RECAP: Football falls 48-10 to Southern Methodist
Following a conference win over the University of Texas-El Paso last week, football fell to Southern Methodist University by a score of 48-10 Saturday night.
“Didn’t execute at all,” head coach Seth Littrell said. “You start making crucial and critical mistakes, especially in critical situations, it’s deflating as a team.”
Southern Methodist (1-0, 0-0 American Athletic Conference) scored two first-quarter rushing touchdowns from senior running backs Tre Siggers and Tyler Lavine that put them up early. North Texas (1-1, 1-0 Conference USA) responded by driving down to the Mustang 21-yard line and kicking a field goal, which was blocked.
Senior middle linebacker KD Davis forced a fumble on the following Southern Methodist drive that was recovered by the Mean Green. The team drove down to the two-yard line, but a bad snap forced them to settle for a 33-yard field goal.
The Mustangs scored on their next three drives, beginning with a 51-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Jordan Kerley from senior quarterback Tanner Mordecai.
After Southern Methodist added a 39-yard field goal off the leg of freshman kicker Collin Rogers, North Texas responded with a touchdown of its own with a 35-yard run from sophomore running back Oscar Adaway III. Southern Methodist countered on the first play of their next drive with a 75-yard passing touchdown from Mordecai to sophomore receiver Roderick Daniels, going into halftime with a 31-10 lead.
North Texas had four drives that went into Southern Methodist territory in the second half, two of them getting to the five-yard line or closer, but came away with no points. The Mustang defense shut down those opportunities with two interceptions and two fourth-down stops.
“They’re very talented, we knew that coming into the game,” Littrell said. “Look at [Tanner] Mordecai, he played a great game. He can really spin it, and they got a lot of weapons outside at the receiver position.”
Senior receiver Rashee Rice and junior receiver Jordan Kerley had more than 100 yards receiving. Rice ended with 166 on eight catches and a touchdown while Kerley tallied 103 on four catches and also caught a touchdown. Mordecai passed for 432 yards and four touchdowns.
“They made plays and we didn’t, especially in the red zone and on crucial third downs,” Littrell said. “We’ve got to be much better.”
North Texas went six for 18 on third downs, compared to Southern Methodist’s seven conversions on 13 attempts, and one for three on fourth downs. The Mean Green had four total red zone opportunities, capitalizing on one of them with a field goal. Southern Methodist scored on all four of their red zone opportunities, coming away with two touchdowns and two field goals.
Twenty-one of the Mustang’s points came from Mean Green turnovers. Senior defensive back Chris Adimora, senior safety Nick Roberts and junior defensive tackle Stephon Wright all forced turnovers during the game. All three turned into Southern Methodist touchdowns.
“It’s always tough to lose like this but it’s a team effort,” junior outside linebacker Mazin Richards said. “We didn’t take care of business in all three phases of the ball. We’re going to get that fixed and we’ll be ready for next week.”
North Texas has now lost in its last four games against the Mustangs, with Saturday night’s loss being the biggest loss to Southern Methodist during Littrell’s tenure. The Mean Green play at home again on Sept. 10 when the team faces Southwestern Athletic Conference squad, Texas Southern University.
Featured Image: North Texas running back Oscar Adaway III runs with the ball in Apogee Stadium against Southern Methodist on Sept. 3, 2022. Photo by Maria Crane
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