Thoughts after attending SMU/Baylor

[emmitt01]

After going into "enemy territory" yesterday here are my takeaways:

1) SMU is a better team than they were last season.  They simply are.  At halftime of that game the Baylor contingent was stone silent.

2) Coaching matters.  Chad Morris exudes confidence and you can tell his team feeds off of it.  We need to get our shot in this year because, between Morris' charisma and Mac's lackluster recruiting, they could make this series pretty bleak.

3) Their quarterback is a REALLY good runner.  Whether it was a designed run or just taking off when the play broke down he took off and the Baylor linemen and linebackers couldn't keep up.  Cosh really, really, really, really, needs to do everything to make him into a passer because....

4) Their quarterback doesn't do much well other than run.  I would take our chances against him all day if we keep him in the pocket.  He is a one trick pony.  Make no mistake, I would take that one trick pony over any of the no trick ponies on our roster right now, but he is one-dimensional, so....

5) We had better tackle well.  When he did complete passes Baylor was abysmal at bringing the receivers down.  That is the only reason their offense was "explosive" for the first half.  Once Baylor tackled a little better they had their way with SMU.  Baylor's offense is FAR more explosive than ours, though I will say that...

6) That was not the #4 team in the country.  And I don't think TCU is the second best team in the country.  I'm calling it right now...the Big XII will be on the outside looking in again when the playoff selection committee puts out their final rankings. 

7) Getting back to our game, we can run on SMU.  We can't do it when we are going with two TE's and playing power football, but if we spread them out there are lanes to be had.  And we HAVE TO live up to the hype we have heard all off-season about going up tempo. 

8) That game last night may have guaranteed a sellout next Saturday.  SMU fans (all 400 of them) will be confident going into their game against us because of the first half they played against Baylor.  Their student section was pretty much empty until they scored to tie the game at 14.  Then, as if the few inside went to twitter to announce "we are tied 14-14...no, I mean it, come inside and look.  I'm not shitting you, we really don't suck, come look" the student section filled up almost to the brim.  (Of course it emptied back out at about 42-21) Their entitled mentality will lead them to expect we will roll over.  Add in the revenge factor (they are lying if they say 42-6 isn't fresh in their minds) and they will come out.  Add in the curious Dallasite, and NT fan, who hears about their improvement and we could approach a capacity crowd.  Still...

9) We will outnumber SMU fans in their own house.  Baylor was 60-70% of that crowd last night...and they really weren't that motivated to see their team play the lowly ponies.  Our fans care about (loathe) the glue factory and this is the first taste of NT football in nine months.  I fully expect that we will outnumber them by at least a 2:1 ratio. 

10) It will be a four quarters game.  We will NOT run away and hide from them, and we may have to weather an early storm that sees us go down a score or two.  It will be imperative that the typical NT library crowd not show up on Sep 12th.  We will need to stay behind our team to see a 2013 Rice type game.  And, in the end....

11) We will win.  I fully expect SMU to come out with a full head of steam early and for their (pathetic) crowd to get into the game.  Then, I think that SMU will be SMU and cough up the game.  1-0 going into the home opener against Rice.   

[Caw Caw]

Emmitt,

I appreciate the thoughts. I felt the same way just watching the highlights and updates. Baylor gave them confidence to carry over from hanging in the first half, plus revenge and their absolute hatred for us this could get nasty. I think the key is to stay home and don't allow the big play and we should win. I really really hope this is McNulty's year but i just don't have confidence in that.

[Withers940]

Tackling and sticking to your assignment is key to a UNT win

[emmitt01]

Hilarious...I'm already the subject of a thread on phonyfans.com   Apparently I'm delusional and they expect to win somewhere in the range of 40-17.  

 

Did I mention their first half performance might make them forget that they're still SMU?

[Harry]

http://www.ponyfans.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=78778&sid=3ae8bf56e419fd4c05c669e3d29527f4

[Aldo]

I'd like to remind them again about how we have a better win % since Apogee opened and a way better home win %. 

Also 43-6

Also they gave up 700 yards to Baylor. Double the output from SMU. 

Also Baylor did it in a full quarter less amount of time. 

[Side Show Joe]

Teams under new coaches tend to be all over the place early in the first season. I believe SMU will have a hard time matching the intensity and focus they showed for Baylor, and after last night, North Texas certainly understands they won't face the SMU team they whipped last season. That said, I do believe SMU has found a really good coach. Morris has certainly improved that team. It will be a close game next Saturday. I believe the team who's quarterback makes the fewest mistakes will win the game. I'm hoping it is us.

[Got5onIt]

So they think emmitt is really George Dunham? That is funny, but they know it can't be Jub Jub if he's not mentioning the BirdDogs Band in any posts....

Edited September 5, 2015 by Got5onIt

[Danish43]

Why do they still call us NTSU?

[dodgefan]

After going into "enemy territory" yesterday here are my takeaways:

1) SMU is a better team than they were last season.  They simply are.  At halftime of that game the Baylor contingent was stone silent.

