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Sources with knowledge of the UAB search, view Vincent as a candidate; but not at the top of the list – despite formally interviewing this week for the top spot on a permanent basis. Where does the UAB search seem pointed? Bryant Vincent has guided the Blazers to a chance at bowl eligibility, despite the sudden flux in the preseason, heading into Saturday’s regular-season finale at Louisiana Tech. Well, to the professional ranks. Seriously. In fact, multiple sources tell FootballScoop that USFL head coach Skip Holtz, leader of the Birmingham Stallions, has emerged as a central target in the Blazers’ search for their next head coach. However, other candidates and factors are still being considered. link to more: https://footballscoop.com/news/an-sec-assistant-sitting-head-coaches-and-a-pro-coach-in-mix-with-uab-blazers-coaching-search

“North Texas has a different team than they did a year ago,” Louisiana Tech head coach Skip Holtz said Tuesday. “A year ago, they had a great tailback, they were featuring him, had a young sophomore quarterback. They were running the ball more, they were in bigger sets. “This year, you’re seeing them more in four-wides, they put more speed on the field. They spread the field throwing the ball a lot more. A year ago, they had a senior tailback that was their workhorse and they were feeding him. You could load the box more. This year it’s more pass-first, run-second and that’s one of the reasons they’re putting up so many points because they’re making people play in space. I don’t think you can take last year’s results and compare it to this year’s team because it’s completely different what they’re featuring. Fine is a year older, he is now the king of the hill and the feature of that offense. He’s doing a nice job.” read more: https://www.thenewsstar.com/story/sports/college/louisiana-tech/2018/09/25/louisiana-tech-preps-different-north-texas-team/1425957002/

North Texas opens Conference USA play against Louisiana Tech at 7 p.m. at Apogee Stadium. Here’s a quick scouting report of the Bulldogs: Record: 1-1 (beat Louisiana-Lafayette 40-28 on Saturday) Key number: 13-5 (UNT’s record at Apogee Stadium under Dan McCarney) 1. This isn’t the same Louisiana Tech team UNT head coach Dan McCarney pointed out in his press conference this week that this isn’t the same Louisiana Tech team UNT beat 28-13 in Ruston a year ago. The Bulldogs are in their second season under Skip Holtz and seem to have turned a corner. Louisiana Tech looked capable in a season-opening loss to Oklahoma and turned around and hammered Louisiana-Lafayette, one of the best teams in the Sun Belt, in its second game of the year. Posting another win over Louisiana Tech will be a challenge. Read more: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2014/09/five-things-unt-fans-should-know-about-louisiana-tech.html/

"Two key games in our season are last week and this week," Holtz said at Monday's press conference. "We talked about the importance of these two games. That is why playing the way we did last week is a great mark on how focused they are." Tech (1-1) took care of part one of the Holtz's statement, but the second half is arguably an even bigger challenge. The win over UL Lafayette was huge for recruiting and in-state bragging rights, but a 1-0 start in conference play is much more desirable. Plus, a 2-1 record for a trio of road games in 13 days is something Holtz wouldn't mind. North Texas (1-1) was picked to win the C-USA West and is coming off a 43-6 win over SMU. Read more: http://www.thenewsstar.com/story/sports/college/louisiana-tech/2014/09/09/tech-enters-third-leg-schedule-gauntlet/15369707/

RUSTON — When Louisiana Tech’s 2014 football schedule was officially released this month, the clamor could be heard across the I-20 corridor. Broken up into two parts, the second half of Tech’s season is a complete 180 from the first part, which might as well be dubbed “murderers’ row.” Tech opens the season against perennial Big 12 power Oklahoma, fresh off its thumping of Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, then, weeks later, travels to Auburn, an equally dangerous team that nearly won the national championship in January. Sandwiched in between is a trip to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and the Conference USA opener at North Texas. The grueling start to the season even made its way into Manny Diaz’s press conference last week when he was introduced as defensive coordinator. “The opportunity to start out playing against Oklahoma will be a great challenge to our guys, and playing Auburn at Auburn,” Diaz said. “That’s an offense that I’ve gone up against, and that will be great for our guys. As a competitor, that’s what you want to do. You want to challenge yourself in those hostile environments.” Oh, and the Bulldogs do catch somewhat of a break when Northwestern State of the Football Championship Subdivision comes to Ruston in September, but that’s neither here nor there. Read more: http://www.shreveporttimes.com/article/20140220/SPORTS0203/302210001/Louisiana-Tech-balances-monetary-competitive-benefits-football-scheduling

