rcade

Blue Raider fans deserve to rub this one in; we weren't shy about celebrating our victories over them in the past. We still have a 5-1 series edge that's worth bragging about, but they beat us worse Saturday than we've ever beaten them. They beat us worse than some big programs did in paycheck games. Ugh.

I'm not a Dickey basher, but his lack of engagement with his players during the game -- from what I've seen on that telecast and others -- is disturbing. I can't recall the last time he appeared animated or energized on the sidelines. Compare that to the new MTSU coach, who was getting in the face of his players throughout the game with both praise and criticism. I wouldn't expect the guy to fake enthusiasm or rah-rah BS, but if he's passionate about this team and this program, you wouldn't know it by looking at him during a game.

And what's that reality, Shaft? Where's our program today and what does it take for us to move forward?

It's unfair to group Price with O'Leary, Neuheisel and Barnett. He made one embarrassing mistake in his personal conduct, while the other three made several that included serious recruiting infractions.

I can accept the losses to Tulsa and Akron, but I can't accept how non-competitive the games were. If UNT isn't good enough to put a scare into some mid-major OOC teams, Dickey should catch hell. I'm eager to see Dickey make it work here, but without the OOC success the long-term future of the program is only as good as the long-term future of the Sun Belt.

UCF is an interesting comparison. I live near there, and they're a large directional school overshadowed by a state of football powers. They built a big stadium, hired a marquee coach and expect to become as big on the field as their enrollment in the state. UNT should be looking at how USF and UCF are building their programs. If they can do it, there's no good reason we can't follow suit.

How do we get to bigger bowls without OOC wins? The only thing that has gotten the Belt into more than one bowl per year is bowl inflation.

What's that supposed to mean? The photo sums up UNT's offensive performance perfectly.

I want North Texas to beat decent mid-major teams, whether they're in the Belt like Troy or OOC like Tulsa. The Belt has gotten better since dropping western teams and adding Troy, FIU and FAU. I'm hoping that the reduced travel expenses and stronger regionalism helps all of the programs. Right now, there's no argument that the Belt's the worst I-A conference. If we start beating some MAC and CUSA teams, that'll change fast. As for your specific question, the prospect of UNT dominance of the Belt this year seems pretty remote to me. Troy was five minutes from going into Tallahassee and beating the Noles last weekend.

I thought about Diet Coke guy too when I read this in the Morning News. He's entering North Texas lore along with the albino squirrel and Hector the Eagle Dog. Best wishes to Coach Dickey as he copes with news that has to be hard to hear. I have one relative who takes insulin for diabetes and is active and healthy and another who let it go unchecked, which was the likely cause of two recent strokes.

You're right. A 200-pound running back could never make it in the NFL.

Being the first and last option of your offense means you have the entire defense keying on you, so you're complimenting Young when you say that. Ask Reggie Bush how easy it is to get your yards when the entire defense has you in the crosshairs. Last night, Young gained the most on the ground of any quarterback in NCAA postseason history, and when you combine it with 267 passing yards and his rushing touchdowns, it was one of the greatest single-game performances by a college quarterback ever. Michael Vick in college seems a lot like Young to me -- questionable passing and jaw-dropping rushing skills. But I don't recall tacklers bouncing off Vick, and I didn't see him creating the offense Young does with his arm. I wonder if that will be enough for Young to succeed in the NFL in spite of that weird touch-float thing he does throwing the ball. Fair enough, but I think it's a shame that the national championship is coming home to Texas and we're hearing all of these "UT beat me up on the way home from school and stole my lunch money" stories from UNT fans. It screams Big Green Inferiority Complex. Just because we have one doesn't mean we should flaunt it.

That drunk Raider fan is hilarious. There really is no better statement in the English language than "I bought a ticket and I can do whatever I want." When do they cut beer sales off in Oakland, incidentally?

