s onside kick attempt failed and time ran out before the Owls could get the ball back, according to FAU Athletics.

UNT football standouts

Tayven Jackson went 33-for-46 for 404 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions. UNT Athletics said it was the second 400-yard game of his career.

Jahiem White led the ground game, though reports differ on his exact numbers: UNT’s recap lists 174 yards on 25 carries, while the AP reported 193 yards on 26 carries. Both agree he scored twice. UNT said it was his fifth straight 100-yard rushing game.

Justin Stevenson caught nine passes for 119 yards and a touchdown, and Kyle Koch posted career highs with nine catches, 78 yards and two touchdowns, per UNT.

“When you get in these conference races it’s about surviving and advancing, and we survived and advanced. Big-time win,” head coach Neal Brown said, according to UNT Athletics. He added that his team didn’t play its best in every phase but “found a way to win.”

FAU football: record nights in a loss

Florida Atlantic’s passing game was historic even in defeat. Easton Messer set a program record with 16 receptions, catching every target thrown his way, for 189 yards and three touchdowns, FAU Athletics reported. Caden Veltkamp finished 37-for-56 for 452 yards and five touchdowns, tying the program record for touchdown passes in a game. Dominique Henry added a career-high 10 catches for 116 yards.

The difference came on the ground and in possession. North Texas ran for 240 yards to FAU’s 71 and held the ball for about 35 minutes, according to the team stats posted by both schools.

What’s next for North Texas and Florida Atlantic

• North Texas gets a few extra days off before hosting Rice for Homecoming on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 3 p.m. CT. UNT noted that one more win would match the program record for wins by a first-year head coach.
• Florida Atlantic plays another Thursday night game, hosting UTSA (7-1, 4-0) on Nov. 5 at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

FAQ