2) Coaching matters.  Chad Morris exudes confidence and you can tell his team feeds off of it.  We need to get our shot in this year because, between Morris' charisma and Mac's lackluster recruiting, they could make this series pretty bleak.

3) Their quarterback is a REALLY good runner.  Whether it was a designed run or just taking off when the play broke down he took off and the Baylor linemen and linebackers couldn't keep up.  Cosh really, really, really, really, needs to do everything to make him into a passer because....

4) Their quarterback doesn't do much well other than run.  I would take our chances against him all day if we keep him in the pocket.  He is a one trick pony.  Make no mistake, I would take that one trick pony over any of the no trick ponies on our roster right now, but he is one-dimensional, so....

5) We had better tackle well.  When he did complete passes Baylor was abysmal at bringing the receivers down.  That is the only reason their offense was "explosive" for the first half.  Once Baylor tackled a little better they had their way with SMU.  Baylor's offense is FAR more explosive than ours, though I will say that...

6) That was not the #4 team in the country.  And I don't think TCU is the second best team in the country.  I'm calling it right now...the Big XII will be on the outside looking in again when the playoff selection committee puts out their final rankings. 

7) Getting back to our game, we can run on SMU.  We can't do it when we are going with two TE's and playing power football, but if we spread them out there are lanes to be had.  And we HAVE TO live up to the hype we have heard all off-season about going up tempo. 

8) That game last night may have guaranteed a sellout next Saturday.  SMU fans (all 400 of them) will be confident going into their game against us because of the first half they played against Baylor.  Their student section was pretty much empty until they scored to tie the game at 14.  Then, as if the few inside went to twitter to announce "we are tied 14-14...no, I mean it, come inside and look.  I'm not shitting you, we really don't suck, come look" the student section filled up almost to the brim.  (Of course it emptied back out at about 42-21) Their entitled mentality will lead them to expect we will roll over.  Add in the revenge factor (they are lying if they say 42-6 isn't fresh in their minds) and they will come out.  Add in the curious Dallasite, and NT fan, who hears about their improvement and we could approach a capacity crowd.  Still...

9) We will outnumber SMU fans in their own house.  Baylor was 60-70% of that crowd last night...and they really weren't that motivated to see their team play the lowly ponies.  Our fans care about (loathe) the glue factory and this is the first taste of NT football in nine months.  I fully expect that we will outnumber them by at least a 2:1 ratio. 

10) It will be a four quarters game.  We will NOT run away and hide from them, and we may have to weather an early storm that sees us go down a score or two.  It will be imperative that the typical NT library crowd not show up on Sep 12th.  We will need to stay behind our team to see a 2013 Rice type game.  And, in the end....

11) We will win.  I fully expect SMU to come out with a full head of steam early and for their (pathetic) crowd to get into the game.  Then, I think that SMU will be SMU and cough up the game.  1-0 going into the home opener against Rice.   

#1. Agree, this was the same talent that SMU had last year, with the exception of a handful of freshmen.

#2. Agree, I'm big into HS football and Chad Morris is the real deal. UNT better clip them this year, cause like it or not, that train is going to pull out of the station.

#8. Disagree, more SMU fans will show up for a season opener against a 4th ranked old rival, than NT...and you know it.

#9. UNT SHOULD bring more fans than Baylor, the alumni base and students in DFW dwarf that of Baylor's.

I peruse many fan websites, but I never seen one that is so obsessed, with admitted hatred and vitriol with one school...as UNT is with SMU....not even close.  Some posters such as emmitt, should seek professional counseling, it can't be healthy.

 

[emmitt01]

#1. Agree, this was the same talent that SMU had last year, with the exception of a handful of freshmen.

#2. Agree, I'm big into HS football and Chad Morris is the real deal. UNT better clip them this year, cause like it or not, that train is going to pull out of the station.

#8. Disagree, more SMU fans will show up for a season opener against a 4th ranked old rival, than NT...and you know it.

#9. UNT SHOULD bring more fans than Baylor, the alumni base and students in DFW dwarf that of Baylor's.

I peruse many fan websites, but I never seen one that is so obsessed, with admitted hatred and vitriol with one school...as UNT is with SMU....not even close.  Some posters such as emmitt, should seek professional counseling, it can't be healthy.

 

You are, from your handle, a Dodge fan.  Why, when that complete and total failure of a D1 coach is no longer in ANY way associated with Borth Texas, are you stll here?  Or do you simply troll to defend any/all teams made up of the entitled and self-indulged?  You have no dog in this fight and yet, still, here you are...now THAT is unhealthy.

Oh, and it us THEIR fans who predict 15,000 SMU fans will show up next Saturday.  That is far, far more than showed up last night.

Edited September 6, 2015 by emmitt01

[Got5onIt]

I'm curious to know what your avatar means? 

