Has North Texas Ever Been Ranked In Football
🤠North Texas Football and the AP Poll: A Gridiron Roller Coaster, Y'all! 🎢
Alright, settle in, folks, because we are about to take a deep dive, a super-stretched, information-packed journey into the annals of North Texas Mean Green football history. Specifically, we're asking the million-dollar question that keeps Denton, Texas, buzzing: Has North Texas ever been ranked in the AP Poll for college football?
The short answer? Heck yeah, they have! But it’s not exactly a long, luxurious stay at the top. Think of it less like a permanent resident and more like a super exclusive, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it VIP guest appearance. We're talking about a history so rich and, well, sporadic that it deserves the full-blown, humor-laced, slang-slinging breakdown. Get ready to have your mind blown (or at least gently expanded) by some gridiron trivia that is straight-up bananas!
Step 1: The Golden Age Flashback – When the Eagles Flew High
Before they were the formidable Mean Green, they were the North Texas State College Eagles, and let me tell you, the late 1950s was when they were cooking with grease! This era was legit a moment in the sun, a time when a small Texas school made some serious noise on the national scene.
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| Has North Texas Ever Been Ranked In Football |
1.1 The Year of the Star (1959)
Hold your horses, because this is the first (and for a long time, only) time the program cracked the sacred wall of the Associated Press Top 25.
The Setup: It was the 1959 season, and the team, under legendary coach Odus Mitchell, was absolutely on fire. They were balling out, and the whole country started to take notice. They had future AFL superstar Abner Haynes toting the rock, and the offense was a problem for defenses everywhere.
The Big Reveal: Following a victory over Wichita State, the Eagles swooped into the national rankings. They were initially ranked No. 20 in the AP Poll. Can you even imagine the excitement in Denton? That’s a monumental "W" in program history!
The Quick Exit: They hung around the charts for another week, peaking at No. 17, but a tough loss later in the season sent them tumbling right back out of the Top 20 (which, back then, was the standard size of the poll). It was a quick trip, like stopping for gas on a road trip, but they were there, dude!
QuickTip: Pause when something feels important.
Step 2: The Decades-Long Silence – The Long and Winding Road
After that electric 1959 moment, North Texas—which became the Mean Green in the 1970s, thanks to the ferocious defense led by "Mean" Joe Greene (yes, that Mean Joe Greene)—entered a veritable wilderness, at least as far as the national polls were concerned.
2.1 The Drought is Real
We’re talking a five-plus decade absence from the AP Poll. That’s a minute! The AP Poll is a fickle beast, and being a perennial Group of Five school means you gotta be absolutely slaying it to get those voters' attention. You gotta not just win, but win big, and preferably against some high-profile Power conference schools.
Near Misses and Major Upsets: There were some legendary teams, like the 1977 squad that went 10-1 and the four-peat Sun Belt Championship teams of the early 2000s under Darrell Dickey (including the 2002 team that took home a bowl win!), but the rankings just never materialized. They'd sometimes pick up a stray vote here and there—a shout-out from a friendly writer—but no official spot in the coveted Top 25. Talk about a buzzkill.
Step 3: The Modern-Day Momentum – Back on the Radar
Fast forward to the modern era. The landscape of college football is constantly shifting, and the Mean Green have had a few recent moments where fans were all shouting, "This is it, we're gonna crack it!"
QuickTip: Pay attention to first and last sentences.
3.1 Chasing the Dream in the Digital Age
The late 2010s saw some genuinely dope teams. When the Mean Green upset a Power Five opponent, like they did in 2018 against Arkansas, the hype train left the station!
The AP Votes Roll In: They started accumulating enough AP Poll votes to be mentioned in the "others receiving votes" section—essentially the waiting room for the Top 25. They were right there, hovering like a hawk! But to crack the Top 25, you need to vault over about a dozen other teams who are also on the cusp. It's a tough racket, man.
3.2 The Next Big Push
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In more recent years, especially with their move to the American Athletic Conference (the "American"), the door has been nudged open just a little wider. The American has a reputation for being the best of the Group of Five leagues, and a stellar season in this conference gets more national respect. The Mean Green's 2025 team, for example, had a super solid start, showing just how close they are to making that rankings magic happen again. They’re knocking on the door, y'all!
Step 4: The Final Tally – Did They Seal the Deal?
So, to wrap up this lengthy saga of soaring Eagles and Mean Green warriors:
Official AP Poll Rankings (Since 1936): Yes, two total weeks in the 1959 season. A small number, sure, but those two weeks are a massive source of pride!
Total AP Poll Appearances (Preseason or Final): Zero. Getting ranked at the start or end of the season is the true sign of respect.
The Bottom Line: The Mean Green have had their moment in the sun, and the modern program is constantly battling for that elusive national recognition. It's a testament to the program's history that they can claim a spot in the history books, even if it was just a quick high-five with the ranking committee!
Keep grinding, Mean Green! The climb to the Top 25 is a beast, but the fans know that a little bit of that Mean Green magic is all it takes to shake up the college football world.
Tip: Jot down one takeaway from this post.
FAQ Questions and Answers
How-to: How many times has North Texas been ranked in the AP Poll?
The North Texas Mean Green has been ranked in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25 poll a total of two weeks in program history. This occurred during the 1959 season when they were briefly ranked No. 20 and No. 17.
How-to: What was the highest ranking North Texas ever achieved?
The highest ranking achieved by the North Texas football team in the AP Poll was No. 17, which they reached during the 1959 season.
Tip: Reread tricky sentences for clarity.
How-to: Did North Texas ever finish a season ranked in the AP Poll?
No, North Texas has never finished a season ranked in the AP Poll. Their two appearances were both during the middle of the 1959 season.
How-to: Who was the coach when North Texas was first ranked?
The head coach for North Texas State College (now UNT) when they were first ranked in the AP Poll in 1959 was Odus Mitchell, a legendary figure who coached the team from 1946 to 1966.
How-to: Which famous NFL player is associated with the "Mean Green" nickname?
The "Mean Green" nickname is famously associated with Hall of Fame defensive tackle "Mean" Joe Greene, who played at North Texas from 1966 to 1968 and led the ferocious defense that inspired the moniker.
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