MTSU looks to break Mean Green curse

[MeanGreen61]

MTSU looks to break Mean Green curse

By Nate Rau, Sports Correspondent

September 29, 2006

Middle Tennessee State already has the media blitz in full force for next week’s game against Louisville at LP Field.

Radio spots, newspaper ads, television commercials, e-mail newsletters — they all urge mid-state football fans to watch MTSU’s historic game against the Cardinals. It will be the Blue Raiders’ first-ever nationally televised game.

But for as important as the Oct. 6 match-up with UL may be, there’s another game that could potentially go down as historically more important.

That would be this week’s foray to Denton, Texas, to face the University of North Texas, MTSU’s Sun Belt nemesis.

MTSU (2-2, 1-0) has never beaten the Mean Green (0-5 since 2000), but UNT (1-3) is down this season. If ever there was a chance to make a push toward Sun Belt contention, it’s now for the Blue Raiders.

“I understand the importance of this game, not because we have never beaten them but because it’s a big conference game,” MTSU coach Rick Stockstill said. “This team has never lost to North Texas. It’s a different team than last year or the one before, etc.

“We are approaching this game as one game. If we win it we are 2-0 and if we lose it we are 1-1. We are not going to put any pressure on this team that we have to win or we have no chance to win the conference.”

While a loss would not eliminate the Blue Raiders from SBC contention, a win seems more important given the game’s spot in MTSU’s schedule. Last week the team was throttled for a 59-0 loss at Oklahoma. Next week, MTSU will again be enormous underdogs against No. 8-ranked Louisville. A win against UNT will help salvage the most difficult portion of the team’s schedule.

“It’s my fourth year in the program and having not beaten North Texas, it gives you added incentive,” MTSU tight end Clinton Corder said. “Not only is it a big conference game but it’s a rival game… This is a different team but the fact remains that no one in our locker room has beaten [uNT].”

Pay-out games against teams like Oklahoma and Louisville increase MTSU’s visibility and put money in the athletic department’s checkbook. But, Stockstill said the program’s top goal is to win the league and North Texas has always been the team which has stood in MTSU’s way.

“That's ultimately what you play for, to win a championship,” Stockstill said. “We have won one game and we have a big one this week.”