Football: UNT has added incentive for victory

[NT80]

Football: UNT has added incentive for victory

Players ready to win for outgoing head coach

12:31 AM CST on Saturday, November 11, 2006

By Brett Vito / Staff Writer

This wasn't the way North Texas envisioned it would enter its game against Louisiana-Lafayette in the closing weeks of the season a few months ago.

UNT had designs on competing for the Sun Belt Conference title and a berth in the New Orleans Bowl. A fourth winning season in five years seemed like a real possibility.

Those dreams went awry in a series of tough losses that ended up costing head coach Darrell Dickey his job and leaving the Mean Green in an awkward situation heading into today's game against the Ragin' Cajuns.

Dickey was dismissed Wednesday, but has decided to stay on for the remaining three games of the season.

The news gave UNT a rallying cry for the rest of the year.

"I would love to send coach Dickey out on a three-game winning streak," backup quarterback Matt Phillips said. "That is what we are going to try to do anyway, win all the rest of our games."

Dickey has declined to comment on the decision UNT athletic director Rick Villarreal and the rest of the school's administration made other than to say that he has enjoyed his nine seasons with the Mean Green and will continue to lead the team to the best of his abilities the remainder of the season.

UNT's players say that Dickey has told them not to worry about his future or what might be in store next season and concentrate on the task at hand.

"We were caught off guard by it," UNT senior wide receiver Johnny Quinn said of Dickey's dismissal, "but our focus is strictly on Louisiana-Lafayette. This is something that is unfortunate and we are disappointed about, but we have a big game that we are going to get ready to play."

At the beginning of the season, today's game appeared as if it might be a key contest in the SBC race. ULL was picked to win the conference title in the preseason coaches' poll behind a veteran roster that includes first-team all-conference selections at quarterback and running back in Jerry Babb and Tyrell Fenroy, respectively.

UNT was picked to finish fourth and begin to get back to the form it showed while winning four straight Sun Belt titles from 2001-04.

Neither team has lived up to expectations.

ULL, which tied for the Sun Belt title last season, is 4-4 overall and at 1-2 in conference play is pretty much out of the race for a second straight Sun Belt title. UNT is 2-7 and has lost two straight conference games to fall out of the league title race as well at 1-3.

While UNT does not have much on the line in terms of the conference race, ULL coach Rickey Bustle expects a challenge from the Mean Green.

"I'm sure it's a very emotional thing for all the guys there," Bustle told the Lafayette Daily Advertiser. "I haven't talked to Darrell and I don't know any of the details. I just know his team's going to be ready to play Saturday."

UNT's struggles this season have been due in large part to an offense that has been unproductive. The Mean Green ranked No. 119 nationally in total offense heading into their game against Louisiana Tech last week before producing their best outing of the season against the Bulldogs.

UNT finished with a season high in points, but still lost, 34-31.

The Mean Green's offensive outburst could be attributed in large part to the "Green Team," a group of backups that practiced together last week and played as a unit against Tech. The group scored 17 unanswered points and helped spark a comeback after the Mean Green fell behind 21-0 in the first quarter.

"It was a thrill for me to watch those guys who had not had much playing time give us a spark," Dickey said. "The team responded well to it."

UNT scored 31 unanswered points after Dickey inserted his "Green Team," including 14 by the Mean Green's starters.

Quarterback Daniel Meager and the rest of UNT's top players went back into the game for a two-minute drill at the end of the first half and scored on a 54-yard touchdown catch and run by Quinn.

Dickey stuck with his starters and saw them score on UNT's first possession of the second half. The Mean Green stumbled the rest of the way, committing three key turnovers that ended UNT's hopes for a win.

The "Green Team" will be in place again today when UNT will look to take the first step in sending Dickey out in style.

"We have three games left that we are excited to play," Quinn said. "Being a senior, I want us to go out on top."

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

What's at stake

North Texas will try to turn its season around and send head coach Darrell Dickey out on a positive note in its last three games. Dickey was fired last week in the middle of his ninth season with the Mean Green. UNT is just 2-7 on the season, but has been close to getting over the hump the last two weeks when the Mean Green have lost to Louisiana Tech, 34-31, and Troy, 14-6. A win over the Ragin' Cajuns could help get the Mean Green headed in the right direction going into what will be an eventful offseason.

ULL has also had a disappointing year and is all but out of the race for the Sun Belt Conference title at 1-2 in league play. While the Ragin' Cajuns will likely miss out on a bowl berth, they can finish with a winning record for the second consecutive season with a solid performance in the closing stages of the year.

Facing off

UNT's offense vs. ULL defense

The Mean Green broke out of a season-long funk last week in a 34-31 loss to Louisiana Tech, a team that came into the game ranked last in the country in total defense. UNT introduced the "Green Team" of backups that ran a simple set of plays and scored 17 points against Tech. The unit is expected to return this week when the Mean Green take on a Ragin' Cajuns defense that gave up 42 points to Troy last week. UL-Lafayette ranks last in the Sun Belt in passing defense with an average of 226.2 yards allowed a game, but should be more than the Mean Green can handle.

Advantage: ULL

UNT defense vs. ULL offense

The Ragin' Cajuns resemble UNT's teams from the bowl run of 2001-04 in the fact that ULL features a potent running game. ULL leads the Sun Belt Conference with an average of 189.5 yards a game, more than 35 yards better than any other team in the league. Running back Tyrell Fenroy leads the Sun Belt with an average of 83.6 rushing yards a game, while quarterback Jerry Babb has 251 rushing yards on the season. Babb is one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the league when he gets a chance to carry the ball. UNT ranks sixth out of eight teams in the Sun Belt in total defense with an average of 356.1 yards allowed a game and failed to come through last week when the Mean Green's offense came up with its best performance of the season.

