DRC Villarreal hold NT's FB Fate, Dodge talked

OldTimer · November 27, 2006

Villarreal holds UNT's football fate

11:24 PM CST on Sunday, November 26, 2006

Brett Vito/Staff Writer

Sometime in the next few days, Rick Villarreal’s legacy as athletic director at North Texas will, for all intents and purposes, be etched in stone.

The former pizza mogul has dramatically improved UNT's facilities and built enthusiasm for the program since he arrived in the spring of 2001 from Southern Miss.

When it comes down to it, though, Villarreal will be remembered largely for the moment he steps to the podium and announces that he has selected the Mean Green's next football coach who will be … South Carolina defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix? … Southlake Carroll head coach and former UNT offensive coordinator Todd Dodge?

The decision is pretty much Villarreal's to make, although university president Gretchen Bataille will be involved with the pick and the board of regents must approve the hire.

Villarreal's decision could make or break a program that seems to have reached a turning point.

UNT won four straight Sun Belt Conference titles from 2001-04 under former head coach Darrell Dickey, whose tenure ended Saturday in a loss to Louisiana-Monroe after nine seasons. The school dismissed Dickey on Nov. 8, midway through his second straight down year.

UNT lost some momentum over the last two years but not all of it. There is still more interest in the program now than before Dickey began his run, and there certainly is a better situation for the Mean Green's next football coach to work with.

Villarreal helped set up UNT's next coach with better facilities, including the Mean Green Athletic Center and new practice fields, additions Dickey helped make a reality by landing a $1 million donation from Houston businessman Jim McIngvale.

UNT's fan base is larger and number of donors involved with the program is greater, thanks partly to Villarreal.

Back-to-back losing football seasons didn’t stop Shirley and Al Goldfield from making a $1.5 million donation last week that ranks as the largest in the history of the Mean Green athletic program. The funds will help UNT with the early stages of a campaign for a new football stadium that will only make replacing Dickey a more attractive possibility for the right coach.

UNT's next coach could take the program and lift it past the level the Mean Green reached in the height of the Dickey era and help make the dream of a new stadium a reality by resorting enthusiasm to the program and helping establish relationships with potential donors.

Expectations are high, but for the right coach the stage seems set for what could be a quick turnaround.

Dickey said as much after he coached his last game on Saturday, when UNT finished 3-9.

“There is some very good young talent here and 19 starters returning," Dickey said. "Whoever comes in is going to inherit some very talented young men who gained some valuable experience the last two years."

UNT lost just one starter on defense after its loss to ULM in defensive lineman Sky Pruitt. The Mean Green will miss wide receiver Johnny Quinn, one of the best players in school history but returns just about everyone else on offense.

While the potential is there for a turnaround, there is also danger of UNT's slide continuing.

Dickey didn’t leave a ready-made winner. UNT’s next coach will have to find a workable quarterback situation, something Dickey wasn’t able to do in his last two seasons. He will also need to upgrade UNT’s offensive and defensive lines and replenish the Mean Green’s depleted corps of receivers.

Both are challenges that could be met by the right coach.

UNT has already contacted Nix. Dodge said he is willing to listen to Villarreal if he wants to talk after Carroll's season.

UTEP offensive coordinator Eric Price has expressed interest in the job.

Athletic directors are judged by whether they make the right decisions in situations like the one Villarreal faces.

Villarreal talked about needing a coach who could take advantage of UNT's improved facilities and location near the recruiting hotbed of Dallas-Fort Worth after announcing that Dickey would not be back next season.

Part of Villarreal's legacy will be setting up UNT's next coach with a better situation than what Dickey had to work with when he arrived in Denton in 1998.

Make the right hire and Villarreal could also be remembered as the athletic director who oversaw the construction of a new stadium and ascension of the Mean Green to ranks of mid-major football powers.

The wrong choice could extend UNT's slide of the last few years and sap enthusiasm from the athletic department in general.

The choice is Villarreal's. His legacy depends on his call.

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

MeanGreenBuzz · November 27, 2006

In Rick We Trust.

gangrene · November 27, 2006

11:24 PM CST on Sunday, November 26, 2006
Brett Vito/Staff Writer
While the potential is there for a turnaround, there is also danger of UNT's slide continuing.
Dickey didn’t leave a ready-made winner. UNT’s next coach will have to find a workable quarterback situation, something Dickey wasn’t able to do in his last two seasons. He will also need to upgrade UNT’s offensive and defensive lines and replenish the Mean Green’s depleted corps of receivers.
Both are challenges that could be met by the right coach.
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I have to agree with Brett Vito's comments/concerns, but I count far more than two "challenges" left by DD.

11:24 PM CST on Sunday, November 26, 2006
Brett Vito/Staff Writer
Villarreal talked about needing a coach who could take advantage of UNT's improved facilities and location near the recruiting hotbed of Dallas-Fort Worth after announcing that Dickey would not be back next season.
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Glad to hear that RV undestands what an absolute necessity it is to recruit DFW but, I hope he also understands the need to have a disciplined coach who can motivate players to believe they can win the "body bag games" AND alumni/fans in order to generate excitement for the program. We need someone who's not afraid to take a few risks in the OOC games in order to pull off the big upsets...an aggressive, innovative football mind who also just so happens to be a marketing genius and the most likable guy any HS football has ever met. Is that too much to ask??

Guys...I'll be honest, I'm really nervous about this hire. I definitely know firing DD was the right thing the do, but we've got a lot riding on the shoulders of our TBD coach. What if it turns out (three years from now) that DD was right about how difficult it is to recruit good athletes to play football in Denton? Or what if, as Brett Vito suggests, we hire the wrong coach and we continue to be at the bottom of the SBC pack??

I know my support (and most everyone on this forum) will continue through thick and thin, but we need to greatly increase our fan base in the DFW area if we are to achieve the success so many of us envision. Winning is the easiest way to cure all of our problems but there are plenty of obstacles to overcome before we can get back on the winning track take this program to new heights.