DRC: Bennett ready to tackle challenges at UNT after recovering from physical issues stemming from bike wreck

Brett Vito · February 23, 2021

UNT Mean Green · February 23, 2021

Excellent article @Brett Vito! This gives a great glimpse into Bennett's attitude and defensive philosophy. He sounds like he's hungry and fired up to help UNT achieve the goals that we all know are possible!

Cr1028 · February 23, 2021

Thanks @Brett Vito. Fantastic story.

bstnsportsfan3 · February 23, 2021

Great article! Glad to hear he is moving close by to argyle!

El Paso Eagle · February 23, 2021

Within my window so I could read. Great story @Brett Vito

NorthTexan95 · February 23, 2021

54 minutes ago, El Paso Eagle said:

Within my window so I could read. Great story @Brett Vito

Even if it's not you can open the link using Chrome's incognito mod (or similar function with other browsers) to view it.

Coach Andy Mac · February 23, 2021

Great article by Brett! I was within my article limit so I got to read it.

97and03 · February 24, 2021

By Wtf??? A three- year contract for an assistant? Ridiculous.

The move will cost UNT $350,000 per year under the terms of a three-year contract

GrayEagle · February 24, 2021

3 hours ago, 97and03 said:

By Wtf??? A three- year contract for an assistant? Ridiculous.

The move will cost UNT $350,000 per year under the terms of a three-year contract

Whoa. I re-read Brett's article and he states that it is a two-year deal.

Cr1028 · February 24, 2021

Even if it was a 3-year deal, so what? If that is what it took to pull in Bennett then so be it. We finally grabbed a real name, somebody with some skins on the wall, someone many would say is out of our league and folks are still finding things to complain about.

Edited February 24, 2021 by Cr1028

meangreen11 · February 25, 2021

4 hours ago, Cr1028 said:

Even if it was a 3-year deal, so what? If that is what it took to pull in Bennett then so be it. We finally grabbed a real name, somebody with some skins on the wall, someone many would say is out of our league and folks are still finding things to complain about.

And to piggy back, all of the signings, transfers, offers and personnel moves are being orchestrated by a guy that knows what the F he is doing. Not Reff or Chuck Langston.

Wag Tag · February 25, 2021

The length of PB’s contract makes me believe even more that Seth’s has at least 2 more years to turn it around and I believe he will! GMG

PlummMeanGreen · February 25, 2021

57 minutes ago, Wag Tag said:

The length of PB’s contract makes me believe even more that Seth’s has at least 2 more years to turn it around and I believe he will! GMG

Hopefully Top 25 rankings will find itself inside the Mean Green Village. All the pieces finally seem to be in place now for that to start happening.

DeepGreen · February 25, 2021

Plummer, the pieces may all be there but we have to out and get the job done on the field. I’m glad we have Bennett as our DC. But did you see Coastal Carolina, still wet behind the ears in FBS, run roughshod over our defense? It was an embarrassment. We need a Phil Bennett but we also need good, solid football players.

Edited February 25, 2021 by DeepGreen

97and03 · February 25, 2021

15 hours ago, Cr1028 said:

Even if it was a 3-year deal, so what? If that is what it took to pull in Bennett then so be it. We finally grabbed a real name, somebody with some skins on the wall, someone many would say is out of our league and folks are still finding things to complain about.

Kind of reduces our options since we have fired the last two DCs and last OC, two of those after one year. Plus it could mean we have to buy out Seth and Bennett should this experiment flop.
I REALLY want him to succeed and turn around the defense but I am a Mean Green fan so I’m used to failure. What can I say? Seems like following two four win seasons is a strange time to give out big contracts.

Cr1028 · February 25, 2021

On 2/25/2021 at 4:47 AM, 97and03 said:

Kind of reduces our options since we have fired the last two DCs and last OC, two of those after one year. Plus it could mean we have to buy out Seth and Bennett should this experiment flop.
I REALLY want him to succeed and turn around the defense but I am a Mean Green fan so I’m used to failure. What can I say? Seems like following two four win seasons is a strange time to give out big contracts.

