Jump to content

Leaderboard

Popular Content

Showing content with the highest reputation on 03/18/2015 in all areas

  1. I don't like it because it's got too much positive stuff in it. Just doesn't fit what I'm here to do.
    5 points
  2. Is it too much to ask that we create the "UNT model" that not only works for us but other schools want to emulate? Tired of us looking everywhere else for everything.
    3 points
  3. FirefightnRick As I stated earlier, JJ was ripped throughout years 4 & 5 on this board. (I don't think UNT90 was around posting) I can not copy and paste for some reason, otherwise I would have. I got tired of reading all the posts but you can find some of the so called bullshit under the following threads: Is JJ the Guy? (Green Flag) Started 3/27/2004 JJ interested in ULL Job ((Mean Green61) Started 4/21/2004 Pathetic Game tonight (SUMG) Started 2/10/05 How long are the coaches (Wife2Hot4U) Started 2/11/05 UNT has lost 6 of 12 by an average (Eulesseagle) 2/22/05 NT Basketball (UNTPlaymaker) 3/5/2005 Come on guys, it wasn't that bad (Stebo) Started 2/2/2005 UNT leads nations in turnovers - Started 2/4/2005 These threads continued well into 2006. I also posted a thread started by SUMG about a month ago (originally from Feb. 2006) that basically stated that it was time for him to go. Some suggested that they couldn't believe he receive an extension after his 3rd year. A general consensus was that folks liked JJ (although they were disappointed with his performance around year 4) Others, unlike myself, felt that he deserved a shot to turn things around after being here 5 years The dominate reason being that he was better than Vic Trilli. My only point is what is the difference in his situation and Benford? Again, take away the constant 24/7 rants of UNT90 today and they would be identical.
    3 points
  4. No, it's these dumb coach inspirational things on twitter. Everyone is an inspirational speaker/coach in this day and age, or at least tries to be.
    3 points
  5. Both UNT and SMU had to replace basketball coaches for very different reasons. SMU fired their coach because, despite a lot of resources, they were the worst D1 school out of 4 in the metroplex at basketball. UNT had to replace their coach because he had been so successful that he had landed a job at LSU, his alma mater, as head basketball coach. But he didnt leave before recruiting a buttload of talent to UNT, all of which was very young and returning to UNT for the next season. UNT had the most talent returning of any program in the metroplex for the 2012/2013 season. They were media darlings, including being picked as one of three "mid majors to watch" by a national sports publication. UNT had many experienced suitors for its head coaching position. SMU decided to hire Larry Briwn, an all or nothing roll of the dice to change the culture. UNT chose to hire a guy SMU chose not to hire. A career assistant that wasn't on anyone's radar, but was cheap. A guy that had interviewed for numerous head coaching jobs without ever landing one. Today, SMU just won its conference tournament after winning the regular season league title in a very strong basketball conference. SMU won 27 games on the year and will be a 3 or 4 seed in the tournament. Today, UNT still has that same coach hanging around despite the deconstruction of a once on the cusp basketball program. Despite taking that 2012/2013 team that all the experts raved about preseason to an embarrassing 12-20 record, including a loss to a D2 team on the biggest regular season stage in this program's history. Despite a 28 point loss in the first round of this year's conference tournament to a lower seed team that had won 11 games. Despite never having a record above .500 in 3 years, despite all the talent that was bequeathed to him. It's clear who was more serious about basketball in 2012. Will UNT finally get serious about men's basketball now? Or will the powers that be allow another year of the crapshow that has been Tony Benford to continue? It's this weekend if it's going to be this year. Hoping the right people do the right thing. Finally. EDIT: posted in wrong forum. Could a mod please move this to basketball? Thx
    2 points
  6. I wonder how Kerrick heard about UNT...
    2 points
  7. All it means is I have slightly better odds of seeing the next bowl win. Meh.
    2 points
  8. There's no such thing as the Curse of Nolan Ryan. Ryan got and gets waayy too much credit for what went on in Arlington during the successful seasons when in reality we all know it was Jon Daniels and his team that put this organization on the right path. Ryan was more of an advisor and figurehead but his ego just couldn't handle it. People easily and conveniently forget Ryan flexing his muscles and booting Chuck Greenberg out of the organization when he wanted too. The higher pitch counts and pitching longer wasn't only Ryan's idea but it was what Maddux wished for as well. Frankly I think the organization wanted to change the culture and perception of pitching in Arlington. I'd say its really crappy bad luck more than anything what's happened the last season or two.
    2 points
  9. You cannot be serious with this post. It makes me wonder if you have developed a friendship with Benford at AAU games, because you are way too basketball smart to post something as silly as this. Benford was handed a Jaguar which he IMMEDIATELY turned into a jalopy. JJ was handed a jalopy which took 10 hard fought years to turn into a Jaguar. Did I mention the the destruction under Benford was immediate and devastating? And now you want to give him JJ time to rebuild what he destroyed? Mindboggling.
