eulesseagle

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2212233,00.html It would be worth the price of admission to see "Chess Nerds" fight over this woman.

Middlebury College (Vermont): Entry Level Assistant Football Coach position. The position is six months (mid-August through mid-February) and the salary is $6,000 with some meals provided. Responsibilities: assist the head coach in all phases of the football program including coaching your own position, scouting, recruiting, and other duties as assigned. Application: send letter of interest, resume, and references to: Bob Ritter, Head Football Coach, Middlebury College, Memorial Field House, Middlebury, VT 05753 or email: ritter@middlebury.edu. Search will be held open until the position is filled. Review of applications will begin immediately. Middlebury College is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. Hargrave Military Academy Post Graduate Football has an opening for a defensive assistant with defensive line or linebacker experience as a player or coach, defensive back experience will also be considered. This position is for a GA/Intern type coach and the position pays $10,000 plus room and board for a 10-month contract. Hargrave is a one-year prep program that has produced over 125 NCAA division I football players in the past four years alone. If interested, please email a cover letter, resume and a three references to Ryan Sulkowski at sulkowskir@hargrave.edu or fax to 434-432-2697. Address all cover letters to Robert Prunty-Head Football Coach. No phone calls please. Applicants must be able to attend an on-campus interview at their own expense, so coaches in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland, Washington DC, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania are encouraged to apply. In addition to other surrounding states within driving distance (Alabama, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, etc....) Position begins August 1st, but housing could be available in July for applicants. Interviews will begin in June and continue until the position is filled. For further information on our program, please visit our website at www.hargrave.edu , click on the athletics link, then click on PG FOOTBALL. The salary is stated above and will not change, so only serious applicants should apply. Wingate University , NCAA D2 and a member of the South Atlantic Conference, has an opening for a part time Running Back Coach. Responsibilities include coaching RB’s, recruiting and any other administrational duties as assigned by the head coach. The position will pay $2,500 to $3,500 for the fall only. If interested e-mail a resume and list of 5 references to reich@wingate.edu. Update your resumes.................

I think everyone knows everyone's opinions on the coaching staff, stadium, fan support, WWI....who is a conservative and who votes democratic.....etc...... I am just getting worn out reading the same posts that I have read since the end of last season. DD's record is 39-55 at UNT DD's record as an OC at UTEP and SMU was 13-31-1 DD's record last year was 2-9 1913 to the end of Coach Fry: winning percentage 58%. After Coach Fry: 42% winning percentage and only 10 winning seasons in almost 30 years. There is nothing we can do to change the past. WHY DONT WE ALL JUST AGREE TO QUIT THE BASHING OF THE COACHING STAFF UNTIL FOOTBALL SEASON STARTS IN SEPTEMBER. HECK, BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER, WHEN WE HAVE JUST ABOUT COMPLETED OUR OOC TEAM PLAY, WE SHOULD KNOW WHERE THIS WHOLE SITUATION STANDS WITH THE COACHING STAFF AND THE TEAM. Quit the bashing now!!!

GangGreen-- It is evident you missed my point and the chronological sequence of events. The Germans hated communism. They fought them in the 20's, 30's and 40s. Left alone they could have defeated the commies and we would not have had all of the plethora of deaths by those I mentioned...save for the group that Hitler killed and Stalin during WWII. As far as Jonestown.....this happened under the watch of President Carter....a democrat....just like screemingeagle66.

Screamingeagle66-- The Republican Party of Lincoln and Reconstruction is now the Democratic Party. Concerning Iraq.....I believe the world is better off without Saddam no matter what the true reason was for going over there again.

UNTGirl---- Aww come on....you cant be serious about T.R. being an internationalist!! 1. T.R. created jobs in Central America with the canal. 2. T.R. created democracy in Cuba from those rascal Spaniard oppressors that Germany had to deal with in the 30's because they were about as wishy washy as the Italians on their politics. I guess he was a Pre-Reaganite. 3. John Stienbeck was, as you know, a Communist sympathizer during the Spanish Civil War in the 30's.

