It was the Drew Mestemaker show Saturday.
The redshirt freshman North Texas quarterback completed 37 of 49 passes for an American Conference and North Texas-record 608 yards in the Mean Green’s 47-20 victory against host Charlotte. Mestemaker, who easily was named the conference’s offensive player of the week, threw four touchdown passes to help North Texas move to 7-1 on the season and 3-1 in the American.
Mestemaker’s next challenge is Saturday against undefeated Navy.
Navy junior linebacker Coleman Cauley was named the conference’s defensive player of the week, helping Navy to a 42-32 victory over Florida Atlantic. Cauley, making his first career start, recorded a career-high nine tackles, intercepted a pass and forced a fumble, which he recovered. Both of Cauley’s caused turnovers were turned into Navy touchdowns.
Temple junior punter Dante Atton was the special teams’ player of the week. Atton had five punts totaling 214 yards for an average of 42.8 yards per punt as the Owls defeated Tulsa on the road, 38-37, in overtime. The junior had four punts land inside the 20, including one that forced the Golden Hurricane to take a knee to go to overtime.
Here is a look at how Army’s 2025 opponents fared last week:
Tarleton State (9-0) – Can any team beat the Texans? Not Eastern Kentucky, which lost to visiting Tarleton State, 31-7. Victor Gabalis completed 18 passes for 207 yards and a touchdown for the Texans. Tre Page III had 74 rushing yards on 13 carries and Cody Jackson caught six passes for 94 yards for Tarleton State. Up Next: At Abilene Christian.
Kansas State (4-4) – The Wildcats scored 21 first-quarter points and cruised to a 42-17 victory over arch-rival Kansas to even its record at 4-4. Avery Johnson completed 11 passes for 231 yards and two touchdowns for the Wildcars. Teammate Jayce Brown had four catches for 160 yards and a touchdown. Up Next: Texas Tech.
North Texas (7-1, 3-1 in the American) – In addition to Mestemaker’s impressive performance, Wyatt Young had nine catches for 190 yards, a 21.1 yards per catch rate for the Mean Green, which has scored at least 30 points in each of its games this season. Up Next: Navy.
East Carolina (4-3, 2-1 in the American) – The Pirates did not play last weekend. Up Next: At Temple.
UAB (3-4, 1-3 in the American) – The Dragons did not play last weekend. Up Next: At UConn.
Charlotte (1-7, 0-5 in the American) – There was some good news for Charlotte last weekend. The 49ers did manage to score 20 points against North Texas and wide receiver Javen Nicholas caught seven passes for 187 yards and had two touchdowns. Up Next: Bye.
Tulane (6-1, 3-0 in the American) – The Green Wave did not play last weekend. Up Next: At UTSA (Thursday night).
Air Force (2-5) – The Falcons did not play last weekend. Up Next: Army.
Temple (5-3, 3-1 in the American) – In the year of the quarterback in the American, no one might be as consistent as Temple’s Evan Simon. On Saturday, in a 38-37 overtime win at Tulsa, Simon threw five touchdown passes, including one in overtime, to power the Owls to victory. He completed 24 of 35 passes for 267 yards. Kajiya Hollawayne caught three touchdown passes for Temple and teammate Jay Ducker had two touchdown passes. Hunter Smith rushed for 92 yards on 10 carries, including a 72-yard dash deep into Tulsa territory in the first quarter. Up Next: East Carolina.
Tulsa (2-6, 0-5 in the American) – The Golden Hurricane played visiting Temple tough, but lost in overtime, 38-37. Tulsa quarterback Baylor Hayes threw for 296 yards on 19 completions. He had three touchdown passes. Tulsa missed a two-point conversion in overtime. Up Next: Bye.
UTSA (3-4, 1-2 in the American) – The Roadrunners did not play last weekend. Up Next: Tulane (Thursday night).
Navy (7-0, 5-0 in the American) – The Midshipmen held off visiting Florida Atlantic, 42-32, helped by senior quarterback Blake Horvath’s usual robust offensive performance. Horvath completed eight passes for 81 yards and ruan for 174 yards on 21 carries and four touchdowns for the Navy. Up Next: At North Texas.
