FW *Telegram NT Freshmen QB battling/#1

[OldTimer]

Freshmen battling to be No. 1 QB

By JEFF WILSON

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

DENTON - One quarterback spent February with a bum shoulder that would require surgery, and another watched National Signing Day come and go without landing a college scholarship.

Fast forward six months, and look at that same duo now. Each can be found on the practice fields along South Bonnie Brae Street, rotating in and out with North Texas' first-team offense as the Mean Green prepares for its Sept. 3 season opener.

Daniel Meager or Matt Phillips will start against LSU, perhaps a cruel reward for a freshman in his first college start. But only 10 days before kickoff in Baton Rouge, La., UNT coaches don't know which freshman it will be.

"Right now, you can throw them in a hat and they're even," offensive coordinator Ramon Flanigan said. "Every day it's an evaluation."

Ringside judges -- coach Darrell Dickey and Flanigan, who doubles as quarterbacks coach -- have the battle scored as a draw after UNT's first scrimmage Saturday.

The biggest difference between Meager and Phillips is their freshman status. Meager, from Richardson, redshirted last season and has been studying the Mean Green's offense for a year.

That's about 50 weeks more than true freshman Phillips, a San Angelo resident who has been busy playing catch-up, both with learning the offense and adapting to the speed of the college game.

"I'm watching a lot of film and trying to make good reads and good checks at the line of scrimmage," Phillips said. "It's starting to slow down now. The first few days we were all slinging it out there to wrong receivers. Now, we're sitting back in the pocket."

A redshirt season can be a big one, and Dickey knows first-hand. Dickey redshirted at Kansas State before spending four seasons as the Wildcats' starting quarterback. The idle year gave him time to adapt to college life, and he had a set of spring practices to learn the college game.

Meager followed the redshirt path wisely.

"I tried to sit back and watch and see what it took, besides playing, to be the quarterback," said Meager, who started fall drills as the top QB after sophomore Joey Byerly was declared academically ineligible. "I tried to soak in as much as I could."

Flanigan, who didn't redshirt his first year at SMU, and Dickey have coached a true freshman quarterback at UNT. Scott Hall, whom Meager and Phillips are vying to replace, made nine starts his first year in Denton. Hall had a solid defense to lean on. Phillips would have back-to-back national rushing champions in Patrick Cobbs and Jamario Thomas.

"Every situation is different," Flanigan said. "The quarterbacks here have a lot of talent around them. There's not going to be a whole lot of importance on them to come in and do a whole lot of things -- just manage the offense -- and that's going to be the advantage they have."

Phillips, who chose UNT in April, has impressed coaches with his maturity and cool head. Dickey said Phillips didn't make too many mistakes in the scrimmage and didn't try to force the action.

Flanigan said the same goes for Meager, who missed the spring game after having surgery on his throwing shoulder in early March. Though Meager said his arm is healthy, Dickey and Flanigan have noticed some tentative throws.

"He's got to start letting the ball go," Flanigan said. "If he gets the confidence back in his shoulder, he'll be able to take a lot of the strides toward getting better."

Dickey has set a Monday deadline to choose the No. 1 QB, who will get the majority of the first-team snaps in practices. But that player probably won't be the only one who plays early on.

"Whoever we feel like gives us the best chance to move the football is going to play, regardless of what class they're in," Dickey said. "If we have two young guys who can both move the team, we'd lean toward playing them both."

GAMEDAY

NORTH TEXAS AT NO. 5 LSU

7 p.m. Sept. 3, Baton Rouge, La.

Radio: KWRD/100.7 FM,

KNTU/88.1 FM

Jeff Wilson, (817) 390-7953 jwilson@star-telegram.com

[Stan R]

I'm kind of surprised that DD would even pick a #1 at this point. But I'm glad that he is.

[MeanGreenBuzz]

There was a great article in the DMN about this yesterday also. It looks like Vito's articles are getting put in alot of the local papers, and now a FWST columnist has done an article. This is the heaviest coverage NT has gotten in the local papers since I have been at school here.

I expect Meager to be named the starter Monday because he knows the offense better, but by week 4 Phillips will be the starter.

[NT80]

Dickey said. "If we have two young guys who can both move the team, we'd lean toward playing them both."

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I hope we don't go to a platoon system, that never works.

[stebo]

"Whoever we feel like gives us the best chance to move the football is going to play, regardless of what class they're in," Dickey said. "If we have two young guys who can both move the team, we'd lean toward playing them both."

UGH!!!!!!!! Welcome aboard the time machine. Today we will be travelling back to the days of the quarterback carousel at North Texas! We welcome aboard our special guests: Josh Gulley, Richard Bridges, and Spencer Stack.

[andrewrozell]

at the end of the article it mentions radio broadcast... but what about TV slot??! anyone know?

[BIG DAWG]

I hope we don't go to a platoon system, that never works. 

I am pulling for Meager, but anything but a platoon system. This post is correct,

IT NEVER WORKS!

[OldTimer]

I'm kind of surprised that DD would even pick a #1 at this point.  But I'm glad that he is.

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Jeff Wilson of the star telegram has NT as his beat or part of his beat. He ran a very, very large article earlier on NT with photo's a few weeks ago...about 1/3 of the front page of the sports section plus another 1/3 page on the inside article. Of course that first article was on Cobbs and Thomas.