The correct answer is this: The waring Europeans had virtually fought themselves to a standstill through attrition by 1917. The Russians had their Revolution because of the war, the French were on the verge of another mass desertion by their Army, England had no more men to spare and the German people were on the verge of starvation. A truce would have been signed with nothing gained by 4 years of attrition on both sides. The Germans would have been free to go after the Bolsovics and pound those bast@@@'s in the ground thus eliminating communism. With communism gone there would have been no Korean War, Vietnam....ie Cold War.....we could have all lived in peace.....until the Germans decided to kick the crap out of the Taliban. What happened was that Wilson stuck his nose into something that Washington warned against, foriegn entanglements. Well, we disruped the balance of power in Europe. Germany paid dearly in reparations, fought off a minor communist takeover in Germany in the mid 1920's, distrusted the Bolsovics after that where they fought the commies again in Spain in the 30's then the Ruskies in the 40's. Because of Wilson: 1. Hitler kills apx. 15 million or so Jews, Christians, Gypsies etc 2. Stalin Kills apx. 30 million of his own people through starvation. 3. Mao Tse-Tung kills apx. 100 million of his own people through starvation and war. 4. Pol Pot (Cambodian dictator in the 70's) kills millions of his own people. That is why I dont vote Democratic

If Pres. Wilson did not commit our troops in WWI would there been WWII? I say no. this is to get us off the stadium issue, recruiting issue, attendance issue and ragging each other about moot topics until Sept.

1855 & FFR- Do you think the main difference is that the coaching staffs/institutional fathers at those institutions know how to: 1. $ell the program? 2. Have above average P.R. $kills? 3. Know how to recruit? I have never seen any of the aforementioned school's athletic facilities ..... but ..... 1. Can they equal ours? 2. Was their playing field as good or better than Fouts Field?? 3. Was their student support as good as ours?? Some of us who post on this board who are opposed to our current, and ongoing dilema in FB, still go to the games and support the team. Yea, DD & staff may have won 4 SBC championships but his record still speaks for itself: 1. 3 winning seasons in 8 years.......39-55 2. As an OC at UTEP & SMU............13-31-1 (before being hired at UNT) 3. An abysmal record in OOC games. 4. Has taken UNT down to #161 (if you believe in the Saragin Poll....or as one poster said we should be ranked as high as 103 in D-1A). Anyway you cut the cheese, with Saragin, 42 D-1AA teams are ranked above UNT.

Dude Quoner- The military academies have height and weight requirements now.... You may say look at the "Admiral" who played for the San Antonio Spurs!! He grew about 8-10 inches after his appointment to the Naval Academy. Back in the day, what you were refering to, just about everyone was about the same size and no height / weight requirements. Dude Quoner, meaning no disrespect, but pro players do not have any respectable longivity in the NFL (ect.)....so....if I had a choice of going to a school like Army, Navy, Air Force, Rice, Vandy, SMU ( ) and get a "quality education" so I could make some serious bucks with well connected alum then ..... well I guess I would. I have had the privilege to have met several ex-pro athletes who have spent all their money and are just living day to day. I don't know if I would go around lambasting the service academies or schools like Rice or SMU if a student athelete chooses a quality education 1st over a "possible" shot at the NFL.

1913 to 1978 North Texas had a 56% winning ratio. 1979 to present we have a 42% winning ratio. Since 1979 North Texas has had 10 winning seasons. Coach Nelson had 5 winning seasons in 9 years and DD has 3 winning seasons in 8 years.

Who cares when who declared war on who or whom. The question is, "Is the world a better place without Hitler, Stalin or Saddam?" I say HEL@ yes!!

Ok, I stand corrected..... 1. There are 119 D-1A schools instead of 117. 2. UNT, in Saragin, is ranked #161. That puts UNT below 42 D-1AA schools.

GEO-- Excellent point about all conferences expanding to a 12 team format, eventually. My point is that additional D-1AA teams "may" dilute the already diluted SBC. Granted Appalachian St (2005 D-1AA National Champs), Georgia Southern and Western Kentucky would be a compilement to any D-1A Mid Major program in the country. I also agree that UNT must do the best we can with what we have until something better comes along.... It seems to me that the only conferences that may expand are: WAC (travel costs are big but wouldn't it be nice to be in a better conf.?Multiple NCAA Bids) CUSA(Would be nice to play SMU every year--nice rivalry: Multiple NCAA Bids) SBC (enough said IMHO, Coach Slinker is turning the program around. IMHO, Coach Jones has a nucleus for a dynamic BB program. IMHO, Women's Soccer is going great. IMHO, we play the National Champs and three other conference champs in FB. Until something better comes along ......

