Austin Aune threw two touchdown passes and North Texas fought off Rice for a 21-17 win Saturday to secure a bid in the Conference USA title game against UTSA in the Alamodome on Dec. 2.
The Mean Green will get a chance to avenge their 31-27 loss to the Roadrunners — also played in the Alamodome — which occurred on Oct. 22.With the win, North Texas denied Rice a chance at bowl eligibility.
North Texas’ defense secured the win on Rice’s final drive when Kevin Wood sacked AJ Padgett for an eight-yard loss to set up a second-and-18 from Rice’s own 43-yard line with 1:20 remaining. On third down, Padgett, lined up in shotgun formation, dropped the ball and kneeled to pick it up but was ruled down as officials believed his knee touched the ground on the recovery attempt.
Facing fourth-and-23, North Texas linebacker KD Davis intercepted Padgett to end it. Davis and fellow linebacker Larry Nixon III each recorded 13 tackles. Ikaika Ragsdale ran for 122 yards on 17 carries with a touchdown for North Texas. His 6-yard touchdown catch with 10:35 left put North Texas up for good.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Bowl hopes for Rice slim after loss to North TexasRice can still get into postseason with a 5-win team if enough teams do not reach six wins and cannot fill the 82 available sports for the 41 bowl games.
Read more »
Rice at North Texas: 5 things to watch in regular-season finaleBoth teams play their final football game as members of C-USA before joining AAC next...
Read more »
North Texas High School Football 2022 Regional Playoff Round HighlightsThere are a number of North Texas teams still in contention for a state title.
Read more »
Movies in North Texas theaters on Nov. 25 and coming soon‘The Fabelmans’ and ‘Glass Onion’ lead a packed lineup of new releases.
Read more »
North Texas Business Owners Need You to Shop on Small Business SaturdayIt's SmallBusinessSaturday -- this day has become an essential part of the busy holiday shopping season for small business owners like a Dallas police officer turned candlemaker.
Read more »