CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2018 North Texas

9–⁠4 (5–⁠3 Conference USA), coached by Seth Littrell.

Schedule and results

North Texas in 2018, game by game: won vs. SMU 46–23; won vs. Incarnate Word 58–16; won at Arkansas 44–17; won at Liberty 47–7; lost vs. Louisiana Tech 27–29; won at UTEP 27–24; won vs. Southern Miss 30–7; lost at UAB 21–29; won vs. Rice 41–17; lost at Old Dominion 31–34; won vs. Florida Atlantic 41–38; won at UTSA 24–21; lost vs. Utah State 13–52+42−39Won 46–23 vs. SMU+23SMUWon 58–16 vs. Incarnate Word+42Incarnate WordWon 44–17 at Arkansas+27ArkansasWon 47–7 at Liberty+40LibertyLost 27–29 vs. Louisiana Tech-2Louisiana TechWon 27–24 at UTEP+3UTEPWon 30–7 vs. Southern Miss+23Southern MissLost 21–29 at UAB-8UABWon 41–17 vs. Rice+24RiceLost 31–34 at Old Dominion-3Old DominionWon 41–38 vs. Florida Atlantic+3Florida AtlanticWon 24–21 at UTSA+3UTSALost 13–52 vs. Utah State-39Utah State
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 1vsSMUW 46–⁠2358%
Sep 8vsIncarnate WordW 58–⁠1691%
Sep 15atArkansasW 44–⁠1749%
Sep 22atLibertyW 47–⁠766%
Sep 29vsLouisiana TechL 27–⁠2960%
Oct 6atUTEPW 27–⁠2483%
Oct 13vsSouthern MissW 30–⁠767%
Oct 20atUABL 21–⁠2946%
Oct 27vsRiceW 41–⁠1789%
Nov 10atOld DominionL 31–⁠3471%
Nov 15vsFlorida AtlanticW 41–⁠3853%
Nov 24atUTSAW 24–⁠2171%
Dec 15Bowls & playoffvsUtah StateNew Mexico BowlL 13–⁠5241%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Utah State 52–⁠13 in the New Mexico Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 5th in the Conference USA.

In program history: The 11th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 105 on file).

Record
9–⁠4
Conference
5–⁠3 tied for 5th in Conference USA
AP final
Unranked
Points
450–⁠314
Coach
Seth Littrell
Elo
1527 +57 this season
SP+ rating
2.1 No. 65 of 130; offense No. 67, defense No. 78, special teams No. 4
SRS
−0.1 No. 70 of 130 in FBS
Returning
74% of last season’s EPA, No. 45 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 101 roster talent No. 107 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Graham Harrell
Defensive coordinator
Troy Reffett
Offense
Spread
Defense
3–⁠3–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense64th of 130
  • Defense26th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted77th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted57th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1044%1.2064th of 130
Defense0.0240%1.2926th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.09 off
0.08 def		44% off
42% def		—77th off
57th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.9own 3116% allowed
Defense3.1own 2719% caused

CORE rating 0.4, 58th of 130 (offense -0.7, defense -1.1).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsMason Fine QB3,793 yds
Passing touchdownsMason Fine QB27 TD
Rushing yardsDeAndre Torrey RB977 yds
Rushing touchdownsDeAndre Torrey RB15 TD
Receiving yardsRico Bussey Jr. WR1,017 yds
Receiving touchdownsRico Bussey Jr. WR12 TD
TacklesE.J. Ejiya LB121 tkl
SacksE.J. Ejiya LB9 sacks
InterceptionsNate Brooks DB6 INT

Top recruits in the 2018 class

Alex Morris S★★★No. 1377
Reggie Williams S★★★No. 1640
Jyaire Shorter TE★★★No. 1879
K.D. Davis S★★★No. 1875
Austin Ogunmakin WR★★★No. 2001

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2018 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks23.00.806
Receivers23.00.814
Offensive line42.00.779
Defensive line22.50.797
Linebackers32.30.799
Defensive backs52.80.815
Whole class182.60.801

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 105

The 2018 roster

105 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2018 line; 72 have a stat line. See the roster

2018 Conference USA standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
UAB7–⁠111–⁠3
Middle Tennessee7–⁠18–⁠6
Marshall6–⁠29–⁠4
Florida International6–⁠29–⁠4
North Texas5–⁠39–⁠4
Louisiana Tech5–⁠38–⁠5
Southern Miss5–⁠36–⁠5
Charlotte4–⁠45–⁠7
Florida Atlantic3–⁠55–⁠7
Old Dominion2–⁠64–⁠8
UTSA2–⁠63–⁠9
Western Kentucky2–⁠63–⁠9
Rice1–⁠72–⁠11
UTEP1–⁠71–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.