ADLER

Wow, only $42.99 How can they ever keep them in stock. And to think that Steve & Barry's would try to gouge you for $7.98 if you were to buy something comparable for almost any other Texas college. And people ask why North Texas students wear merchandise from other schools.

I think that there is a clear difference of perspective between the fans that have been supporting the program (through attendance and donations) for years, decades for many and those parents who've had children awarded scholarships by the current coach. I'm not saying either is right or wrong, but there is a clear dividing line on whether the language or intent was appropriate. Maybe this is what the Division From Within speech was about. Although I'm still curious as to it's intent, maybe it was a preemptive strike against the 'other side', whoever those people may be.

I had several people call me with similar comments and concerns. Like I've said, I really don't think it was intended to offend anyone, mostly because what he said was (I hope) not really what he meant to imply.

It seems a few fans have interesting perspectives on what all was said. .

Women's basketball: UNT women snubbed by WNIT 07:54 AM CST on Tuesday, March 14, 2006 Denton Record-Chronicle By Brett Vito / Staff Writer North Texas’ bubble officially burst on Monday night. The Mean Green knew heading into the weekend that they were out of the picture when it came to an NCAA Tournament bid, but held out hope that the WNIT might come calling. Those hopes ended when the WNIT selection committee released its field of 40 teams. The announcement of the WNIT bracket officially brought to an end a solid season for UNT, which won the Sun Belt Conference West Division title and finished with a 19-9 record. The Mean Green fell just two wins short of the school record for victories in a season. “I am more disappointed than I thought I would be,” UNT coach Tina Slinker said. “We had a good year and were probably one win away from getting in. It helped that we beat Middle Tennessee, Stephen F. Austin and SMU. That put us close to getting in.” UNT’s division title and its overall record were its two greatest assets heading into the selection process. What ended up hurting the Mean Green was an early exit from the Sun Belt tournament, a low RPI rating and a soft schedule. UNT came into the Sun Belt tournament as the top seed from the West Division, but ended up falling to Arkansas State in the quarterfinals. The Mean Green also finished 102 in the NCAA’s RPI ratings and played a schedule ranked No. 181 by CollegeRPI.com. Those flaws dropped the Mean Green down in the pecking order for WNIT bids. What hurt UNT even more was the Sun Belt sending just one team to the NCAA Tournament. MTSU received the league’s only NCAA bid after beating Western Kentucky in the conference tournament finals. The Lady Toppers ended up in the WNIT despite finishing with a 24-6 record and an RPI of 15. BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com DENTON RECORD-CHRONICLE

In the last 5 years we have seen more new facilities added than in the preceding 50 combined. Basketball is mildly respectable, nothing to brag about, but far better than it was throughout the Trilli period. Football, though certainly not outstanding in all aspects, has given us an unprecedented 4 straight bowl games during those years. Tailgating is also a lot more fun than in earlier seasons, and I feel that many fans are drawn to the games primarily because of the party atmosphere. Not everything is well with Mean Green athletics, and much is just uncertain, but I also don't see the need for the gloom that has permeated the program throughout the '05-'06 year. We really just need some good news.

My point was that none of that commitment that we have seen from last August has necessarily changed. We have seen many new facilities opened within the last year (Athletics Center, Tennis Center, Soccer Facility, multiple women's training facilities), and the new Softball Complex is also nearing completion. There has also been no notification of intentions to cancel plans to build new baseball and football stadiums. I guess the uncertainty surrounding Dr. Pohl's replacement combined with the questions concerning Chancellor Jackson's resolve to get these projects completed has left quite a few fans dismayed and feeling alienated. I think we need some communication in the worst way, and hopefully it's all good news, or at least good enough to alleviate the malaise. That next quarterly meeting can't come soon enough.

