GrayEagle

I follow the star system to a degree and I believe that they didn't do their job on several recruits. This a good class and had they been able to retain Carr and Hunt, a very good class. There are some that were underrated...Akunne, Whitfield and Stojkovic especially. Others may have lacked a little in size (but not speed). There are three or four projects in this group. They can still be three star players with time in the weight room and good coaching. They certainly have the potential. That's the key to the success of this class...good coaching. As Plumm pointed out about TCU...they didn't draft any 4 or 5* players but they sure had them when they graduated. This class may seem a little disappointing at first but I think that we've got about a dozen that can contribute this fall. I don't recall a freshman class that I could say that about. You just can't overcome six years of bad football in a single recruiting class.

Powers - Does a woodchuck chuck wood? Osborn - I get the feeling that he's the starting quarterback. Brooks - Will work into the rotation Thompson - He and Brooks are the DTs of the future Warner - At least on special teams Akunne - Could easily be Orr's backup Stojkovic - Could be on both special teams and some OLB Swarn - He's good enough but how much will he be needed? Whitfield - He needs some PT since he looks like the man for 12. These look like the ones that are/will be ready by fall but it wouldn't surprise me that much to see others. Coach Mac has said that he will play a lot of people and I believe him. It's good for team morale and doesn't leave you totally without experience when your senior starters graduate (think defensive tackles).

How bad is it you ask? The stadium camera froze at 4:21 am. http://oxblue.com/pro/open/unt/stadium?DB_OEM_ID=1800

http://highschoolsportsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/01/woodrow-wilson-duo-chad-polk-and-ishmael.html I did find this article from Corbett Smith which gave some stats and stated that he was at one time on the DMN Area Top 100. My feelings right now are if I'm at an FCS school and get some one of this caliber then I think that it's great. But, if I'm at an FBS college then I believe that it's a reach. My apologies if I'm wrong.

Polk had commited to Sam Houston State. He wanted to be at SMU but was not offered. Not passing judgment but that tells me that we're not expecting any last minute drops.

I heartily agree and I like your comparing him to Okafor. Since Houston had offered Lemon I consider this a payback swap. Okafor may have a lot of potential but Lemon is much more proven.

I was as impressed with Stojkovic's video as any. I know that the level of competition in the prep league is nowhere near that of the FBS but he seems to have uncanny playmaking ability and I see him as another Roberson. I am very worried about DT but a little less so for OL depth. When you lose a Drake, Gill and Santiago in one year the OL, in experience alone, is not going to be as strong. But, I believe that we have some experience, adequate size and enough talent spread about the two-deep to not suffer greatly. I think that people like Antonio Johnson and Adedipe are diamonds in the rough. Anyone that follows recruiting is going to know of any commitments lost because it's newsworthy, especially to Rivals, Scout, ESPN, etc. I had rather know that we were in the running for some top talent and it was taken from us than not know that we were even capable of competing for the better players. There is an old adage "It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all" and I believe that it fits recruiting. We all know that we will have trouble competing with the Big 6 for higher ranked players but the fact that we were chosen, if only for awhile, elevates our stature in the recruiting world.

I agree with FloMo regarding Kilgore. With his credentials he should get a scholarship and be very productive. If he's that good he should get a scholarship offer for at least FCS after he finishes at Kilgore. He would have to pay his own way at North Texas with no guarantee that he makes the team and receives a scholarship.

Graham and Dodge should know the recruiting ropes in Texas and they do have a lot to offer with Pitt being in a Big 6 conference. Still, it's hard to be disappointed that we didn't get Carrington. If we had we'd have to forfeit other needs or not offer Warner. Carrington for Warner seems like a fairly even swap.

I believe that Talley transferred because we do not offer a degree in Sports Management at any level. There could have been an added incentive because LSU is in the Southeastern Conference. Keyth's dad held several conference records while at the University of Alabama. But his major is Sports Administration and LSU offers that major at the bachelor's, master's and doctorate levels. We have a pretty heralded history in track and field going back to the Brown and Rideout twins. Many in the UNT Hall of Fame are there due to track accomplishments. But, I guess it is no longer a priority because it produces so little revenue.

Some of his comments are pretty much spot on but what is an authority on sports economics doing at an all-girls school? How effective use of money is that?

Keyth Talley transferred to LSU.

That one's easy. They dislike ULM far more than the Cajuns. If Benson invited the Warhawks, La Tech would be gone before he could hang up the phone and he knows it. But, it would be a way to get the 'dogs in the Sun Belt; maybe the only way.

Deep, I know that you have been around long enough to know the answer to this one....COMMITMENT. Finally, the students, administration and BOR have commited to advancing UNT's athletic cause. Hopefully, a large number of alumni will also join in. It takes money to run a class program. We have made a few feeble attempts to raise money, mostly under Hayden Fry, with less than moderate success because we were stonewalled by the administration. Especially under Dr. Hurley, North Texas was far more concerned with building academics than athletics and they deemed that they did not have the money to do both. Thankfully, it wasn't money squandered. Dr. Hurley did a fine job of improving academics. The old psyche of the administration was that we don't want outside donations because donors dictate where their money should go. You'd think that would be fine because it would either go where the administration wanted it to go in the first place or it would be for things that the administration would not have to provide. Except dictating donors means that the administration would lose control. I never understood that manner of thinking because the administration did not have to take the donation. They could've kept their control and still advanced the university with outside dollars. There is also another stigma associated with our program. We haven't tried to develop "friends" in high places, at least in the athletic sense. We have had no one to champion our cause. Enter Lane Rawlins, a president who has contacts in both the academic and athletic communities. He has also hired the most persuasive consultant, Chuck Neinas. If we can get this football program turned around then I believe that those two will have us in a higher profile conference soon.

