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Derek Thompson seemed like he couldn’t miss a week ago during North Texas’ loss to Kansas State. On Saturday, Thompson and the Mean Green moved the ball during their Sun Belt Conference opener against Troy at Apogee Stadium. UNT just couldn’t cash in when it mattered during a 14-7 loss. The Mean Green pushed the ball inside Troy’s 30-yard line six times but only cashed in once. UNT’s kicking game was the major problem. Zach Olen missed a pair of field goals and backup Zach Paul missed another. UNT’s offense didn’t help much either. “We moved the ball all over the place,” Thompson said. “Third down just killed us. Going 2-of-14 is unacceptable. We know that when we get into the red zone we need to score, and we just didn’t do it.” UNT went for it twice on fourth down deep in Troy territory in the fourth quarter and failed to convert both times. Thompson said he felt like he could have fit the ball in to wide receiver Ivan Delgado on fourth-and-11 from the Troy 17-yard line on the first of those opportunities. Thompson also couldn’t connect with Brelan Chancellor on fourth-and-16 from the Troy 30 on what turned out to be UNT’s final chance of the night. He missed Drew Miller in the end zone in the second quarter. “It was a TD,” Thompson said of the play when Miller broke free. “I just missed it. It won’t happen again, I guarantee it.” Read more: http://www.dentonrc.com/sports/colleges/north-texas-headlines/20120923-notebook-mean-green-fails-to-cash-in.ece

DENTON -- North Texas football players left Apogee Stadium on Saturday night kicking themselves about the Sun Belt Conference opener that got away. In a game in which big plays on the offensive side were few, Troy had the biggest and most timely. Chip Reeves' 76-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Corey Robinson early in the third quarter was the difference in Troy's 14-7 victory over the Mean Green. But there's much, much more below the surface to explain why the Mean Green fell to 1-3 overall. North Texas missed field goals of 47, 40 and 27 yards, converted only 2 of 14 third downs and failed to score on six possessions inside Troy's 30-yard line. "That's a frustrating loss," North Texas coach Dan McCarney said. "We have to execute better. How we handle a setback like this and the adversity will be a real measure of where we go." North Texas goes on the road against Florida Atlantic and a nonconference match with Houston on Oct. 6 before returning home against Louisiana-Lafayette on Oct. 16. Whether the Mean Green returns home with more wins than losses will likely be determined on improvement in special teams and execution in the red zone. Zach Olen missed wide left on field-goal attempts of 47 and 40 yards in the first half. Freshman Zach Paul missed wide right from 27 yards in the third quarter. McCarney, who said Olen kicked a 57-yarder in practice last week, twice opted to go for it on fourth down in field-goal range after the third miss. Olen is 2 for 5 with one attempt blocked this season. "Those things are deflating," McCarney said. "We had some real good drives to get in those positions, and then when you come out empty-handed, those things are tough. We've got to get it fixed." Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/09/22/4281125/north-texas-lets-sun-belt-opener.html#storylink=cpy