“Looking at North Texas, I am really impressed with this football team and what they are doing on film right now. I start with their staff and I have great respect for Dan McCarney and the success he has had. He is a first class individual and he has done a good job of building that program at North Texas. You can see as he is getting into multi years that they are getting better and better fundamentally, recruiting wise and upgrading their talent. Right now, they are really playing well together as a football team.” “When you look at them on offense with Mike Canales as their offensive coordinator, and I was the offensive coordinator the year he was at Arizona. He had a little quarterback at NC State named Phillip Rivers. He has developed some great talent. He is a great football coach with a good mind. I have had the opportunity to be around him a little bit in this business and I have great respect for him and Mike Simmonds, the offensive line coach, and Michael Grant, the wide receivers coach. I have a lot of history with a lot of guys on this staff on offense.” “I am really impressed with what they are doing now. When you look at them as an offense, I would say balance is the key. They have had games where they have thrown for 300 yards and games where they run for 300 yards. I think they are playing really well right now as an offense and are doing some things to put up some yards and points on the board. They have a quarterback who is completing 68 percent of his passes. He is a third-year starter. He has an awful lot of experience and a great head on his shoulders.” “Mike Simmonds’ offensive line returns four starters off last year’s team. They are playing really well together and you can see just the way they are communicating, turning back, picking up blitzes and protecting the quarterback.” “Their running back is by committee. They have about three guys that carry the load with the ball for them. They are always keeping fresh guys in there at running back and then with wide receivers, they have some big-play receivers. I will talk a little bit more about (Brelan) Chancellor when I get to the special teams, but he is a big-play guy that they will put at receiver, in the back field and throw him the ball. They will throw him the ball as many different times as the can in many different situations. They have a very good, sound offensive scheme. I think they are very fundamentally sound and hard-nosed and a very physical group with an experienced quarterback.” “When you look at them on defense and what (defensive coordinator) John Skladany has done with them defensively, you can see the progress they have made from the beginning of the season to where they are now. They are a very simple team in what they do in that they are a 4-3 based defense with quarter coverage. They have held their last two opponents to seven points. Defensively, they held Middle Tennessee to seven. They also held Tulane to seven, but Tulane had two pick-sixes for 14 points to win that game 24-21.” “I think defensively they are really playing well. I talked about them being physical and fundamentally sound. As I said, Skladany is really doing an awfully good job with them on the defensive side of the ball. They play an awful lot of people. I do not think it is about one superstar as much as it is the power of the pack when you talk about them as a defensive football team. “Statistically, they are a little bit gaudy when you look at them, especially in their last two conference games. One of the great things Conference USA does to try and get a good evaluation of the entire conference is they keep statistics of just conference games, not everyone we play because we have played such a wide variety of non-conference opponents. When you look at this defense, they are first in total defense, scoring defense, passing defense and first-down defense. When you look at what they are doing as a defensive football team, they are ranked in the top three in almost every statistical category from a conference play standpoint. I have really been impressed with what they have done defensively.” “Coach McCarney has done a really good job of building this program up. I know Frank Wintrich, their strength coach, we were together at South Florida and I have great respect for him and the job he does and I have a lot of respect for this program. I think it is up and coming. I think they are in the same boat we are. They are excited about having the opportunity to play in Conference USA with where we are both trying to go with this program.” “I think it will be a great challenge for us Saturday, but one we are looking forward to after having the opportunity to have an open date and get that fundamental work. Not only for the coaches itching to get back into game week and ready to play a game, but I think these players are pretty excited about getting back into the season. I do not think they want to go through another open date and some of the things we did fundamentally this week. We are really looking forward to the challenge, having the opportunity to be here at homecoming and for me, experience my first homecoming here at Louisiana Tech and we are excited about the week.” - See more at: http://www.sportsnola.com/sports/local-sports-news/louisiana-tech-news/600759-louisiana-tech-weekly-press-conference-transcript-oct-14.html#sthash.JtcIesPg.dpuf