Port Arthur Pride

MeanGreen61 · July 2, 2007

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Two things Dodge expects at his stay at UNT
1. A new stadium being built by 2009
2. A move to a better conference.
Number #2 can't happen if we dont do number #1 and add a baseball team.

Not exactly. Example. SMU moved to CUSA and doesn't have baseball.

emmitt01 · July 2, 2007

If you forgot, start another thread where you intelligently question why certain board members are absolutely convinced that Meager is the second coming of Joe Montana. Watch the antics ensue.

I already made this mistake once. The beating of my head into a wall afterwards hurt too much for me to continue.

PlummMeanGreen · July 2, 2007

I think T-Mac's RV comments go back to his DRC days covering UNT. I liked his hard-nosed questions he posed back then but it probably got bit off a few times too.

CHASIN' GREEN RABBITS!

There is a plethora of totally useful information and data that comes from www.GoMeanGreen.com. We have had very un-subtle hints for years that some feature articles in the DRC/DMN came from a few thread themes or subjects that came from this forum. We have had some UNT athletic employees discuss things specifically that could have only come from a certain theme from this forum while at the same time some telling many of us that they, uh, :rolleyes: never read www.GoMeanGreen.com.

TALK ABOUT YOUR BASIC DIVERSIFIED COLLEGE MESSAGE BOARD SPANNING 7 DECADES! Well, you have all that with www.GoMeanGreen. On this forum, you have NT Exes from almost every decade starting with the 1940's who post their ancedotes from all their respective eras or decades at UNT. There are some from this group who can get a bit opinionated :rolleyes: while throwing in (absolutely for free) their own HSO's; but Good Golly Miss Molly, this is what a college message board like this (and about 10,000 others just like this one across the USA) are mostly for. Most college officials would be wise to read this board and just filter out what they feel they need to filter out, but what better microcosim of UNT diversity can you find anywere other than www.GoMeanGreen?

Rick Villarreal? He is the kind of UNT A.D. I thought we should always have in Denton. No, he hasn't done everything according to Hoyle the way some NT Exes thought it should be done at times (a few extended contracts for one example); but if we had the perfect A.D. at UNT we probably wouldn't know how to handle that in the first place. I'd bet UT's DeLoss Dodds hasn't always been picture perfect, either, but what he has that Rick V hasn't had at UNT are a heckuva' bunch more alums and alum's donations to work with. Rick V has had to operate as AD much of his time in Denton under some very difficult circumstances of which most the time the only alternative he really ever had was to just grin and bare it.

For you new posters who may be unaware: Rick V saw a need to change the direction of Mean Green football as far back as November of 2001 with what I felt was a sincere attempt on his part to put UNT football in a position as to where our annual recruiting and Game Day successes would give us a legitimate chance at Top 25 rankings (a la Boise State U).

In my heart of hearts, :wub: I just don't think Rick V ever saw Top 25 rankings happening with DD as our HFC. Then DD bought some time with 4 bowls games, but with his football program not anywhere close to Top 25 rankings during any of those 4 bowl years. Those non-Top 25 bowl teams most likely the prime reason he could not get even one job interview with a higher profile D1-A football program.

Yet, an attempt to make a HFC's change by Rick V back in 2001 was over-ruled by a UNT regent who had allowed himself to get way too close to a UNT employee, and in this case, that would be the HFC of UNT.

But as they say................alls well that ends well; although all of this (with the black jersey caper for starters) didn't end well at all for most concerned.

IN ALL FAIRNESS TO DARRELL DICKEY: After the year DD's fine (yet un-ranked) football team finished 9 & 3 and he still had no higher profile football job interviews or offers, I think it affected him tremendously (like it would most). If one thinks about it, after that 9 & 3 season, things in Mean Green Country started going backwards, DD's sarcastic/sardonic radio comments became even more constant and many of DD's assistant coaches even seemed to take on the same personna as their boss. Heck, with one of DD's assistant coaches, we almost had a World Federation of Wrestling event "live" from the stands of Fouts Field thanks to our good fellow alum, one Mr. Silver Eagle! :lol:

Edited July 2, 2007 by PlummMeanGreen

Quoner · July 2, 2007

So RV is a megalomaniac....so what? I'm not agreeing that he is but, if he is, so is Mark Cuban, Jerry Buss, Sean Combs, the list goes on and on. The common thread? Their egos drive them to be the best and stay at the top.

