DENTON -- There are 128 schools in college football's FBS bracket.
North Texas ranked 117th among them in offense last season and 89th in defense. The Mean Green ranked 99th in scoring and 96th in scoring defense. They ranked 82nd in turnovers, 104th in time of possession and 121st in sacks allowed.
Yet, in his first season as head coach, Seth Littrell took that North Texas team to a bowl game.
With 15 starters returning, including a quarterback who took serious lumps as a true freshman last season, an offensive line that has been fortified by some big bodies from the 2017 recruiting class, and a defense led by a safety who looms as an NFL draft prospect, Littrell has reason to be optimistic this fall.