George Dunham has been a huge supporter of UNT football and one of the best things about the program during some lean years. That doesn't give him a pass to jump down a fan's throat, if the incident happened the way you recall it, but even if it did I'd hate to see this become a bigger deal than it should be. Chalk it up to a frustrating end to a dismal season. People get angry and do some crazy things -- ask Ramon Flanagan. If you go to banquets and the like, it's probably inevitable that you'll run into Jubjub again. My unsolicited advice: Put your thoughts about how you think it could've been handled better in a letter to R.V. and George, then close the book on it. People who are calling for George's head need to chill out. Great announcers who are doggedly loyal to their school without being insufferable homers are hard to come by.

I think it's funny to see how quickly UT fans are big-timing people, as if the Longhorns haven't gone decades since their last national championship. He sounds like a Florida or Miami fan, and UT hasn't even won anything yet.

UNT fans should root like hell for the Sun Belt champ in the NO Bowl, no matter how much we might otherwise hate the team. This conference needs high-profile out of conference wins like Paris Hilton needs STD tests. So in other words, go ASU!

Hank Dickinson loves to point this out too. He even said on the air after the game that the losses this year were no fault of the players or the coaching staff. I know he's limited in what he can say critically of the program, as a part of it, but I'm curious who he would be willing to criticize in a 2-9 season. Maybe Diet Coke guy?

Cobbs ended his final season with around 1,150 yards rushing, based on today's 178-yard performance. A nice end to the collegiate career of the best running back in UNT history, judged by yardage gained and (I'd say) performance.

Exactly. We tried the western conference thing with the Big West and it was terrible. We're better off in the Belt.

Nice article, but the quote from one of the people involved in the logo design broke my brain: And the points in the "N" signify the pointy-headed thinking in excessively specialized academic pursuits like communication design. If your job is to find deeper meaning in font spacing, have the good sense to keep that information to yourself. It looks completely ridiculous to the outside world, which defeats some of the marketing efforts you're trying to achieve with the new logo in the first place.

Do low-level college assistant coaches have to teach classes? If so, the lack of a degree would surely prevent them from getting the job. (Note that Pegram went back and got his, so it isn't a problem in his case.) Pegram should definitely get an interview at UNT for a position like running backs coach or weight-training specialist. His NFL experience speaks to the kind of talent and determination you need in college players, and it would be great to have recruits shake the hand of a guy wearing a Super Bowl ring. I don't think it was inappropriate for him to express an interest in coaching at UNT. George Dunham asked him if he had any interest in that area, and it was only a small part of the interview.

. I thought that ad had to be a gag. They showed it on the scoreboard?

Me too. Louisiana-Monroe has a chance to end up 6-5, 6-1 in conference, and that's the best record possible in the Belt. I'd like to see them go for that reason. As far as the other Belt schools go, the programs I respect most as an opponent are Troy and Arkansas State. Troy's the biggest threat to go USF on us and Arkansas State always played UNT tough. If they clear up their NCAA problems, I'd like to see the Belt get FAMU. They draw 20,000 to each home game and 70,000 to games they play in Atlanta and Orlando, and the number of Rattlers plates you see throughout North Florida are impressive.

The Sun Belt's a lot closer geographically than the WAC, and it doesn't put our road games in the Mountain or Pacific time zones. This USC-Fresno State game's a great example of how this is a negative for an eastern team -- it began at 10:15 p.m. on the East Coast! Here in Florida, I missed Reggie Bush's unbelievable accumulation of 500 all-purpose yards because I passed out trying to watch. Joining the WAC would have hurt North Texas. I'm exhibiting some regional bias here because of where I live, but I still think our road to success in I-A football goes through the southeast. One of the Sun Belt's strengths -- one of its only strengths at the moment -- is the clustering of teams from Texas to Florida. Losing New Mexico State and Idaho was a good thing for the conference (though I miss having New Mexico State around because they're the closest thing UNT had to a rivalry team, after all the conferences we shared in common.)

Good to have Erric back in Fouts again. This web page states that he returned to UNT to get his degree after retiring from the NFL and works as a fitness and personal trainer. He's one of the stars of the team from my years at UNT as a student. It's strange that a running back who never got 1,000 at North Texas managed the feat in the NFL.