Mean Green Score in All Three Phases to Beat Navy - University of North Texas Athletics

Saturday, October 24

Annapolis, Md.

2:30 PM CT

University of North Texas

5-2 , 3-0

Navy

2-5 , 1-4

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
North Texas	14	14	14	7	49
Navy	3	14	15	7	39

10/24/2026 7:00:00 PM | Football

Box Score

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The North Texas football team knew what it was up against on Saturday afternoon.

The Mean Green were facing a desperate, hungry Navy team that just so happened to have an eight-game home winning streak intact, and one that plays a unique brand of football that likes to hold the ball and methodically beat opponents.

The Midshipmen held the ball for almost twice as long as UNT, but the Mean Green were the ones playing from ahead as they never trailed and kept the momentum on their side for most of the night en route to a 49-39 win at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

"Offensively, we played ok. Defensively, we bent, but we got a key takeaway and we bowed up at a couple of opportune times," head coach Neal Brown said. "Special teams, we played really sound and had the punt-return touchdown, which was huge because it allowed us to keep momentum and we never trailed. It was a three-phase win. We made them have to play from behind and that's not something they like to do."

The Mean Green scored plenty offensively, but also added a special teams touchdown on a 76-yard punt return touchdown from Dalton Carnes and a defensive score on a 63-yard fumble return touchdown from linebacker Zakye Barker. It was the first time since a 2018 win at Arkansas that the Mean Green scored in all three phases.

Offensively, the Mean Green were once again led by the trio of quarterback Tayven Jackson, running back Jahiem White and wide receiver Justin Stevenson.

Jackson completed his first nine pass attempts before finished 17-for-23 for 305 yards and three touchdowns, two of which went to Stevenson, who had eight grabs for 209 yards. White ran for 174 yards and two scores on 20 carries and added four catches for 58 yards.

Brown said he is pleased with the growth Stevenson has shown since joining the program before spring ball.

"He's really come on," Brown said of Stevenson. "I'm really proud of how he's competed. He wasn't our No. 1 guy in the spring and probably wasn't early in fall camp either. The credit to him was he continued to work and he allowed us to coach him. He's turned into the player we thought he could be – and that's a guy who can be as good as anyone in this league."

The Mean Green (5-2, 3-0) will return to action on Thursday night, when they host FAU at DATCU Stadium in a game that will be broadcast on ESPN at 6:30 p.m.