IMHO, I would not admit any D-1AA teams into the SBC until UNT gets into another "legitimate" conference. If other D-1AA teams want to step up to D-1A then let them start their own D-1A conference instead of diluting the SBC. The SBC is nothing more than the old glorified SLC during the Coach Nelson era. All of the SBC is currently ranked below 100 in various polls and is considered the "ugly sister" of all D-1A football playing schools. There are D-1AA conferences that are ranked above the SBC, in any given year, and if you believe in the Saragin Ratings then UNT is ranked in the 160's of all D-1A and D-1AA schools......remember there are only 117 D-1A schools.....and this after 9 years of the current administration. I certainly wish ODU the best of luck in their quest to return to FB in the Colonial.

You have the Barry Switzers of the world and you have the Tom Landrys of the world.... Both different philosophies for winning. One was a philandering fool who did not mind furthering his assistant's longevity through the unadulterated sexual promiscuity of their wives. One who taught the ORDER of life: God, Family & Football. If a coach or student athelete can not take the occasional "beating" then life's lessons are going to be tough......If a coach can not teach those principles to his kids then, we as a society, have failed.

http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/su...ing_records.php

Take a look at Mumme's Bio from the NMSU board..... and compare it to DD....who is 13-31-1 as an OC at UTEP and SMU and 39-55 as a HC. I think you will see that Mumme made programs successful Courtesy: New Mexico State University Hal Mumme Football Head Coach (505) 646-2521 eMail Coach Mumme -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Courtesy: New Mexico State University Release: 12/30/2004 Hal Mumme was hired as head coach at New Mexico State December 30, 2004. Mumme has most recently served as the head coach at NCAA Division I-AA football school Southeastern Louisiana (2002-04). He helped revive the football program after an 18-year absence, leading the Lions to a 12-11 record in two seasons. The 52-year-old native of San Antonio, Texas, has also served as head coach at Kentucky (1997-2000), Valdosta State (1992-96) and Iowa Wesleyan (1989-91). He worked as the offensive coordinator at UTEP (1982-85), the quarterbacks and wide receivers coach at West Texas State (1980-81) and was the head coach at Aransas Pass High School (1979) and Copperas Cove High School (1986-88) in Texas. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Moody High School (1976-78) in Corpus Christi, Texas. In 14 seasons as a head coach, Mumme has a record of 97-64-1 and has taken teams to the postseason seven times. Mumme also announced the hiring of the majority of his staff, including former NFL assistant and Missouri and Vanderbilt head coach Woody Widenhofer. "I’m really excited about the people that I’ll be working with at New Mexico State," says Mumme. "It’s kind of a new ballgame with myself, Dr. Martin (NMSU President Michael Martin) and McKinley, plus we’re going into the WAC. That’s really exciting.” Mumme’s goals for the Aggie program are clearly defined. "Coaching is teaching and the number one reason a student-athlete comes to New Mexico State is to get a degree. You have to motivate your students to use the tools provided by the university. When I talk to a mom or dad about coming to New Mexico State, we want them to know that the most important thing is to graduate and become a productive member of society.” “On the field our number one goal is to win the WAC. You play in a conference to win it. The second goal is to get to a bowl game. When you play in a great league like the WAC, that’s the benchmark." In his first year at Southeastern the Lions posted a 5-7 record, the fourth best mark for a Division I-A or I-AA startup program since 1980. This season the Lions went 7-4, including a 51-17 win over #6 McNeese State. That win propelled the second-year program into the top 25 in the national I-AA rankings the next week. Southeastern ranked first among NCAA Division I-AA teams in total offense per game (537.1 yards) and passing offense per game (408 yards). "One of the reasons I took on the job at Southeastern Louisiana is that I had a reputation as a good offensive coordinator, but not a good manager. How better to prove yourself than start a program? We had one ball, one helmet, one phone and one desk when I got here. In less than three years we’ve built it into a winning program. I think it happened because I got more involved in managing the program." During his two seasons at Southeastern, the Lions were 10-3 at home and in 2003, led all NCAA Division I-AA schools in attendance per capacity at 126.55 percent. Strawberry Stadium seats 7,408 but expecting great fan support, portable-seating was brought in to accommodate the surge in attendance. SLU sold out four of the six home games and averaged 9,396 per game. Following the initial season, the university conducted an economic impact study and found that college football at Southeastern had an $8.3 million impact on Hammond and the surrounding region. "When we hired Hal, he brought three things we were looking for," says Southeastern Louisiana athletics director Frank Pergolizzi. "He had a proven record of success, a proven record of putting a product on the field that was fun to watch, and a proven history of increasing attendance and fan interest.” “It was a gargantuan task. It involved recruiting players, the mechanics of starting a program, facility renovations, and recruiting a staff. It wouldn’t do a lot of good to create a lot of excitement and go 0-10. It has been terrific and we are very pleased with the progress. We are grateful to Hal for what he has done for us." While at Kentucky, Mumme put Wildcat football back on the map. In his first season as head coach, the Wildcats improved from 109th in the nation in total offense to sixth and beat Alabama for the first time in 75 years. For his efforts he was named the American Football Coaches Association Region 2 Coach of the Year. UK’s five wins were the most for the school since 1993 and the Wildcats swept their non-conference opponents for the first time since 1989. The next year he took UK to new heights. Mumme led the Wildcats to a victory over #21 LSU, the Wildcat’s first road victory over a ranked team in 21 years. UK finished 7-5 with the season culminating with a trip to the Outback Bowl as Mumme became the first Wildcat coach to take the team to a New Year’s Day bowl game since Bear Bryant in 1951. In 1999 the Wildcats went 6-6 and played in the Music City Bowl. He was named the South/Southwest Coach of