NOW can we be honest?

Rudy · September 15

2 minutes ago, untjim1995 said:

Based off of history, the cancer will kill off the fans before any of us will kill it. Look, we absolutely nuked the program’s fanbase in 1983 with the 1-AA debacle and stayed there for 12 freaking years. Even if we didn’t have a huge fanbase back then, we had fans, we had alumni, we had students. I’d venture that 98% of them became t-shirt fans of the big power programs and the pro teams around here. Well, today, when we need money, guess what? The richest people tend to be old. Those folks over the age of 65, that would’ve graduated anytime before 1983, we lost them. So now, we are incredibly gracious for the UNT 17, hell maybe it’s the UNT 30 by now, but that’s nothing compared to what the other programs have for followings. And the City of Denton actively sabotaged the citizenry against the program for decades, too.

The cancer is the culture and the culture is the apathetic nature of expectations here. It never changes because it really can’t change. And when it did, from the Fry years, they literally couldn’t wait to tear the thing down. It’s just a weird place. It drives you crazy /!: mostly it ends up driving people away, eventually.

I don't disagree, so the question is, do we do whatever we can to kill the cancer, or go on hospice and just wait to die?

untjim1995 · September 15

1 minute ago, Rudy said:

I don't disagree, so the question is, do we do whatever we can to kill the cancer, or go on hospice and just wait to die?

Well, the CFB world and the level we can compete at will probably determine this. We can’t survive at this current juncture. We lose almost an entire team to other schools buying off our players and coaches that are any good or have potential. That’s just not going to work. Eventually, people will stop donating and caring as they never have any connections to the actual players and coaches of the team they follow.

But I am wanting the Power Teams to leave. Go on down the road. Leave behind anyone you want. But give the rest of us a chance to enjoy the sport like we used to, while playing teams we care about and can compete with financially. What is my dream scenario is that the G5s and any P4 leftover will end up having their own level of play that can be rebuilt into a setup that gives players the NIL but keeps players away from the portal and brings back some kind of sanity to the sport. If that happens, then we could actually bounce up and be something, instead of being the hospice patient just waiting for more of the inevitable.

MeanGreenZen · September 15

I was at the Arkansas game today for Parents Weekend.
And I will tell you that our game presentation at North Texas, all the bells and whistles, is identical to what you will find in the SEC: the video boards, the fireworks, the flamethrowers, cheerleaders, dance team. Heck, our band is even bigger than most SEC bands.
Our tailgating for the season-opener with all the Greeks and food and live music was SEC quality too.
Our stadium is a little smaller but the facilities at North Texas are built to win.
The student section and crowd for the opener did their part.
We are certainly handicapped on NIL, but if you are smart, you can still find a way to acquire undervalued assets.
At this point in time, this University deserves a winning football team. Yesterday was an embarrassment, but the sun came up this morning and we might have our first sellout this week.

Edited September 15 by MeanGreenZen

Hunter Green · September 15

17 hours ago, Greendylan said:

We're way behind where we should be in NIL, and it took our coaches too long to recognize the right way to use the portal. In many ways, NIL is a reflection of how bad your fan base wants it. Clearly, our fans, generally speaking, just don't care as much as a lot of similarly situated schools. So, regarding NIL, I guess we are where we deserve to be.

That being said, I can accept being mediocre most seasons, occasionally bad, occasionally good--especially considering the above realities. What is not acceptable is to be absolutely embarrassed and make a mockery of yourselves on national television and do 40+ points worse than an FCS school did two weeks ago in the same stadium. That's not an NIL failure. That's just one of the worst game preparation failures I've seen in many years--coupled also with roster management problems. NIL is an excuse to not compete every year for a conference title. It's not an excuse for this disaster.

I've never been so disinterested in NT football after decades of being a fan...

I share everyone's frustration and embarrassment. But we can't escape the fact that we have 77 new players and how many freshmen are in starting for us? That's what it looked like to me. A bunch of high school players playing a P5 school and getting their asses kicked. 24 hours later, the season isn't over, we're 2-1, Morris and Caponi are still here and we play Wyoming at home next week with an opportunity to right the ship. I'll be there cheering on my school with what we have and hope Morris can turn us around. We all have a choice with what we do with our time and money, but ill still go to the games and support the team.

