DRC FB 05 DB class show potential..Bleil hasn't

OldTimer · October 27, 2006

Football: '05 DB class shows potential for UNT

Group to be tested Saturday at Troy

12:10 AM CDT on Friday, October 27, 2006

By Brett Vito / Staff Writer

Fred Bleil has seen plenty of recruiting classes during his time in college football, and he isn’t sure if he has seen a group of young defensive backs quite as promising as the one he is working with at North Texas this season.

UNT’s defensive coordinator has four cornerbacks atop his depth chart, plus a pair of safeties he expects to become solid players -- all from the 2005 recruiting class.

The group will reach a key point in its development on Saturday when the Mean Green take on Troy in a Sun Belt Conference game.

Sophomore Dominique Green and redshirt freshman Antoine Bush will start at cornerback against the Trojans, while redshirt freshmen Desmon Chatman and Korey Washington are expected to play significant roles off the bench.

Backup safeties Steve Warren and Kartey Agbottah are the other members of the group.

“There are lower level Big 12 schools that won’t recruit six defensive backs that are any better than those guys in a year,” Bleil said. “They might get one or two. Those six guys are as fine of recruits you can get for his level of football.”

Those players have faced several tests so far this season and will endure yet another against Troy.

The Trojans feature one of the top quarterbacks in the Sun Belt in Omar Haugabook. The junior college transfer leads the league in total offense with an average of 183.8 yards a game and also ranks second in passing yards at 175.0 yards a game.

“I am looking forward to the challenge of playing Troy,” Green said. “They throw the ball a lot, which will give us more chances at interceptions and to make plays on the ball.”

Facing a player like Haugabook won’t be anything new for UNT’s young defensive backs. UNT was forced to throw those players into the fire early in their careers after losing a host of experienced players after last season.

Junior Aaron Weathers returned at safety and is the only upperclassman UNT has in its defensive secondary with more than a year of college experience as a starter.

The Mean Green were hoping Roy Loren would add a veteran presence to the group after transferring from Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College, but saw him get off to a late start when paperwork needed for him to become eligible was not filed until half of fall two-a-days were gone. Loren came back to start the Mean Green’s last three games, but is out this week after breaking his hand in a loss to Arkansas State last week.

The loss of Loren will be just another challenge for the Mean Green’s defensive secondary that has already faced several.

UNT took on two top quarterbacks early in the year in Paul Smith of Tulsa and Luke Getsy of Akron. Smith ranks 37th nationally with 1,504 passing yards, while Getsy is 28th with 1,592 yards.

Texas redshirt freshman Colt McCoy wasn’t bad either and is now ranked 42 nd nationally with 1,449 yards.

Taking on those players has helped UNT’s defensive backs mature.

“We have grown a lot this season,” Bush said. “The deeper we get into the season, the more we learn. We have adjusted to the speed of the game and have performed better.”

Bush named reading and cutting down a screen pass play against SMU as just one of the moments this season where he felt like he had a breakthrough moment.

Even Bush and Green admit they still have a long way to go, though.

Bleil said UNT’s players are still adjusting to the physical nature of the college game and the length of the season. The Mean Green rank fifth in the Sun Belt with an average of 199.1 yards allowed a game.

Bleil and his defensive backs believe that total will dwindle in the next few seasons as the Mean Green’s secondary of the future that arrived in the 2005 recruiting class matures.

“It will help us in the future to play so much early on,” Green said. “We are just going to get better and better. By the time we are seniors there will not be a lot teams can do against us. We just have keep getting better and eliminate the freshman and sophomore mistakes.”

BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com.

MeanGreenBuzz · October 27, 2006

I hope he is right about our DBs and not just posturing before the Troy game or it will be a VERY long game.

meangreendork · October 27, 2006

No, the secondary is that good. Just like how we have good skill players on offense. But for both to really make a difference, everyone else has to do their part.

MeanGreenBuzz · October 27, 2006

No, the secondary is that good. Just like how we have good skill players on offense. But for both to really make a difference, everyone else has to do their part.
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*cough* O-Line *cough*

pollock · October 27, 2006

Hey, it's refreshing to hear some confidence from a coach going into a game. Go Coach Bleil.

NT80 · October 27, 2006

No, the secondary is that good.
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Good? We are 2-5 and have allowed at least one TD pass and over 150 yards passing every game this season.

UT...3-tds...198-yds.

Smu..1-td....159-yds.

Tul..2-tds...275-yds.

Akn..3-tds...173-yds.

Muts.1-td....154-yds.

FIU..1-td....248-yds.

ASU..1-td....187-yds.

UNTFan23 · October 27, 2006

Good? We are 2-5 and have allowed at least one TD pass and over 150 yards passing every game this season.
UT...3-tds...198-yds.
Smu..1-td....159-yds.
Tul..2-tds...275-yds.
Akn..3-tds...173-yds.
Muts.1-td....154-yds.
FIU..1-td....248-yds.
ASU..1-td....187-yds.
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Part of that comes from the QB having all day and night to throw the ball.

PlummMeanGreen · October 28, 2006

I hope he is right about our DBs and not just posturing before the Troy game or it will be a VERY long game.
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I would guess posturing for the Troy U game, but moreso for his future new boss that he may want to be part of that projected new UNT coaching staff?

To me the hardest part of reading as well as participating in all these posted discussions is our sincere attempts to separate our coach's or athletic staffer's performance from the person themselves or the good human beings that most of these people really are. We've all been civil with most of our athletic department staffers at one time or another and they've been civil right back.

Many of our group will never be invited to parties thrown by anyone from the present UNT staff because those of us who don't spare words to express some true feelings usually find that they are not welcome (even at their own alma mater) to break bread with those who would lead at the moment. Oh well....................... .......... most of us won't lose sleep over such prospects; that is, by not being invited to such gatherings because FWIW some of us have been known to throw some pretty damn good parties of our own.

BUT seriously................if someone, ie, anyone? ..................on GoMeanGreen.com can produce a list of guidelines we can all follow on how to criticize those whose performances we can no longer accept or support but not the performer themselves (even after their having had plenty of years on the UNT payroll to make a difference one way or another)............

.............anyway, if there would be such guidelines that would show us all a nicer way for any of us to question or criticize our UNT leadership, please do enlighten us.

YET............................is there a problem when many of us feel there are others out there who can do a better job for our alma mater (based on the fact that other schools our size & even one SBC school who has shown us how to not just talk about building a new football stadium but have actually shown us how to get it done; and then, the TU Trojans debuting their new football stadium on ESPN in a national televised game against a Top 25 school with the TU Trojans even winning the darn football game against the #19 ranked Missouri Tigers.

Nevertheless, many of us would most likely be open to reading (and following) such guidelines on how to criticize the performance, but not the performer themselves, ie, the family man aspects of all this but to be perfectly frank and honest about it.................... last time I fired a recruiter in the technical school business of which I worked 25 years, I would be the first to admit that I was not on that person or his family's Christmas gift list to say the least.

So in affect, I'm not sure such projected guidelines to follow I am attempting to describe here exists when it comes to hiring and firing, right? And some of your take (if any) on this subject?

Edited October 28, 2006 by PlummMeanGreen