NEW ORLEANS - Jake Retzlaff had two short touchdown runs, Jamauri McClure rushed for 121 yards and a score and Tulane beat North Texas 34-21 in the American Conference Championship presented by LLH Healthcare on Friday night — a victory that likely secured a College Football Playoff bid.
Chris Rogers returned an interception 35-yards for a touchdown for Tulane (11-2), which intercepted three passes and recovered two fumbles.
Tulane safety Jack Tchienchou intercepted a tipped pass in the end zone when North Texas (11-2) had first and goal on the 2 in the third quarter — one of several highlights that included his forced fumble that Tulane recovered and his own recovery of the muffed punt. Tchienchou was named the Mike Aresco Most Outstanding Player.
North Texas trailed 31-7 after Rogers' interception return — which was very close to being ruled a touchback because he lost the ball right as he crossed the goal line. The call on the field of a touchdown was upheld, but North Texas didn't fold, initiating a comeback bid with consecutive touchdown drives that took just 3:57 off the clock combined.
Drew Mestemaker capped the first with his 59-yard touchdown pass to Miles Coleman. Ashton Gray's 9-yard touchdown run, followed by a 2-point conversion, pulled North Texas to 31-21 with 9:26 still to play.
But Tulane helped secured the victory with a 13-play drive that burned 6:29 and ended with Patrick Durkin's 30-yard field goal.
North Texas, one of the nation's most prolific offensive teams, led 7-0 after a 15-play opening drive capped by Mestemaker's 10-yard scoring pass to tight end Tre Williams.
Tulane responded with a 16-play drive that included two fourth-down conversions, the second of them coming when Retzlaff ran for a 2-yard TD around the right end.
On North Texas' next drive, top Mean Green running back Caleb Hawkins fumbled and appeared to injure his right shoulder on a big hit by Tchienchou after a short reception. Tulane's LJ Green scooped the ball at the Tulane 29 and returned it to the North Texas 37.
McClure ran 30 yards on the next play, moving the pile for the last 10 before finally going down. He scored one play later.
Tchienchou recovered his muffed punt late in the the second quater when the ball glanced off of North Texas' Baron Tipton at the North Texas 11.
That led to Retzlaff's second fourth-down scoring run — this one a 1-yard sneak with a help from tight end Justyn Reid shoving him forward through the pile — to make it 24-7 at halftime.