The 5-1 Mean Green are back home this week in the Denton Desert, welcoming a familiar foe — the UTSA Roadrunners — for what promises to be another spirited rivalry matchup. This one carries extra weight, too: it’s Homecoming in Denton.

These two programs know each other well. They’ve met every season since 2013, and it’s become a true rivalry in every sense. Records tend to go out the window when these two line up. In their first-ever meeting in 2013, UTSA stunned what was arguably the best UNT team of the century, 21–13. Fast forward to 2021, and North Texas returned the favor, upsetting an undefeated, nationally ranked UTSA squad 45–23 on a rainy day in Denton — a win that ultimately bought Seth Littrell another year as head coach.

Since then, however, UTSA has dominated the series, winning four straight and taking an 8–5 overall lead. The good news for UNT? This one’s in Denton — where four of the Mean Green’s five series wins have come. Success has been much harder to find in San Antonio, where UNT is just 1–6 inside the Alamodome.

Both teams enter this week trending in different directions. UNT started the season 5–0 before stumbling last weekend in Tampa against a ranked South Florida team, a game that slipped away after a second-half collapse. Meanwhile, UTSA stumbled early this year but appears to have found its stride, hammering an improved Rice team 61–13 last weekend.

It’s a familiar pattern for the Roadrunners, who also started slow last season before catching fire late with wins over Memphis, North Texas, and a bowl victory to close the year.

UTSA’s offense is led by veteran quarterback Owen McCown and one of the nation’s top rushers, Robert Henry, who has topped 140 yards in four of the Roadrunners’ six games. UNT’s defense will have its hands full trying to slow Henry down and make UTSA one-dimensional.

For the Mean Green, protecting the football will be key after turning it over five times against South Florida — an uncharacteristic showing for a team that’s been steady in that area all year. Defensively, UNT will be looking to bounce back after surrendering 580 yards to USF.

It’s expected to be another beautiful day for football in the Denton Desert, and a strong Homecoming crowd is anticipated. The big question is: which version of these teams will show up? The ones we saw early in the season, or the ones that stumbled a week ago?

Either way, expect another hard-hitting chapter in one of Texas’ most underrated rivalries.