No. 24 USF, North Texas meet in bout of surprise heavyweights

No. 24 South Florida is back in the Top 25 once and North Texas is on the verge of being ranked as the two sides prepare to clash Friday night in American Conference play at Denton, Tex. The Bulls (4-1, 1-0 in American) are coming off back-to-back wins over South Carolina State and Charlotte following their 49-12 loss to Miami on Sept. 13. Meanwhile, North Texas (5-0, 1-0) is unbeaten after five games for the first time since 1959, and is receiving votes in the latest Associated Press Top 25 and Coaches' polls for the first time since 2018. It's easily the most meaningful matchup ever between the two sides. USF leads the all-time series 2-0, but the teams haven't played each other since the Bulls swept a home-and-home series in 2001 and 2002. "I think you earn the right to play in these games, first and foremost," said North Texas coach Eric Morris on Tuesday. "I told the kids this week that we've earned the right to be on this stage and do this, but just like anything in life you have to seize the opportunities when they're there." The Mean Green have been more known for their passing attack heading into Morris' third season as coach. But this season, the running game has been a major factor in North Texas' perfect start. Makenzie McGill II has run for 318 yards and four touchdowns this season while Caleb Hawkins has run for 307 yards and seven touchdowns on 42 carries. Hawkins, who also has seven catches for 120 yards and a touchdown, is averaging 8.7 yards per touch, which is the third-most among all FBS running backs. "(Hawkins) and the running back room have been doing really well getting the run game established early so we can get them to bite down and open up lanes in the passing game," Morris said. USF's backfield has also been explosive this season, not only thanks to its backs, but also to the dynamic ability of dual-threat quarterback Byrum Brown. The Bulls racked up 407 of their 631 yards against Charlotte on the ground in last week's 54-26 win. Brown leads USF in rushing with 282 yards and three touchdowns on 64 attempts as well as having 1,194 yards and 10 touchdowns passing, along with four interceptions. It's been a balanced backfield for USF with Sam Franklin, Cartevious Norton, Alvon Isaac and Nykahi Davenport have all rushed for 125 or more yards this season. "There's a point in your preparation where you get to a level of confidence … and I thought we were incredibly confident going into the game," USF coach Alex Golesh said. But the Bulls' concerns are more about finishing games. USF stormed out to a 26-0 lead against Charlotte before struggling to put the game out of reach early in the second half. The Bulls committed four turnovers to match the four they forced. "I told our guys that elite teams put teams away when they have an opportunity to put them away," Golesh said. "I thought the start was intentional and an attempt to go put it away early. But from a fundamental standpoint, I thought it was really, really poor in a lot of ways." –Field Level Media

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