untjim1995

The only game we lost that most on this board thought we would win was the La Tech game, where our Qb play was below acceptable for Denton High's JV QB. We have found a better replacement, even if he isn't as good as we want him to be right now. Everyone basically felt that we would lose to UT and IU, and many on here felt like we would actually get beat by SMU (that alone may have turned out to be the worst prediction we have ever seen on gmg.com). Now, we play teams that we are mostly level with in CUSA play. @UAB, USM, @Rice, FAU, @UTEP, FIU, @UTSA. The CBS rankings have USM @ #114, UTSA @ #109, UTEP @ #103, Rice @ #102, FAU @ #101, UAB @ #96, and FIU @ 93--we are ranked at #99. If we cannot beat 4 out of the 7 teams on this list, which also has SMU @ 125 out of 128 schools, then we have the right to gripe about the direction of the program. Otherwise, I suspect that we will end up 6-6 at the end of the year, with wins over USM, FAU, and FIU, as well at least one win on the road against UAB, RIce, UTEP, and UTSA. The best news I can offer to you all is this: In the G5, we are ranked ahead of 26 of the teams with the second youngest team in the nation, while 33 are ahead of us in a rebuilding year. With a decent 4-3 or better finish, which I expect, we will probably be higher on the G5 list at the end of the year. That is why I trust Coach Mac to continue the momentum with this program. Don't get caught up in the Criminal 5 rankings--all of them SHOULD be higher than all but 1 or 2 G5 teams ALWAYS. P5 teams like Vandy and ISU that are ranked below us on the overall rankings should just be ashamed of not using their resources very well or allowing themselves to just be a paid whore for their Criminal 5 conference.

George Dunham does more for this university everyday than anyone else in administration at UNT, in terms of promotion and connecting to alums and fans. We are so lucky to have him--same with Hank, too. Hank and his family love the Mean Green. He once told me that he and his kids bleed green--and this is a guy who graduated from Kansas, where they have plenty of tradition from their athletic programs. Their broadcasts are thoroughly enjoyable and professional. As for the guy who trolled on the Mercer thing, they have put that behind them. And putting George in as play-by-play lead at the time was still the best thing the university could've done, since his growing popularity from The Ticket was catipulting his name throughout the area as a great sports broadcaster. But I'm sure that the poster who trolled with this has never gotten a promotion over someone else that got demoted, so I'm sure there are no glass houses here at all... Finally, the Aggie broadcast is such a joke that most Aggies will tell you they cannot stand listening to Dave South call a game. From calling everyplay as "we" to making very professional calls, such as "He is a Touchdown", most younger Aggies recognize the embarrassment there. Its the older Aggies that won't ever let him go.

I'm afraid that this isn't something that is gonna change here anytime soon. We have literally changed the shade of green, the mascot, the name of the mascot, and the design on the helmet so often in the last 40 years, to get everyone on the same page is not something that UNT is capable of doing. Add in the fact that a lot of people in Denton just like the "quirkiness" of being different, seeing ten shades of green, with two different mascot names, and 6 different logos will never go away. I wish it would, but I've fully come to believe that i won't ever change.

This is Pitt's way of spiting their old rival, West Virginia. They played forever in the Backyard Brawl when both were either independent or in the Big East together. But then WVU bolted to the Big XII, which meant that Pitt refused to continue that series. Then Pitt got an ACC spot, which WVU coveted forever. Now, Pitt has decided to keep WVU down as much as they can in the region by playing their in-state rival instead. Basically, this would be like TCU and SMU refusing to play each other and one of them substituting the other one for us on their schedule, just to spite the other one.

I totally agree here. I'm not sure there's much he or anyone else can do about it, but they will try to maximize the dollars for whatever content they can provide. I'd pretty much expect that CUSA conference games on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday nights will become a regular, just like the MAC and the SBC do. Of course, if the G5 actually went in together--I know its a crazy thought--maybe they could actually build a better TV contract for all of them. Hell, maybe they could actually build a better set of CONFERENCES and a better playoff system than the Criminal 5 will do. Oh, never mind...

Here's a good question for all of you? Why wouldn't Kansas call Dan McCarney to be their next head coach? He would be very affordable, which they can use since they have to pay off Weis. Or why wouldn't Coach Mac go up there? He can go there with the idea of rebuilding (his specialty) and go back into a conference he is VERY familiar with. And he and KU would know this is his last stop--however long it lasts. KU fans have watched ol' man Snyder resurrect that KSU program twice and he is still coaching. It would seem like a younger version of Snyder, even with the Fry connection. McCarney's optimism and ability to connect with boosters, alumni, and recruits would be a perfect fit for them. If KU gave him what ISU did--five years to rebuild the worst FBS program in America--I'd think that it would be intriguing to both parties. And, at this point, Canales would almost certainly get RV's support and the BOR's backing to be the new head coach here, since he wouldn't cost much and he has been here for awhile now. Not saying this has a chance of happening, but it doesn't seem that far-fetched to me...