I understand your feelings. We are in the same boat in a lot of ways. I look at is as we are finally doing something different and making the hiring moves that SHOULD lead to more wins. I‘m looking at it like if someone as well-known and highly-regarded as Phil Bennett can’t turn around this defense, who could? Because of this, I’m much more open to the idea of PB having an extended higher-paying contract. Now, if they had given that kind of contract to Bodie Reeder or Tate Wallis, I’d be just as frustrated as you.

Edited January 7, 2023 by Cr1028
Thanks Adler

UNT Mean Green · February 25, 2021

8 hours ago, 97and03 said:

Kind of reduces our options since we have fired the last two DCs and last OC, two of those after one year. Plus it could mean we have to buy out Seth and Bennett should this experiment flop.
I REALLY want him to succeed and turn around the defense but I am a Mean Green fan so I’m used to failure. What can I say? Seems like following two four win seasons is a strange time to give out big contracts.

Getting Bennett was an incredibly intelligent move by Littrell. At this point, we needed someone of his stature, so whatever means it took is worth the risk.

meangreen11 · February 25, 2021

23 minutes ago, UNT Mean Green said:

Getting Bennett was an incredibly intelligent move by Littrell. At this point, we needed someone of his stature, so whatever means it took is worth the risk.

I would label it a potential “career saving” move.

PlummMeanGreen · February 25, 2021

18 hours ago, DeepGreen said:

Plummer, the pieces may all be there but we have to out and get the job done on the field. I’m glad we have Bennett as our DC. But did you see Coastal Carolina, still wet behind the ears in FBS, run roughshod over our defense? It was an embarrassment. We need a Phil Bennett but we also need good, solid football players.

Dr. Phil, if we don’t have good, solid football players in camp now then 247 needs to put an asterisk by UNT & say: “Our recruit ratings service works for every FBS school except the one in Denton, Texas (& not talking about Texas Women’s University, either)”

Look at our past seasons W/L cycle? After McCarney’s first few drab seasons, in 2013 we struck gold with a great defense & good offense who hosted about 40,000 Mean Green fans in the Heart of Dallas Bowl accompanied by a UNT bowl win over a MWC opponent.

I think we are in the top part of that cycle now-at least I hope we are.🤓

🦅❇️🦅 GMG!

Edited February 25, 2021 by PlummMeanGreen

DeepGreen · February 25, 2021

Plummer, I know all about the Heart of Dallas Bowl win under McCarney. What happened? Did Littrell run out of McCarney recruits? Don't get me wrong, Littrell has brought in some good guys (Mason Fine and several others), but if that Coastal game was an indication of what we have for next season it's going to be a really long season......again!

This "high recruiting ranking" doesn't mean doodley schit to me. I want wins. I want UNT to get national recognition. I want UNT to be a thorn in Louisiana Tech's ass. Same with So. Miss, UAB, etc. And BTW, La Tech has the East Texas recruiting market cornered when it comes to football recruiting. Texarkana to the Gulf Coast. They are beating us like a drum!

PlummMeanGreen · February 26, 2021

15 hours ago, DeepGreen said:

Plummer, I know all about the Heart of Dallas Bowl win under McCarney. What happened? Did Littrell run out of McCarney recruits? Don't get me wrong, Littrell has brought in some good guys (Mason Fine and several others), but if that Coastal game was an indication of what we have for next season it's going to be a really long season......again!

This "high recruiting ranking" doesn't mean doodley schit to me. I want wins. I want UNT to get national recognition. I want UNT to be a thorn in Louisiana Tech's ass. Same with So. Miss, UAB, etc. And BTW, La Tech has the East Texas recruiting market cornered when it comes to football recruiting. Texarkana to the Gulf Coast. They are beating us like a drum!

Well, Phil, I’m sure it’s that Ruston nightlife & culture that keeps east Texas as a recruiting lock for those Dawgs.🙄

What I do hope North Texas does different with a string of winning seasons, though, is be Top 25 ranked & to be top ranked when all FBS conferences are playing a full season (unlike this past one).

