Photo Courtesy: Michael Kolch
By Kelly Reed
Game Info
North Texas Mean Green vs San Diego State Aztecs
Saturday – December 27 – 4:45 p.m.
TV: ESPN
University Stadium – Albuquerque, NM
#25 North Texas Mean Green (11-2)
The Mean Green reached double digit wins this season and to be honest, that is a rarity. This season for the program qualifies as a huge success due to production on offense, win total and earning a bowl berth. The team fell short in a few areas by not qualifying for the College Football Playoff (damn you Tulane!) and by being the runner-up in the American Athletic Conference. The Mean Green have a shot to earn 12 wins which would add to this season’s accomplishment of being the winningest team in program history. The team will be without a few key pieces: head coach Eric Morris has already departed to Stillwater to take over the Oklahoma State program. There’s also rumblings that OC Jordan Davis is on his way to East Carolina as their OC.
Who will coach this team? Call plays? It’ll be all hands on deck for this one. Drew Svoboda will serve as the interim head coach for the New Mexico Bowl. Jordan Davis will be in the booth calling plays for the offense (departure to be expected after the game). Mean Green helmsman Drew Mestemaker is the man to lead the team. He’ll probably be in the porter as soon as he is eligible in January, but for this game; he can lead the team and program to even greater success. He’s pretty accurate when he puts the ball in the air, completing about 70% of his passes. Mestemaker has 4,129 yards on the season and has 31 TDs to boot. His key asset is his ability to read the defense and make his audibles as needed. Freshman RB Caleb Hawkins has benefitted tremendously from the Mean Green passing attack. He’s carried the rock 200 times for 1,236 yards and 23 touchdowns. WR Wyatt Young is Mestemaker’s main target when looking for downfield throws to move the chains, big plays or scoring opportunities. All of this to say, the Mean Green offense is potent and if they are clicking on all cylinders they’ll be hard to stop. Defense is their Achilles heel.
San Diego Aztecs (9-3)
Entering his second year with the program, head coach Sean Lewis has the team heading in the right direction. They were so close to competing for a Mountain West Conference title, but an overtime loss reared its ugly head. This team is almost a polar opposite of the Mean Green in regard to program strengths. The Aztecs have one of the better defenses at the D1 level. They’ll have to find some answers from within since former DC Rob Aurich has taken to Nebraska to join the Cornhuskers. SDSU has promoted Demetrius Sumler to interim defensive play caller for the bowl game. The defense will also be without a few of their stars on that side of the ball. That only means there are opportunities for the next guy to step up and make plays.
Let’s get into the offense since we know about the Aztecs defense. The man who will make things happen on offense for this game at the QB position will be back up Bert Emanuel Jr. It has been announced that starter Jayden Denegal has been ruled out. Emanuel is a dual threat QB who now gets his opportunity to lead the team. Look for shorter, safer passes on offense. Emanuel can get after it with his legs and will need to in order to keep the Mean Green fence honest. When it comes to the ground game, SDSU will rely on Lucky Sutton for the most part. He has taken advantage of his opportunity by rushing for 1,237 yards on 239 carries. He’s also hit pay dirt 10 times this season. The loss of WR Jordan Napier is huge the team. He was their leading receiver. Jacob Bostick is also out with a season ending injury. Look for freshman Javance Tubada Johnson to be the recipient of some downfield passes. Also expect the tight ends stepping up as outlet options for the QB. The Aztecs mantra will be: run, run, run and an occasional pass sprinkled in.
Prediction
The Aztecs have a great defense but will be missing key parts and their DC. The Mean Green has a high-powered offense that will be missing parts and their head coach. Here’s what it will come down to… if the Aztecs can get their run game going against a weak Mean Green defense, control the clock and put up points it’s a wrap. If UNT can exploit the weakened Aztec defense and make it a track meet where the SDSU offense has to keep up with scoring, it’ll be over by halftime. I’m predicting a Mean Green victory based on the rosters that are available to take the field. It’ll be a one-sided affair.
Final Score
#25 Mean Green – 31
Aztecs – 17