I'm not implying that he should be a QB candidate. And yes, I realize that the defense needs shoring up more than anything but we've lost some offensive firepower from last year, notably Jamaal Jackson. The only stud receiver is Carey. Carr was a receiver as a junior; hasn't played on defense since he was a sophomore. Unless Stradford develops sure hands, we need an additional quality receiving threat. All I am saying is that I'd like to see him tried at receiver first. If he's not the answer then move him to defense. Remember he was the best offensive player in the district.

I'm sure that he'll eventually be put where he's most effective but why would you take an Offensive Player of the Year and immediately assign him to defense without first checking what appears to be his strength?

If we're anywhere near as good as we think we are/should be then it shouldn't matter whether we're targeted or not. We're not that good and we play poor defense. We also have no depth. We have six good to decent contributors and the others are scary. As an aside, when is the last time that you've seen anyone foul out who only played four minutes?

Jim, I normally agree with you but in this case I think that our location should work for us in CUSA alignment. Yes, East Carolina and Marshall would like for more teams near them but they are the ones far away from the base core of CUSA. When the Big East takes their 10th team I believe that it will be UCF. That would make 8 of the 11 remaining within 100 miles of the Mississippi River or further west. The conference office is a scant 20 miles from the North Texas campus. Furthermore, there aren't any FBS universities that would be advantageous to the eastern schools except Temple, FAU and FIU. Either of the three would add considerable travel expense to the conference when it is not needed. None of the three have acceptable attendance either. East Carolina is Big Six worthy. They are competitive and draw around 45,000. They could also be gone when expansion is finally settled. The conference needs to move west.

The highest rated receiver still on the board that shows interest in North Texas is Cameron Brown of Frisco Liberty. He's the one that decommited from Minnesota. I don't know that he's been offered but I sure hope so. I also believe that Carr plays wide receiver, where there is a greater need, than safety. He seems more of an offensive player and his situation reminds me a little of Darius Carey.

For the moment we're just potential. Looking at some of the potential... Media Market - True we have more bodies in the DFW market than anyone else but we haven't played anyone of note to build those numbers. Attendance - We may draw in the 20s for known opponents but we only have two of those per year. Conference games draw nearer to 15,000 giving us an average of 17-18,000. We should be averaging in the low 20s every year. A poor record the last six years has held us back. Budget/Administration - Our total revenues has been in the $15-16M range for the last several years. Only recently have the students stepped to the plate and guaranteed that we will have a budget of more than $20M beginning this fall. With that influx the BOR and the university administration have also backed athletic expenditures but we still don't have the donors for a big time program. Stadium - Our new stadium isn't even complete yet and in size it would be at the low end of both CUSA and the MWC. We need at least a year in the new digs to see if support improves. A plus is that it is expandable to 50K which would get us in any conference if we can meet their other criteria. Students/Alumni - True we have more than 36,000 students and somewhere between 182,000-205,000 living alumni who have earned degrees. Probably more than that attended without graduating. But with those large numbers where is the support? It will take several years of winning and a better conference to begin bringing old ex-students back and attract $$$. Proven Sports Teams - We're becoming strong in men's basketball and have done well in women's soccer. We're knocking on the door in tennis and I believe soon will in volleyball and swimming and diving. We've had a few national track & field qualifiers. In fact, we are okay in everything that we do except women's basketball and lately, football. We need at least one good football season to prove that the program is turning around. If we win, say 7 games, this coming season then I believe that we will get better recognition. I would imagine that everyone on this board believes that we have bottomed out and will make a quick rise in football but it hasn't happened yet. Even if Craig Thompson believed that our potential was sure to be reality why invite us now when there is no certainty that there will be a 12th team? Give it another year and the MWC might know whether 1) another team or teams from CUSA might want to switch 2) see whether one of the old WAC teams definitely steps out from the pack or 3) see if the other BYU teams detest competing in a minor conference and clamor for a return to the MWC. Even though a championship game would bring some nice additional dollars the Mountain West is not desparate for members.

Actually it was after the first four years...but who's counting? Another factoid is that UCF is the second largest university in the FBS with over 53,500 students.

Didn't Hamilton get a redshirt last season? He barely played.

He tested much faster than the speed shown on Rivals (4.85). He now has breakaway speed and should be able to finish runs. Could develop into something special. If not Jimmerson, what is the status of Tyler Middleton? Has he visited? He's a little taller, not quite as heavy, has great speed and wants to come here. Until I see otherwise, I still hold out hope that David Cobb qualifies and joins the Mean Green.

He is a non-qualifier because he did not pass the required core curriculum subjects. That is supposedly because he went to the non-accredited prep school in Miami and those grades would not transfer. As a non-qualifier he cannot participate in organized practices. It used to be, and maybe still is, that partial qualifiers could participate in practice; just not play in a game. Partial qualifiers had to have passed all of their core curriculum and had a certain score on their SAT/ACT according to their high school grade point average.

There are climate changes all over the world. Some places get hotter and some places get colder. It's always been that way and it always will be. What disturbs me is that some say that the cause is manmade. We put less CO2 in the atmosphere than we did 75 years ago. Furthermore, we can't afford to spend trillions to maybe reduce the output of carbon dioxide by maybe 2%. Especially when countries such as China and Russia are doing little or nothing to reduce pollutants. We've already closed many of our factories and greatly reduced exhaust fumes by going to unleaded gas. There are also many noted meterologists that say global warming is bunk but they are no longer getting research dollars so they're comments are squashed. This crap is all about money.