Five Things: North Texas Mean Green

As the Aztecs get back in game week mode and ready to face off against the North Texas Mean Green in the 2025 Isleta New Mexico Bowl, the American Conference program finds itself riding a wave of momentum that can either come crashing down after this game or be sustained into next season.

For as much as we make of the changes going on with the SDSU program, North Texas is going through that and more this early post-season. There are a number of fascinating storylines they bring with them into this matchup against SDSU. Here is our read on their situation.

Mean Green Historic Run

First, the 2025 Mean Green are rewriting the record books. The team has compiled an impressive 11–2 overall record, the most wins in a single season in program history. That historic win total really shows how far the program has come.

Often over-looked in the huge Lone-Star state of Texas and college football, their colors and name are reminiscent of the Texas State Armadillo’s of the 1991 football comedy movie, ‘Necessary Roughness’. But this football program is no laughing matter. Their fan base is already talking major trash and consider their matchup vs San Diego State as a demotion of sorts after being won victory away from a likely College Football Playoff invite.

New Identities

It’s through an incredible offense that this team has built a new identity for North Texas. This season, the Mean Green own the top total-offense and scoring-offense marks in the entire country—a crazy turnaround from seasons past. The “Air Raid” system under head coach Eric Morris has clearly led to that shift, unleashing big plays and high-scoring games.

But here’s the rub, Coach Morris is now gone. That’s right, his blend of the Air Raid offense with other RPO options blended in, has been so explosive that Oklahoma State pulled the trigger and poached him right out of Denton, Texas before the Mean Green could even get the Corn Salsa in their New Mexico clay bowl.

New head coach Neal Brown has already been hired and instituted into the program. Brown met with the team before being formally introduced as coach for the No. 23 Mean Green (11-2) on Monday, a week after being announced as the successor to Oklahoma State-bound Eric Morris. Neither will coach North Texas in the New Mexico Bowl against San Diego State on Dec. 27.

North Texas will be coached by Drew Svoboda, their Offensive Coordinator, as the interim head coach.

“My approach on this is this 2025 season is not done,” Brown said. “So that’s their team, I’m not part of that yet. All I want to do is I want to be around them. And my main goal with those players right now is building relationships.”

Not Their First Rodeo

Third, this bowl berth isn’t a one-off. This will be the 16th bowl appearance in Mean Green history, and marks their eighth bowl game in the last 10 seasons. That kind of sustained success in reaching the postseason speaks to a strong culture in the program over recent years. Despite the craziness surrounding their program, the players should be ready come gametime.

In Need of a Post-Season Win

Fourth, despite regular bowl appearances, bowl-game victories have been harder to come by. Historically, North Texas has struggled in postseason play, holding a modest bowl record. With the 2025 New Mexico Bowl, the Mean Green are looking to break a frustrating pattern and capture a bowl win that would punctuate their breakthrough season after a disappointing loss to Tulane in their conference title game.

Strangers No More

Finally, San Diego State adds a layer of history and intrigue. While these two teams have met six times in the past, they haven’t faced each other since 1975; the Aztecs lead the historical series 5-1. This long hiatus adds a sense of novelty and prestige to their December 27 matchup in Albuquerque.

In the end, this isn’t just another bowl game for North Texas—it’s an opportunity for the Mean Green to validate a historic season, change the narrative of postseason performance, and prove they can win without their former coach. Do that and this year will truly stand out as something special for their alumni base for years to come.