Disappointed with Mac

[GrandGreen]

For the purposes of talking about how Mac caused us to be in such a hole, talent-wise, his offensive strategy was completely unappealing to recruits. The only kids he could get here were either of two types: kids with questionable character or kids with less talent. That talent never got developed into anything better and the character of the roster showed its ass with the Portland State fiasco.

The sooner this roster is completely turned over, as well as the entire coaching staff, the sooner we will have a chance to move forward. And that isn't counting the colossal handicap of the worst AD in America. The next coach will need two seasons just to flush the $hit around here down the toilet. Maybe there are some usable parts, but our recruiting rankings tell us that what has occurred shouldn't be a surprise at all. When you finish dead-ass last in FBS recruiting, as we did in 2014, you should be awful. And have we ever seen just how awful we can be with these results. That's all on McCarney...

While I agree in general, there are some very good young players on this team; just not nearly enough.  Any coach is going to hit on a few good players, so this is not any kind of endorsement for Mc's recruiting.   However there are some quality players coming back next year as well as many who are not FB division talent but have gave all they got.  I believe there is a sound nucleus of players to build on and believe with the right hires, this is not going to take a complete turnover to return to competitiveness.   

Football is a game were emotions matter, and a team that gets down is going to look a lot worse than their talent level.  NT doesn't play in a P5 conference, it easier to get competitive than many think.  Look back to NT's bowl win year, the best teams were Rice, UTSA and UNT in the West.  USM and La tech were horrible.  Now two years later, the field as reversed.   

[SilverEagle]

A question I have heard, but not on this site .... How much was Mac impacted by the stroke he suffered before the 2014 season? Yes, I get the recruiting and possibly not seeing any QB's except McNulty, but was the stroke a factor?

I've wondered about this most of the spring and fall. And you have to also include the total loss of one of his eyes when considering this issue. Both of those events can be very distracting/depressing. Especially to someone who has always been a very "fit" and dynamic person. I lost the hearing in one ear over ten years ago. I can hear perfectly well with the other ear, but losing that one ear severely compromises my ability to tell where sound/conversation is coming from if it's not directly in front of me. I have also lost the ability to sort out background noise when I'm outside and someone is trying to talk to me. 

As a coach you do most, if not all, of your assessments with your eyes. He may have one perfectly good eye, but it's just not the same, and drawing from my own experience....... neither is he. 

[Side Show Joe]

I know after someone leaves a job, that person usually gets blamed for a lot of problems after they leave.  So I try not to do that in most cases. 

After watching this MUTS game, I can't help but feel a real sting of disappointment with Coach Mac.  All the promises, all of the commitments, good assistant compensation, great facilities and yet under his reign we have fallen so far.  We are getting beat in our own conference by middle of the pack teams as if we were playing body bag games.  Honestly, I think Dickey and Dodge left us with more to work with and had MUCH less resources and compensation.  And now we have to convince a good coach to come in and clean up this mess.  Knowing that we will pay Mac 2.1 million in the buyout just makes it worse.

Sorry to vent but I feel he has been able to sort of disappear stage left without much taking much responsibility for this fiasco.

 

You are right. Mac has managed to escape the majority of the blame for our current situation.

I think there are a few reasons for that. First, our QB situation has been a sore spot among the fanbase, and now our QB coach, is running the show. And second, many in the fan base and on this board believe Mac was only part of the equation, and that the leadership in the athletic department is the root of our problem.

[UNT90]

This disappoints me too -- Mac used to talk up the walk-on program as a thing of pride.  When we had Fouts and were in the Sun Belt it was critical.  When he arrived here we had better facilities and conference so he had a better chance to build the roster with scholarship players.  The goal was not supposed to make it 1/3rd of our roster.  So instead of it being a thing of pride, it became a crutch to hide his recruiting deficiencies.

I know the way Mac was fired was tough and I know he handled the firing with class.  But does that mean we have to give him a pass on this disaster?  I don't think so.  I am grateful for the bowl win in 2013.  However, the more I think about it, the more I think he may have squandered more opportunities for the program than Dickey or Dodge did when they were here.

We also shouldn't give the athletic director a pass on another dreadful hire.

But there is no mention of his culpability in this thread.

[aztecskin]

We also shouldn't give the athletic director a pass on another dreadful hire.

But there is no mention of his culpability in this thread.

Because that has been done in every other thread. Including the won where we were praising the women's coach. 

[EagleMBA]

We also shouldn't give the athletic director a pass on another dreadful hire.

But there is no mention of his culpability in this thread.

Here is a snippet of RV's negotiating posture...

A new UNT Head Coach is on the way! Just like that!

[Ben Gooding]

I've wondered about this most of the spring and fall. And you have to also include the total loss of one of his eyes when considering this issue. Both of those events can be very distracting/depressing. Especially to someone who has always been a very "fit" and dynamic person. I lost the hearing in one ear over ten years ago. I can hear perfectly well with the other ear, but losing that one ear severely compromises my ability to tell where sound/conversation is coming from if it's not directly in front of me. I have also lost the ability to sort out background noise when I'm outside and someone is trying to talk to me. 

