High School

Austin Vandegrift grad Drew Mestemaker dazzles in debut for North Texas in SERVPRO First Responder Bowl

True freshman throws for 393 yards and combined for 3 TDs in 30-28 loss to Texas State on Friday.

Cody Thorn

North Texas quarterback Drew Mestemaker throws a pass during the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl on Friday in Dallas.
North Texas quarterback Drew Mestemaker throws a pass during the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl on Friday in Dallas. / Cody Thorn

It’s been a while since Drew Mestemaker took a snap as QB1.

The last time was in a ninth-grade ‘B’ game at Austin Vandegrift in 2020.

The 6-foot-5 true freshman drew the starting nod for North Texas during the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl on Friday at Gerald J. Ford Stadium at SMU.

With Chandler Morris in the portal and off to Virginia, the Mean Green turned to Mestemaker against North Texas.

Before the 3 p.m. kickoff against Texas State, the walk-on completed 4 of 5 passes for 69 yards and 0 touchdowns on 41 snaps.

By Friday night, he put his name on the map as a player to watch during the 2025 season.

Mestemaker completed 26 of 41 pass attempts for 393 yards and two touchdowns and also rushed for a 70-yard score in the fourth to help the Mean Green pull within 30-28. 

"I'm proud of that kid," Morris said of Mestemaker. "To be a freshman walk-on that didn't play quarterback in high school is an incredible story. He has a lot of good football ahead of him. He kept us in it the whole time."

Mestemaker was an all-district punter and safety for the Vandegrift Vipers. 

He completed 10-of-17 passes and 146 yards and 2 scores last fall for the Vipers. He was the backup to Deuce Adams, who threw for 2,128 yards and 27 scores. Mestemaker had 11 tackles and a fumble recovery on defense and averaged 34 yards per punt and six of his 15 punts were down inside the 20.

His first college touchdown pass went to former high school teammate Miles Coleman in the first quarter — a 46-yard score.

Damon Ward Jr. (Beaumont West Brook) also benefited from the new quarterback with a UNT bowl record of 133 yards receiving. Mestemaker threw a 16-yard touchdown to Landon Sides (Denton Guyer) in the second quarter.

Only three quarterbacks in NCAA FBS have thrown for more yards this college bowl season than Mestemaker. The 393 yards are the most passing yards for any UNT player in a bowl game.

Even though he finished with 55 yards rushing he had a 70-yard touchdown run with less than 2 minutes to play to pull his team with two points. It was the longest rushing play in bowl history for the Mean Green.

The only blemish on the day was an interception with 40 seconds left that stopped a comeback attempt.

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Cody Thorn
CODY THORN

Cody Thorn is a veteran journalist who covers high school sports across the state of Texas and Missouri. He is based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and has covered sports and news since 1999.

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