meaniegreenie

That's a tough one. Do we want a .500 team that we can be proud of or a bowl contender that we have to wonder what the next "arrest" headline is going to be? I realize that it's not an either-or situation, but many of the successful teams have done it with players that I wouldn't really be proud to have. Think of UMiami of the 80s/90s. gk

Stage -1: literally the worst team in the nation Stage 0: out of the bottom 10 Stage 1: competitive in most games (excludes OU's, etc.) Stage 2: consistent > .500 record Stage 3: perennial winner/challenger for SBC championship Stage 4: legitimately ranked in top 50 Stage 5: break the top 25 ranking Dream 1: make it into top 10 I have always thought that there is no reason that this big of a school in Texas shouldn't be able to attain Stage 4 and eventually reach Stage 5. This would put us near par with TCU/Tech. I think it's a long shot for us to ever make the top 10. Back when Marshall broke onto the scene after being in 1AA, I felt that it should have been us in the early 90s. While we hadn't won national champs., we had been a strong 1AA team and I hoped we were moving up as we went to 1A. When I saw how Marshall was able to have such success, I wondered why we couldn't do the same. The problem now is that we have backed all the way to Stage -1, so we have a long way to go. I was skeptical of the TD hiring and so far it is going bad, but I do hope he really is making things happen that will create success in the future. Similarly, I'm skeptical of the reasoning behind the drug test, but if it was done for the right reasons and these actions are fostering a quality team, then I think we will eventually reap the rewards of his actions. gk

Ding ding ding ding!!!! We have a winner! gk

We're #1 and smu is #4. Anybody got a guess as to what the score would be if we played them? At home? At SMU? In a Safeway parking lot? I'm afraid that we wouldn't be competitive with them and given that we are both in the bottom 5, THAT's what is so disappointing. Our last couple of games have shown a *little* sign of improvement, but not enough for me to think we could stay with smu or either of the Washington teams and I'm afraid Michigan would beat us by 40. In reality, these last comparisons do more to show how silly these ESPN rankings are. While the SunBelt is having a pretty good season, would anyone really consider every team in the SB (except UNT) as a favorite over Michigan. gk

This is a Jub-Jub! (The one in the middle). Also pictured is Selma and Joe Buck. gk

Yeah, I hate our helmets. The only thing worse it PennState, which is ours with the NorthTexas removed. Actually, I take that back, what's worse is the silly stickers that OhioState, etc. use. It's so highschool, that I'm surprised we aren't doing it. I liked the green ones that Marshall had. Even with a simple NT, they'd look better than ours, but I'd prefer a logo or at least Mean Green. gk

Maybe the next step will be for TD to institute this next year: Awareness Training gk

Too bad this stuff doesn't have the same effect on our players as it did on Ricky Williams. gk

I was afraid to post it since I didn't want to be too much of a smartA$$, but then that's rarely stopped me! LOL! BTW, SilverEagle, I like your throwback avatar. It reminds me of some of the NTSU things my uncle had back when I was a wee-one. gk

I hope the NCAA doesn't force us to forfeit any of our wins...oh, wait, nevermind. gk

If I agree to give TD 4 years (which I am), will he agree to pay back double his salary if he is a total failure (<10 wins)? For that kind of commitment from him, I'd be willing to give him a 5th year. gk

I've got a better question. Why doesn't athletics count as PE credit? I had to take 2 PE classes my last semester to graduate, since I had difficulty finding the time to squeeze these in during my previous 4 years. I may be mistaken, but I think they did count marching band as a credit back in the 80s (at least that's what I always heard.) gk

I trust what Georgio has to say because I figure he's much more informed that I'll ever be, but you summed up my feelings as well, in that I think there is no reason that the team shouldn't be more competitive than they are now. I wouldn't be surprised at an 0-12 season, but I think we should have been able to stay a bit closer to teams at least for a quarter or half of the game. However, it does look like we may be getting some improvement in the last couple of games, so maybe the young ones are starting to get better with more time/experience. gk