the Year by Football News. College Football Hall of Fame coaches Jerry Claiborne and Bryant are the only other coaches to have taken the Wildcats to consecutive bowl games. During Mumme’s tenure at Kentucky, Wildcat football players earned academic all-SEC honors 68 times with Jeff Zurcher earning Academic All-America honors. In 1999, both ends of Commonwealth Stadium were enclosed, along with the construction of 40 suites, 10 in each corner of the stadium. The total number of seats was increased from 57,800 to 67,606. The year before Mumme arrived in Lexington, the Wildcats averaged 40,647 fans per game. The following year the team averaged 59,110. In 1999, the Wildcats averaged 67,756, still a school record. "I think Hal Mumme is an excellent football coach," says former University of Kentucky President and member of the NCAA Board of Directors and NCAA Executive Committee Charles Wetherington. "I believe NMSU has made a good choice. He has a great offensive mind. The fans will love his style of football and that’s very important. He has those kinds of leadership qualities that prove to be successful in any endeavor. If I had the opportunity, I would certainly hire him again." Mumme’s offensive style is patterned after the successful system used by BYU. Mumme studied that style while an assistant at UTEP (1982-85) and implemented his system for the first time as head coach at Copperas Cove High School. He has used that system ever since and set record setting numbers wherever he’s been. "We’ve always wanted to be able to do one thing really well," says Mumme. "If I was going to run the ball, I’d be a wishbone guy. It becomes a ball control offense, which is important. It’s more like basketball than a rugby scrum. Fans can see the ball and people tend to get excited." "I was looking for someone who played differently than the norm," says former Kentucky athletics director C.M. Newton. "We had a tradition of having some very good football coaches, but not being able to win with the traditional approach. I was looking for someone who did things differently. The best way to describe it is that you will see a team that presses and fast breaks on grass. It’s a very sound system of football. He uses the pass to set up the run. It’s fun. The thing that I observed is that the players really enjoyed playing. He did a tremendous job. We were able to enlarge our stadium because of the interest. I think Hal is a much better football coach right now than when he came to UK. He learned a lot at Kentucky." In his first head coaching stint at Iowa Wesleyan, Mumme inherited a program that went 0-10 the previous season and had only three players returning from that squad. In his first year IWC went 7-4 and advanced to the Steamboat Classic. He followed that with seasons of 8-4 and 10-2. The Tigers set numerous school and NAIA records. In one game against Harding in 1989, IWC threw 86 passes, completing an NAIA record 61. His teams also set school records for most passing yards (538) in a game and most yards of total offense in a game (672). In 1990, the Tigers led the NAIA in passing yards per game at nearly 338 yards per game. In his final season in 1991, the Tigers set NAIA records for most total pass completions (468) and average completions per game (39). Mumme was the NAIA district coach of the year in 1989 and 1991 and led the Tigers to the postseason all three years, including the NAIA playoffs in 1991. Mumme was named the head coach at Valdosta State in 1992. In his final year at Valdosta State, the Blazers averaged nearly 39 points and over 484 yards per game. That season the Blazers were ranked #1 in the country and advanced to the NCAA Division II quarterfinals for the second time in three years. The Blazers had never advanced to the NCAA playoffs before Mumme’s arrival. Mumme was the Gulf South Conference and the AFCA Region II, Division II Coach of the Year in 1996. "He’s a great guy to play for," says former Valdosta State quarterback and current VSU head coach Chris Hatcher. Hatcher was the NCAA Division II player of the year when Mumme was the head coach at VSU. Hatcher led the Blazers to the national championship this year. "He’s big on putting you in a position to be successful. That’s what you look for the most as a player. You like the style that he brings to the football table. He’s always attacking, always playing to win. If you asked people at Kentucky when is the last time they had a chance to win every game and they will say when Hal Mumme was head coach. I think he will be ultra successful." Among his former assistant coaches is current Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach. Leach served on Mumme’s staffs at Iowa Wesleyan, Valdosta State and Kentucky. The most prominent player that Mumme has coached is former Kentucky star quarterback and the number one player taken in the 1999 NFL draft, Tim Couch. Couch was named the SEC Male Athlete of the Year in 1999 and was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy. In his final collegiate season, Couch completed 400 of 553 passes (72.3 percent) for 4,275 yards and 36 touchdowns. His pass completions total was the best in the nation while his yardage total, touchdowns and completion percentage each ranked second in the country. Mumme’s credentials on the field are impressive, but so is his work in the community. "I don’t think of Hal without thinking about his wife June," says Wetherington. "Together they were an important part of this community." "They are just good, solid folks," says Newton. "When I was doing my homework in hiring Hal, the one thing that kept coming up was that both he and June were very active in the larger community. They both lived up to that when they came to Lexington." "Hal is very accessible to our fans, our boosters and alumni and has done a great job in building relationships," says Pergolizzi. “He really is a very down-to-earth, warm-hearted individual." "Every place we’ve coached and lived we’ve been involved in the community," says Mumme. "I like helping people. It’s an important part of my job." Newton also believes that the team of Boston and Mumme will yield great results for NMSU. "I think it is a great hire for NMSU and it’s a wonderful opportunity for Hal. I’ve known McKinley (Boston) for a long time. He is one of the top administrators in college athletics. To be able to hire McKinley and then hire Hal sets NMSU up to really be very competitive and strong." Mumme was born in San Antonio, Texas, and graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas. He played football at New Mexico Military Institute (1970-71) and Tarleton State University (1974-75). He received his bachelor’s degree from Tarleton in 1975.

