untjim1995

SMU isn't listed... But for a game at Apogee, it will definitely be Rice.

This is where having an inexperienced OL really hurts if you don't have a QB that can make plays with his arm or his feet. And McNulty cannot do either--he follows the busdriver instructions perfectly and scores great on tests, but his playmaking skills are almost nil. Mac will develop the line to be better as time goes on--its his MO and strength as a coach. But they won't probably see huge improvement until later in the season, at the earliest. Its yet another reason that 2016 and 2017 will be the earliest we can see us get back to a .500 record or better. At a program like ours, we have to have solid line play on both sides of the ball to be successful. To get anything close to a 2013 season again, its gonna take that development and an easier schedule than what we have for this season. Again, it sucks that it is Mac's 5th year here--but you are going to have to look at this season as if its just year 2 again. We are that far behind right now--and we don't have or won't use the funds to make a coaching change at the top to correct any of this, so even if its Year 5, you've just got to convince yourself that its really Year 2 of 5. Chico will be gone after this season, almost certainly, but that isn't going to change things at the top, even if we win 2 games or less this year and next. 2017 will be the year that determines Mac's tenure here. If he wants to keep coaching beyond that year, he will have to have a bowl season to get an extension or else he will be gone...unless he enters into an agreement with the school to retire in 2018 and give the job to a coach in waiting on the staff. Don't underestimate this possibility--the university doesn't pay a buyout and gets to pay an assistant coach to move up to HC and pay much less than Mac has made in his tenure. I think that scenario is very possible, too...

It truly amazes me how much we get up for playing SMU. When that series got announced, it wasn't 70% of the fanbase that was thrilled with it, it was more like 99%. Its as if SMU is thought of as pre-death penalty, SWC powerhouse by the whole fanbase, not pissant G5 program that has had just as many winning seasons as we have since 1995, when they got drop-kicked from relevancy in the SWC to the WAC and we moved up to FBS. I know its a winnable game against a program that used its money and media prestige to keep us away from them, but beating them does almost nothing for us in recruiting, as seen by wins in 2006 and last year, yet we never seem to come close to their recruiting ranking ever, even when they suck as bad we do or we beat them. They will never get back to being at a level they were in the SWC, pre-death penalty. They have no sizable fanbase--and they live in the shadows of a pro market. They are no different than Tulane or Rice, just small private schools in big pro football markets that cannot move the needle with the citizens of those cities. But RV gets praise from the fanbase for scheduling them for such a long series, like its some coup. I'd have been fine with a four game series that could be renewed, if necessary. But the fanbase thinks that getting SMU at home 6 times in 12 years is just a huge accomplishment, so those of us in the 1% just have to accept it. Its like tailgaiting--RV gets a "lifetime" contact here as AD for opening up tailgating and scheduling SMU for a 12 year series...

Baylor is about to get really, really burned for all of this...its not unfathomable that the only thing that comes out of this is that Briles gets fired. At this point, Briles, the AD Ian McCaw, and Ken Starr are all on very hot seats, and the NCAA is going to have something to say about this, since Baylor is just a private school, not some big state school behemoth that brings in tons of cash (I.e., Penn State).

Literally, no one thought this...no one. Literally, everyone thinks Johnny Jones IS (not probably) a better coach than Tony Benford...everyone. JJ may have been disappointing at times, but not once do I remember us losing to a D-2 team (Alabama-Huntsville), losing at home to an in-state, non-power school in OOC by 30+ points and having their team have more fans than we did (SFA) in the Super Pit, and following up a big win with a loss at home to that powerhouse Prairie View A&M. We had our issues under Johnny Jones, but without question, he steered us upward from the depths of the Vic Trilli debacle. Now, whoever comes in for the next season will have to clean up Benford's mess...