SilverEagle · September 15

1 hour ago, MeanGreenZen said:

I was at the Arkansas game today for Parents Weekend.
And I will tell you that our game presentation at North Texas, all the bells and whistles, is identical to what you will find in the SEC: the video boards, the fireworks, the flamethrowers, cheerleaders, dance team. Heck, our band is even bigger than most SEC bands.

We may have all the same technical stuff but what we don't have is organized crowd participation stuff. Do they still "call the hogs" @ Arkansas? THAT is crowd participation........AND FANS LOVE IT!

Bing Videos

Fans love the opportunity to participate, that's why yell traditions exist at traditional schools.

WE HAVE NONE!

GRN-WHT · September 15

15 hours ago, Rudy said:

Maybe I'll expand on this later, but:

Look, let's be honest. There is a cancer SOMEWHERE within this university. We have the funding, we have the donors, we have a fan base, we have the facilities. So why is it the same shit every fking season? Time and time again, we have a big win. Time and time again, we have a chance to break through. Then, we shit the bed. We make a hire, and that hire falls flat. Maybe they will have some success, sometimes it's a string of success. Then SOMETHING happens, and we come crashing back down. Then it's back to the same bullshit, until we've "had enough", and we fire one coach and hire a new one. It's the same song and dance EVERY FKING TIME. Only this time, the hire has proven to be a dud quicker than most. Again, be honest, the Morris hire was a big WTF to most of us, but we were willing to give him a chance. Anyone being objective had, even in the slightest, a feeling early on last year that Morris was giving off Benford vibes. We all saw the change in Littrell's attitude when he lost out on the KState job. Looking back, he saw that was his chance, and when he lost it, he started getting affected by this cancer somewhere. We need to take a HARD look at our university and figure out who is this cancer. Who is it that has such a grip on this university that he/she/or they all have. Once we find out who those people are, they are treated like a cancer. You remove it.

Once they are discovered, they have to be removed, whatever the cost, no matter what it takes.

You kill the cancer, before it kills you.

We don’t have the donors. We have a few donors that have enough money to gain access to the decision makers, but no donors that have enough money to BE the decision makers.

This school hasn’t produced a Boone Pickens or a Tillman Ferttita or a group of donors that bankroll conference re-alignment. We don’t have anybody that hates losing and has the money to do something about it. That’s on the university.

The cancer is the university lowering admission standards, selling a “best value” degree, marketing toward commuters, community college transfers, first generation college students, international students, liberal arts, music and freaks. The one demographic we don’t market toward is the one demographic that comprises 99% of athletic donor money. The school actively tells them to go elsewhere. This school is perfectly fine with picking up the cutting room floor for pretty much every other school in the state. That’s the cancer.

Tom McKrackin · September 15

Just now, GRN-WHT said:

We don’t have the donors. We have a few donors that have enough money to gain access to the decision makers, but no donors that have enough money to BE the decision makers.

This school hasn’t produced a Boone Pickens or a Tillman Ferttita or a group of donors that bankroll conference re-alignment. We don’t have anybody that hates losing and has the money to do something about it. That’s on the university.

The cancer is the university lowering admission standards, selling a “best value” degree, marketing toward commuters, community college transfers, first generation college students, international students, liberal arts, music and freaks. The one demographic we don’t market toward is the one demographic that comprises 99% of athletic donor money. The school actively tells them to go elsewhere. This school is perfectly fine with picking up the cutting room floor for pretty much every other school in the state. That’s the cancer.

Excellent post and spot on. I for one am tired of us being the island of misfit toys of colleges. We focus so much on being diverse and yet the diversity does absolutely nothing to help us support athletics.

MeanGreenZen · September 16

4 hours ago, GRN-WHT said:

We don’t have the donors. We have a few donors that have enough money to gain access to the decision makers, but no donors that have enough money to BE the decision makers.

This school hasn’t produced a Boone Pickens or a Tillman Ferttita or a group of donors that bankroll conference re-alignment. We don’t have anybody that hates losing and has the money to do something about it. That’s on the university.

The cancer is the university lowering admission standards, selling a “best value” degree, marketing toward commuters, community college transfers, first generation college students, international students, liberal arts, music and freaks. The one demographic we don’t market toward is the one demographic that comprises 99% of athletic donor money. The school actively tells them to go elsewhere. This school is perfectly fine with picking up the cutting room floor for pretty much every other school in the state. That’s the cancer.