Re: 2006 Tentative Football Schedule -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- i really think they are looking at 06 as a rebuilding year. 1. we have 11 seniors, 5 of which are dbs. holland is the only big name. 2. bicknell got his extension, his job is safe. 3. we should win 6 games easily - san jose, utah st, nmsu, idaho, unt, and nicholls. 4. they did the nebraska deal to make money this year, because winningis more important to them next year. i really think we could have a great season in 07. if we can at least win the above 6 games and go 6-7 in 06 and bring back ~ 18 starters, we should be really good in 07. i hope we catch the aggies or clemson in 07 at home . we need to go down to br next year and give them everything we got. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Last edited by JAY : 02-03-2006 at 02:54 PM.

Encouraged: Baylor. This isn't a joke. The Bears have been steadily improving under head coach Guy Morriss, and in an intriguing twist, new offensive coordinator Lee Hays has installed the Texas Tech Air Raid offense. In their final scrimmage, Baylor's QBs went a combined 38 of 60 for 391 yards and five touchdowns This is from Sports Ilustrated. Looks like a trend for those teams who can not do the "2-yards and a cloud of dust." Too bad it took DD 8 years to figure this concept out (maybe).

http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/mo...n_the_polls.php

Joined: 11 Mar 2005 Posts: 673 Location: Dallas Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 10:50 am Post subject: Collegefootballnews.com Preview -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SMU Mustangs Preview 2006 - 2006 SMU Offense Breakdown - 2006 SMU Defense Breakdown - 2006 SMU Depth Chart - 2006 SMU Further Analysis - 2005 SMU Preview By Pete Fiutak In today's quick-fix world, everyone demands an instant turnaround. In football, things occasionally take time. It's hard to preach patience when teams like UCF, Tulsa, and UTEP go from zero to contender in a season, but SMU has slowly been building under head coach Phil Bennett over the last four seasons. He has had a team with no experience, he has had a team with no talent, and he has had a team with an ugly combination of the two. Now this is his team, his program, and his stamp on a program that has come up with one winning season in the last 20 years. It's also his best team yet. Last year, the Mustangs pulled out of a nosedive to win the final three games of the season beating a bowl bound Houston and ruining UTEP's Conference USA title hopes. That proved once and for all that SMU really can become a player in the Conference USA race. It was the only team to beat TCU, and four of its six losses came by seven points or fewer. It's time for all those close losses to turn into wins. Head coach: Phil Bennett 5th year: 11-35 Returning Lettermen: 42 Lettermen Lost: 14 Ten Best SMU Players 1. RB DeMyon Martin, Soph. 2. SS Joe Sturdivant, Sr. 3. DT Adrian Haywood, Sr. 4. DE Justin Rogers, Sr. 5. WR Bobby Chase, Sr. 6. TE Ryan Kennedy, Sr. 7. LB Wilton McCray, Jr. 8. TE Vincent Chase, Soph. 9. C Ben Poynter, Jr. 10. DE Cory Muse, Jr. 2006 Schedule CFN Prediction: coming 9/2 at Texas Tech 9/9 at North Texas 9/16 Sam Houston State 9/23 Arkansas State 9/30 at Tulane 10/7 at UTEP 10/14 Marshall 10/21 at East Carolina 10/31 UAB 11/11 Houston 11/18 Tulsa 11/25 at Rice 2005 Schedule CFN Prediction: 1-10 2005 Record: 5-6 Preview 2005 predicted wins 9/3 Baylor L 28-23 9/10 TCU W 21-10 9/17 at Texas A&M L 66-8 9/24 Tulane L 31-10 10/1 at Marshall L 16-13 OT 10/8 at UAB W 27-22 10/15 East Carolina L 24-17 10/22 at Tulsa L 20-13 11/5 Rice W 27-7 11/12 at Houston W 29-24 11/26 UTEP W 40-27 There will be an interesting mix of fast, talented young players, a lot of inexperience, and good building blocks. Bobby Chase leads a deep and experienced receiving corps, DeMyron Martin is one of the