Alabama Birmingham gave away this game

Coach Bill Lewis · September 24, 2017

If you know your kicker can kick the ball through the end zone why the hell cant you kick it out of bounds? I disagree with what UAB did, the coverage shouldn't have allowed the return, and the young man made a great play - but was curious if there was a better call there. Squib kick? Pooch is what I'd have done. I think.

Texas Stranger · September 24, 2017

UAB needed to defend a field goal, not a TD. That makes the field relatively 35 or so yards shorter. A squib runs the risk of a modest return to the 40, leaving us needed 25-30 yds to set up a field goal with 3 timeouts available. They needed to pin us deep and didn't

Graddean · September 24, 2017

I agree with Texas Stranger. Besides, how has our return game struck fear in anyone's heart this season?

Mean Green 93-98 · September 25, 2017

North Texas led almost the entire game, and you say UAB gave away the game? You have a funny way of thinking.

El Paso Eagle · September 25, 2017

6 hours ago, Graddean said:

I agree with Texas Stranger. Besides, how has our return game struck fear in anyone's heart this season?

Agree up until this game the only fear that was spread by the play of our special teams was the fear felt by the Mean Green fans

Rudy · September 25, 2017

I'm not sure how you an say UAB gave the game away when they trailed almost the entire game.

keith · September 25, 2017

Should have probably gone for two instead of going for the tie and potentially forcing OT. UAB had all the momentum at that time. Who knows how it would have ended if UAB went for the win at that point, but I think that may have been where the game was "given away."

Edited September 25, 2017 by keith

MeanGreenTexan · September 25, 2017

UAB's penalties throughout the game is what "gave it away" for them. Had a 60yd TD called back. Lots of dumb penalites for them.

This was not a win to be proud of. Glad the guys pulled it off in regular time, because if it went to OT, we were going to lose... not a doubt in my mind.

outoftown · September 25, 2017

26 minutes ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

UAB's penalties throughout the game is what "gave it away" for them. Had a 60yd TD called back. Lots of dumb penalites for them.

This was not a win to be proud of. Glad the guys pulled it off in regular time, because if it went to OT, we were going to lose... not a doubt in my mind.

Hmmm... I wonder... theres always people who talk derisively about "moral wins" when the team plays well but loses. Feels to me like for some fans this game was kind of the inverse, some sort of "moral loss".

MeanGreenTexan · September 25, 2017

2 minutes ago, outoftown said:

Hmmm... I wonder... theres always people who talk derisively about "moral wins" when the team plays well but loses. Feels to me like for some fans this game was kind of the inverse, some sort of "moral loss".

Yeah. I kindof got the feeling coach Littrell felt the same way because he did not seem very happy in the post-game interview.

untjim1995 · September 25, 2017

8 minutes ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

Yeah. I kindof got the feeling coach Littrell felt the same way because he did not seem very happy in the post-game interview.

I don't blame him for being unhappy. We beat the one team in CUSA play that we should've dominated, winning by the skin of your teeth.

We don't have the talent on defense to stop anyone who wants to throw the ball. And our spread offense has trouble getting first downs when we need them, late in games.

I have come to realize that 6 wins for this season is going to be really hard to get to, which is not what I expected to start the year.

DT 90 · September 25, 2017

There should be no such thing as "bad" wins, "moral victories" or any of the sort at North Texas. You take a win and be ecstatic about it.

GrandGreen · September 25, 2017

No pass defense, beats no defense at all.

Edited September 25, 2017 by GrandGreen

ForneyGreen · September 25, 2017

I think the more appropriate thread title would be "North Texas *almost* gave away this game".

Up 16 and deep in UAB territory after a blocked punt is where a game like this has to be put away. There's no reason that UAB should have really been in the game at that point.

Props to UAB though for a gutsy comeback - especially to their QB who is one tough dude.

BTG_Fan1 · September 25, 2017

2 hours ago, untjim1995 said:

I don't blame him for being unhappy. We beat the one team in CUSA play that we should've dominated, winning by the skin of your teeth.

We don't have the talent on defense to stop anyone who wants to throw the ball. And our spread offense has trouble getting first downs when we need them, late in games.

