UNT shut out on preseason All-C-USA coaches team, picked fifth in West

[Harry]

North Texas was shut out on the preseason All-Conference USA coaches team that was released today by the league office. The Mean Green was picked to finish fifth in the league’s West Division.

Tulsa was a unanimous pick to win the West, while East Carolina was picked to win the East Division.

This is how the poll shaped up:

West Division
1. Tulsa (14)……98
2. Rice…………76
3. Louisiana Tech..72
4. UTEP…………46
5. North Texas…..39
6. Tulane……….31
7. UTSA…………30

Read more: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2013/07/unt-shut-out-on-preseason-all-c-usa-coaches-team-picked-fifth-in-west.html/

[BillySee58]

Wow. Thought either Cyril or Zach would make it. They should both be second team at least.

[DeepGreen]

Guess UNT will have to prove them wrong.

[Harry]

You are your record. Losing the Troy and Western Kentucky games last season were setbacks that have a long lasting effect. This is just another example of that.

[HoustonEagle]

My Mean Green heart really really needs us to finish better than 5th in the West. I have been following since 1995 or so. Not until this year has my green blood slowed.


Here's hoping for a great year and collectively lifting our spirits.

Edited July 17, 2013 by HoustonEagle

[Mean Green 93-98]

Wow. Thought either Cyril or Zach would make it. They should both be second team at least.

They only put out a first team.

[MeanGreenTexan]

Bulletin Board Material.

[BillySee58]

They only put out a first team.

I know. I didn't word it great, but I meant to say if they release a second team I have confidence that both Cyril and Zach would be on it.

[TIgreen01]

I think we finish in 3rd or 4th...ahead of LATech, UTEP, and UTSA. Tulane has been recruiting well enough to expect them to finally start improving. Rice and Tulsa are better than us. Anything can happen on gameday, but over the course of a full season they should rise to the top.

[glick1980]

I would think Orr, Lemon, Y'Barbo, and Antonio Johnson could be on the first team by the end of the year if things work out.

[glick1980]

As far as the team rankings, we all saw how wrong coaches ranking teams can be this last basketball season.

[DallasGreen]

I refuse to aknowledege that Rice is better especially when the game is on national tv at our house. Tulsa and Georgia are only non-winnable games on the schedule.

[Mean Green 93-98]

I think we finish in 3rd or 4th...ahead of LATech, UTEP, and UTSA. Tulane has been recruiting well enough to expect them to finally start improving. Rice and Tulsa are better than us. Anything can happen on gameday, but over the course of a full season they should rise to the top.

I agree with this. LaTech's losing too many players, and changing coaches isn't likely to help matters. UTEP has not been good, and they have a new coach who has never been a head coach before. Tulane has been downright awful, although they have been kicking our tail on the recruiting trail and perhaps showing a few signs of improvement on the field. Finishing worse than 3rd in C-USA West should be a disappointment.

[Harry]

I can't help but look at Mac's road versus home record thus far. He is outstanding at home...we've had some nice wins (Indiana, ULL last year on national TV). He has been terrible on the road (FIU opening game, Houston last year). So I think we have a chance in all of our home games this year to win. The road is a completely different story. In fact, my hope is that we will continue to win at home and see a marked improvement in terms of how we play on the road.

[Green Lantern]

Switch us and UTEP and that's my realistic expectation of where we finish in the West. Would love to overachieve.

[MeanGreenTexan]

I refuse to aknowledege that Rice is better especially when the game is on national tv at our house. Tulsa and Georgia are only non-winnable games on the schedule.

Disagree with this. I only see one loss on our schedule. Tulsa game is winnable. Just need to put it together.

As it stands right now, I don't see how you could think Rice is not the better team between us and them. However, they can be beat. We'll just have to see.

[glick1980]

I refuse to aknowledege that Rice is better especially when the game is on national tv at our house. Tulsa and Georgia are only non-winnable games on the schedule.

I refuse to call Tulsa a non-winnable game. Hell, I refuse to call Georgia a non-winnable game and I hope our coaches and players feel the same way.

[UNT90]

I fear what this season brings.

Hope I'm wrong.

[BillySee58]

I would think Orr, Lemon, Y'Barbo, and Antonio Johnson could be on the first team by the end of the year if things work out.

As great as that would be, I really would like to see some skill players of ours get post season recognition. Guys like DT or Berglund, chancellor, Terrell, Kidsy, Jimmerson. Some of these guys becoming all-conference caliber playmakers would do a lot for this offense. I've said this many times, but we averaged 20.9 points a game last year and that just won't cut it this year.

As a former lineman myself I greatly appreciate seeing our lineman getting attention this preseason and last postseason, but we need playmakers to emerge this year.

[oldguystudent]

2007 - 2010: Hey! Football has defense too!

2011- Present: Throw the ball, catch the ball. Sometimes that's important.

Show me these two things happening in the same game, and I'll show you a team rapidly climbing the conference ladder.

Also, 2007 - present: Kickers really do matter!

[LongJim]

Who cares. If it's so important--do something about it to make it happen.

Based on available information, I think the rankings are pretty accurate.

[PlummMeanGreen]

Yada, yada, yada....seems even the CUSA coaches are ranking schools based on most of these team's successes and records from last year. Do they ever look at the attrition that takes place from one season to the next....as in............senior graduations along with other variables, too? If we can depend on these pre-season prognostications (and it seems most times that they are made mostly for message board posters from all schools to argue about); anyhow, if we can depend on them.......... North Texas did quite well earlier this summer when we had 7 of our Mean Green players in Phil Steele's magazine pre-season CUSA all conference teams.

For what it's worth............don't you really have something to build onto with 7 projected CUSA all conference players on your football team?

As far as the CUSA coaches polls go, I also think we could ass'ume that most of that group didn't do 1/10'th the research that Phil Steele's staff does every year.

Yet it really seems that it is still (uh, play on words?) Phil Steele's College Football magazine who actually ranks most any upcoming Fall football teams ignoring a a schools actual W/L record and their school's respective seniors from the year before because......WALA! Those seniors are long gone!

Anyone else having flashbacks to UNT's first few years in the new SBC when we got ignored almost "EVERY" summer while that sexy school over in TN.seemed to always win those summer time best team awards before a football was even teed up? Anyone recall which school went to that new conferences first 4 bowl games?

C-USA coaches, AD's, staffers, janitors, tax-payers, etc, know the extremely difficult to ignore upside we have at the University of North Texas with arguably our school having the conferences best overall varsity venues along with its prime time Mean Green Village location between those 2 Texas interstates and just maybe even they all know deep down that.... their time to kick UNT around is running out.

I really do think we will be kicking some of these school's butts they've put ahead of us this Fall--mark it. And God help them all if Coach Dan McCarney actually re-catches our mean green lightnin' in a bottle by emulating the guy whose very photo adorns his office wall looking out over fabulous Apogee Stadium; you know--the one he worked for at the University of Iowa?

GMG!

Edited July 17, 2013 by PlummMeanGreen

[GrayEagle]

I guess it's to be expected when you're in a new conference and are coming off of a sub-par year. Preseason ranking doesn't really upset me but if we finish worse than third in the West Division then I'll come unglued.