Tulane Green Wave Offensive Stars to Watch vs. North Texas Mean Green
The Tulane Green Wave and the North Texas Mean Green know how to put points on the scoreboard and that should make for an exciting matchup when they play each other Saturday in Denton.
The Green Wave (5-2, 3-0 in American) enter the game on a four-game winning streak and during that stretch, Tulane has scored 181 points, or 45.2 points per game.
Tulane’s 24-10 win over Rice brought that average down, but it also proved the Green Wave can win a close game when the offense can’t blow the doors off the opponent.
North Texas (5-2, 2-1) has proven just as adept. This season the Mean Green has scored 289 points, or 41.2 points per game. In fact North Texas has scored more than 30 points in all but one game this year. There are hard offenses to keep grounded.
Here are the offensive players to watch for both teams entering Saturday’s game.
Tulane
RB Makhi Hughes
The Green Wave will need everything it can get from its star running back against the Mean Green. North Texas has one of the most explosive offenses in the conference and frankly, Tulane’s best defense will be to make sure Hughes carries the ball as much as possible. It worked against Rice, as he rushed 27 times for 140 yards and a touchdown to help the Green Wave protect that victory. He's gotten big usage in close games and that should be the case again on Saturday.
QB Darian Mensah
This could be a game where Mensah ends up putting up huge numbers throwing the football, especially if Tulane falls behind early. But it's more important that the redshirt freshman protect the football and not give North Texas extra offensive possessions. So far he's done a good job of that, as he's thrown just two interceptions in seven games. He continues to complete passes at a high rate and has more than 1,400 yards passing entering the contest.
WR Dontae Fleming
Mario Williams has received plenty of attention this season and deservedly so. But Fleming has led Tulane in receiving yards in more games than any other pass catcher this season. He's done it three times, including last weekend against Rice. He enters this contest as Tulane’s second-leading receiver by yardage with 340 yards, along with 19 receptions and one touchdown. If Tulane has to air it out, Fleming is a fantastic option.
North Texas
QB Chandler Morris
He's bounced around as a collegiate, as he started his career at Oklahoma in 2020 and spent the last three seasons at TCU before transferring to North Texas. With the Mean Green, he's found an offense that suits his arm talent and his ability to quickly dissect defenses. North Texas doesn't think twice about letting him throw the ball, and he's already thrown 23 touchdowns in 2,424 yards in seven games. He's thrown eight interceptions, so there's a bit of a price to let him throw at that volume. But most of the time it pays off.
WR Shane Porter
The Mean Green aren't going to run the football that much. But when North Texas does run the football, Porter is the most likely ball carrier. He's only had 46 carries but he has 295 yards and two touchdowns, along with a robust 6.4 yard per carry average. If the Mean Green get the lead early, Porter and his other backfield mates might see more work than usual.
WR DT Sheffield
Morris throws the football a lot, but it isn't exactly an equal-opportunity passing game. No receiver has benefited more from Morris than Sheffield, who has twice as many receptions as the next leading receiver on the team. He's caught 42 passes for 565 yards and nine touchdowns. So Sheffield isn't just a threat all over the field, he's a big red zone threat too. Tulane will have to defend him well on Saturday.