[dodgefan]

You are, from your handle, a Dodge fan.  Why, when that complete and total failure of a D1 coach is no longer in ANY way associated with Borth Texas, are you stll here?  Or do you simply troll to defend any/all teams made up of the entitled and self-indulged?  You have no dog in this fight and yet, still, here you are...now THAT is unhealthy.

Your response, just made my case. Todd is a good man and he brought his son to UNT, when he had other options. It didn't work out for Todd, but that's no reason to slander him. I was excited for Todd getting the NT job, and that was my sole reason for discovering and joining this site, I've never bothered to change my handle. I enjoy seeing all Texas teams do well, especially locally, but I still can't understand, why you guys ignore the great success of TCU. Like I stated, I peruse many sites, I have a feeling, (besides ponyfans) you can not say the same.

[emmitt01]

Your response, just made my case. Todd is a good man and he brought his son to UNT, when he had other options. It didn't work out for Todd, but that's no reason to slander him. I was excited for Todd getting the NT job, and that was my sole reason for discovering and joining this site, I've never bothered to change my handle. I enjoy seeing all Texas teams do well, especially locally, but I still can't understand, why you guys ignore the great success of TCU. Like I stated, I peruse many sites, I have a feeling, (besides ponyfans) you can not say the same.

I'm sorry you don't see a 13% winning percentage as complete and total failure.  I have much higher standards for coaches who lead my alma mater's football team.  You agree with the YMCA generation I guess.  Not a slight, just an observation.

And I'm not sure who is ignoring TCU's success.  They didn't play like a #2 team....again, it's not that hard to comprehend.  

You are right about one thing though.  I don't peruse other fan sites...we don't play any of those teams for the next 50 years straight.

Edited September 6, 2015 by emmitt01

[GreenBat]

I peruse many fan websites, but I never seen one that is so obsessed, with admitted hatred and vitriol with one school...as UNT is with SMU....not even close.  Some posters such as emmitt, should seek professional counseling, it can't be healthy.

 

You must not look at the Texas, Texas A&M, Kansas, K State, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State fan websites. Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Florida St., Georgia, Georgia Tech. There are more, but I'm getting tired of proving you are delusional.

[JRock]

You must not look at the Texas, Texas A&M, Kansas, K State, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State fan websites. Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Florida St., Georgia, Georgia Tech. There are more, but I'm getting tired of proving you are delusional.

LSU, Alabama, Auburn, Georgia.....we can go on and on. 

[UNT90]

#1. Agree, this was the same talent that SMU had last year, with the exception of a handful of freshmen.

#2. Agree, I'm big into HS football and Chad Morris is the real deal. UNT better clip them this year, cause like it or not, that train is going to pull out of the station.

#8. Disagree, more SMU fans will show up for a season opener against a 4th ranked old rival, than NT...and you know it.

#9. UNT SHOULD bring more fans than Baylor, the alumni base and students in DFW dwarf that of Baylor's.

I peruse many fan websites, but I never seen one that is so obsessed, with admitted hatred and vitriol with one school...as UNT is with SMU....not even close.  Some posters such as emmitt, should seek professional counseling, it can't be healthy.

 

Emmitt is so obsessed he goes to SMU home games when the opponent isn't UNT. 

Several a year. 

SMU is nothing but another bad OOC opponent that RV has scheduled through the year 2247. 

Nothing more, nothing less.

[Side Show Joe]

Teams under new coaches tend to be all over the place early in the first season. I believe SMU will have a hard time matching the intensity and focus they showed for Baylor, and after last night, North Texas certainly understands they won't face the SMU team they whipped last season. That said, I do believe SMU has found a really good coach. Morris has certainly improved that team. It will be a close game next Saturday. I believe the team who's quarterback makes the fewest mistakes will win the game. I'm hoping it is us.

It wasn't us, but we can't blame it all on the QB position. There were plenty of other factors that contributed to our weak offensive performance. Starting RB Jeffery Wilson was out with a broken finger, standout TE Marcus Smith was hurt, and backup RB Jimmerson and standout WR Carlos Harris were not available in the 1st quarter because of rule violations. Too many experienced skill position players were hurt or out during this game. Not a great formula for success.

Some of those issues will improve over the next few weeks. Wilson should return after the Rice game. I believe Jimmerson and Harris will stay out of Mac's doghouse (though Harris might hear from Mac after going after fans that contribute to his scholarship). Hopefully Smith's leg will respond well to treatment and he will be back at 100% soon. I fully expect some areas of our offense to improve. Honest fans know some other areas likely won't improve very much. I will only add one suggestion... If we can't move the ball, we should slow down our fast paced offense, so the defense can get a little more rest.

Having said that... I want to give our defense and special teams their due. They played exceptional for most of the night, and kept us in the game into the 4th quarter. Time and time again the D was put in difficult situations and made big stops. Special teams did a good job in the kicking game and on coverage. Cosh and his D deserves some credit for a strong first outing. They played well enough to win this game. Can Cosh coach offense too?