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DENTON Dan McCarney paused and his voice cracked Saturday night as the emotion welled up inside while he spoke about a relationship that has helped shape his career and his life. John Skladany has been McCarneys defensive coordinator and right-hand man for 13 years, 10 at Iowa State and the last three at North Texas, an era that will end with Skladanys impending retirement at the end of the season. That milestone drew closer after Skladany delivered a vintage performance in a 17-14 win over Florida International in the Mean Greens final home game of the season at Apogee Stadium. Read more: http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/college-sports/unt-mean-green/20141122-north-texas-gets-emotional-win-in-home-finale-thanks-to-performance-by-retiring-coordinator.ece This post has been promoted to an article

Evan and Harry welcome back Ashton Campbell creator of Beyond the Green to recap the very disappointing UNT loss at El Paso as well as saying goodbye to our seniors in the final home game this Saturday at Apogee versus FIU. We also say goodbye to the great John Skladany and look at other odds and ends as the team closes out the season. http://www.gomeangreen.com/forums/podcast/gmgpod141.mp3 Click here for the direct audio link This post has been promoted to an article

UNT defensive coordiantor John Skladany is retiring at the end of the season, a story we covered on the blog and in the paper today. The question now is the impact his departure will make and where UNT goes from here. As far as the impact of Skladany’s departure goes, it’s huge. UNT’s players talked about the connection they have with him and the impact he has made on the program. The guy is just a good football coach. I got some of what UNT’s players had to say in the paper. They unanimously like and respect Skladany. Read more: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2014/11/thoughts-on-skladanys-departure-where-unt-goes-from-here.html/

If you haven't watched the series you should as I think it gives great insight into what a great coach and person John Skladany is. I hope that Ashton will do a special segment on Skladany to honor his outstanding career. Thank you Coach Skladany for your contributions to our program. We wish you only the best. GMG

Are we interpreting one bad performance as indicative of an entire season. Hear me out. We had some nasty defensive performances last season. Ohio comes to mind but Tulane was right up there. I tend to think Skladany, Patrick and the other coaches will help these guys rebound or find others who are more willing to make plays. Bottomline -- I have not yet given up on this defense. If UAB schools us I reserve the right to change my mind. GMG PS Kenny Buyers and James Jones are better than what they showed against IU. There are others.

http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2014/04/mgb-video-john-skladany-talks-about-the-progress-of-unts-defense.html/

Charting the improvement North Texas has made under Dan McCarney starts by charting the improvement on defense. In his three years as head coach, the unit assigned with stopping the ball has made remarkable progress. Opponents scored nearly 31 points per game in McCarney's first season. That number dropped about a field goal in Year 2. Through 12 games this season, North Texas has allowed just 18.1 point - the school's best showing in 11 years. That ranked first in Conference USA and ninth in the country. The Mean Green allowed just 14.0 points in league games. North Texas gave up 10 or fewer points in four games going into the Heart of Dallas Bowl presented by PlainsCapital Bank on New Year's Day against UNLV. "Defensively we were in the bottom 10 in the country when I took this job three years ago," McCarney said. "Understand the leadership of John Skladany we've made dramatic improvement. We had to and needed to, and we've done that." Skladany (pictured) is entering his second season as defensive coordinator, ending a run of three defensive coordinators in three years. That consistency in message, plus the return of UNT's top-six tacklers from last season, proved the catalyst to such dramatic improvement across the board. North Texas is first nationally in Red Zone Defense (60.6 percent), 27th in total defensive (355.5 yards per game), 18th in rushing defense (125.1), 29th in passing efficiency defense (117.4), 14th in first downs allowed (17.7) and 15th in turnover margin (plus-0.8). Senior linebacker/team captain Zach Orr and senior safety Marcus Trice have earned plenty of headlines this season, and with good reason. Orr, an all-Conference USA selection, led UNT with 113 total tackles (51 unassisted) to rank 28th in the country. Trice led the team with five interceptions and eight pass breakups, and his 83 tackles rank third. "Zach Orr is our leader," McCarney said. "Marcus Trice has had an all-conference year as a safety. We have a lot of guys. We play a lot of guys and rotate and try and stay fresh. We've made some tremendous improvement on defense." North Texas ranked third in the country with 32 forced turnovers, and nabbed at least one takeaway in every game. The Mean Green had at least one interception in the last seven games and 10 of the last 11. UNT was 6-1 in games when winning the turnover battled and 0-2 with losing it. Though they may not get the same recognition as some of their more decorated teammates, the job done in the trenches can't be overlooked. Senior defensive end Aaron Bellazin led the squad with 7.5 sacks. The defense took down opposing quarterbacks 34 times, which was 18th nationally and the most at North Texas since 2002. "The defensive line is the most overlooked unit on our team," Orr said. "They are a big reason we are having success defensively. They are getting pressure on the quarterback and holding up against the run." If North Texas is fortunate enough to hold up the Heart of Dallas Bowl trophy at the Cotton Bowl Stadium, count on more than a few hands coming from the defense. Art Garcia, the Assistant Athletics Director for Communications for UT Arlington, has spent nearly 20 years as a sportswriter. He's worked for NBA.com, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the San Antonio Express-News and the Bryan-College Station Eagle. Garcia has also written for FoxSportsSouthwest.com, ESPNDallas.com, CBSSports.com, in addition to other national websites and magazines.

