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FACTS & STATS: Site: Veterans Memorial Stadium (30,000) -- Troy, Alabama. Television: CSS. Home Record: NT 3-1, Troy 2-1. Away Record: NT 0-5, Troy 0-5. Neutral Record: NT 0-0, Troy 0-0. Conference Record: NT 2-3, Troy 1-3. Series Record: Troy leads 7-1.

GAME NOTES: North Texas will travel to Troy this week for a Sun Belt Conference clash with the Trojans at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

The Mean Green are still winless on the road as they are coming off their fifth straight road loss of the season after falling 37-14 against Arkansas State last week. This will be North Texas's last chance for a road victory as its final two games are at home in Denton. A win against Troy would give the Mean Green a .500 record in-conference and keep them in the middle of the pack in the Sun Belt.

Troy is hoping to snap its four-game losing skid this week after being dismantled by Navy 42-14 in non-conference action last week. The Trojans' wins have both come at home this year with victories over Middle Tennessee and UAB. Troy finds itself in unfamiliar territory in the bottom of the conference after tying for the best record in the league in 2010.

Troy has dominated the head to head series with North Texas by winning seven of the eight matchups between the programs. In 2010, Troy beat North Texas 41-35 as the teams combined for 975 yards of total offense in the high-scoring affair. The Trojans were led by Corey Robinson in the contest as he threw for 347 yards and three touchdowns on the way to victory.

North Texas's offense has struggled this year as the attack is ranked 110th in the nation with an average of just 309.9 yards of total offense per game. The Mean Green were held to 283 yards of total offense and 14 points in last week's loss to Arkansas State.

Quarterback Derek Thompson was injured on the second play of the game versus Arkansas State and did not return. In his absence, true freshman Andrew McNulty completed 14-of-26 passes for 136 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Thompson's injury came after the best performance of his career as the sophomore threw for 332 yards and three touchdowns in North Texas's 38-21 win over ULM. Before the win over the Warhawks, Thompson struggled all season as he threw for over 200 yards just once.

The Mean Green have relied on their star running back Lance Dunbar to pace the offense this season. Dunbar is 180 yards away from becoming the school's all- time leading rusher. The senior running back has compiled 1,104 total yards and eight total touchdowns thus far.

North Texas has one of the most porous defenses in college football as it ranks 104th in the nation. The pass defense is ranked 115th in the nation, with teams averaging 289 yards per game through the air. Zachary Orr leads the defense with 74 tackles. Brandon Akpunku has also been a bright spot for the defense as the senior linebacker leads the Sun Belt in sacks with seven.

The air it out gameplan of head coach Larry Blakeney has given Troy the 24th best ranked passing game in the nation. Corey Robinson leads the conference with an average of 266.8 passing yards per game and will certainly test the suspect coverage in this week's match up. Robinson has struggled passing in his last three games with an average of 161.3 yards per game with throwing four interceptions and just one touchdown.

Shawn Southward is the main option at running back for the Trojans, as the junior running back has 79 carries for 359 yards this season. His 13 carries against Navy tied his career high.

Eric Thomas has been the biggest weapon for Robinson so far this season. Thomas has caught 42 passes, for 511 yards and five touchdowns. He has shown the ability to take over games as he caught 10 passes against Louisiana for 96 yards. Thomas should benefit from the matchup against North Texas.

Troy's defense is ranked 114th in the nation as it is allowing 475.4 yards of total offense per contest. The Trojans have allowed their opponents to score thirty or more points in six of eight games this season. Navy punished the Troy rush defense by racking up 390 yards on the ground, an encouraging statistic for NT's Lance Dunbar. Brynden Trawick leads the defensive unit with 62 total tackles this season.

Both these programs have had disappointing seasons, especially Troy. The Trojans are usually contenders to win the conference and will now have to win out to finish at the .500 mark. Corey Robinson will need to get back on track if he wants his team to finish strong, but Dunbar is not going to make it easy. Derek Thompson's return will make a huge difference if he is the same player he was against ULM. This one should be a high-scoring bout just as it was last year.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: North Texas 34, Troy 30