Another huge opportunity lost

[meangreenfaninno]

Homecoming game good crowd, national TV.  Again we lay a huge egg when it counts.  And now the AD will blame the fans for the loss. 
 

And why can’t we ask for some accountability from this football program?  They have good facilities the biggest department budget and more staff than at any time in our history.  We hear the defense is the problem this season and yet everyone knew the defense was a terrible problem well over a year ago after Morris was embarrassed again in front of a huge home crowd.

Yet, we did absolutely nothing innterms pf recruiting good defensive players and Morris left Craponi in charge which was basically the equivalent of treason against UNT athletic s and any hope for a modicum of success.

[Aquila_Viridis]

It was not a great idea to schedule this opponent for homecoming.

[Big Z]

1 hour ago, meangreenfaninno said:

Homecoming game good crowd, national TV.  Again we lay a huge egg when it counts.  And now the AD will blame the fans for the loss. 
 

And why can’t we ask for some accountability from this football program?  They have good facilities the biggest department budget and more staff than at any time in our history.  We hear the defense is the problem this season and yet everyone knew the defense was a terrible problem well over a year ago after Morris was embarrassed again in front of a huge home crowd.

Yet, we did absolutely nothing innterms pf recruiting good defensive players and Morris left Craponi in charge which was basically the equivalent of treason against UNT athletic s and any hope for a modicum of success.

You could of went to Home Depot today 

[wardly]

11 hours ago, Aquila_Viridis said:

It was not a great idea to schedule this opponent for homecoming.

Actually it was. We just got beat by a better team. It happens. I am most disappointed in the low turnout of fans. We had 27,000 opening game against Wyoming  but only 23,00 against Tulane at homecoming. Whats wrong with this picture?

[MeanGreen22]

22 minutes ago, wardly said:

Actually it was. We just got beat by a better team. It happens. I am most disappointed in the low turnout of fans. We had 27,000 opening game against Wyoming  but only 23,00 against Tulane at homecoming. Whats wrong with this picture?

Well the AD actually went out and tried to sell tickets to Wyoming. They put the work in. Then expected since it was homecoming against a good team, it would just happen. Not how it works around here as of now. I don’t see why they didn’t make “Sellout DATCU” a season long campaign goal rather than a single game. 

[RBP79]

26 minutes ago, wardly said:

Actually it was. We just got beat by a better team. It happens. I am most disappointed in the low turnout of fans. We had 27,000 opening game against Wyoming  but only 23,00 against Tulane at homecoming. Whats wrong with this picture?

If NT could get a win against a team above .500 that might help. Morris, like Seth, is hard headed and it's his way or the highway. If Morris doesn't get rid of Caponi that highway will be the same one Seth took out of Denton. 

[El Paso Eagle]

1 hour ago, wardly said:

Actually it was. We just got beat by a better team. It happens. I am most disappointed in the low turnout of fans. We had 27,000 opening game against Wyoming  but only 23,00 against Tulane at homecoming. Whats wrong with this picture?

When you continually lose to good teams, average fans (much less our Metroplex fanbase) will turn to something else. It sucks, but it's the reality.

[Green with Envy]

1 minute ago, El Paso Eagle said:

When you continually lose to good teams, average fans (much less our Metroplex fanbase) will turn to something else. It sucks, but it's the reality.

This.  Very much this.  

[emmitt01]

2 hours ago, wardly said:

Actually it was. We just got beat by a better team. It happens. I am most disappointed in the low turnout of fans. We had 27,000 opening game against Wyoming  but only 23,00 against Tulane at homecoming. Whats wrong with this picture?

What’s wrong is that around the time of the Wyoming game, even with the Tech embarrassment, people thought “They’re 2-1, maybe the defense just looked bad against a superior Big XII team.”  
 

Yesterday you saw the result of people realizing “nope, they genuinely cannot tackle and refuse to alter their scheme against what should be comparable talent” 

 

We will not beat Army.  And, no, we won’t beat UTSA in their season Super Bowl.  
 

A sparse crowd will see us beat East Carolina to get to 6 wins…then people will swear the season was “a success” when we beat a horrible Temple squad…then we’ll all come crashing back down when we get rocked in a bowl game.  

[Mrs. Esterhouse]

The AD, the coaches and the team need to go out to the campus and local community. I don't see them doing anything in Denton or around campus to get people excited and in the seats. Coach Morris just blames the fans for not showing up and telling them to get over themselves because the game was at 11am. That's not how you get butts in seats. 

[wardly]

Just now, emmitt01 said:

What’s wrong is that around the time of the Wyoming game, even with the Tech embarrassment, people thought “They’re 2-1, maybe the defense just looked bad against a superior Big XII team.”  
 