I am often confounded by our recruiting. We sit in this hotbed for recruiting with great facilities and have solid academics with favor admittance standards, yet our classes are always rated low, no matter who the coach is. I don't know if its because a lot of local high school talent just wants to go away for a true college experience further away or if our culture and losing has really soured parents and Texas High School coaches on UNT against other similar schools. I mean, McCarney is such a vibrant and passionate guy--you'd think his optimism would really rub off on the recruits and their parents and coaches. Again, it doesn't matter who the coach has been, the overall class we end up with is never highly rated, and often times, especially under Dodge, those kids we were originally excited about never even came close to playing here or contributing much. But I will say this, as small as we are right now, we looked like the freaking NFL compared to what SMU threw out there in week 2.

I'll call you in the spring of 2016, most likely, when his 4th season ends and he only has one year left on his contract.

UNT--27 UAB--24 Really, who knows...its a CUSA game. All these teams are just about the same and can win or lose against any of the others in the league.

Nah, those anti-trust laws aren't gonna get applied to them. Their buddies in the legislatures in DC, as well as the media that pays to cover them, will never allow the P5 schools to get hit with any anti-trust lawsuit. Don't fool yourself--its the USFL versus the NFL. The split will happen--its just a matter of its within the NCAA or not. Now, I can see where they will allow a G5 team each year to play in one of the big bowls every year, like they do now. But I foresee the P5 never playing G5 schools in OOC play in the very near future. There's just too many voices out there that believe that is needed with this new playoff system. When your conference schedule isn't that great, still playing a weak OOC is going to catch up to you (see Baylor this year). They are going to circle the wagons on this very soon. To me, as a UNT fan, I really don't care anymore. We aren't ever going to be included in a P5 conference, so we need to make the G5 situation the best it can be. It doesn't have to be SLC 2.0 again, since you will be playing schools in the state and region that people care about and have heard of, unlike the embarrassment of the 1-aa fiasco. We have a great stadium and we finally play in a conference that is waayyy better than anything we have been assocaited with since the early 70s. Even if we are just going to bve relegated to a G5 level, getting to play in a conference with even more other regional schools like SMU, UH, and Tulsa would be even better for us. DO I wish we got a Big XII invite and got to play those schools currently in that league? Of course--who wouldn't. But watching UH gets locked out of the P5 over these years makes it even more clear that we all are just stuck permanently below them. And I truly believe that Baylor and TCU will join all of us in the future when the other leagues pick apart the Big XII for their future expansion. Again, for us, that will be even better than we have ever had it. It would suck for the old SWC teams that won't get to stay in the P5 or couldn't get moved up there, but that's just sweet justice to me, since none of those bastards would ever even consider "lowering" themselves to partner with us over the decades past.

Coach Mac's strength is developing lines--I know that we are inexperienced right now, but I suspect that 2015 will be a much better year for our DLine. Of course, we have to replace our OL, but I think we will be fine here. The reality here is that everyone wants linemen. The thing that helps McCarney is that he has a track record of turning unranked and low ranked talent into good pieces on the lines. We have to hope he keeps it up, which I believe he will. There are some coaches out there that have the ability to just coach up players to be better as they get older and used to their systems. Leach did it at Tech on the offense. Patterson has always done that at TCU on defense. At some places, you just get a ton of talent and coaching up the talent isn't as necessary like it is at a place like UNT or TCU. Sumlin at A&M and Briles at Baylor are getting their picks of the Texas HS ranks right now. Before that, Texas and OU were getting it, so coaching the talent up wasn't necessary. You have coaches like Snyder at KSU and Mangino when he was at KU that could just get the maximum out of their teams. I believe McCarney is a guy who has the same ability to make guys better over time. It doesn't happen overnight, as it takes time for the linemen to get stronger and smarter, but there is no doubt that he has that reputation with linemen.

