No. 24 South Florida at unbeaten North Texas in key AAC clash

No. 24 South Florida visits unbeaten North Texas on Friday night in a key American Athletic Conference matchup that could shape the league race and Group of Five playoff positioning. The game is set for a 7:30 p.m. Eastern kickoff on Oct. 10 in Denton, Texas, with national television coverage on ESPN2 and streaming available through the ESPN app and other subscription services.

Both teams enter the Week 7 meeting coming off decisive wins. North Texas improved to 5-0 with a 36-22 victory over South Alabama and opened its season with wins over Lamar, Western Michigan, Washington State and Army. South Florida is 4-1 after a 54-26 victory over Charlotte and has nonconference wins this year against Florida and Boise State; its lone loss came at undefeated Miami.

The matchup features contrasting strengths. North Texas boasts one of the nation’s highest-scoring offenses, averaging around 44.8 points and roughly 437 yards per game. Quarterback Drew Mestemaker has completed nearly 68 percent of his passes, compiling 1,247 yards, 11 touchdown passes and no interceptions in five starts. The Mean Green offense ranks highly in pass efficiency and has a strong rushing success rate, but the...