QUICK HITS

The Mean Green win gives them a 2-2 split in all-time the series and snapped Navy's eight-game home winning streak. UNT has now won the last two meetings – last season and Saturday night.
UNT's captains for the game were Zakye Barker, Tayven Jackson, Max Reese and Davion Rhodes.
The Mean Green entered the season with 70 newcomers, which puts UNT at 215 new players over the past three seasons – good for the most in FBS in that time.
UNT is one of two FBS teams in the country to return zero starters from 2025 – the other is Iowa State.
The Mean Green have an average age of 21.01, which is the second-oldest roster in FBS behind American Conference foe UTSA.
Sophomore LB Brenden Reese (Longview, Texas) and senior DB Tyson Wilson (Gilmer, Texas) both made their first career starts.
The Mean Green eclipsed 40 points for the fourth straight game and the fifth time in their last six games.
For the third time this season, UNT scored on each of its first three possessions, but it was the first time it has touchdowns on each of the first three drives. Against Charlotte, UNT had a field goal and two touchdowns. In the win over UNLV, UNT had two straight field goals and then a touchdown in its first three drives.
UNT's 49 points was the most allowed by Navy this season, eclipsing the 38 points allowed to UTSA last week.
UNT had an offensive touchdown, defensive touchdown and special teams touchdown in the game – marking the first time since Sept. 15, 2018, at Arkansas that UNT scored a touchdown in all three phases of the game.
- The game marked the first time since Oct. 14, 2000, against Notre Dame, that Navy had allowed two non-offensive touchdowns.
- UNT accomplished that feat twice in the 2018 season, also scoring all three phases in a win over SMU on Sept. 1, 2018.
Fifth-year QB Tayven Jackson (Greenwood, Ind.) finished 17 for 23 for 305 yards passing and three touchdowns.
- Jackson's 305 yards gave him his fourth 300-yard passing game of the season and his career, and his fourth in just his past five games.
- Jackson completed his first nine pass attempts for 151 yards and two touchdowns before his first incompletion after completing his first 14 attempts last game against Charlotte.
- Jackson's 45-yard touchdown pass to Justin Stevenson with 10:05 left in the first quarter was the 16th of the season and 32nd of his career.
- Jackson's 5-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Koch with 26 seconds left in the first quarter was the 17th of the season and 33rd of his career.
- Jackson's 53-yard touchdown pass to Stevenson with 4:30 left in the third quarter was the 18th of the season and 34th of his career.
Senior RB Jaheim White (York, Pa.) finished the day with 20 carries for 174 yards and two touchdowns and added four catches for 58 yards.
- White's 174 rushing yards marked his 12th career 100-yard rushing day and his fifth for UNT.
- White is the only player in The American with six games this season of at least 100 total yards from scrimmage.
- White's 174 yards gave him a 100-yard rushing day for the fourth straight game and fifth in his last six, and it marks the 12th time he's eclipsed the century mark in his career.
- White has scored in all seven games this season. Entering Saturday's game, only six other FBS players had scored in at least six straight games this season.
- White now has scored a rushing touchdown in nine straight games dating back to Aug. 30, 2025, while at West Virginia. It's also his 11th game with a touchdown in his past 12 games.
- White's 3-yard touchdown run with 10:05 left in the second quarter was his 10th of the season and 24th of his career. It was his 12th overall touchdown of the season and 29th of his career.
- White's 59-yard touchdown run with 9:38 left in the game was his 11th of the season and 25th of his career. It was his 13th overall touchdown of the season and 30th of his career.
Senior WR Justin Stevenson (Philadelphia, Pa.), finished with eight catches for a career-high 209 yards and two touchdowns.
- Stevenson is now one of eight UNT players since 1995 with three or more games with multiple receiving touchdowns and the first in that time to have multiple receiving touchdowns in three straight games.
- Stevenson has now scored touchdowns in each of the past four games.
- Stevenson's 200-yard receiving day was the first of his career and the first for UNT since Wyatt Young had 295 yards at Rice on Nov. 22, 2025.
- Stevenson's 100-yard receiving day was the third of his season and career, and his second in as many games.
- Stevenson's 45-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter was the third-longest pass play of the season for the Mean Green.
- Stevenson's 45-yard touchdown reception with 10:05 left in the first quarter was his sixth of the season and the ninth of his career.
- Stevenson's 53-yard touchdown reception with 4:30 left in the third quarter was his seventh of the season and 10th of his career.
Junior WR Kyle Koch (Dripping Springs, Texas) finished with four catches for 28 yards and a touchdown.
- Koch's 5-yard touchdown reception with 26 seconds left in the first quarter was his fourth of the season and his career. He now has touchdowns in four of the past five games.
Fifth-year WR Dalton Carnes (College Station, Texas) had a 76-yard punt return touchdown.
- Carnes' 76-yard punt return touchdown with 4:22 left in the second quarter was the Mean Green's first since Sept. 15, 2018, when Keegan Brewer returned a punt 90 yards for a score at Arkansas on the famed "Peter Pan" play that went viral.
- Carnes' punt return touchdown was the first allowed by Navy since 2021.
UNT allowed 506 total yards, which was the second time this season the Mean Green have allowed 500 total yards – the first since Texas State eclipsed 600 yards.
For the first time since last season's game against Army, UNT had four players with 10 or more tackles.
Fifth-year LB Zakye Barker (Norcross, Ga.) finished the day with 12 tackles, including two solo stops and had a 63-yard fumble return for a touchdown with 7:55 left in the third quarter for the Mean Green's second defensive touchdown of the year.
- Barker's fumble return touchdown was the first for UNT since Aug. 30, 2025, when Ethan Wesloski recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown.
- The 63-yard fumble return was UNT's second-longest such play since at least 2001 behind a 100-yard fumble return by TJ Covington at Utah State on Oct. 9, 2004.
Sophomore DB Brandon Jones (Houston, Texas) finished the day with 12 tackles, including four solo stops, and a tackle for-loss.
- Jones' 12 tackles was a new career high.
Senior DB CJ Coombes (Bellafonte, Del.) finished the day with 10 tackles, including three solo stops.
- Coombes' 10 tackles tied a season high, previously set against Tulsa.
Fifth-year LB Aaron Alexander (Belleville, Mich.) finished the day with a season-high 10 tackles, including four solo stops, and a tackle for-loss.
Sophomore LB Brenden Reese (Longview, Texas) finished the day with a career-high nine tackles, including six solo stops, and a tackle for-loss.
Fifth-year DL David Onuoha (Cliffwood, N.J.) finished the day with six tackles, including two solo stops, and two tackles for-loss.
- Onuoha finished with two tackles for-loss, which was a season high and matched his career high when he was at UMass.
Sophomore K Dominic De Freitas (Nappanee, Ind.) finished 7-for-7 on extra points.