1996 North Texas Mean Green football team

1996 North Texas Mean Green football
ConferenceBig West Conference
Record5–6 (3–2 Big West)
Head coach
Defensive coordinatorFred Bleil (1st season)
Home stadiumFouts Field
1996 Big West Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
Nevada +  4 1   9 3  
Utah State +  4 1   6 5  
Idaho  3 2   6 5  
North Texas  3 2   5 6  
Boise State  1 4   2 10  
New Mexico State  0 5   1 10  
  • + Conference co-champions

The 1996 North Texas Mean Green football team represented the University of North Texas in the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Mean Green played their home games at the Fouts Field in Denton, Texas, and competed in the Big West Conference. They were led by third-year head coach Matt Simon. The team finished the regular season with a 5–6 overall record with a 3–2 mark in Big West play.

The 1996 campaign marked the first time North Texas had been in a Division I-A conference since leaving the Missouri Valley Conference after the 1974 season. The Mean Green had competed as a Division I-A independent from 1975 to 1982, before dropping down to the Division I-AA Southland Conference from 1983 to 1994. North Texas spent the 1995 season as a transitional Division I-A member and competed as an independent.