I have come to realize that 6 wins for this season is going to be really hard to get to, which is not what I expected to start the year.

UAB is not a team that will be dominated this year... They have recruited well and been allowed to practice for years.. This was never meant to be an easy game

untjim1995 · September 25, 2017

1 hour ago, BTG_Fan1 said:

UAB is not a team that will be dominated this year... They have recruited well and been allowed to practice for years.. This was never meant to be an easy game

They were rated 130 out of 130 FBS teams for a reason...its ok t admit that a bad team came in here and gave us all we could handle. Its where we are as a program right now. SL has to get his players here to see if he can build a winner or now. Right now, we just don't have enough talent to beat the people we all want to beat on our schedule and beyond. We just don't. ANd SL and his staff are still learning on the go here--this was his 17th game to be a head coach. He's not new anymore, but he certainly has a lot to learn--and I think he can learn and will learn from all of this. But I fear that he is finding out what every coach hasfound out before him since 1995--we can't get recruiting fixed enough to get in the talent that keeps us from getting clobbered by the SMUs of the world right now and keeps us from getting into dogfights at home with the program that gave up football for a year.

I know this--I truly believed that 5+ wins was to be expected here this season with this schedule. I now believe after beating Lamar, getting crushed by SMU, losing at Iowa, and now barely winning at home against UAB, that expectation was wrong. I see three teams left on the schedule that we could beat, UTEP, Army, and Rice. Everyone else is just better. It is what it is. Our defense cannot stop any passing attack--which is what almost everyone else we play will have as their main strategy. USM, UTSA, ODU, FAU, and LT will feast on our secondary. Army runs the ball, which is our strength, but that attack of theirs I a different breed than what UTEP will roll with when we play them. I just don't see how we win more than 2 more games. Maybe we will, but I don't see it right now. Watching that game on Saturday night in the 2nd half told me all I needed to know about our defense, which doesn't get any help from an offense that cannot convert on 3rd downs, especially late in games.

BTG_Fan1 · September 25, 2017

3 hours ago, untjim1995 said:

They were rated 130 out of 130 FBS teams for a reason...its ok t admit that a bad team came in here and gave us all we could handle. Its where we are as a program right now. SL has to get his players here to see if he can build a winner or now. Right now, we just don't have enough talent to beat the people we all want to beat on our schedule and beyond. We just don't. ANd SL and his staff are still learning on the go here--this was his 17th game to be a head coach. He's not new anymore, but he certainly has a lot to learn--and I think he can learn and will learn from all of this. But I fear that he is finding out what every coach hasfound out before him since 1995--we can't get recruiting fixed enough to get in the talent that keeps us from getting clobbered by the SMUs of the world right now and keeps us from getting into dogfights at home with the program that gave up football for a year.

I know this--I truly believed that 5+ wins was to be expected here this season with this schedule. I now believe after beating Lamar, getting crushed by SMU, losing at Iowa, and now barely winning at home against UAB, that expectation was wrong. I see three teams left on the schedule that we could beat, UTEP, Army, and Rice. Everyone else is just better. It is what it is. Our defense cannot stop any passing attack--which is what almost everyone else we play will have as their main strategy. USM, UTSA, ODU, FAU, and LT will feast on our secondary. Army runs the ball, which is our strength, but that attack of theirs I a different breed than what UTEP will roll with when we play them. I just don't see how we win more than 2 more games. Maybe we will, but I don't see it right now. Watching that game on Saturday night in the 2nd half told me all I needed to know about our defense, which doesn't get any help from an offense that cannot convert on 3rd downs, especially late in games.

They were rated 130 out of 130 because they did not play for years... If anyone thinks that the UAB team we played on Saturday is worse than UTEP, Rice and other schools like TXST, etc. then you have 0 knowledge of football... UAB is a solid team (that A LOT of people here overlooked), they have had better recruiting than us (top 2 in 2016, with 19 3* players alone).. They have been able to practice in these systems likely nearly the same amount of time as our guys under SL... UAB is not a cakewalk team like people think because they were "ranked" 130 out of 130.. Lets ask OU who dominated vs Ohio State (and most likely ranked higher than OU), if Baylor who is 0-4 was a cakewalk because they were ranked lower than OU..

