The Fake Lonnie Finch

Take away the big plays.... Hmmm. Gee, that's novel idea. Anyone know how to do that? I mean, on the current coaching staff anyway? Now, as others have pointed out to me on this board, I'm not a football coach. It's true. Therefore, my analysis may be skewed here. After all, I'm the only poster on this site who isn't a coach. However, I'll give it a shot. The way to "take away big plays," in my admittedly non-coaching eyes, is to: (1) Have your defensive backs actually cover opposing receivers, (2) Tackle the ball carriers - whether they are handed or thrown the ball, (3) And, sprinkle in a few guys on the special teams units who can tackle opposing punt and kick returners ...and stuff. Again, I'm no coach...but....

A little snipet from one of the Louisiana papers: "You talk about out-kick your coverage. We just didn't have anyone that could handle No. 8," North Texas coach Todd Dodge said of Holliday. "I was just running by their players," Holliday said. "Then I looked back to see where the coverage was. I was wondering where the coverage was after I passed the first level." There was no second level. "I was down on my block," Scott said. "I put a block on my guy for maybe two seconds. Then I heard a lot of cheering. I looked up and he was gone. So I had to block for him for two seconds. That's nice." Yeah, that's nice...for everyone who plays us, I suppose. Am I wrong to remember that Dodge himself was going to pay extra attention to the special teams this season? Did he or did he not say that? I think he did.

Look, everyone. Pass or no pass, he's going to play. And, yes, he wasn't going to light up LSU. No one on our team did. Everyone with a hint of college football knowledge can see that Riley is too little to play QB in places like the SEC, Big 12, etc. He's probably too little to do it in the Belt as well. However, that doesn't mean his dad shouldn't let him wing it around on a trick play every now and then. It's not like defensive coordinators don't know the kid played QB in high school. But, even though every school we play for his entire career will be expecting him to throw now and again, we may as well do it. I mean, just to see if it will work more often than not. I mean, what else are we gonna do while we're not using our talented stable of running backs? If we can't win, why not entertain and give the crowd what they want - more Riley Dodge.

Watching FAU was depressing, but not because I wanted them to win. The reason is that I was watching a school that didn't even have a football program when I was at UNT, but that was now on ESPN2, and hanging with a Big Ten school - on the road.

And, the truth is, we may have more talented runners than receivers at this point. Not that we will take advantage of it, though - inexperienced and injured o-line, pass-heavy focus, etc.

It's not a question of fear, it's a question of time. The line hasn't given him time in either game to do much. By contrast, K-State and TU's QB's had enough time to stand back in the pocket, whip up a ham sandwich, choose a receiver, then throw to said chosen receiver. Offensive lines. Defensive lines. Pass protection. Pass rush. Not having it on either side of the ball shows up in where the QB throws the ball.

Look, many big time programs play I-AA schools to open the season. OU did it this year. Texas has played Sam Houston State. Texas Tech, Kansas. The bottom line is, it's a normally a guaranteed win. And, it keeps you team from getting beat up early. Look at last weekend. Brock Stickler is out and, for some odd reason, Dodge was scrambling to find a slot receiver. The odds of Stickler getting hurt playing, say, SFA or SHSU is far less than going to K-State or Texas or OU. You don't have to go out and get the I-AA national champ. What you need is a regional I-AA whose fans will travel. I've been saying this for three years now. If we're going to do it, get SFA as opposed to Appalachian State. That type of thing. There are tons around here. Baylor just hosted Northwestern State from Louisiana. Plus, winning is a confidence builder all around. And...it's one more home game. Do it. Do it now.

SMU's defense is horrific. And, June Jones appears ready to stick with Bo Levi Mitchell at QB come hell or high water. So, they're going to be pummelled alot this year. And, that's good for us on the recruiting trail.

I like the look of the new Cotton Bowl. Long overdue. Too bad the former mayor didn't have the sense to fight for renovations earlier.

Travis, What is this coverage of which you speak? I saw none of it Saturday night.

Let me just say this, and part of it will be backpeddling on my part (so take note all TFLF haters): (1) The Riley Redshirt Dilemma is only a dilemma for those who thought he was big enough to play QB at this level anyway. I still don't think he is. And, even if he were, he'd get killed behind the makeshift line that's out there now. So, to me, whether the kid redshirts or not is irrelevant. But... (2) Although he's not that big, the guy is quick as a waterbug. Tulsa had one four-star recruit last year - one of the Johnson receivers. He's only 5'8", but he had speed and ripped through our secondary. I think Riley can give us a big boost if he can do the same thing for us at WR - and, to me, he showed he can. I will continue to stick to my belief that Gio Vizza should be a four-year starter at QB, barring injury or just going into a shell. But, I now have no problem with Riley out there in the slot. Whatever makes us better - and here and there Saturday night, he made us better. Keep him at WR, keep Vizza at QB, and we've another weapon to open the run game for our trio of talented runners. Get all of that gearing up right and our defense gets more rest. Then, all Todd Dodge has to do is find someone to coach special teams. I'm all for him sticking Riley back there, too, on kickoffs and punts. If he can field the dadgum ball, let him do it. He surely can't be worse than what we've seen thusfar in his dad's first 14 games.