Yep. it all came out in 1985. Wacker kicked him off the team once the payments came into light and self-reported the violations, thinking this would keep TCU from getting heavy sanctions from the NCAA, since they were all over SMU for never disclosing anything back then. And for doing this, the NCAA absolutely torched TCUs scholarships and TV appearances, IIRC. Private school are always the easier targets to punish by the NCAA. Baylor will find out again, soon enough...

So, to get this straight, at Iowa State, he went 15-40 on the road in his tenure, but 20% of his road wins were at Iowa, ISU's Super Bowl every year. That should bode well for us in the course of the rest of Mac's tenure here against SMU. And if anything has been proven over the years, its that beating SMU means more to our school's fanbase than anything else...

Well, if things don't work out in Hogville, maybe he can come back home to play as a transfer?

Honestly, for Bogenshutz, it was probably better for his skill set. He's a promising throwing QB. I would imagine that Coker's offense looks like a fast break compared to what we run.

How you doing, Tony? Enjoying that $325k large salary still? You only have a couple of years left, so put some hay in the barn...IOW, don't buy any suits.

This "rivalry" just goes without saying...literally.

Yes, he is--but he has some serious love for TCU, too...

Yeah, you are completely correct on TCU, but in 1984, they were ranked after they got off to a great start. Then they finished with three straight losses to Texas, A&M, and West Virginia in their bowl game.

I see your Chad Morriss and I raise you a Phil Bennett...one was a great OC at a P5 giant, the other was a great DC at a P5 giant. Phil Bennett never had a winning season at SMU and left after winning only 1 game, against us in Dodge's first year, in 2007. Maybe Chad Morriss will be different and turn them into something similar to what June Jones got them up to in Years 2-5, but in June Jones' first year, he went 1-11, beating FCS Texas State as his only win. If he turns them into a winner by Year 3, he will be coaching in the P5s somewhere, guaranteed...If not, he will probably get canned by the end of his 4th year.

It probably is in most circumstances, but he would have to really sell the BOR on the fact that winning in revenue sports is a top priority and it has to start now. Benford cannot do it, obviously, and Mac has shown the ability to turn Dodge's recruits into something really solid, but his recruits have not been anything special yet. Mac may have to be with us for a while, no matter what, but replacing Benford and even RV shouldn't be a problem. In basketball, you can get a winner here easier than in football, just because of the competitive environment that is college basketball and the NCAA Tournament. Its all about finding the next Gregg Marshall out there, a great mind with a knack for finding developable talent. Football will always be a tougher sell because of the P5/G5 deal, as well as our history, but this is where a new AD could really help lift things off the ground. I would assume if Smatresk is serious about this and that this isn't just lip service to the fans, while winking at the BOR, RV's days as AD could actually be numbered, just because his hires and the revenue sports' records and attendance is just not good at all. But I do fear the BOR making it real clear in private that there is no way this place is going to pay more for athletics than we already do and that we will never buy out more than a year of a contract, ever...then its just business as usual around here.

He didn't get hired here to hear about beating UTSA. He's gotten plenty of talk about our hatred for SMU. Russia State and the Safeway Bowl are just two examples of the hate for the Ponies from us. UTSA only becomes a rivalry if two things happen: 1.) We can actually beat them. If we cannot beat them this year, its gonna be a while... 2.) Playing them brings in a decent crowd. I still have my doubts that we will see a huge crowd of over 20k for a home game at Apogee against UTSA this year. Sure, there will be more interested in that game than when we play an Eastern CUSA team, but they are still not going to register much with fans outside of the UNT regulars if we aren't winning.

I've posted this before--but I'd love for Neal Smatresk to just tell the BOR that I need $2 million to fix the revenue sports over and above the budget within the next two years. He needs it to buy out poor performing contracts for the two revenue sports and to make significant hires. Benford, you are gone as soon as a winning season is no longer possible or if we finish poorly and don't make at least the NIT. And if we are bad in football this year, Mac gets one more year to get us back to a bowl game in 2016 or he is done.

