North Texas Daily

North Texas notched its first win of the 2023 season as it defeated Louisiana Tech 40-37 on Saturday. Senior kicker Noah Rauschenberg went 4-for-4 on extra points and was 4-for-4 on field goals in his Mean Green debut.

This marks North Texas’ first win in the Eric Morris era and as a member of the American Athletic Conference. 

The win came as Mean Green senior kicker Noah Rauschenberg kicked the go-ahead field goal with 0:03 remaining in the game to put North Texas up by three.

Rauschenberg is the first North Texas player to make four field goals in the same game since Ethan Mooney against Middle Tennessee on Oct. 19, 2019.

However, it was an all-around team effort as the offense went 3-for-3 in the red zone to start the game, and the defense held the LA Tech offense to nine total plays in the first quarter.

Junior quarterback Chandler Rogers played his first start for the Mean Green and went 24-of-41 for 313 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 35 yards on nine carries.

The North Texas offense was led by senior wide receiver Roderic Burns and junior running back Ayo Adeyi. Burns led all receivers as he made 11 catches for 134 yards. Adeyi rushed for 148 yards on 19 carries and two touchdowns averaging 7.8 yards per carry.

Their performances marked the first time the Mean Green has had a 100-yard rusher and 100-yard receiver in the same game since Nov. 20, 2021.

North Texas came into the game converting only 28% on third down. They converted 11-of-18 on third down against the Bulldogs’ defense and scored 7-for-7 on red zone trips.

LA Tech made a comeback late in the game as they closed a 17-point gap by putting up 23 points in the fourth quarter alone. The defense racked up nine penalties for 115 yards.

Two 15-yard penalties came in the fourth quarter on the last LA Tech drive that kept things moving for the Bulldogs. The drive ended with a 30-yard field goal for LA Tech kicker Jacob Barnes to bring the Bulldogs to within seven.

Barnes then set up for the onside kick which would be recovered by LA Tech at its own 47-yard line. Two plays later, LA Tech quarterback Jack Turner would find senior wide receiver Davon “Smoke” Harris in the flats. Harris then took it up the sideline into the endzone for a 36-yard TD, tying the game 37-37.

Rogers and the North Texas offense would retake the field with just over a minute remaining and drive down the field on a nine-play 61-yard drive with 1:04 left in the game to set up the Rauschenberg game-winning field goal.

The Mean Green will return to Denton on Sept. 30 against Abilene Christian University. The game will mark the two teams’ first matchup since 2019.

Image credit Manny Flores/Mean Green Sports