Group of Five Power Rankings, Week 4: I-4 rivals hold position at top

On the visit to Lynchburg in Week 4, North Texas made life miserable for new FBS member Liberty. The Flames fell at home 47-7 to the Mean Green, as the visitors racked up more than 500 yards of offense en route to the blowout. Beating a 1-1 team to knock Liberty below .500 in the standings won’t tip North Texas ahead of the AAC favorites, but they do remain ahead of Cincinnati for now.

The perception of Conference USA football will likely work against North Texas relative to the American Athletic Conference or the Mountain West. But as one of just four five remaining unbeaten teams in all of the Group of Five conferences, North Texas is now the clear favorite in the C-USA race until further notice.

Against Liberty, Mason Fine had the same number of completions as Liberty quarterback Stephen Calvert. But Fine needed a dozen fewer attempts to get his 16 completions than Calvert had to put up, and he had one more touchdown and no interceptions. Where North Texas separated itself was on the ground, as the Mean Green’s Loren Easly ran for 177 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries.

Now North Texas must live up to its promise as the last unbeaten team standing in Conference USA. The Mean Green kicks things off with a showdown against last year’s C-USA West champ Louisiana Tech next week.