Coach Mac usually rises to the occasion in these rivalry games--that has been his MO, both at ISU and last year when we annihilated SMU. It may be close, but we will win this game.

I agree that the game will be close--maybe less than 10 points. But that SMU team has a legitimate shot at not winning 2 games this year. If we lose to them, we aren't winning another FBS game on our schedule. The university better enjoy Homecoming immensely--if we lose at SMU, its very possible that our only win will be that weekend. Chico might as well quit after the game if we get beat--he will be walking dead if he gets to even stay as a coach. My guess would be he would get his walking papers very shortly after a bad loss or two.

So did David Sibley... Both Sibley and Bullock made sure Tech and Baylor were getting into the Big XII. Ann Richards may have helped behind the scenes, but those two did more to get Baylor and Tech in than she did, publically.

I agree...but those things got reported by the Waco media when they had to report it. It didn't come from other media outposts first. Now, the Waco Tribune and other media don't even follow up on this case, it gets buried, almost amazingly. But now the Austin media comes in and "breaks" the story...its now nationwide and everyone is asking how Waco's media didn't even try to follow the case. They weren't gonna disturb Art Briles's reign in that area, for lots of reasons. BUt Baylor has run the Big XII for the last few years and they have whipped the bellcow 4 out of the last 5 years, winning the Big XII in the last two seasons. The bellcow isn't gonna let little 'ol Baylor or TCU get away this... Briles is gonna get chased by these questions all year long and he will have columnists in the DMN, FWST, Austin American Statesman, and Houston Chronicle ripping into him repeatedly all year long, win or lose. Either Baylor will be forced to cut bait, or more likely, he's gonna bail out after this season to go somewhere else that is higher on the food chain to get away from this. Just my guess, but I bet he's not coaching Baylor by the spring of 2016.

I think that a lot of people have accepted that since last October/November. A few have been fooled into believing a JUCO transfer that couldn't get here until the summer had any chance to start the season as the #1 QB, but that was never gonna fly with Mac. He's an old school coach--he likes bus drivers, running the ball down your throat. Nothing more, nothing less. McNulty is good enough to lead this team to victories over bad teams. He did that last year and he will do it this year. We will beat SMU, Portland State, and 1 or 2 others, max... But your solid G5 CUSA teams are gonna be way too tough for him--and all you need to expect from Iowa and Tennessee is that their wired funds make it to Denton. There's no way he can compete with those two defenses with that arm. All you can hope for against the CUSA teams is that our defense and special teams make signinficant leaps forward and that the running game and short passing game somehow can work against 8-9 men in the box. Basically, pray that 2013 somehow happens again, even though we are less talented at QB, defense, and at offensive line than we were back then.

And if he "effes up", which I agree he will, that means there's another victim, most likely of a violent crime. Baylor is a pissant in the big scheme of the NCAA. Most coaches think that Scott Drew is the second dirtiest coach in the NCAA, behind only Calipari. That says something right there, but Briles isn't well-liked either. Baylor has one gigantic hurdle, in-state, though, that FSU doesn't have. Baylor is the leech to the Texas tickhound. And when the tickhound goes to the vet, the tick usually gets removed. UT's control of this state's media is legendary. They aren't gonna go away on this until Baylor either fired Briles, Baylor gets some kind of NCAA crippling sanctions, or UT goes back to winning conference championships again. I've watched SMU get crushed by this (rightfully so, but still...), I've watched A&M get caught by this, and I've seen UH get caught by it. I'm convinced Tech never had anything crazy come out of the woodwork when Leach was their coach was due tot eh fact that they rarely beat UT and never finished ahead of them in his tenure in Lubbock. Baylor will learn the lesson here...and TCU won't be far behind.

Dear God, Please keep Neal Smatresk healthy and help him convince the rest of the BOR that this is truly the best way to move our university upward in all ways. And help with the whole world peace thing and starving kids while you are at it... Sincerely, MG Nation

Could Art Briles lose his job because of this?