You aren’t wrong.

MeanGreenZen · September 16

4 hours ago, GRN-WHT said:

We don’t have the donors. We have a few donors that have enough money to gain access to the decision makers, but no donors that have enough money to BE the decision makers.

This school hasn’t produced a Boone Pickens or a Tillman Ferttita or a group of donors that bankroll conference re-alignment. We don’t have anybody that hates losing and has the money to do something about it. That’s on the university.

The cancer is the university lowering admission standards, selling a “best value” degree, marketing toward commuters, community college transfers, first generation college students, international students, liberal arts, music and freaks. The one demographic we don’t market toward is the one demographic that comprises 99% of athletic donor money. The school actively tells them to go elsewhere. This school is perfectly fine with picking up the cutting room floor for pretty much every other school in the state. That’s the cancer.

Now is a great opportunity to double down on our business program. We actually have a brand new, beautiful business building on campus.
There is no dominant PUBLIC business school within three hours of DFW. Why can’t that be us?
You can keep your music school and education school but the business school would pay the bills.
Market towards that. Maybe not with commercials that insinuate a North Texas degree can get you a job in a cubicle.
Business students are active on campus and come to games. And when they graduate, they still come to games and they even have $$$ to donate to the school.

Hunter Green · September 16

1 hour ago, MeanGreenZen said:

Now is a great opportunity to double down on our business program. We actually have a brand new, beautiful business building on campus.
There is no dominant PUBLIC business school within three hours of DFW. Why can’t that be us?
You can keep your music school and education school but the business school would pay the bills.
Market towards that. Maybe not with commercials that insinuate a North Texas degree can get you a job in a cubicle.
Business students are active on campus and come to games. And when they graduate, they still come to games and they even have $$$ to donate to the school.

Spot on.

NorthTexasWeLove · September 16

7 hours ago, GRN-WHT said:

We don’t have the donors. We have a few donors that have enough money to gain access to the decision makers, but no donors that have enough money to BE the decision makers.

This school hasn’t produced a Boone Pickens or a Tillman Ferttita or a group of donors that bankroll conference re-alignment. We don’t have anybody that hates losing and has the money to do something about it. That’s on the university.

The cancer is the university lowering admission standards, selling a “best value” degree, marketing toward commuters, community college transfers, first generation college students, international students, liberal arts, music and freaks. The one demographic we don’t market toward is the one demographic that comprises 99% of athletic donor money. The school actively tells them to go elsewhere. This school is perfectly fine with picking up the cutting room floor for pretty much every other school in the state. That’s the cancer.

7 hours ago, Tom McKrackin said:

Excellent post and spot on. I for one am tired of us being the island of misfit toys of colleges. We focus so much on being diverse and yet the diversity does absolutely nothing to help us support athletics.

Been beating on this drum for years. Smastrek tripled down on the idiocracy of it all. People praised him for boosting enrollment, and I just rolled eyes at it. The ole quality/quantity theory holds very true. We have too many loser do-nothings as alum and students and we keep opening up more avenues to add more. It's mind jarring.

NM Green · September 16

These posts are sobering and true. I would love to see UNT commercials and marketing represent our distinguished alumni. Visualizeextreme professionalism, potent influence. You know that change the world stuff all other universities seem to preach. We are way beyond being just a first generation prep degree. We will always have those success stories but we have professionals working on the world stage.

Some of those billboard students wow.

Who is President Keller? What do we think he believes? How do we think he will position our fine university?

GMG

MAX KOCH · September 16

On 9/14/2024 at 3:25 PM, southsideguy said:

The DC should be fired or least demoted. He was terrible last year and is still terrible.

bigtime

MAX KOCH · September 16

On 9/14/2024 at 2:59 PM, untjim1995 said:

Today is the perfect reason that our alumni, students, faculty, sports fans in the area, and the local sports media just flat out don’t care about us. When we do have a chance to gain their attention, 99% of the time, we crap the bed against a team that we need to compete with. This is not pointed at playing UT, OU, A&M, LSU, Bama, etc…it’s getting prison raped by SMU, UH, Tech, UTSA, etc…losing to Texas teams that people know and went to school at. UNT grads get embarrassed so badly to go to work, church, school, or anywhere that know we went to UNT and just laugh at us. For men especially, it just gets old, so they walk away. And rarely, if ever, come back.

