A humble request

[emmitt01]

Breathe.

We got beat by FIU. Badly. It happened. But I watched every single snap of that game and came away with one main thought. This FIU team is pretty good. TY Hilton, if he played for Clemson or Va Tech, would be getting some serious national pub. Do this one thing before you go writing off the season. Watch FIU's game against Louisville next week, or at least look at the final score and stats. I think FIU will win that game. I know, I know, "it's a Sun Belt school" so therefore any loss, especially a bad one, must be the end of the world. Ever stop to think that all Sun Belt teams are not interchangeable? FIU is not FAU. Nor are they ULL. Those are games I think we will win. I gueswhat I'm trying to say is this...Florida State is an ACC team, and so is Duke. Are they interchangeable? And how does this "it's just a Sun Belt team" argument work when many on this board are willing to discount Dickey's bowl run because that Sun Belt was nothing compared to today's Sun Belt? Which is it? Is the Sun Belt the weak sisters of the poor that Dickey supposedly ran through...or is it really an improved league with, gasp, a decent team or two?

Look, I'm not saying you should excused getting beaten down like that. Nor am I saying that if there is no improvement as the year progresses that we should just grin and bear it. But that was a snowball game last night if ever I saw one. How many times did we say during the past four years "where's the beef?" in regards to our recruiting classes (I know Silver said it)? How many times did we complain that we went out and signed 5,000 receivers and not enough defensive playmakers? Those holes, those gaping holes, in this roster didn't disappear. I know, I know, it was ok to blame Dickey because of black jersey gate, calling us MF'ers, etc. But how in the world can you honestly overlook the complete mismanagement of this program for the past half decade and say that we expect Mac to fix it in one off-season? Should the playcalling have been more original and should we have done some things to get Lance in space? Yes. Was he running behind a patchwork and young line? Again, yes.

This is a reclamation project. It is. Let it sink in. The difference, and the only reason I'm still gonna tailgate for 24 hours before this team takes the field next week is this. We have a coach in place who knows how to build with steel and concrete instead of mud and twigs for a change.

[pastorgrant]

Breathe.

We got beat by FIU. Badly. It happened. But I watched every single snap of that game and came away with one main thought. This FIU team is pretty good. TY Hilton, if he played for Clemson or Va Tech, would be getting some serious national pub. Do this one thing before you go writing off the season. Watch FIU's game against Louisville next week, or at least look at the final score and stats. I think FIU will win that game. I know, I know, "it's a Sun Belt school" so therefore any loss, especially a bad one, must be the end of the world. Ever stop to think that all Sun Belt teams are not interchangeable? FIU is not FAU. Nor are they ULL. Those are games I think we will win. I gueswhat I'm trying to say is this...Florida State is an ACC team, and so is Duke. Are they interchangeable? And how does this "it's just a Sun Belt team" argument work when many on this board are willing to discount Dickey's bowl run because that Sun Belt was nothing compared to today's Sun Belt? Which is it? Is the Sun Belt the weak sisters of the poor that Dickey supposedly ran through...or is it really an improved league with, gasp, a decent team or two?

Look, I'm not saying you should excused getting beaten down like that. Nor am I saying that if there is no improvement as the year progresses that we should just grin and bear it. But that was a snowball game last night if ever I saw one. How many times did we say during the past four years "where's the beef?" in regards to our recruiting classes (I know Silver said it)? How many times did we complain that we went out and signed 5,000 receivers and not enough defensive playmakers? Those holes, those gaping holes, in this roster didn't disappear. I know, I know, it was ok to blame Dickey because of black jersey gate, calling us MF'ers, etc. But how in the world can you honestly overlook the complete mismanagement of this program for the past half decade and say that we expect Mac to fix it in one off-season? Should the playcalling have been more original and should we have done some things to get Lance in space? Yes. Was he running behind a patchwork and young line? Again, yes.

This is a reclamation project. It is. Let it sink in. The difference, and the only reason I'm still gonna tailgate for 24 hours before this team takes the field next week is this. We have a coach in place who knows how to build with steel and concrete instead of mud and twigs for a change.

Great post, thank you emmitt01. +1 from me.

[Quoner]

Too much reason today and not enough crazy. Bans are the freaking worst...

[Primo]

Right on, Black Dynamite!

[Green Lantern]

Too much reason today and not enough crazy. Bans are the freaking worst...

Can we look forward to another Monday Morning recap this year? Some serious gold to start the season here on GMG.

[SHOSS]

Can we look forward to another Monday Morning recap this year? Some serious gold to start the season here on GMG.

I second that request...errr, uh, emotion?

[Quoner]

Can we look forward to another Monday Morning recap this year? Some serious gold to start the season here on GMG.

I'm on the fence. I can't figure out a way to do it without being incredibly mean to people at this point. I'm trying to come up with a plan B -- maybe awards for different types of posts?