league's best backs heading a very fast, very good backfield, and the starting five up front should be fine. However, there's no experience whatsoever at quarterback and absolutely no developed depth on the line. The attack struggled throughout last season and was never consistent. Now it has various options in its spread formation with several pieces looking to find time in different formations to adapt and adjust on the fly. For a team that has averaged 17.7 points per game over the last 90 outings scoring 14 of fewer in 43 of them, any pop and explosion will be welcome. The offense might have been bad throughout last year, but the defense has saved the day time and again keeping the team in several games. There's lots and lots of speed in the back seven, but little experience outside of safety Joe Studivant and linebacker Wilton McCray. The line will be fantastic with Adrian Haywood and Justin Rogers among the best in the conference. Outside of the conference-opening loss to Tulane, SMU had a shot at winning each of the three league losses last year. For Bennett and his program, it's time for some good breaks to come their way. More importantly, it's time for the team to be good enough to make it's own good fortune. The Schedule: If SMU's dream is to win the West, it has a decent enough schedule to do it with Houston and Tulsa coming to Dallas and missing UCF and Southern Miss from the East. The key will be getting off to a hot conference start with road trips to Tulane and UTEP that might make-or-break division title hopes. The non-conference schedule is nice and fluffy after the opening day game at North Texas with Sun Belters North Texas and Arkansas State along with Sam Houston State. Best Offensive Player: Sophomore RB DeMyron Martin. Martin exploded at times throughout his true freshman season ripping up TCU, East Carolina, Rice and UTEP, but he was held in check by Tulane and Marshall. He's a strong workhorse who'll be a 20-carry back from the start and a 1,200-yard runner if he can stay healthy. Best Defensive Player: Senior SS Joe Sturdivant. The leader of the secondary didn't just lead the team in tackles last season, he led the team in tackles with 33 more than the number two man. He's like a free safety when the ball is in the air, and he hits like a linebacker. Key player to a successful season: Redshirt freshman QB Justin Willis. The only SMU quarterback with even a lick of experience, Chris Phillips, is playing fullback/tight end. Willis has a ton of talent and the type of running ability to be a do-it-all playmaker, but he's going to need time to figure out what he's doing. Teams are going to load up to stop DeMyron Martin and the running game until Willis proves he can take advantage of what's being given to him. The season will be a success if ... SMU has a winning season. There are way too many holes to win the West, but the schedule is nice enough to expect seven wins and a possible bowl bid. At the very least, it would be a disaster if this is another losing season. Key game: Sept. 30 at Tulane. The Green Wave only won two games last year, and one of them was a 31-10 blasting at SMU for the only Conference USA blowout loss the Mustangs suffered. It's the league opener this year for SMU and will be a must win with a trip to UTEP coming up the following week. 2005 Fun Stats: - Fourth quarter scoring: Opponents 110 - SMU 60 - Penalties: SMU 76 for 660 yards - Opponents 57 for 502 yards - Field goals: SMU 18 of 22 - Opponents 12 of 23 The Last Time SMU… …played in a bowl game…1984 (Aloha Bowl vs. Notre Dame) …missed a bowl game…2005 …pitched a shutout…1998 (Hawaii) …was shutout…2004 (Fresno State) …scored 50 points…1999 (Northridge State) …went undefeated…1982 …won a conference title…1984 (share, SWC) …had a 3,000-yard passer…1978 (Mike Ford) …had a 1,000-yard rusher…2003 (Keylon Kincade) …had a 1,000-yard receiver…1978 (Emanuel Tolbert)