Stan, This is what was strange to me as well: home opener, bigger crowd than normal, game regionally televised...and, the team had no more fire than they showed in the first half? If they're not fired up for the home opener, about showing a big crowd what they can do, or about being on TV, what will they get fired up about?

I agree on Deloach and said as much over the summer. The guy didn't walk back in here with the 2002 unit at his disposal. Sadly, Dodge's high school defensive coordinator wasted last year's nine returning starters on his crappy scheme. Deloach is starting from scratch - and it ain't like Dodge's first two recruiting class have helped him much either. They're going to have to get at least one JUCO DE and DT, I believe. In fact, when you look at the whole thing, there are enough skill players already on the roster that Dodge could realistically use every 2009 scholarship on offensive and defensive linemen. But, we won't be so lucky, I'm sure.

Here's my one positive thought: Isn't it ironic that Todd Dodge spends two recruiting seasons loading up on WRs that aren't panning out early on, but has somehow managed to get three hoss running backs - Mosley, Montgomery, and Dunbar - who have been able to contribute right away in both seasons? Is it too late to switch and run the 'Bone for the rest of the year with those three in the back field? We need some of the clever/marketing types to come up with a nickname for our three-headed monster of a backfield. (And, we need Dodge to go ahead and use them more in the games so we can maybe win one...huh )

Yes, as it pertains to the opposing teams' wide receivers.

That's kind of what I mean. Tony Romo spilled blood today even though he was whipping the Browns. Johnson looks like he just got up, showered, shaved, and put on his football equipment. You often see jerseys torn or stretched or out of place, untucked after a hard fought game. Not here.

My only question is whether the conflict between DeLoach and Buckles included cussing. I mean, maybe DeLoach was just trying to "redirect" Buckles, but Buckles might have cussed back at him...or vice-versa. Anyone? "Redirecting?" Cussing?

So, TU's David Johnson dices our secondary, then leads the Golden Hurricane's makeshift marching band: They say this photo is post-game. If so, it tells the whole story - he doesn't even look like he broke a sweat all night. Clean jersey. Obviously not sore, so he can wave his arms around leisurely at the band. I haven't seen the stats and I don't remember us sacking him. Was he touched all night by anyone - I mean other than possibly his girlfriend when he got back to Tulsa?

Look the only teams in the college football world that rival our inability to get a single thing done - a stadium, a good head coach, etc. - are Idaho and Utah State. Seriously. I mean, even places like SMU got a new stadium in the midst of their suck. They have a shiny, new coach, but they still suck. But, at least they have a nice stadium to suck in and some hope in that their new coach has at least won at the I-A/FBS level before, so maybe he will there. There's at least some meat on the bone there. We have been passed by everyone except Idaho and Utah State. It's just sad.

Tulsa was 2-9 in 1999. You're thinking of Tulane who was 12-0 in 1998.

Really, grad88? Just give, give, give...and when there are no results, don't complain but give more. Preposterous. The people who have given years of time, money and support at smaller and younger programs are getting rewarded. What are we getting? Stomped into the ground, at home, in the home opener, by a "mid-major." By a mid-major who almost cancelled its football program six years ago...until they got a new president who, in turn, hired a new athletic director, who then hired a real football coach out of the NFL. And, the whole thing began to roll forward. And in the six years hence, their stadium has been upgraded immensely and the team is bowl-worthy every year. Give, give, give, but keep quiet. Absurd. The people in charge at UNT need to get off their duffs and do the things necessary to take this program forward and up. Words mean nothing. Action, buddy. Action. This isn't the Soviet Union where they sat around and pretended people were happy as the whole thing slid into the crapper.