Andrew, I'd highly encourage you to find another hobby. One that doesn't make you look like a pinata. Sincerely, GMG.com

The NCAA isn't going to "fix" anything that they don't deem as broken. They rake in billions from the TV contract and media broadcasts of their P5 schools. ESPN, CBS, and Fox have no interest at all in geography--they have interest in viewership. The only people who complain about geography in college sports are those who are shunned by their in-state and regional colleges. What you are right about, however, is that the G5 schools are going to have to figure something out in the very near future about conference affiliation and expenses. The P5s will never go short on resources--between football and basketball, they have budgets that are always going to dwarf those of us in the G5. When they finally take their ball and run off, UH, SMU, Tulane, and Tulsa are all finally going to realize what Rice, UNT, La Tech, and UTSA already know--that the easiest way to make a buck is to keep your team as close to town as possible. Travel costs and recognizable opponents are going to keep you afloat.

I agree here, too. I like it, as well, if only because we got to keep two CUSA schools in Texas that couldn't move upward in Rice and UTEP, while gaining UTSA and La Tech. So that is light years better than the SBC ever dreamed of being. BUt, let's face it, TFLF is dead-on--all that CUSA really is now is the SBCUSA--those that could move up did, those who couldn't didn't. Kinda like the AAC isbasically the AACUSA--those that could move up did, those that couldn't are still there.

I still think 6 is about right...

I know you didn't advocate leaving CUSA--you just said that getting an easy win is always good. That is why I said that if this is really true, then we made a huge mistake leaving the watered-down SBC for CUSA. But, of course, we both know that wins over bad teams and teams that no one cares about doesn't increase any support for this program. To me, that is what is needed most at this place right now--you get increased support, you should get more revenue. You get more revenue, you have the ability to get rid of a bodybag game every once in a while, like Marshall has done this year. And, yes, the average fan, does know the difference between a FCS school and a FBS school. What they don't know the difference between is the G5 schools that are in the SBC, CUSA, and AAC, since they have all changed conferences so often in the last decade.

This.

Well if that's true, then we made a mistake leaving the SBC. We could be playing Texas State, Georgia State, Georgia Southern, Appy State, South Alabama, Louisiana-Monroe, Louisiana-Lafayette, Troy, Arkansas State, New Mexico State, and Idaho right now. Certainly, we'd be able to get to 8+ plus wins against that bunch, plus a game against FCS Nicholls State, FBS worst SMU, Texas, and Indiana. I personally don't like FCS opponents for our program. Its impossible to get any fan excited to join you for these opponents--hell its hard enough against SBCUSA teams. And I don't think they help your program accomplish what we need to do badly--raise our profile. Last years' schedule in OOC was a solid one to me. Play a low-level FBS team at home, play a bodybag game on the road to pay the bills, then two games against G5 teams, home and away. In the future, we will get SMU and Army for home-and away against G5s, plus a bodybag game or two each year. One thing that is gonna hurt this, though, is that the bodybag game forces you to have to either play 5 games at home like we will next year or buy a game against someone. Unfortunately, though, for me, unless a team like Idaho is gonna continue to let us play them only in Denton without a return game, a FCS opponent is just a reality. I just don't think they help a G5 team very much. A P5 school can use the tuneup or the break on the schedule since they get thousands of people to support them anyway (usually)--those of us in the G5 don't get that luxury. I will say this-- If Dajon goes out and kills it against IU and UAB, then I will be proven quite wrong on this. But when we played Texas Southern at home in 2012, that game didn't help Derek Thompson get any better during the rest of the year. We just don't know anymore about Dajon or the rest of the team today than we knew after the La Tech game. We find out a lot more about the whole thing after these next two road games.

At our level right now, any game against a FCS team, especially a bad one that won't bring a soul to the game and won't register even a blip on the radar for college football fans or media, shouldn't get played. For one, it does nothing for the fans, who are the lifeblood of the program. Coaches and players come and go, but its the fanbase that keeps the thing rolling. It isn't a reward to your supporters when you give them Texas Southern or Nicholls State. Secondly, a bad FCS team doesn't really give you anything to help prepare you against your main conference competition, since they don't have the talent to mimic anyone on the schedule. And lastly, a good FCS program can actually beat you, which is the absolute worst thing a G5 team can have happen. Watching La Tech lose to NW State just tells everyone that they aren't very good and their conference must really suck if they win it and still couldn't beat a FCS team at home.

True--but TCU is really small, compared to USC. And the PAC folks have made it abundantly clear that both BYU and Baylor are not compatible with their political leanings.

I think you should really teach all of the "idiots" on this forum a lesson by just leaving gmg.com...

