Marshall 30, North Texas 13: What We Learned

[caption id="attachment_19675" align="alignleft" width="300"]Photo by Gary Faulkenberry Photo by Gary Faulkenberry[/caption] North Texas fell to 0-7 on the season with a 30-13 loss at Marshall. What did we learn? DCTF's Greg Tepper breaks it down.It may not look like it, but North Texas is getting better. I made the comment on Twitter that the Mean Green’s 24-0 halftime deficit (which actually ended up being 24-3 after a last-minute field goal) was a good sign for the Mean Green. Yes, that bar is very low, but this may have been North Texas’ best overall game to date. The second half was especially good, stifling Marshall and holding them to just 136 total yards and two field goals after halftime. And while it was firmly in garbage time, QB DaMarcus Smith led a 9-play, 93-yard touchdown drive (almost exclusively on the ground until Smith’s scoring pass to Darvin Kidsy) for the Mean Green’s only touchdown, and it was a darn good drive. At this point, all you’re looking for from UNT in this lost season is incremental improvement, and you saw that today. The run defense still isn’t any good. Marshall’s not a bad running team, but they looked great today thanks to what continues to be a woeful rush defense from North Texas. The Thundering Herd averaged 5 yards per carry — better than their 4.6 average — and routinely gashed the Mean Green’s front seven for six, seven, eight yards at a time in the first half. It’s going to be like this all year, sadly, for the Mean Green, because the front seven is just getting bullied on almost every play. Jeffrey Wilson is the Mean Green’s silver lining. Hey, c’mon, North Texas fans. It’s not all doom and gloom. How about that Jeffery Wilson? The Elkhart running back was fabulous in this one, running with purpose for 138 yards. His 38-yard scamper early in the fourth quarter was reminiscent of how great he was in high school, and could be a sign of things to come for the sophomore. If you’re looking for something to cheer about, look no further than No. 26.