We’ll take winning seasons to start with, but when those come we need to exceed the usual FBS G5 standards & go for those rankings, though. We have the university, the enrollment, the location at the juncture of 2 Texas interstates & (now) the venues to do just that (& our competition knows just exactly where I’m coming from with that).

I will add this & that is for half a century for me (& even more years for some of you) this has been a difficult program to follow at times, but I guess there have been just enough positives & bright spots for us to have hope & to keep on keeping on with MG football.

Before ex UNT assistant coach Bill Snyder was hired, Kansas State U has been my personal inspiration; that is, a perennial loser that became a winner. Theirs a football program that even longtime Wildcat fans thought was a lost cause. If one would check KSU football history they would find the Wildcats really had it much worse than anything we’ve ever seen in Denton.

🦅❇️🦅GMG!

Edited February 26, 2021 by PlummMeanGreen

TalonsUp · February 26, 2021

So instead of someone that can recruit east texas, we hire the daughters future husband from an island. SMH

But on the other hand securing employment for multiple years.... sorry can't draw a positive. Lots of speed in the area from Texarkana to Beaumont for UNT to raise a white flag on. THATS a Blevitt and does mean diddley schit

Cr1028 · February 26, 2021

3 hours ago, TalonsUp said:

So instead of someone that can recruit east texas, we hire the daughters future husband from an island. SMH

But on the other hand securing employment for multiple years.... sorry can't draw a positive. Lots of speed in the area from Texarkana to Beaumont for UNT to raise a white flag on. THATS a Blevitt and does mean diddley schit

Who did you have in mind and how do you know the “daughter’s future husband” can’t recruit? Could Joel Filani recruit before he came to NT? What about Graham Harrelll or Patrick Cobbs? There are people on this board that would be ecstatic if Brandon Kennedy was named the Dline coach and he has zero coaching or recruiting experience. Unless you have a guy that is a can’t miss that we knowingly turned down, then you are just blowing hot air. Outside of LeBlanc who was hired away, which Dline coach of the Seth era would you rather have back than giving Passwaters (who probably has PB educating him on the daily) a chance?

Edited February 26, 2021 by Cr1028

bstnsportsfan3 · February 26, 2021

On 2/25/2021 at 4:47 AM, 97and03 said:

Kind of reduces our options since we have fired the last two DCs and last OC, two of those after one year. Plus it could mean we have to buy out Seth and Bennett should this experiment flop.
I REALLY want him to succeed and turn around the defense but I am a Mean Green fan so I’m used to failure. What can I say? Seems like following two four win seasons is a strange time to give out big contracts.

What did you want them to do, give a one year deal? No one in their right mind would have come here on a one year deal and it also doesn’t look very good to recruits. They want to know the coaches that bring them in will be around for a while!

MeanGreenTexan · February 26, 2021

1 hour ago, Cr1028 said:

Who did you have in mind and how do you know the “daughter’s future husband” can’t recruit? Could Joel Filani recruit before he came to NT? What about Graham Harrelll or Patrick Cobbs? There are people on this board that would be ecstatic if Brandon Kennedy was named the Dline coach and he has zero coaching or recruiting experience. Unless you have a guy that is a can’t miss that we knowingly turned down, then you are just blowing hot air. Outside of LeBlanc who was hired away, which Dline coach of the Seth era would you rather have back than giving Passwaters (who probably has PB educating him on the daily) a chance?

You need to check Passwaters’ resume, then check Filani’s/Harrell’sCobbs’ before bringing those guys up. All 3 spent time in the league. That is the ultimate goal of most D1-caliber guys. So the second they meet a recruit, they’re already ahead of Passwaters.

48 minutes ago, bstnsportsfan3 said:

What did you want them to do, give a one year deal? No one in their right mind would have come here on a one year deal and it also doesn’t look very good to recruits. They want to know the coaches that bring them in will be around for a while!

It’s more uncommon for assistant coaches to have multi-year deals. Just about every college asst. coach is on a 1-yr deal.