It wasn't always bad. There recently was reason to believe. Flash back 8 months. ******************************************************************** UNT athletics finding room to grow Lofty goal? New stadium not a long shot anymore 04:49 PM CDT on Sunday, August 28, 2005 By BRETT VITO / Denton Record-Chronicle DENTON – A few years ago, Eagle Point was a place where a quiet round of golf represented just about the only athletic activity on a patch of land bordering the University of North Texas campus. That tranquility has been lost in a rumble of bulldozers that clear the way for the largest round of athletic expansion in UNT history. The course of action is one that UNT officials plan on continuing with the construction of a football stadium within the next five years, a goal they believe is attainable. UNT is building soccer and softball fields and recently presented a facility plan to its Board of Regents that includes a 32,000-seat football stadium that would cost $40 million to $45 million. "The basis for our plan shows we are committed to athletics," UNT president Norval Pohl said. The presentation comes at the end of a whirlwind four years for UNT's sports program under athletic director Rick Villarreal. UNT arranged to build several facilities in that time and also had an extended courtship with Conference USA, which eventually left the school out of its expansion plans. The experiences helped shape the new goals of the athletic department, which feels secure in its ability to find financing for a stadium because of what it's accomplished since Villarreal's arrival. UNT opened its $7.4 million athletic center this year and purchased Denton Liberty Christian School's campus, where new soccer and softball fields are being built. Construction has also begun on the Ronald C. Waranch Tennis Pavilion, the new home for the UNT tennis program, and a new artificial surface at Fouts Field, which will be ready for this season. UNT had only three on-campus athletic facilities when Villarreal was hired in 2001. Fouts Field was built in 1952, and the North Texas Coliseum, also known as the Super Pit, was built in 1973. The school's old office complex, which housed administration officials and football coaches, was built in 1976. Villarreal has no plans of slowing down, despite the fact UNT has quickly exceeded what was accomplished in the last 30 years. "We have to start all over again," he said. "We had a five-year plan, a 10-year plan and a vision when I came to UNT. That is all gone now. We have to step it up because we accomplished a lot in four years and people are going to expect the same rate of progress." Working out plans UNT officials see a football stadium as the next logical step in the expansion of the athletic department, which added softball two years ago and is planning to revive its baseball program by 2007. "We definitely have a benchmark of success now that we didn't have as many as five years ago," said senior associate athletic director Hank Dickenson, entering his 11th year at UNT. "There are things there people can come and see that show we are able to raise money, whereas before we could only sell dreams. ... The plans for a stadium are tangible now." The achievements have helped Villarreal gain the support of UNT Board of Regents members C. Dan Smith and Charles Beatty. "I feel comfortable about the direction we are going," said Smith, who expressed confidence that UNT would build a stadium in the next few years. "All in all, I am very excited about where we are compared to where we were." UNT officials believe building facilities now will ensure several teams will continue to build on their success in recent years. The football team has won the Sun Belt Conference title and played in the New Orleans Bowl in each of the last four years, and the soccer team advanced to the NCAA women's tournament for the first time in the program's history last year. "We are trying to make up for 25-35 years of not only no growth in the athletic program, but no improvements to speak of," Villarreal said. "We could do it year-by-year by building one facility at a time, but you would have to wonder what would happen in that span while we are trying to catch up." Members of the faculty said they are cautiously supportive of the school's athletic expansion, as long as it is kept in perspective. "There is some concern about the emphasis in a time of decreasing funding," said Frances van Tassell, chairwoman of the faculty senate. "We need to be careful how we spend our resources." The athletic department recently borrowed $2.57 million for the final payment on the Liberty Christian property, to convert its facilities and the turf at Fouts Field. Van Tassell said borrowing money for athletic facilities was a divisive issue among professors. Grant Miles, a professor in the department of management who frequently attends games, has no problem with athletic department expansion, as long as it does not come at the cost of academics. "If the athletic department can build a stadium with outside funding, that is OK," he said. "It seems projects like that are not always done with outside money, though." Finding outside help Villarreal is counting on efforts to cultivate donors to jump-start a fund-raising campaign for a football stadium. Those efforts and the success of some of UNT's teams helped the school gain a $1 million donation from former Mean Green linebacker Jim McIngvale for its athletic center and another $1 million from alumnus Ronald Waranch for the tennis center. McIngvale cited the success of the football program under coach Darrell Dickey as one of the reasons he supports the athletic program. "I absolutely think it is possible for North Texas to build a football stadium," he said. "I am 100 percent behind it as long as Darrell Dickey is there. There is no reason North Texas can't get it done." Villarreal and Pohl point to McIngvale's enthusiasm as a sign UNT is cultivating relationships that will result in the donations necessary to build a stadium. "The financial backing is out there for a stadium," Pohl said. "Our goal is to get it done in five years. That's a realistic timeframe." ******************************************************************** What has caused the change from that unbridled enthusiasm to the current malaise. Is everything really so bleak that longtime supporters should be distancing themselves from the program? Will financial ties to athletics be severed as emotional involvement decreases? Who is in position to improve the situation? What should be done?