The idea that UAB is the worst time 130 out of 130 is down right dumb.. They were ranked that low because the national media is lazy and doesn't give a real crap about C-USA, nor do they do any real evaluation of the programs below a certain point. UNT is ranked low because we went 1-11 2 years ago and only won 5 games last year and have had CRAP recruiting...

The idea that the staff isn't new anymore but they are in their 17th game is only half correct... Yes SL has been here 17 games, but half the staff has been here for 4, so the staff is still partially new which leads to errors. Coaches trying to see how they fit in together and how to get guys into the correct spots..

UNT handled Lamar like they should, UNT out played Iowa for 3/4 of the game with UNT lacking the ability to stop/move the ball on 3rd down... and UNT fought against a UAB team that is very, very, very overlooked... SMU was a terrible game.. UNT has problems but it can and has shown it can over come them at times, they lack confidence in finishing/putting away games which is understandable considering the history of UNT...

UNTLifer · September 25, 2017

They didn't give this game away. We whipped their Dragon butts and then let them back in to the game. Time to move on to Southern Miss.

GrandGreen · September 26, 2017

On 9/24/2017 at 9:18 AM, Coach Bill Lewis said:

If you know your kicker can kick the ball through the end zone why the hell cant you kick it out of bounds? I disagree with what UAB did, the coverage shouldn't have allowed the return, and the young man made a great play - but was curious if there was a better call there. Squib kick? Pooch is what I'd have done. I think.

No coach is going to kick out of bounds and put the opponent on the 35. Likewise a short kick gives up a lot of field position as well as the opportunity to run it back. The obvious play was to try to kick into the end zone and put the ball on the 25.

5 hours ago, untjim1995 said:

They were rated 130 out of 130 FBS teams for a reason...its ok t admit that a bad team came in here and gave us all we could handle. Its where we are as a program right now. SL has to get his players here to see if he can build a winner or now. Right now, we just don't have enough talent to beat the people we all want to beat on our schedule and beyond. We just don't. ANd SL and his staff are still learning on the go here--this was his 17th game to be a head coach. He's not new anymore, but he certainly has a lot to learn--and I think he can learn and will learn from all of this. But I fear that he is finding out what every coach hasfound out before him since 1995--we can't get recruiting fixed enough to get in the talent that keeps us from getting clobbered by the SMUs of the world right now and keeps us from getting into dogfights at home with the program that gave up football for a year.

I know this--I truly believed that 5+ wins was to be expected here this season with this schedule. I now believe after beating Lamar, getting crushed by SMU, losing at Iowa, and now barely winning at home against UAB, that expectation was wrong. I see three teams left on the schedule that we could beat, UTEP, Army, and Rice. Everyone else is just better. It is what it is. Our defense cannot stop any passing attack--which is what almost everyone else we play will have as their main strategy. USM, UTSA, ODU, FAU, and LT will feast on our secondary. Army runs the ball, which is our strength, but that attack of theirs I a different breed than what UTEP will roll with when we play them. I just don't see how we win more than 2 more games. Maybe we will, but I don't see it right now. Watching that game on Saturday night in the 2nd half told me all I needed to know about our defense, which doesn't get any help from an offense that cannot convert on 3rd downs, especially late in games.

Very negative analysis. UAB is obviously better than 130, how much better is the question. As far as the other games, Iowa would easily win CUSA and SMU would be very close if not win.

NT has lost 1 to SMU and nearly the UAB game because they overrated their pass defense and played primarily to stop the run. That plus a lot of turnovers, and other foolish errors.

The pass defense has to get better without substantially harming the run defense. I think every home game is winnable and USM next week is not out of the question. Army will be a tough game remember why NT does not want to play them anymore. Only 3 more wins with this schedule would mean that NT will not progress at all. Which is pretty much what happened mid-season last year.

Based on 3 games, Lamar means nothing, NT's offense is much improved and run defense is very good. I see 5 wins the cellar for this team, with a lot of upside.