And, this is the biggest joke of all. I wrote this in a PM to a fellow poster today, and maybe it bears repeating here: I'm beginning to think that Todd Dodge believed too much of the hype surrounding him and his 79-1 run at Southlake. How else do you explain a coach who: (1) After his first year, says the things that surprised him the most was the speed and athleticism of the cornerbacks at this level, and (2) In year two, cannot explain why his team isn't competitive? It boggles the mind that this guy quite possibly hasn't figured out that everyone has skill players, but that you will never succeed unless you: (1) Have an offensive line that can block, thus giving time for your running or passing plays to develop, and (2) Have a defensive line that stuffs the run and gets a consistent pass rush to keep the pressure off of your defensive backs. Then, there's the importance of the kicking game - kicking off, receiving kickoffs, making extra points. This involves many things - yes, even the deep snapper. As in, hello, have two guys on the roster who can be deep snappers at all times. And, I mean being capable of deep snapping, not just we list him as a deep snapper. He's actually got to be able to do the job. Two of them, please. And, as for kick and punt returns...you can't just stick anyone back there who can runs fast. Many players on the team run fast. Fielding the kick is as important as what the player does with it after he catches it. You know? I mean, you know...but, after 14 games in, you have to wonder if Todd Dodge knows...or cares. Folks, the learning curve was going to be high for Dodge to begin with, him having come from high school and all. But, no matter what the learning curve is, in any endeavor, you must first realize you have something to learn. At this point, I'm not sure Todd Dodge thinks he has anything to learn. I mean, how could he? He had a 79-1 run in high school, right? Who or what could teach him something he didn't know? I mean, besides the cornerbacks at this level. It really is beginning to look like Todd Dodge waltzed into Denton thinking he'd take the college football world by storm - a college football world already filled to the brim with June Joneses, Steve Spurriers, Mike Leaches, Hal Mummes, Howard Schnellenbergers, Urban Meyers, etc., etc., etc., ad infinitum...coaches who ran "the spread offense" in many different variations. And so, there would be literally hundreds of defensive coaches who had prepared for this very type of offense. I honestly don't think the guy ever put thought one into his lines and special teams - or the fact that "the spread offense" was already the norm at the college level and not so novel a thing that would take the world by storm.

Ah, yes, the old tried and true "If You Realize We Suck, You Must Be Smarter Than The Coach" thread. Tired. No, what many of us realize is that we suck. What many of us see is that schools smaller than us are surpassing us, with younger programs have surpassed us, who have started programs from scratch have surpassed us. How many examples are there? MTSU almost beats Virginia in Rick Stockstill's second year, then skins Ralph Freidgen's Maryland Terps in his third year. Howard Schnellenberger starts a program from scratch at FAU, has a Big Ten team come to town and skins them last year. I watched the replay of South Florida at Central Florida last night (early this morning on ESPN2) and saw 40,000+ fans jammed into UCF's new stadium watching them compete with South Florida. This is a program that's had a school for less than three decades and has only been I-A or FBS for about 10. They've had a former NFL QB (Mike Kruczek) and a successful I-A coach (George O'Leary) lead them to where they are. South Florida? They've only had a football program since 1997. They've only been I-A/FBS since 2001...and they're already in a BCS conference and in successive years of being a Top 25 team! They hired the guy who was co-defensive coordinator with Bob Stoops at KSU. They didn't look little time or gamble when they were starting their program from scratch 11 years ago! And, so if we realize that we suck, and say we suck and admit it, we're being smarter than the head coach? Troy has only been I-A/FBS since 2002, and they've skinned to Big 12 teams in that time period. They don't lay eggs like we continually do even when they get beat out of conference. Come on, man. Give us a break. It's so easy to see that it can be done, but we're just not doing it. The people in charge aren't doing it. They don't know how to do it. And, don't question me or some other people here. The day I enrolled at UNT and set foot on campus, Corky Nelson was still the head football coach. I've seen alot of North Texas football. And, I don't have to be a coach to tell you that this thing, on and off the field, ain't flying. I don't have to know X's and O's to realize that Tulsa, a school that was considering scrapping it's program just six years ago, was pummulling us 42-7 in the first half at our stadium in our home opener when we should be the most healthy, most pumped up, and most ready to go! If you want to continue to drink the kool-aid, fine. But, there are many of us who have been on board the ship, through good and bad (mostly bad) for two or three decades or more, and we have every reason and right to question what's going on when we see the FAUs, Troys, USFs, UCF, amd MTSUs being able to pass us by - on and off the field, in personnel, in facilities - the whole enchilada! We've given time and money and seen the whole thing fall behind smaller, younger programs. We have the right to question what's going on from bottom to top. If they've going to ask for more time and money and support for this garbage, they better be thick-skinned enough to hear, and face, the truth.

No Miles team, at Oklahoma State or LSU, has ever put more than 63 up on anyone, and they rarely get into the 50s. Whoever started this rumor is ill-informed: Les Miles Career Record: http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/coach...hp?coachid=1620

This bickering is pointless! After 14 games, Dickey was 4-10, posting a 21-14 win over Texas Tech in Lubbock in his 14th game. After 14 games, Dodge is 2-12, posting a 26-52 loss to Tulsa at home in his 14th game. They both suck. What we need is a Grand Moff Tarkin at the University and in the athletic department to cut through the crap and get this battle station fully operational!