As a coach you do most, if not all, of your assessments with your eyes. He may have one perfectly good eye, but it's just not the same, and drawing from my own experience....... neither is he. 

Actually, his career record and his record are on par with each other. He's a bad coach. Always has been. His eyes didn't change his career record. Nothing will. 

Because that has been done in every other thread. Including the won where we were praising the women's coach. 

Yeah, that OU win was an aberration. Texas State says hello. 

 

I would bet a lot of people are hoping for everything North Texas to fail on order to push RV out the door. I know I subconsciously am. I'm at the point where I root all things North Texas, but if we lose I just shrug my shoulders and tell myself there is a silver lining in all of the losing. RV will eventually be shoved out the door. So a shruggin' I go. Smastrek still not publicly say 1 single word? No? No surprise there. 

#itisinfactallajoke 

[EagleMBA]

 I would bet a lot of people are hoping for everything North Texas to fail on order to push RV out the door. I know I subconsciously am. I'm at the point where I root all things North Texas, but if we lose I just shrug my shoulders and tell myself there is a silver lining in all of the losing. RV will eventually be shoved out the door. So a shruggin' I go. Smastrek still not publicly say 1 single word? No? No surprise there. 

#itisinfactallajoke 

Smatty is quickly burning through his political capital with me. I thought we could expect to see some action from him on all fronts but I am not seeing much.

[Graddean]

Harry is on target.  As we know, McCarney was a bad hire, but not because he of lack of support.  RV got us into a better conference, helped to provide Apogee, more money for coaches, a dedicated strength and conditioning coach.  In return Mac selected his coaches, oversaw recruiting, approved training programs, and approved game plans.  You can blame RV for the hire,but game day performance goes to the fet of Mac.

[Ben Gooding]

Harry is on target.  As we know, McCarney was a bad hire, but not because he of lack of support.  RV got us into a better conference, helped to provide Apogee, more money for coaches, a dedicated strength and conditioning coach.  In return Mac selected his coaches, oversaw recruiting, approved training programs, and approved game plans.  You can blame RV for the hire,but game day performance goes to the fet of Mac.

Yeah, I guess executives get cut slack all throughout our country. No surprise. But when meddling middle men that were hired by said executives to stabilize and increase productivity fail tremendously to hell with them. Meanwhile, execs keep sippin' on their cognac. Typical America. 

Comments like this one. Ugh. 

[TIgreen01]

Power football can still win.  MSU, Iowa, Michigan, Alabama are this year's examples. They do innovative things within the power systems, but we didn't have the personnel nor the ability to recruit to it.  

I say that only because I don't want us to think it's completely impossible and we should go full Airraid. 

I mean, remember the call for the TE during the Dodge years? Offensive football is evolving to be  more multiple. Even the full "spread" teams with 4-wide sets are incorporating more H-backs and TEs. Dana Holgorson runs 60% of the time, for chrissakes. 

Mac's biggest problem was he was stodgy and unwilling to bend to circumstances. That affected his recruiting which is the lifeblood of a program. 

Good post.

The end of the Mac era reminds me a lot of the end of Dickey's run.  Both coaches had great coaching staffs that ultimately got poached away.  Remember when Mac lost 2 assistants in the same offseason to Memphis?  We all shook our heads because Memphis wasn't doing much of anything.  Look at them now.

More than any other sport, FBS football coaches make a huge impact on game day. You have to have the players, but a fundamentally sound team can beat more talented teams with regularity.  I put more blame on Chico than on any other assistant.  When Dodge got here in 2007, he developed ALL of our QBs and got the best out of a group of guys that previously didn't look like FBS level QBs.  Right now it again looks like we don't have a single FBS QB on our roster.  I just don't see improvement in our QBs from year to year under Chico and that is supposed to be his area of expertise.

That 2013 team is still my favorite team ever.  They were great on defense and special teams.  They were average on offense on their best day.  Once Mac lost his best defensive assistants, his replacements didn't turn in the same results.

[meangreenbob]

I know after someone leaves a job, that person usually gets blamed for a lot of problems after they leave.  So I try not to do that in most cases. 

After watching this MUTS game, I can't help but feel a real sting of disappointment with Coach Mac.  All the promises, all of the commitments, good assistant compensation, great facilities and yet under his reign we have fallen so far.  We are getting beat in our own conference by middle of the pack teams as if we were playing body bag games.  Honestly, I think Dickey and Dodge left us with more to work with and had MUCH less resources and compensation.  And now we have to convince a good coach to come in and clean up this mess.  Knowing that we will pay Mac 2.1 million in the buyout just makes it worse.

Sorry to vent but I feel he has been able to sort of disappear stage left without much taking much responsibility for this fiasco.

 

Yeah what you're feeling and what many of us are going through is called the, "wife abuse syndrome." You know, you are lied to, beat up and then all your money is stolen.

Edited November 23, 2015 by meangreenbob