A 59-yard touchdown lets an offense finish its work in a hurry. Jahiem White also helped North Texas complete the slower job of closing out Florida Atlantic on Thursday: two late carries gained 4 and 2 yards and left a manageable third down. The Mean Green won 48-41 in Denton with help from both versions of their running back.
That range is the better way to judge White’s contribution than by reducing it to a rushing total. The fifth consecutive victory left the Mean Green unbeaten through four American games. The game also required more than one type of answer. White provided the instant points, the short finish and, late, the ordinary yardage that made the final third down manageable.
His 59-yard touchdown came after Kyle Koch’s 3-yard reception from Tayven Jackson had tied the score at 17-17 with 3:05 remaining in the half. Florida Atlantic then went three-and-out, and White took the next North Texas possession from the Mean Green 41-yard line all the way to the end zone. The score made it 24-17.
It was the cleanest possible form of offensive leverage: seven points without asking the offense to string together another series of conversions. Yet it was also only a lead, not a solution. Easton Messer caught a 12-yard touchdown on fourth-and-5 with 39 seconds left in the half, restoring a 24-24 tie.
Messer later added a 34-yard touchdown and finished with 16 catches for 189 yards and three scores. Caden Veltkamp threw for 452 yards and five touchdowns. White’s burst created separation on the scoreboard, but Florida Atlantic kept erasing it.
The second White touchdown illustrated a different responsibility. In the third quarter, he gained 20 yards to reach the Owls’ 1-yard line. A no-gain run came next, and White then finished with a 1-yard touchdown run.
North Texas moved ahead 41-31 after three quarters. There was no need for another long-distance flourish. The 20-yard gain had created the position; the short run completed the possession after the first attempt stopped short.
Those scores came from different places on the field and served different purposes. One changed the margin immediately. The other converted a promising possession into seven points. Treating them as interchangeable would miss why White’s night fit this particular game, in which North Texas repeatedly had to answer a prolific opposing passing attack.
Florida Atlantic made one more serious challenge after Messer’s 34-yard touchdown brought the score to 41-38 with 8:26 remaining. North Texas answered with a nine-play, 74-yard possession that consumed 4:24. Max Reese supplied catches of 14 and 33 yards on the drive, including the 33-yard completion on third-and-12 from the North Texas 37 that reached the Owls’ 30.
Koch finished the possession with a 2-yard touchdown catch at 4:02.