Advantage: ULL

Coaching

UNT head coach Darrell Dickey will be looking to come up with one last unexpected run of success in his final three games with the Mean Green after being fired this week. Dickey is the four-time Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year, but has fallen on hard times the last two seasons and was fired last week. ULL head coach Rickey Bustle led the Ragin' Cajuns to a share of the Sun Belt title last season, but has struggled this year. With two losses in league play, ULL is pretty much out of the race for the conference title. Dickey has a history of success in the Sun Belt and emotion on his side.

Coaching: UNT

Key position

Jerry Babb, quarterback

North Texas knows all too well how tough Louisiana-Lafayette quarterback Jerry Babb can be to contain.

Babb has not only been playing in the Sun Belt Conference for four years, the senior also posted one of the best outings of his career last season against the Mean Green at Fouts Field. UNT struggled to contain Babb no matter what he did in a 31-28 loss.

Babb rushed for a career-high 133 yards and threw for another 109 while completing an efficient 8 of 11 passes.

Not much has changed about Babb since the last time the Mean Green faced him a year ago. The Lafayette native comes into today's game ranked fourth in the Sun Belt Conference in total offense with an average of 155.8 yards a game.

If the Mean Green are to break out of a three-game slide and send out departing head coach Darrell Dickey on a positive note, they will have to keep Babb in check.

Dickey said Babb's stature is just one reason that will be a challenge for the Mean Green.

"Babb is 6-3, 225, and is strong," Dickey said. "He is an outstanding runner, who can also throw the ball. We are going to have to contain him to have a chance to win."

The biggest obstacle standing between the Mean Green and that goal could be keeping Babb in the pocket, a task UNT struggled with last season in its game against the Ragin' Cajuns. Those same problems have cropped up again this year.

"The worst thing we did defensively last week was trying to keep containment," Dickey said of the Mean Green's loss to Louisiana Tech.

The Ragin' Cajuns could have a big day against UNT if it can't find a way to improve against the run.

ULL runs an option-based offense that attacks the perimeter of a defense. Babb has mastered the system and is setting up the rest of the Ragin' Cajuns running backs in positions where they can be successful in addition to taking advantage of his own opportunities.

ULL sophomore running back Tyrell Fenroy leads the Sun Belt with an average of 83.6 rushing yards a game.

While UNT has struggled at times this season defensively, it has managed to keep most of its opponents' top running backs in check. Arkansas State running back Reggie Arnold torched the Mean Green's defense for 121 yards and three touchdowns, but is the only player to clear the 100-yard mark against the Mean Green this season.

If UNT is to break out of its slide against ULL, the Mean Green will have to prevent Babb from having a performance like the one he enjoyed last year at Fouts Field.

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

Key matchups

UNT LB Germaine Dawson vs. ULL RB Tyrell Fenroy

Fenroy is the leading rusher in the Sun Belt Conference and one of the keys to ULL's offense that ranks 16th nationally in rushing with an average of 189.5 yards a game.

The sophomore is averaging 83.6 yards a game on an average of 5.5 yards a carry.

Fenroy and the Ragin' Cajuns run an option offense that attacks the perimeter of a defense. UNT has struggled to contain the perimeter this season and had a tough day against ULL's offense last year.

Fenroy rushed for 102 yards on 22 carries to complement a big day by quarterback Jerry Babb, who finished with 133 yards.

If the Mean Green are to turn the tables this season, Dawson will need to have a solid day. The sophomore outside linebacker is tied for third among UNT players with 42 tackles in his first season playing a major role with the Mean Green.

Dawson stepped in when Phillip Graves was injured in preseason practice and is now rotating with the senior captain.

Facing ULL's option running attack will be a new experience for Dawson. If he responds well, the Mean Green will have a better chance of containing ULL and ending a three-game losing streak.

UNT WR Johnny Quinn vs. ULL CB Michael Adams

Quinn became the Mean Green's all-time leader in receiving yards with in a big night against Louisiana Tech last week and will be a key part of UNT's plans again today against Louisiana-Lafayette.

Quinn is UNT's leading receiver with 42 catches for 524 yards and three touchdowns. The senior is just 11 catches short of breaking the Mean Green's career record for receptions of 182 set by David Brown from 1991-94.

Quinn has quickly closed on that record the last few weeks by posting 100-yard games in each the last two weeks to go along with a 10-reception game against Florida International on Oct. 7.

Quinn would likely have both records already if it were not for UNT's inexperience at quarterback the last two seasons.

A game against ULL and Adams appears to give Quinn an opportunity to make up for lost time. The Ragin' Cajuns rank last in the Sun Belt in passing defense with an average of 226.2 yards allowed a game and only have four interceptions on the year.

Adams, 5-8, 178, is ULL's best man in coverage and ranks fourth among Ragin' Cajun players with 34 tackles. Quinn, 6-0, 199, is one of the Mean Green's strongest players pound-for-pound and is also among the fastest.

UNT will look to take advantage.

[GreenBat]

Dickey has declined to comment on the decision UNT athletic director Rick Villarreal and the rest of the school's administration made other than to say that he has enjoyed his nine seasons with the Mean Green and will continue to lead the team to the best of his abilities the remainder of the season.

This is the reason he was dismissed. "The best of his abilities" means same ol stuff!