Its true, they could, but Tech, in particular, has made their way in this world as the perfect little brother to UT. Think OSU to OU...they'll be together because the state's legislature is gonna demand it. Texas will never be allowed to go off on their own to another conference without at least one of the current Texas Big XII teams. A&M leaving for the SEC was absolute brilliance, but, in the end, Tech will probably benefit the most from that move, since it gives them permanent status as UT's little brother going forward. For Texas, having Tech on their side will help them immensely when the Pac-12 eventually takes the Texoma Four. Baylor and TCU are gonna fit that overboard crowd you mentioned above, no matter how much they sue. Texas and Tech are gonna be able to say that the Pac-12 just won't take a religious-affiliated school, so they don't have any choice but to leave them behind. And Tech, no matter how many 5-7 and 6-6 seasons that they will endure in the current Big XII, will have basically won the lottery, since they get to stay in a P5 conference for decades to come. I still think it wil look like this: Pac-12 + Texoma 4, B1G will add KU, and the ACC will add WVU (and UConn and Cincy). KSU could get in somewhere, too, but I don't know where--maybe the SEC if Mizzou ends up finally getting their dream Big Ten slot. Iowa State, Baylor, and TCU are gonna be left out to find their way in the G5, probably the three of them will go to the MWC with UH. Rice, UTSA, and MUTS probably replace them in the AAC. And Texas State, ULL, and Arkansas State move up to CUSA.

That decision in 1982, and subsequent non-correction of that decision for over a decade, really put a ceiling on the program. Right now, as it should, we feel like we are about 100x farther along than we were 20 years ago this year--we were still i-aa, in the SLC with teams like SFA, SHSU, SWT, NLU, NWST, Nicholls State, and McNeese State, playing in a stadium that 3A schools wouldn't want to play in, and the SWC still existed. And, where we are today, as a FBS school in a conference people have heard of, with schools that people have heard of (for the most part), in a great stadium with a legitimate experienced head coach seems like we are light years of where we were then. But intrue UNT fashion, we half-assed the move back up to 1-A in 1995 by doing the bare minimum to move up to meet the criteria--add 10,500 of the worst seats ever put in a stadium, join a conference whose closest team to you was in another time zone and had absolutely no history whatsoever to try and draw any interest from playing, schedule every possible OOC game away from Denton to fund the entire athletic department, and put unknown assistants into the role of head coach because they were cheap. In the end, we may have made the right decision, economically, because those schools that zoomed by us back then, Boise State, USF, and UCF really aren't terribly further up the food chain than we are now, especially with looming P5 split, but they have all enjoyed MUCH greater exposure because of football than we ever have in our history. But, I go back to this again--you cannot tell me that if we had just done what Tulsa, Louisiana Tech, and Arkansas State had done--not drop down or stay down at the i-aa level for very long, at the very worst, we would've been in the AAC or MWC today. A large, public school near DFW with some history would've been able to have connected into something like the WAC or CUSA before the SWC formally split. Would that make a huge difference today? I don't know, maybe--but it would put us higher on the totem pole than we were for so long. And, in my wildest dreams, we would've actually built up a program in the early 80s instead of basically trying to de-fund it, giving the folks in a little conference to the north of us, one without any Texas teams in it at the time, but wanted to get some badly, called the Big Eight, to consider doing something crazy, like adding us to their conference during the 80s. Imagine what that would've looked like for the Big Eight and for north Texas had that even remotely had a chance of happening? Those SWC public schools would have been laughed off the face of the earth if that had occurred, letting small enrollment, private institutions in SMU, TCU, and Baylor dictate that another big public school wouldn't be in the best interests of Texas, Arky, Tech, A&M, and UH. Oh well, it was just a pipedream...

I didn't see a ton of TCU or SMU shirts back in my day, but the ones that just irritated me to no end were the Baylor and Tech shirts. I hated the Baylor stuff because they were just in the BIg XII because of their political ties in Austin--nothing more. The TCU and SMU stuff just mildly annoyed me, since they didn't even have any relevance back then. But the ones I really hated were the Tech hats and shirts, in part, because the people who wore that stuff transferred here usually from there, meaning they still held a strong allegiance to a school they left. Combine that with the fact that Tech is basically the exact opposite of UNT in every way, I just never have liked them at all. Their fanbase is pure trash and they are literally in the middle of nowhere. But I will also say that Tech has done everything right in gaining a strong alliance with UT--since the 50s, Tech has always been included with their bigger, more successful brother. They probably will be taken care of by UT when the next round of realignment takes place. So, as much as I dislike their school, my envy for their athletic program is much higher than my hatred of them.

Indiana--30 UNT--17 Until we win an OOC road game under Coach Mac, its hard to pick the good guys to win on the road at a P5 school--especially one that just lost a game after scoring its biggest victory in years the week before that loss...throw the fact that IU will want revenge from their loss against us back in 2011, as well as Dajon's first real start against something above 4A low-level competition, I think we are gonna fall short in Hoosier-land.