[untjim1995]

Emmitt, your are exactly right. I think it would behoove most of us to expect that the next game will show improvements, but that Houston is worlds better than us. This is going to be a game where they probably use us like Tulsa did--as a recruiting advantage. They used a regional opponent that they do recruit against and just annihilated us, gaining a huge jump on us for years. UH will probably do the same, just to keep their status with Texas recruits at a high standing. Just keep it in perspective--we have a long ways to go. Just enjoy the new stadium and the fact that we aren't playing the Coogs at Fouts with Dodge/Dickey patrolling the sidelines. That would be depressing!!

[Green P1]

As soon as the 2-deeps were released we should have all seen this coming.

That's just the way re-building go.

[Got5onIt]

Great post. NT has many more lumps to take before they can start giving them out. We just need to have patience and try to relax. We now have an experienced pro in the driver seat and not some pizza faced 16 year old who stole their daddy's keys for a joy ride.

[LongJim]

This FIU team is pretty good. TY Hilton, if he played for Clemson or Va Tech, would be getting some serious national pub.

Agree with much of your post. FIU is very good.

One of the interesting things that people seem to assume is that the SBC exists in some sort of time warp, or vaccuum. I don't know how many keep up with current events, but the top teams in the SBC are now the equal of the top teams in the MAC and arguably the top of CUSA. That FIU team last night--barring some catastrophe--will either win the Belt easily, or finish second. They are 1980's Miami clones in what they're trying to do, which is fill every position with strong, fast players. They weren't particularly big when compared to the giant teams in the Big 10 or SEC, but they are well-conditioned, physical, and blindingly fast, as well as well-coached.

I gueswhat I'm trying to say is this...Florida State is an ACC team, and so is Duke.

Good observation, IMO, and I agree--it's really time to quit hanging onto this tired mentality of "these are just Sun Belt teams". The Sun Belt is a pretty good football conference, and guess what? UNT PLAYS THERE and competes for the same athletes. It's sort of odd to expect that when recruiting does not match that of the upper echelon teams in your conference, that you are going to be successful. For that reason, I agree with you.

And how does this "it's just a Sun Belt team" argument work when many on this board are willing to discount Dickey's bowl run because that Sun Belt was nothing compared to today's Sun Belt? Which is it? Is the Sun Belt the weak sisters of the poor that Dickey supposedly ran through...or is it really an improved league with, gasp, a decent team or two?

No conference exists in a vaccuum. Compared to other conferences, the 2001 SBC was the weak sisters of the poor--overall. UNT at that time had superior athletes than the other 'sisters' in that conference. It's that simple. In some areas, (running back for example, maybe secondary) UNT still does today. FIU has superior athletes when compared to other 'sisters' in the SBC right now in positions that demand it--linemen, WR, and overall team speed.

Top to bottom, is the SBC better now than it was in 2001? I don't know. I'd say regarding athleticism--definitely so, but who cares, and it doesn't matter. What matters is that UNT addresses its recruiting deficiencies *relative* to the level of improvement in the league in the areas it hasn't since 2004. Whether it's DD/TD or whoever, it doesn't matter. They didn't get it done, and to me, it's counterproductive to keep bringing "the coach I hate/love" into the equation. It's an ongoing systemic problem, and one the program still faces.

This is a reclamation project. We have a coach in place who knows how to build with steel and concrete instead of mud and twigs for a change.

I agree, but this has been a reclamation project since the 2004 season, and the attempts at reclamation have been misguided, in addition to facilities and staff being substandard relative to the rest of the league. To me, early recruiting results are very encouraging, and the facilities and experience is in place to make a difference finally.

It's time to let Dickey and Dodge go. It really is. It's not the issue anymore.

[UNTLifer]

Great post emmitt.

[Denia Park Pedro]

It has not been a reclamation project since 2004, it's been a demolition. Unfortunately, the reclamation that has only just begun will produce results similar to the demolition for awhile because the parts are essentially the same.

[TIgreen01]

Sure, everyone calm down. ....BS. I'm just glad we have anyone left after these last 6-7 years that gives enough of a damn to get pissed off anymore.

[eppy4life]

Sure, everyone calm down. ....BS. I'm just glad we have anyone left after these last 6-7 years that gives enough of a damn to get pissed off anymore.

It's gotten to the point that even the most diehard fans have begun to laugh about the whole thing. What else can we do? I'm unhealthy enough as it is. I can't add fits of anger to it.

[Travis Scott]

great post emmitt01. i completely agree. It's been hard to be a North Texas football fan for too many years. however, i believe the payoff will be worth it. The team will only grow from this now that we have the right coaching staff to lead them.

[NM Green]

Cool. I just want to be ready to kick some arse when we line up against the ponies and the Mean Greenies go crazy mad! We will be good. Jones will be gone. Ponies will be crying. We will be flying!

GMG