Yesterday you saw the result of people realizing “nope, they genuinely cannot tackle and refuse to alter their scheme against what should be comparable talent” 

 

We will not beat Army.  And, no, we won’t beat UTSA in their season Super Bowl.  
 

A sparse crowd will see us beat East Carolina to get to 6 wins…then people will swear the season was “a success” when we beat a horrible Temple squad…then we’ll all come crashing back down when we get rocked in a bowl game.  

Our 3 loses YTD are all against better teams. And yes, Army is a better team and will probably beat us as well. There is no shame in losing to teams that are bigger, stronger, and faster that we are. I fully expect us to beat ECU,UTSA, and Temple and finish 8&4, which is not too shabby for a UNT team that was picked 9th in the conference preseason.

[NM Green]

I don’t think we get rocked in a bowl game. We are due and will get a W.

Now call me optimistic Oscar but I see us beating Army. We are the best team they will have played in 2024. 

UTSA I feel is a loss because that coach will get them fired up down south to beat us. We beat East Carolina we beat Temple.

We win in Frisco or Albuquerque. 

I’m okay with this season if it unfolds this way. 

GMG

[Green with Envy]

19 minutes ago, Mrs. Esterhouse said:

That's not how you get butts in seats. 

That is correct.    You get butts in seats by winning.  Winning a game that means something.  Winning a game against a tough opponent in front of the home crowd.   That’s not happening very often.  
 

We’re in the middle of the DFW metromess with hundreds of other options to do on a Saturday at 11:00, on a Saturday at 2:00 and on a Saturday at 6:30.  People want instant gratification and will look elsewhere to find it.  No one wants to willingly be let down. 

[SilverEagle]

23 minutes ago, Mrs. Esterhouse said:

The AD, the coaches and the team need to go out to the campus and local community. I don't see them doing anything in Denton or around campus to get people excited and in the seats. Coach Morris just blames the fans for not showing up and telling them to get over themselves because the game was at 11am. That's not how you get butts in seats. 

I agree that the AD (and any of his staff who are high-energy-rah-rah people) and coaching staff need to get out into the campus and the community to ask/cajole the people to become full time fans of the our athletic program. In addition, they need to bring the band (or a manageable portion of it) with them. We certainly need wins, and as high profile a win as possible.

BUT (and hear it comes.....the C word) we need to change the culture at the same time. The spirit organizations need engage the fans in the stands as much as possible in generating crowd noise, instead of that relentless canned noise. At the end of the game the crowd should feel that they were a big factor in the win. THAT is what keeps people coming back. Gymnastics by the cheer squad and silly games during time out are not what builds a FAN CULTURE.

Coach Morris comes from a west Texas community that lives and breaths sports. Those people are not just hones hard working people...they are HARD WORKING PEOPLE......who don't whine about the game time of their football games.

I understand Coach Morris and his frustration with us because I came from a similar community as Shallowater. When I was in HS (right about the time that we killed off the last of the dinosaurs), we had a real, REAL intense rivalry with the Jacksboro Tigers. In 1966 the game was a home game, and the highest rated game in all of the metroplex for that Friday night. Jacksboro was rated #1, and we were rated about #2 or #3. I was in the band, so the morning of the game, we walked over to the football field to knock any ruff edges off our presentation. As I approached the fence on the north side of the stadium, I spotted two pickups parked next to the fence that I had never seen before. As I walked past them, I noticed "Jacksboro Tigers" stickers on both trucks. I don't know when they had arrived but this was 8:30 in the morning. 

The Stadium was SRO that night. BEFORE we (the band) entered the stadium to take our place in the stands both concession stands were sold out of Hot Dogs.  Both crowds had a big part in the outcome of the game.

Coach Morris was right. 

 

[wardly]

1 hour ago, NM Green said:

I don’t think we get rocked in a bowl game. We are due and will get a W.

Now call me optimistic Oscar but I see us beating Army. We are the best team they will have played in 2024. 

UTSA I feel is a loss because that coach will get them fired up down south to beat us. We beat East Carolina we beat Temple.

We win in Frisco or Albuquerque. 

I’m okay with this season if it unfolds this way. 

GMG

Army can really run the ball. We can't stop the run. We will win our last 3 games to go 8 & 4 and hopefully go somewhere other than Frisco and Albuquerque. I have been to all our Frisco bowl games and wouldn't go to another one if there was a gun to my head. Ditto to the New Mexico Bowl although I did find a great hole in the wall Mexican food restaurant close to Lobo Stadium that was sandwiched a liqueur store and a pawn shop. I suggest you be packing.

