Mean Green Open 2017 Camp

MGNation92 · July 31, 2017

http://www.meangreensports.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/073117aaf.html

meangreen15 · July 31, 2017

Connor Means is at linebacker now? That speaks volumes about that lack of depth we have at that position.

Cr1028 · July 31, 2017

58 minutes ago, meangreen15 said:

Connor Means is at linebacker now? That speaks volumes about that lack of depth we have at that position.

He's a smart dude and was pretty athletic from what I recall in the 2015 spring game. Perhaps 2 years of weight training away from the quarterback position have turned him into a viable option at the linebacker position.

247 had him listed as a 4.64 40 in HS with offers from Boise, ULM, ULL, and SWTSU-SM.

Edited July 31, 2017 by Cr1028

GMG24 · July 31, 2017

2 hours ago, meangreen15 said:

Connor Means is at linebacker now? That speaks volumes about that lack of depth we have at that position.

I think it speaks to getting your best players on the field however you can. He moved from QB-RB (hurt his shoulder and didn't play last year)- now to LB. he can run and doesn't seem to mind contact. I like the move a lot.

Cerebus · July 31, 2017

A lot of HS coaches put their best athlete at QB and then go from there. Coaches like Snyder and Patterson have always recruited those athletes and then moved them to wherever they fit best.

SilverEagle · August 1, 2017

This guy was a record setting QB at Bridgeport HS. He went to TCU, was moved to LB and the rest is history....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyle_Clifton

meangreen15 · August 1, 2017

Don't get me wrong, I wish Connor nothing but the best! The main difference is that Patterson and Snyder bring those guys in to play other positions from the get go. Typically when a player moves to his 3rd position in college that shows he may be athletic, but doesn't have enough skill at a specific position to stick. See Longhorn great Drew Kelson if you need a prime example of this. All that being said, I hope Connor succeeds at the new position. I'm just more afraid of what the move indicates for our linebacking core.

LongJim · August 1, 2017

42 minutes ago, SilverEagle said:

This guy was a record setting QB at Bridgeport HS. He went to TCU, was moved to LB and the rest is history....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyle_Clifton

He was a man among boys playing against my Northwest Texans back then.

UNTLifer · August 1, 2017

1 hour ago, SilverEagle said:

This guy was a record setting QB at Bridgeport HS. He went to TCU, was moved to LB and the rest is history....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyle_Clifton

Oh, these youngsters don't have a clue who these old players are!

SilverEagle · August 1, 2017

49 minutes ago, meangreen15 said:

Don't get me wrong, I wish Connor nothing but the best! The main difference is that Patterson and Snyder bring those guys in to play other positions from the get go. Typically when a player moves to his 3rd position in college that shows he may be athletic, but doesn't have enough skill at a specific position to stick. See Longhorn great Drew Kelson if you need a prime example of this. All that being said, I hope Connor succeeds at the new position. I'm just more afraid of what the move indicates for our linebacking core.

They listed him as a RB in last year program but because he was hurt, he never got any reps there. During spring I noticed them putting him on the defensive side (outside LB) and letting him run non-contact plays there. There is precedence for a player switching late in his college career and making a great contribution.

Does anyone from my generation remember "Super" Bill Bradley who played QB at Texas? Here's his story.....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Bradley_(gridiron_football)

So, he got beat out by James Street, finally moved to DB which turned out to be his most natural position. Played less than a year at the position. Drafted by Philadelphia, and two time all pro at safety.

SilverEagle · August 1, 2017

9 minutes ago, UNTLifer said:

Oh, these youngsters don't have a clue who these old players are!

I think they might have heard of Brian Waters who was an all-pro guard with the Kansas City Chiefs. I don't think he ever played that position while he was at North Texas. I think he played TE, FB, and in the defensive line while he was here.

GrayEagle · August 1, 2017

4 hours ago, Cerebus said:

A lot of HS coaches put their best athlete at QB and then go from there. Coaches like Snyder and Patterson have always recruited those athletes and then moved them to wherever they fit best.

A case in point...our own Kishawn McClain. Not highly rated because he had to split his talent and play both QB and safety. Would you call him a 'miss' now that you see what he has become? I wouldn't swap him for (m)any safeties. From all I know, he is a class act as a player and a person.

MeanGreenTexan · August 1, 2017

Are we really expecting anything from Means?

MGNation92 · August 1, 2017

9 minutes ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

Are we really expecting anything from Means?

Means' performance on the field will likely be the same as Littrell's recruiting:

Mediocre with an occasional splash of "meh"

MeanGreenTexan · August 1, 2017

1 minute ago, MGNation92 said:

Means' performance on the field will likely be the same as Littrell's recruiting:

Mediocre with an occasional splash of "meh"

I think you're expecting more out of Means than I am.

untjim1995 · August 1, 2017

18 hours ago, meangreen15 said:

Connor Means is at linebacker now? That speaks volumes about that lack of depth we have at that position.