This made my day. I know you do hyperbole for fun and I definitely respect that, but...

Mark Cuban - proactively invested in and changed the way the NBA presents the in-game fan experience, increased ref accountability, and is at the forefront of changing the NBA and high tech business.

Jerry Buss - oversees one of the two greatest NBA franchises of all times

Sean Combs - built a hip-hop empire. Still one of the most successful hop-hop stories ever told.

Rick Villareal - oversaw pizza empire, helped UNT become a power-house, er, seemingly legitimate NCAA athletic program. Invented tailgating and capital projects, including landgrab deals. Felt no need to make any new hires or changes until all abut cornered into it (let the Bobby Ray talk begin!)

One of these things is not like the other....

I don't think there is anything out there for us besides RV nor do I think we need anything else with everything coming up roses right now, buit the man is not god. People close to the program certainly don't think so, and nor do many of his competitors. I do think however, he is magical, but in more of a Chris Angell way vs. say a Copperfield or Hodini.

As for Playmaker's comments, alcohol abuse is sometimes more lethal than anything on the field. Just ask Joe Namath.

untgirl04 · July 2, 2007

I think that alot of people could agree that his heart attack came from the result of stress from his own program. Serioulsy I think that most of that stress came from his own assistant coaches.
The circumstances of him being fired after the heart attack looked bad, and resulted in bad PR, Im sure we still remember that.
Other than that it was bad time for UNT, but now things look alot better and they will continue to get brighter, as long as we can keep Todd Dodge here at NT.
Two things Dodge expects at his stay at UNT
1. A new stadium being built by 2009
2. A move to a better conference.
Number #1 can't happen if we arent serious about wanting to build a stadium. This is obviously not the case as alot of other mid major programs have planned to build a stadium after our initial vision was set forth when Villareal came here
( FIU, UCF, and others), they planned for it after us and they are now turning dirt.
Number #2 can't happen if we dont do number #1 and add a baseball team.

*sigh* I'd like to see those "lot of people" who think Dickey's heart attack was because he was coaching at North Texas. Most likely (and he'd probably agree with me here, based on statements he made shortly after the heart attack), Dickey's heart attack was the result of being overweight and having several other unhealthy habits. While I will agree that he most likely did experience some stress from coaching at North Texas, have you ever heard of a high profile, stress-free job?

Yes, the timing was somewhat unfortunate, but I really don't see this major PR hit you're talking about. Yes, we were on the news for several weeks about the firing, but since we've hired Todd Dodge, where are all the media mongers, ranting about Dickey's unfair treatment? I'll bet half the casual fans you poll about North Texas football hardly even remember the incident.

I didn't realize you spoke for Dodge, but thank you for outlining his two major expectations here at North Texas. Forget the joy of building a program into a national powerhouse, or rejuvenating a lackluster fan base, or staying close to family, or proving that his brand of offense can be highly successful in college - all Todd Dodge wants is a stadium and a new conference. <_< :rolleyes:

Eagle1855 · July 2, 2007

This made MY day:

alcohol abuse is sometimes more lethal than anything on the field. Just ask Joe Namath.

:clapping:

NT80 · July 2, 2007

Not exactly. Example. SMU moved to CUSA and doesn't have baseball.

Likewise UTEP and Tulsa don't have baseball. Although I would like baseball at NT someday, a Football stadium must be the priority first. CUSA membership would help achieve the football stadium, and likewise the new football stadium will help achieve CUSA.

Edited July 2, 2007 by NT80

NT1978 · July 2, 2007

....... Rick V has had to operate as AD much of his time in Denton under some very difficult circumstances of which most the time the only alternative he really ever had was to just grin and bare it.

I hope that I am not around when he does.

KRAM1 · July 2, 2007

SKIP the baseball...yep, here we go again...add men's soccer and BUILD THE NEW STADIUM. O.K., before we get going again...forget baseball AND men's soccer...Let's get the stadium going!!! Lots of thing...good things...can happen with a new stadium. GO FOR IT NOW!