Two programs that gutted their rosters this offseason meet on the Friday after Thanksgiving, and by then we'll finally know if either rebuild is actually working.
Bush’s Picks
UABUNT
UABUNT
OverUnder
Best BetUAB
UAB gets the nod here mostly on continuity — Mortensen is a year deeper into his own offense and brought in Grantham specifically to fix a defense that was historically bad, while North Texas is trying to replace nearly its entire two-deep at once. Burton faded down the stretch last year, but a full offseason as the unquestioned starter should smooth that out. North Texas's ceiling is real, but zero returning starters is a lot to overcome by late November.
UAB
+Three transfer running backs power an improved run game
+O-line returns starters at guard and center
+Grantham hired specifically to fix historically bad defense
−Defense allowed nation-worst 38.3 points a game in 2025
−Burton faded after his Memphis breakout
−No true OC — Mortensen still calling plays himself
North Texas
+Neal Brown brings a proven offensive track record
+Jackson and White both have real FBS starting experience
+Coming off the program's best season ever at 12-2
This one's about who found a quarterback faster. UAB hands the ball back to Ryder Burton, who flashed real upside in the Blazers' upset of Memphis last year before cooling off the rest of the way. North Texas counters with UCF transfer Tayven Jackson, tasked with replacing a nation-leading passer in Drew Mestemaker after the Mean Green lost basically their entire 2025 operation to the portal and to Oklahoma State, where old coach Eric Morris took the job.
The bigger story might be on defense. UAB allowed a nation-worst pass efficiency mark and 38.3 points a game in 2025, which is why the Blazers went and got Todd Grantham to run that side of the ball. North Texas isn't in much better shape — the Mean Green are rebuilding a defense from scratch with close to 10 new starters via the portal, after finishing as one of only two FBS teams returning zero starters at all.
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UAB UAB
UNT North Texas
By late November both staffs will have had a full season to figure out who they actually are. Alex Mortensen will be a full year into calling plays as UAB's head coach without ever hiring a true offensive coordinator, while Neal Brown will be trying to keep a completely rebuilt North Texas team competitive after the program's best season ever set impossible expectations.
UAB Blazers
Nov 20?vs UTSA—
Nov 13?@ Temple—
Nov 6?vs Charlotte—
Oct 30?@ South Florida—
Oct 15?vs East Carolina—
Oct 9?@ Memphis—
Oct 3?vs Samford—
Sep 25?vs Navy—
Sep 19?@ Louisiana—
Sep 12?vs UL Monroe—
Sep 3?@ Illinois—
North Texas Mean Green
Nov 20?@ Tulane—
Nov 13?@ UTSA—
Nov 6?vs Rice—
Oct 29?vs Florida Atlantic—
Oct 9?vs Charlotte—
Oct 1?@ Tulsa—
Sep 26?vs Houston Christian—
Sep 19?@ Texas State—
Sep 12?vs UNLV—
Sep 5?@ Indiana—
Recent form.
UAB's argument for staying relevant into November is the run game. The Blazers brought in Georgia transfer Rod Robinson, Coastal Carolina's Ja'Vin Simpkins and speed threat Bam McReynolds behind a line that returns starters at guard and center, and that group is supposed to be why UAB can still put up 400-plus yards a game even with the defense in flux. North Texas leans the other way, betting that Jackson and running back Jahiem White — a West Virginia transfer replacing 2025's leading rusher — have enough starting experience to hold an offense together while the defense figures itself out.
UAB Blazers
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
North Texas Mean Green
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
Neither team is walking into Friday, November 27 with a settled identity, which is exactly what makes this one interesting for the neutral. Two rosters this heavily rebuilt rarely play it safe — expect mistakes, expect some big plays given how thin both secondaries project, and expect a game that tells you more about 2027 than it does about either team's ceiling right now.
