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2012 SEASON IN REVIEW: Although it won four straight league titles upon entering, North Texas did not have a gracious exit from the Sun Belt Conference. The Mean Green played a very tough non-conference schedule and won one less game than in 2011. Coach Dan McCarney took the Cyclones to the bowl season in five of his final seven seasons at Iowa State. He has compiled a 9-15 record in two years with the Mean Green. North Texas began its season with a lopsided, 41-14 loss at LSU. It downed Texas State, 34-7, the following week to climb back to the .500 mark. The Mean Green then lost two in a row, to Kansas State (35-21) and Troy (14-7). They beat Florida Atlantic, 20-14, on the road, but could not repeat that success the following week at Houston (44-21). North Texas went 2-4 the rest of the way, with victories over Louisiana (30-23) and South Alabama (24-14), and losses to Middle Tennessee (38-21), Arkansas State (37-19), ULM (42-16) and Western Kentucky (25-24). North Texas's 4-8 record made it ineligible for a bowl bid. It has not played in a bowl game since 2004, which is also the last year it claimed a conference title. 2013 ANALYSIS: OFFENSE: North Texas was an average team offensively last season, finishing 51st in rushing (173.1 yards per game), 72nd in passing (219.1), but produced just the 103rd most points, at 20.9 points per contest. Senior Derek Thompson is the leading candidate the start under center for the third straight opener. He passed for 2,629 yards with 14 touchdowns last season. Offensive coordinator Mike Canales may consider other options at quarterback if Thompson struggles. He has a pair of intriguing backups in Andrew McNulty and Brock Berglund to consider. Whichever passer is dropping back will utilize senior wideout Brelan Chancellor, who racked up 450 yards and five touchdowns on 25 catches in 2012. Darnell Smith (379 yards, 28 catches) and Carlos Harris (253 yards, 19 catches) are a couple of additional options in the aerial attack. Senior tight end Drew Miller (131 yards, 18 catches) is an above average blocker for his position. He will be a help to the offensive line that returns Antonio Johnson (6-5, 311), Mason Y'Barbo (6-2, 309) and Cyril Lemon (6-3, 321), who all started last season as sophomores. The Mean Green led the nation in sacks allowed, giving up just a half-sack per game. "As a quarterback I always want to make sure the offensive line has some experience," said Canales. "The consistency and the continuity that we have offensive line wise provides a lot of strength for the quarterback game. They feel confident in the guys up front." Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/sns-tsn-afn-ntexas-outlook-20130819,0,807292.story