[SilverEagle]

If the Army defense has terrible pass coverage, then we could end up in another 2007 North Texas/Navy game that ended in Navy winning 74-62.  I remember that we won the toss and took the ball first. We immediately scored and then kicked an on-side kick, which we got. We then went up 14-0. I remember turning to the person next to me and saying "Holy S##T Todd Dodge just made a statement about how our defense was going to do tonight".  Only they did worse. 

Edited Sunday at 06:57 PM by SilverEagle

[UNTcrazy727]

2 hours ago, emmitt01 said:

What’s wrong is that around the time of the Wyoming game, even with the Tech embarrassment, people thought “They’re 2-1, maybe the defense just looked bad against a superior Big XII team.”  
 

Yesterday you saw the result of people realizing “nope, they genuinely cannot tackle and refuse to alter their scheme against what should be comparable talent” 

 

We will not beat Army.  And, no, we won’t beat UTSA in their season Super Bowl.  
 

A sparse crowd will see us beat East Carolina to get to 6 wins…then people will swear the season was “a success” when we beat a horrible Temple squad…then we’ll all come crashing back down when we get rocked in a bowl game.  

We won’t beat UTSA?? I know we’re upset right now but come on lol

UTSA just lost to effing Tulsa. They are cooked. 

[Aquila_Viridis]

What I meant was that you’re supposed to have homecoming be against a team that you will have a good chance of beating.

[wardly]

6 hours ago, SilverEagle said:

If the Army defense has terrible pass coverage, then we could end up in another 2007 North Texas/Navy game that ended in Navy winning 74-62.  I remember that we won the toss and took the ball first. We immediately scored and then kicked an on-side kick, which we got. We then went up 14-0. I remember turning to the person next to me and saying "Holy S##T Todd Dodge just made a statement about how our defense was going to do tonight".  Only they did worse. 

If memory serves, when we scored and our player made a eagle claw sign with his hand in celebration we got flagged for taunting which set up several short drives by Navy.

[keith]

Short term memory (or is it long term) is challenged these days.  When was the last time we won in an upset?  Was it against a ranked USTA that everyone wants to discount?  What was it before that?   I guess we just need to play more bad terms.  Do they teach how to tackle in Texas high school football?  Seems to be a lost art.  

[DeepGreen]

Well, we did that Arkansas team many years ago.

[MeanGreenTexan]

9 hours ago, emmitt01 said:

What’s wrong is that around the time of the Wyoming game, even with the Tech embarrassment, people thought “They’re 2-1, maybe the defense just looked bad against a superior Big XII team.”  
 

Yesterday you saw the result of people realizing “nope, they genuinely cannot tackle and refuse to alter their scheme against what should be comparable talent” 

 

We will not beat Army.  And, no, we won’t beat UTSA in their season Super Bowl.  
 

A sparse crowd will see us beat East Carolina to get to 6 wins…then people will swear the season was “a success” when we beat a horrible Temple squad…then we’ll all come crashing back down when we get rocked in a bowl game.  

It’s almost as if you’ve seen this movie before. 

[untjim1995]

8 hours ago, keith said:

Short term memory (or is it long term) is challenged these days.  When was the last time we won in an upset?  Was it against a ranked USTA that everyone wants to discount?  What was it before that?   I guess we just need to play more bad terms.  Do they teach how to tackle in Texas high school football?  Seems to be a lost art.  

No, the TX HS football today is so focused on offense and the 7-on-7 open wide schemes. Coaches will tell you that they love it and the kids do too. And it leads to less injuries because it’s less physical. All of it’s true.

And it shows when we play teams with size from states that have physical HS football, unlike here in Texas.

[97and03]

19 hours ago, wardly said:

Our 3 loses YTD are all against better teams. And yes, Army is a better team and will probably beat us as well. There is no shame in losing to teams that are bigger, stronger, and faster that we are. I fully expect us to beat ECU,UTSA, and Temple and finish 8&4, which is not too shabby for a UNT team that was picked 9th in the conference preseason.

Two points on the bolded sentence:

1) We have to win those matchups sometimes in order to take the next steps

2) The real shame is that we are describing conference mates this way. Those terms should be reserved for SEC or Big12 matchups, not teams with which we should be equal. 

[UNTcrazy727]

10 hours ago, keith said:

Short term memory (or is it long term) is challenged these days.  When was the last time we won in an upset?  Was it against a ranked USTA that everyone wants to discount?  What was it before that?   I guess we just need to play more bad terms.  Do they teach how to tackle in Texas high school football?  Seems to be a lost art.  

We were 6 point underdogs to South Alabama in week 1.