The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Preparing To Face Greedy Mean Green Defense On Saturday
10/7/2014 12:00:00 AM | Football
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- UAB's football team returns home to play at Legion field for the second time in three weeks this Saturday against North Texas, and for the second-straight home contest the Blazers will play one of the top defenses in Conference USA.
During this week's Homecoming game, UAB's offense will go against a North Texas defense that ranks No. 4 overall in C-USA in total defense (364.8 yards per game), second in rushing defense (142.4 yards per game), first in overall sacks (19) and second in turnover margin (+3). In fact, the Mean Green has scored 62 points off opponent turnovers, which is the fifth-best total in the nation.
"It's a 4-3 type base," UAB head coach Bill Clark said. "They are pretty consistent in their coverage and they do a lot of line stunts. It is a very well-coached group and a very sound group that knows what they are doing defensively."
The North Texas defense will have to contend with UAB's strong offensive attack. The Blazers, who rank No. 3 in C-USA in total offense (498.4 yards per game), have scored over 40 points in all three of their wins this season and are led by junior quarterback Cody Clements, who is eighth in the nation in completion percentage with a 69.3 percent completion rate.
Clements and the UAB offense will have the home crowd behind them for the fourth time in six games on Saturday. According to Clark, the Blazers know the importance of playing well in front of the Legion Field crowd.
"You want to look good at home," Clark said. "You want to play well in front of the home crowd and you should have an advantage. It is still the same field and everything like that, so you have to come out and play just as hard and just as well as you do on the road. I want people to see us and to see who we are as a football team."
UAB and North Texas kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT in a game that will be televised by the American Sports Network (ASN). For ticket information, contact the UAB Athletics Ticket Office at 205-975-8221.
For more on the UAB football team, follow the Blazers on Twitter @UAB_Football. For more information on all Blazer sports teams, follow @UABAthletics.