"Yeah!, Yeah!, Customers suck!"

This Rick Yeatts photo from College Gridirons can be purchased at Rick Yeatts Photography.

eBay - NORTH TEXAS MEAN GREEN EAGLES FOUTS FIELD POSTER Is that what you were looking for?

So Roger Clemens was able to get his family moved "Across The Tracks"?

game films These are some old game films of North Texas playing against West Texas State from the early 1970s.

Houston Chronicle Article on the Stratford, Bball Team Led By UNT FB Signee Craig actually plays for Stafford which is a 3A school. Stratford is a 5A school.

Things do look kinda slow on the Bourbocam compared to usual. Bourbocam Link

I think Mardi Gras is just going to be smaller this year, and it may never be the same again. I'll get to see fist-hand since I'm heading down to New Orleans with the family on Thursday to stay through Mardi Gras. One of the main influences on Mardi Gras is the amount of local people that don't have the expendable income that they've had in the past. It's incredibly expensive to ride in the parades and finances are very tight right now for a lot of people. The riding krewes of each of the parades pay from their own pockets for all the beads that they throw. I've paid between $2500 and $3000 on 'throws' when I rode in Bacchus, and I didn't even buy a whole lot of the expensive extras (blinky beads, footballs, specialty beads). That's a lot of money to literally throw away during a three hour ride on a trailer, and I fear that fewer people will be in the position to make that kind of commitment this year. The "Super Krewes", Endymion, Bacchus and Orpheus will survive as well as Mardi Gras Day stalwarts Rex and Zulu, but many of the other smaller krewes will probably cease to exist because of the enormous costs involved (police for the parade route, insurance, and the costs associated with riding).

That's so sad. At North Texas, the main barometer for measuring athletic success is by comparisons against our own past futility. It seems everybody avoids comparisons to actual competition.

After releasing Helwig, Dr Pohl brought Gene Stallings in as an advisor. Coach Stallings reported " I'm sat watching a Division 1 team with 14 scholarships trail an NAIA team with 0 scholarships for almost the entire game. North Texas basketball has serious problems". Trilli's fate was sealed. Dr Pohl needed the new Athletic Director to be able to concentrate on hiring a new basketball coach and not have to deal with firing Trilli so he pulled the trigger himself. There has been improvement during the Jones years. North Texas went from winning 4 or 5 games a year to winning 13 or 14. Respectable at least, but not good. Is average good enough? Is there reason to believe that the winning percentage will improve? Is 5 seasons long enough to rebuild a program that was destroyed during the Trilli years? Although he didn't predict records, how is Coach Jones performing to the other goals he set when he first arrived? Interview With Coach Johnny Jones

He's a smaller back with an injury history that doesn't have blazing speed. He probably will not be drafted, but he will certainly be given a chance as a free agent. Patrick was an Academic All-American and already has earned two degrees. I think he will do just fine whether NFL football works out or not.

Ya know, Seven would make a great name for a son.

I thought the same thing about the multi-color logo. On another subject, they should have seized the opportunity and dumped the Mavericks moniker during the change. It's an abstract mascot without any identity, and there is no possible way that UT-Arlington can compete with the local NBA team for the name recognition. (And yes, I know that UTA had the name first, but that just doesn't matter. The Dallas Mavericks will always be thought of as "the Mavericks" in the Dallas/Fort Worth region.) And for the record, MOOVIN' MAVS was plain horrible.

Wow, that's the same UT-Pan Am that we were beating 76-24 at one point tonight.

North Texas is a local college and the the largest in their market. Either the infromation is not getting communicated properly, or they are refusing to report it. If it's the first option, what corrective action needs to be taken? If it's the second, which stations, and what is their reasoning? Either way, there has been failure in getting the scores broadcast, and it needs to get fixed if possible. on a side note - I can't believe I'm sending a response to something named Quinn+Boner

Before we go condemning the D/FW news stations, do we know for sure that our Sports Information Director contacted each and provided the scores? You know that it's kind kind of hard for them to report scores that they're not informed about. Now, if the Athletic Department comes out and says that they have forwarded the information to each station, but certain ones REFUSE to give North Texas scores, then we may have a reason to bitch. I don't know, which do you guys think is the case.