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Well Flyonthewall-- you talk about recruiting. DD was 13-31-1 and an OC at UTEP and SMU. DD is 39-55 as HC at UNT. DD has only been involved with 4 winning seasons as an OC and HC....what does that tell you about his recruiting and his "ability to recruit?" IMHO, DD has reached the zeineth of his college coaching career. It is not going to get any better while he is here. If he was selling insurance he would have to live off his wife's salary. DD may be a great family man & good guy away from athletics but he can not sell this program, or his assistants, to High School prospects. Case in point, look at all the other "mid-major" programs that out recruit DD in his own backyard including NMSU & UTEP out in the middle of nowhere. What do Mumme and Price tell their prospects?? 1. lots of beautiful sunsets across the desert. 2. lots of rattlesnakes to hunt. 3. watch the border fences go up. 4. authetic mexican food. 5. only a 12 hour drive to LA or Dallas. 6. great rafting down the Rio Grande. 7. pick all the pecans you want from all the pecan farms in the valley. 8. hunt for Cortez's lost gold in the mountains . 9. go watch some missle firings at White Sands Missle Range. 10. you dont have to go the beach.....it is already here.

All the games are big games if it be SMU, Texas, LaTech, Tulsa, Akron or any of the SBC teams..... We do not want a 1-11 season with the only win against Texas or SMU...much less another 2-9 (or this year 2-10 season). **Realistically, I do not think we can beat Texas. **SMU is coming off a 5-6 season with wins over TCU and UTEP....and an excellent recruiting class. **Akron were last year's MAC champs and is loaded again this year. **LaTech is coming off a 7-4 season. **Tulsa is coming of a 7-4 season and WAC champs. The SBC should be another "dog fight" amongst the bottom tier lower 100 of D-1A. IMHO,again, if UNT is able to beat just two OOC teams and come in 2nd in the SBC I would call it a successful year. Along with the rest of you I DO NOT want another 0-5 OOC record this year. Along with the rest of you UNT has the talent to win the SBC. Along with the rest of you....it is the responsibility of the coaches to formulate winning game plans to be competitive "throughout" the game and to get away from the "philosophy" of: "I want to keep it close to the 4th quarter so we have a chance to win." Silver Eagles statement of, "We didn't come here to lose" should be our mantra for this season....nothing less!!