The Fake Lonnie Finch

Six of our front seven starters on defense are new. Texas has some backs who can run...when healthy. If we can't stop the run with our newly re-tooled front seven, Texas will cover the spread. On the other side of the ball, we've got a new QB and many new receivers. It's naive to think Strong won't have his defense sharper than his offense. That's his bread and butter. So, if we don't stop the run, 26.5 will look too conservative by night's end.

If you have a pen and paper, you can write all of that down and put it in your wallet and, then, take it out and look at it during the game, in case you forget who is playing where. I think it says the Greer kid is quarterback; but, it doesn't say they are moving Dajon to DB like Mack Brown or Bobby Stoops would be tempted to do to get his "athleticism" on the field, right? Without turning the ball over...with the "athleticism"...but, instead, creating turnovers...with the "athleticism." Because, as we all know, there is only two type of football "athleticism": 40 yard dash speed (out of pads) and quarterbacks running the ball instead of throwing it. Strength, agility, and intelligence mean nothing in football. They are big wastes of time, right? Like, we should just have Zach Paul play quarterback if we can just teach him to turn around and hand off the ball. Brock Berglund.

He was making $2 million per season at Miami, and had a payout of $2.4 to $3 million when he was fired. So, that there, six years plus the payout was somewhere north of $14 million. Assuming the highest tax bracket, he probably walked away with $4-5 million in the bank. He's from a small town in Oklahoma and seems pretty low key (married to the same gal for 40+ years, isn't having Jerry Jones facelifts, etc.), so I'm guessing he's been thrifty with his money. So, if he likes San Antonio, the cost of living on the personal side, the recruiting base on the business side...whatever UTSA pays him at this point is probably gravy money.

Mitch was a great quarterback. So was Scott Davis. And, as a Berkner Ram, it pains me greatly to admit that Maher - a hated Plano Wildcat - was better overall than my fellow Ram, Scott Davis (although, I think Davis may have been the grittiest of them all that I saw play). Unfortunately, our administrators had long before doomed us to I-AA. Look, I was at UNT from 1990-1995; I saw Mitch Maher's career. I think it's shame it took place at the I-AA level. I thought it was a shame we had to endure Dennis Parker. And, that fed into my anti-Dodge hiring position in December 2006 - we'd been there, done that, and it hadn't even worked at the I-AA level.

Agreed. And, that's why I hold that Maher was our best I-AA quarterback ever, and Thompson was our best I-A/FBS quarterback ever.

That's good. Thompson was the MVP of a bowl game. How many I-AA playoff games did Maher win?

forever, It was admittedly easier in the political forum. And, it took a long time to draw the conservatives offsides there. The liberals were simple - say "fag" or "God" or "Chik-fil-A" and they were the first ants out of the pile. Guns draw the conservatives out. Gun talk. If we don't all have guns - in the largest caliber of our own choosing - we are communists, you know. This forum was a little tougher to crack, but not by much. Just keep pointing out the obvious and doing the mundane. Your standard run off the mill stuff. A few are drawn off by non-UNT posts...an effective way to draw out the closet OU or Texas fans. The rest, you just throw in Johnny Quinn/Derek Thompson success in run-first offenses. I damn near majored in psychology. But, you know, what would have been the point? You can run your own studies here.

2010 - Committed to Colorado 2011 - Signed with Kansas 2012 - June: Transferred to Scottsdale Community College 2012 - August: Transferred to North Texas 2013 - Injured hammie, played in one game versus UTEP 2014 - Transferred to Northern Colorado, injured foot

Until College Gameday sets up outside of Apogee Stadium, it can blow me.

Last season's record, minus a game or two...or, three.

Hmmm. Interesting. And, yet while those guy were here, they did lose to the likes of Northwestern State, McNeese State, Sam Houston State, etc. quite regularly. And, if I'm not mistaken, against Southland Conference foe, Maher led us to, more or less, one winning season? And, so, what you're telling me, in essence, is that late 80s/early 90s Southland Conference foe is tougher than 2013 Georgia Bulldog foe or 2012 Kansas State Wildcat foe, and - with your confidence - 2014 Texas Longhorn foe, for instance, and whatnot. Interesting. I don't buy it. But, you sell what you want in a capitalist society, I suppose.