North Texas linebacker Zach Orr could hardly believe the subject his defensive coordinator brought up earlier this year. Orr and his teammates have always marveled at the breadth of John Skladany’s knowledge when it comes to football and a whole lot else. The senior just never expected the 65-year-old college football lifer to bring up pop-culture sensation Miley Cyrus. “He mentioned that she did something crazy,” Orr said. “We all thought, ‘What? How does he know about her?’ “That’s what makes him so special to play for — he has that connection with us. He knows the rappers we listen to and can relate to us. That’s what we find too funny. We are like, ‘Coach knows about this kind of stuff?’” UNT’s players realized long ago that Skladany knows a lot about football — particularly defense — in addition to what might be on their girlfriends’ MP3 players. It’s Skladany’s football knowledge and his ability to connect with his players that have allowed him to lead a defensive renaissance at UNT that is at the heart of its turnaround season. UNT hasn’t allowed more than 16 points in a game while ripping off five straight victories heading into a game against Texas-San Antonio on Saturday at Apogee Stadium. That run has the Mean Green rolling at 7-3 and well on its way to ending an eight-year bowl drought. The journey has been a rewarding one for Skladany, who has rebuilt UNT’s defense while working with Mean Green head coach Dan McCarney for the second time in his career. Read more: http://www.dentonrc.com/sports/colleges/north-texas-headlines/20131120-football-staying-connected.ece

After hearing the announcer mention that Skladany broke his white board in two after one of the really poor defensive series... well...

And in other news, UNT defensive coordinator John Skladany was in the office of Denton Ryan defensive coordinator and former UNT assistant Conroy Hines today. Smart move. Joey Florence and the Ryan Raiders are the unofficial suppliers of defensive linemen to the Big 12 and SEC. Think I’m kidding? Here’s a list of a few of the guys who have come through Ryan the last few years: Jarvis Moss (Florida), Mario Edwards (Florida State), Derek Lokey (Texas), Dominique Banks (Baylor), I could go on. Read more on specific offers: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2013/05/thursday-afternoon-football-recruiting-notes.html/

UNT will host one of the top linebackers in the state this weekend in Sherman’s Kahlee Woods. The 6-foot-0, 235-pound honorable mention all-state selection has already visited New Mexico and Colorado State and will visit Texas Tech on Feb. 1. Woods plans to take all his visits and carefully consider his options before making a final decision, but enters his visit to UNT with a high opinion of the school and the direction of the program. “I like everything that is going on at North Texas,” Woods said. “It’s booming right now. I played in their new stadium and felt what the atmosphere is like. We won that game. Maybe it’s a sign.” Sherman played Rockwall Heath in the playoffs at Apogee Stadium last season, when Woods earned first-team all-district honors for the second straight year. The proximity of Sherman to UNT and Woods friendship with UNT cornerback Zac Whitfield could give UNT an edge when it comes to its efforts to land Woods. Whitfield and Woods worked out together over the holiday break and played together at Sherman. Read more: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2013/01/woods-talks-about-unt-visit-and-thursday-afternoon-football-notes.html/