It also speaks volumes about the previous staff's inability to identify QBs for this level of play. Connor Means couldn't get playing time as a QB here against the worst collection of QBs that we have had here in my almost 30 years of following the program. And he now plays Linebacker--in his upperclassmen years...my goodness, Dan McCarney just fell apart after he was here for 3 years on the job. Couldn't get recruits to come here like he thought he would be able to after three years and just left us with a roster that was so poorly rated, its damn miraculous that SL turned it into 5 wins in his first year.

KRAM1 · August 1, 2017

12 hours ago, SilverEagle said:

They listed him as a RB in last year program but because he was hurt, he never got any reps there. During spring I noticed them putting him on the defensive side (outside LB) and letting him run non-contact plays there. There is precedence for a player switching late in his college career and making a great contribution.

Does anyone from my generation remember "Super" Bill Bradley who played QB at Texas? Here's his story.....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Bradley_(gridiron_football)

So, he got beat out by James Street, finally moved to DB which turned out to be his most natural position. Played less than a year at the position. Drafted by Philadelphia, and two time all pro at safety.

Oh...I remember very well. He had some pretty good games against the 'Boys as I recall.

BTG_Fan1 · August 1, 2017

3 hours ago, MGNation92 said:

Means' performance on the field will likely be the same as Littrell's recruiting:

Mediocre with an occasional splash of "meh"

Said it in another thread, but you should join Ben, 90 and others in applying with the AD Office and Football staff.. Y'all bash the staff on recruiting, and you guys would do an amazing job from how yall talk on here... Don't say y'all have careers, because in college football good recruiters get paid according to yalll..

2 hours ago, untjim1995 said:

It also speaks volumes about the previous staff's inability to identify QBs for this level of play. Connor Means couldn't get playing time as a QB here against the worst collection of QBs that we have had here in my almost 30 years of following the program. And he now plays Linebacker--in his upperclassmen years...my goodness, Dan McCarney just fell apart after he was here for 3 years on the job. Couldn't get recruits to come here like he thought he would be able to after three years and just left us with a roster that was so poorly rated, its damn miraculous that SL turned it into 5 wins in his first year.

Factor in the poor ability to evaluate and project players from HS to college hurt us, but the biggest thing to hurt us was the previous staff not reaching out and meeting with high school staffs... Our new recruit QB, Beans, coach said that he had not seen the UNT in years till SL and them started coming around.

UNTLifer · August 1, 2017

14 hours ago, SilverEagle said:

I think they might have heard of Brian Waters who was an all-pro guard with the Kansas City Chiefs. I don't think he ever played that position while he was at North Texas. I think he played TE, FB, and in the defensive line while he was here.

I agree. I was being sarcastic since I mentioned putting up posters of Kassell, Spencer, Robertson , Orr, etc...and someone mentioned none of these players today would know who they were/are.

BTG_Fan1 · August 1, 2017

9 minutes ago, UNTLifer said:

I agree. I was being sarcastic since I mentioned putting up posters of Kassell, Spencer, Robertson , Orr, etc...and someone mentioned none of these players today would know who they were/are.

I would like to see them actually have up poster of Kassell, Spencer, Roberston, Orr, Dunbar, etc... Some/Most people may not know who they are but everyone has a phone to google or look up someone...

Heck have up poster of other famous alumni as well...

Edited August 1, 2017 by BTG_Fan1

MeanGreenTexan · August 1, 2017

10 minutes ago, UNTLifer said:

I agree. I was being sarcastic since I mentioned putting up posters of Kassell, Spencer, Robertson , Orr, etc...and someone mentioned none of these players today would know who they were/are.

That was me. And I was speaking only to Kassell/Spencer/Hurd/other Dickey-era guys that are legends to us (the die-hard fan), but are nobodys to today's recruits.

Robertson is currently in the NFL and Zach may be back as well, but even if he's not, he just earned All-Pro LAST YEAR. These are much more relevant, and throwing Dunbar in that mix, I would argue outside of Mean Joe, are the most influential guys we could put out there.

Put yourself in the mind of a 17-18 year-old who thinks he should be starting at Alabama next year. Would you know/care about some dudes who were Sun Belt All-Conference back in the mid 2000's (and in Spencer's case, drafted, but only serving as depth/STs)?

UNTLifer · August 1, 2017

I didn't mention Hurd. I was trying to highlight our LB's, I think the original idea was in response to UTSA touting their LB from Lake Dallas, that have made it in the NFL. Have a posters of each player. One side of the poster is the player in their North Texas gear, the other half in their NFL gear.

Graddean · August 2, 2017

I believe our own Cedric Hardeman played DB on freshman team, linebacker as a sophomore , and defensive end as junior and senior.

UNT Mean Green · August 2, 2017

2 hours ago, Graddean said:

I believe our own Cedric Hardeman played DB on freshman team, linebacker as a sophomore , and defensive end as junior and senior.

The problem is high school kids (recruits) don't know who he is, and really don't care. We are dealing with kids who were born in 2000 for crying out loud.

Graddean · August 2, 2017

For crying out loud. I was trying to make a point that Means being moved around to different positions was not necessarily a bad reflection. I was not indicating potential recruits would be interested.