As far as Texas, they are in kind of a pickle. And, here is how I see the pickle: (1) They kicked off/suspended many players (2) Their QB position is unsettled (3) They can't just show everything they've got against us for BYU and UCLA during the following two weeks (4) They've only had spring and fall practices to learn new offensive and defensive schemes with many who were learning and expect to contribute subsequently being kicked off or suspended. Their saving grace is that Charlie Strong does know defense. Beyond that, this really is a good chance for us to get up and bite them...just...I'd feel better about it if we hadn't lost so many starters from last year's squad.

I was happy when Johnny Quinn was breaking receiving records in Darrell Dickey's boring, run-first offense. Those were fine winning and bowl seasons Dickey put together. I enjoyed watching Derek Thompson break passing records in McCarney's boring, run-first offense. You see a pattern there, or something? Run-first offenses where receiving and passing records are mysteriously broken? It's a thing that'll make you go, hmmm:

I've never said Chico or McCarney run the offense. I don't care which one of them runs it as long as we keep winning. If we win running 50 times or win passing 50 times...who cares? I thought winning was the important thing. But, maybe we're looking at this thing two different ways. I don't play fantasy football, so whatever the stats are - running or passing - makes no difference to me. Maybe, you all are fantasy football guys. I've already said, over and over, that I think the game is won on the lines, with a strong defense, and a special teams that plays error free, not giving the opponents freebie scores and good field position. Mac seems to tend to agree.

Good question. Guess I would have had to see Thompson play Abilene Christian, Lamar, McNeese State, SW Missouri State and the like every year to know the answer. Unfortunately (?), we'll never know whether Thompson could have competed as well in the Southland Conference as he did in the Sun Belt and C-USunBelt. We'll just have to be satisfied to know that Davis and Maher were really good against such I-AA and Division II foes as those, and Thompson and Hall did well against I-A foes. You can only know what you know, you know?

Damn, college is hard. Gotsta study and play football up here at Tulsa? Fo'get that, man! Goin' down to Norman where I can smoke blunts and knock around the bitches while academic "tutors" get my work done. That's football. bro!

As suspected, it was poor grades that led TU to kick Rodriguez off the squad: http://oklahoma.scout.com/story/1435576-rodriguez-coming-back-to-ou Well, at OU he'll be laughed at among their dope smoking and woman abusing transfers. They probably gave him a wedgie and a swirly for being such a wuss. But, who knows, he could fit in. The DA's office up there has the video of Mixon breaking the girl's face. So, Rodriguez can learn from that.

As long as reality can tell the difference between i-A and I-AA competition, he can be my friend. Otherwise, reality must understands DT competed against a higher level of competition throughout his career than did Davis (whom I love because he is a fellow Berkner Ram alum) and Maher. Hall competed against a higher level of competition than Davis and Maher, but didn't put up the number DT did. Love Hall, too. Enjoyed running the hook and lateral with him and Johnny Q during the last GoMeanGreen flag game at Fouts...damn near worked. But, it is what it is. DT ranks higher than all I-As, and he did so with a thinner and revolving cast of WRs. Derek was The Man...and, don't you forget it!

He isn't wrong. And, if Canales doesn't like what the boss's philosophy, he's free to leave. This isn't Russia, is it?

Best D I-A/FBS QB we ever had. We'll miss him.

Finally, a relative of Mr. Bean on the roster.

http://cover32.com/cardinals/2014/03/28/where-are-they-now-eric-swann/

There is no game film. Texas is elite. And, in these games, the Criminal 5 schools usually go vanilla anyway. Texas has a tough schedule, beginning right after our game, with BYU and UCLA the two weekends after us. Then a bye week, a weak Kansas game. Then, opening October with reigning Big 12 champ Baylor and Oklahoma back-to-back. Texas problem isn't what we are doing...it's hoping their (remaining) players can execute what Strong and his coaches have tried to get them to learn since the spring. As thin as they are as some important positions, I highly doubt the 'Horns want to show BYU and UCLA's coaching staffs many exotic wrinkles on film. Those guy - and, I hope ours - are looking at Louisville and Oklahoma State tape to figure out what Strong and his coordinators might do.