We at least are setting NCAA records. 21 points are the most scored against a team in under one minute in NCAA history.

GMG_Dallas · September 16

15 hours ago, GRN-WHT said:

We don’t have the donors. We have a few donors that have enough money to gain access to the decision makers, but no donors that have enough money to BE the decision makers.

This school hasn’t produced a Boone Pickens or a Tillman Ferttita or a group of donors that bankroll conference re-alignment. We don’t have anybody that hates losing and has the money to do something about it. That’s on the university.

The cancer is the university lowering admission standards, selling a “best value” degree, marketing toward commuters, community college transfers, first generation college students, international students, liberal arts, music and freaks. The one demographic we don’t market toward is the one demographic that comprises 99% of athletic donor money. The school actively tells them to go elsewhere. This school is perfectly fine with picking up the cutting room floor for pretty much every other school in the state. That’s the cancer.

Some of these are obvious issues. Stuff like targeting the community college transfers and 1st generation students has no bearing on success. We want a Tillman Fertitta. Did his parents go to college?

Here's another issue you're missing outside of lowering admission standards and being the value choice. We are sending what should be our premiere schools elsewhere. Law School? UNT Dallas. Health Sciences Center? Fort Worth. Why are those not IN Denton? We're so focused on building up our system schools that the primary campus is suffering. Those schools being at the primary campus would elevate the perception of the University of North Texas. Follow that up by raising admissions standards and erase the notion of being a value college and you'd start elevating the quality of graduates. I don't know how you correct the issue of sending Law and Medical schools elsewhere. You can correct the low admissions standards and great value walmart brand label today. It needs to happen. Otherwise the UNT degree will continue to be viewed as average.

DeepGreen · September 16

GMG_Dallas you are spot on. Very good post.

southsideguy · September 16

Morris loyalty is to his family and employer. Yes, I know but I am talking just football for now. Morris you need to learn from our pervious coach's mistake. I sure you do not want to move your family around the country and want a stable environment for your wife and children. You have to loyal to your employer as well. Do not be stubborn about making defense cordinator changes. If you dont it could cost your job. You have to play to the strength of your players.

Last year was enough to fire him but three games in have we seen improvement? I do not think we have. We had trouble stopping SFA offense and let's not talk about Tech. Wyoming has been struggling on offense this year. I looked at their stats and they are not running the ball or passing the ball very well and it looks like their QBS are not running type. We give up more than 300 yards (total game not halves) you have no choice but to let him go. You cant cover for him.

meaniegreenie · September 16

1 hour ago, GMG_Dallas said:

Some of these are obvious issues. Stuff like targeting the community college transfers and 1st generation students has no bearing on success. We want a Tillman Fertitta. Did his parents go to college?

Here's another issue you're missing outside of lowering admission standards and being the value choice. We are sending what should be our premiere schools elsewhere. Law School? UNT Dallas. Health Sciences Center? Fort Worth. Why are those not IN Denton? We're so focused on building up our system schools that the primary campus is suffering. Those schools being at the primary campus would elevate the perception of the University of North Texas. Follow that up by raising admissions standards and erase the notion of being a value college and you'd start elevating the quality of graduates. I don't know how you correct the issue of sending Law and Medical schools elsewhere. You can correct the low admissions standards and great value walmart brand label today. It needs to happen. Otherwise the UNT degree will continue to be viewed as average.

Your second point is spot on. In fact, when the idea of making us the premier business school was mentioned, my first thought would be that it would likely end up being at UNT-Frisco.

UNTLifer · September 16

23 hours ago, SilverEagle said:

Fans love the opportunity to participate, that's why yell traditions exist at traditional schools.

WE HAVE NONE!

We did but the administration is slowly killing them.

GMG_Dallas · September 16

32 minutes ago, meaniegreenie said:

Your second point is spot on. In fact, when the idea of making us the premier business school was mentioned, my first thought would be that it would likely end up being at UNT-Frisco.

The structuring of our system makes no sense and does nothing to elevate our brand.