Thanks for the info. I have one of the flags hanging on my wall and it's cool to know there is a real history of the two colors and not that one of my panels faded! LOL! BTW, I do like the two colors better than if it was a single one. gk

Yeah, maybe that's a good way to put it, although it has a self-imposed limitation since I will be back next year to give it another chance. I'm still pulling for the team and would love it if they won-out for the season especially if it's because the ship has been "righted", but I think our talent base is a bit too low to expect that. Best scenario is to see this thing get turned in the right direction and be able to go into next year with a positive outlook. For now I'm marking 10/18/2008 as the lowest point in MG football, hoping that with the vote on that day being the initial start of the turn in the right direction. gk

Lifer - You have a point in that the kids shouldn't be punished for what is going on. As I said in a post I made about why I returned my tickets, I felt bad that there would be one less person supporting these players that are doing their best. However, I felt it was necessary to communicate to the ath. dept. that this current level of competitiveness is not to be tolerated. I was careful in message to them to not make the kinds of statements that you mention, instead opting for terms such as "unacceptable", etc. I think finding ways to communicate this is useful to reduce the appearance of apathy in the alumni. gk

Good idea. Again, this is an opportunity for a LEADER to step up. What better time than during the homecoming game to challenge the alumni to get it in gear. gk

Next time maybe they should conduct their "random" poll somewhere other than just in the bottom floor of the GAB. (actually, I'm showing my age here, in that I don't know if the journalism dept. is still located there.) gk

Fox 4 just had the story on at the top of its 6:00 newscast. I missed the first of the story, but it was a live shot/interview from the stadium. gk

Good points. I suspect this is a symptom of the same problems we have everywhere...no strong leadership. gk

Oh, yeah, I think bricks are a good idea, especially if they could make green ones. 100 bucks sounds okay to me. gk

They took it off when they replaced the ribbon with electricity! LOL! gk

Maybe try IE. Since I'm not a student, I can't access to the site and test, but I noticed the original screenshot used FFox. If the problem isn't the overloaded system, it may be that it only works with IE (that's a common problem). I suggest someone give IE a shot and let others know if this works. gk

In my days (83-90), the greeks weren't part of the solution at all. Their attendance/support was horrible. The standard procedure was for them to start rolling in sometime after halftime, slowly filling their areas. Then they spent most of the game turned the other way, looking back into the crowd, talking/planning their after-game parties, etc. The usual thing you heard as they were dragging in was "Hey, look NT's winning". Duh, we were f'ing good at the time. The worst part was when they did the stupid "paint your greek section". It made the stadium look like all we could afford was the left-over paint from HD. This further added to the problem, because they then thought that it meant their section was reserved. So, as I said, they'd come in during 3rd quarter and be total a$$'s to people that had been there the whole game, "in their seats", crowding them out until they finally moved. I always wondered why they had such little interest in the games, but now I see it's pretty much the NT culture. Similarly, I still can't comprehend how I'm walking across campus to the game and there's all these students running around playing soccer, sitting outside, etc. w/o any plans to go to the game. C'mon, get over to the stadium and support your school! It's not like they're off working, studying, etc. gk

Yeah, it's not something I enjoyed doing, but I felt like I had to do something other than just bi$tch and moan on message boards. I don't expect a refund or for that matter any action from them. I just wanted to show that I am not happy with the way things are going and notice needs to be sent that this is currently not an acceptable situation. I don't care if it means that they spend more money, light a fire under Dodge, fire him, or whatever. I feel bad for the Sr.'s that have to suffer through this season as their last one. These are the only ones really impacted by my actions, in that there will be one less person screaming in the stands whenever they make a good play or need to make a defensive stand in their last few home games. I have been a fan for over 25 yrs and this isn't going to stop me. I would just like to be able to wear my Green gear and display UNT items w/o having to be embarrassed. gk