Side.Show.Joe

The 50 was good against the option 40 years ago. But, offenses are much faster and multiple now. The 50 just can't hold up when offenses (even Navy) stretch the field. I can almost guarantee you than UNT will not feature it beyond this game. If Navy starts running play actions against this 50, we will get into trouble.

Great TD run by Rogers. Morris is running a variation of the 50 defense, which is better than the 3-3-5. Basically, it's what teams ran 40 years ago when every offense was some version of the option. My concern is that it won't hold for 4 quarters and it will give up some deep balls.

I've watched us play every game too. Not all of the 4-man fronts we run are equal. Morris tends to lump them together when comparing them against our 3-man fronts. But, when we run a 4-down lineman front we are a more successful defense. We also run a 4-man front with two down linemen and two standing ends (that are too light and get drove back on run plays). That front gets beat just like the 3-man front. You can go back and watch the tape. It's all right there.

I'm used to it. Like others, I gripped for a while about how Littrell needed to be fired. Some things are just obvious.

Of course his sins would be forgiven. He already atoned for his offensive wrongdoing. But, the only way UNT beats Navy tomorrow is if Morris runs a 4-down linemen front for the majority of the game, which he has yet to commit to doing.

Every G5 programs loses their best players to the portal. That's not an excuse either. Last year's defense was bad, but it wasn't the worst in all of the FBS bad. I refuse to believe it's just too late and we have to accept that our defense is trash. The complaining will continue until substantive changes are made. Morris could reassign Caponi and bring in a different coach with a fresh take on how to improve with our current personnel. There is talent on the offensive side that isn't seeing the field. Athletes are athletes. Some of those bodies can be moved to the defensive side and maybe push for playing time. And, the 3-3-5 doesn't have to be our base scheme. 4-down linemen on defense is still more effective in most situation. Beyond the fact that they wasted too much valuable time, I don't care that they spent the spring installing the 3-3-5. It doesn't work with the players we have. The Bye week and the ACU game should have provided them enough time to reset and get something better in place. They chose not to. Now, we are probably about to give up historic rushing numbers to Navy. That will be on Morris too.

Solid? We are a long way from solid. Middle of the pack is solid. We are the worst in the FBS. At this point we just want a defense that isn't a complete embarrassment. We brought back a large portion of our production from last season's C-USA Championship Game team. The same team that came within 3 points of beating Boise State in the Fresco Bowl. There is no logical reason to make excuses for being the worst defense in all of the FBS. If we lack the talent to field a respectable defense, than that is on Morris and Caponi. They had the offseason and the portal to go out and get the players they needed. There are no magical excuses that change those facts. You can't have it both ways. You can't say he needs to have his personnel in place, and ignore the fact that he chose not to bring in the players when he could have got them.

Morris seems like a down to earth guy, and I like him personally. But, as a coach, I think he's in over his head a little. Until he steps up and actually figures out how to address the defensive failings, UNT will continue to struggle for wins. And he will be no better than an average coach, at best. Most of these Leach coaches struggle to field real defenses. That's why most get fired and end up back as OC's. I was really hoping Morris would be different. It's not too late yet. But it is his choice to make.

I'm not a fan of Dilfer's behavior yesterday. Sure they made a bad mistake, but making a spectacle of himself in the middle of the game is a bad look for their program. If I'm a recruit or the parent of a recruit, that wouldn't sit well with me. I'd never want to see Morris berate coaches or players on the sideline like that. In my opinion, Morris should have dealt with Caponi during the bye week. But as we can see from the defensive performance last night, he did not.

His job. As head coach, it's his responsibility to insure we don't have the worst of anything in all of the FBS. For 5 straight weeks we have endured the worst overall defense in the FBS, No FBS defense is giving up more points, or rushing yards. We are entering the 6th week of the season. Practicing tackling and running a few other defensive looks on the field isn't working (ACU should never be able to score 31 on UNT's defense). It is obvious to everyone paying attention that the 3-3-5 shouldn't be our base defense. Can UNT use it in situations? Sure. But, it isn't working as our standard scheme. This season doesn't have to be a loss. Caponi doesn't have to continue as our defensive coordinator. He has failed at the job. Morris needs to reassign him for the rest of the season, and promote or bring in a coach with successful experience as a DC. Our offense is among the best in college football, and can probably post big numbers on most of the other AAC teams. Unfortunately, our offense is currently preforming double duty as our best defense too, and Morris needs to acknowledge that fact and make the adjustments so that the defense will pull their own weight on this team. Rogers is good at keeping our defense off the field by managing the short passing game and sustaining drives with his feet and our running game. Imagine what this offense could do if they were free to push the tempo and stretch the defenses more. Unfortunately, our lack of defense prevents our offense from being as good as they could be. As long as Morris allows this gameplan to mask the failing of our defense, then he is choosing to shortchange half of his team and the Mean Green fans. I hope I've answered you question.

The UNT defense has allowed a 100 yard rusher in each of our games this season. Navy is going to smoke Morris' defense (Can't blame Caponi anymore. Morris is the one allowing this to continue, so he owns it now).

I expect to beat teams like Rice or Tulsa by a score of 45-31. Not ACU. No where near good enough tonight. Navy is 1-3 right now, and licking their chops at the thought of whaling on our defense next Saturday. The Mean Green offense will have to score 70, because the UNT defense is trash. If this is the best our defense can play, then we might not win a conference game this season. FIX THIS CRAP MORRIS!!!!!!!!!!!

Dodge was bad with the defensive side too. We all know how that turned out. This defense makes Mendoza's look respectable.

Until Morris actually fixes this defensive mess, only the offense should be addressed as Mean Green. There is nothing "Mean" about Caponi's defense. We can just call them the UNT defense.

Yeah, I refuse to believe that our defensive talent is this bad. So it has to be the coaching and scheme.

Caponi's defense is still trash. Allowing an FCS team to score 10 straight points to close out the Half in our home is unacceptable. More should have been done in the off week. Navy is going to shred this Caponi defense next Saturday. We need a better scheme.

As much as our defense frustrates me, our offense is amazing with Rogers running it.

We have to be able to get more pressure on that QB, without committing more players up front.

You need ESPN+.

Every snap of that opening drive, we ran a 3-down linemen front. Sad.

ACU runs 5 plays, drove the field and got a touchdown on their opening drive. Thanks Caponi.

Thanks. Like I said, I just want to gain a better understanding of the different opinions around here. I know I'm not perfect and if I'm off, I want to be corrected. I have no desire to spew ignorance.

Not going to lie... I thought this was going to be thread about Caponi.

Thanks. Yeah, I can handle views other than my own. If anyone has a different take, I'm open to considering their perspective. Who knows, they may even change my mind, or at the very least give me a reason to value and defend their opinion, even if I disagree with it. And, I didn't eyeroll you either. But, I did give you a +1 to try and negate it.

I don't care if my comments are down voted or if you choose to give me an eyeroll. To each their own... But, if you are one of the posters that gave those responses, I'd honestly like to know your counter position to my argument. If there is a flaw in my logic, I'd appreciate it if you would point it out to me.