    2 points
  10. Really, we're going to nitpick what Coach Mac does with his twitter account as if it has some bearing on how the football team is going to perform?
    2 points
  11. "Coach Benford barring some natural disaster is going to coach this team next year. That is the way it is." This means we are either broke or are exercising horrible, horrible judgment. Either way, it's depressing as hell. I'm starting to understand why so many NT alumni have just given up on athletics over the decades. "They both stuck it through this year and we had a relatively good time watching NT basketball with way lowered expectations." "Lowered expectations" appears to be the only prescription for the Benford blues. Some fans (such as most on this site) can enjoy the Mean Green whenever, wherever. I'm proud to say that I'm in this group. The vast majority of NT students and alumni, however, just go back to watching Big XII teams when it looks like we're not taking things seriously. That is the way it is.
    2 points
  12. Three things: 1. I'm glad you love this school and do as much as you can to bring others into the fold. I hope you never stop. Lord knows we need as many as we can find. 2. In the same post that you claim to be about supporting our student athletes you feel the need to back handedly criticize and demean the career/accomplishments of one of our recent high profile family members. There were plenty of remarks as to the level of effort that particular player(legitimate or not) gave under Johnny, but somehow a team down two of its best players came together and made it to it's conference tournament final. Did he live up to the lofty hype put upon his shoulders during his time at out school? No. Outside of Rodger Franklin did any player on his team's performance improve from JJ's last to Benny's first season? No. I guess you can blame said player for not only his own, but the rest of his team's lack of progression if you like. Be that your prerogative, I sure don't know what you think coaches are there for. 3. It's wonderful that you can afford to give at the level that you choose to do so. It's even more wonderful that you're able to recruit friends that can afford to give at a similar level. I can't. I don't have any friends to recruit that can. Odds are I probably won't ever. Maybe I read your post wrong and I'm way off base, but the assertion that people being negative, while not afforded an insiders view of college athletics, is every bit as silly as the argument that you can't talk about it if you haven't played it. Again, maybe I'm way off base, maybe I've interpreted it all wrong, but this post read every bit as much condescending/offensive as the one you were apologizing for.
    2 points
  13. No, he should not be fired based on the Benford hire. However, I do think he should be evaluated on his performance like any other employee. My opinion is that RV has gotten credit for a lot of positives at NT that most AD's would have duplicated and probably done more. Apparently, that opinion is not shared by the BOR and I expect RV to retire here.
    2 points
  14. So I got a weird Final Four and interesting champion when I just filled out a bracket fast and furious without overthinking the games and teams. Final Four Kentucky Arizona Boise St Gonzaga Championship Game Arizona vs Gonzaga Champion Gonzaga I haven't had a weirder bracket unfold since I picked Utah many years ago to make it to win the championship. That was the year they lost to Kentucky in the championship game. Other noteables: Witchita St to sweet 16 SMU to sweet 16 Utah to elite 8 Belmont to sweet 16 (cinderella) LSU to sweet 16 Butler to sweet 16 BYU to sweet 16 We will see. Tonight Go BYU! GMG
    1 point
  15. I was going to start a pole, but don't think you can from a mobile device. Just an informal opinion poll. I will again not be buying season tickets for basketball. I refuse to care more about something than the people responsible for it. I may or may not buy individual game tickets, depending in how good we turn out to be in December. I won't mention UNT basketball to anyone. This can be fixed if someone would let go of their very foolish pride.
    1 point
  16. OK OK, I give in. Losing really sucks. Football and basketball and we don't have my beloved baseball yet. Would somebody please tell the BOR, President, and Administration that as one of many thousands of UNT grads we have checkbooks but need to see some commitment to WINNING ! Give us more than one winning season in years and years and years and we'll pay back.
    1 point
  17. CIT Opening Round Kent St. @ MTSU NIT First Round (8) Charleston Sou. @ (1) Old Dominion
    1 point
  18. In order to get Denton behind us, we first need to be the only game in town. Figure out a way to buy/merge/whatever with TWU. That would put us in the 40-45k student range and help unite the city behind a single school. We are in a town of less than 150k and we still have to fight for attention. And oh yeah, F Baylor.
    1 point
  19. I mean, that's basically how I feel about almost everyone on social media.
    1 point
  20. The top four seeds went to the first four out of the NCAA tourney. Those four as announced were Temple, Richmond, Colorado State and Old Dominion.
    1 point
  21. The average tenure for an AD in Division 1 NCAA Collegiate Athletics is 6.78 years. http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2014/06/09/In-Depth/Wong-column.aspx
    1 point
  22. No, no. Our SID would tweet something along the lines of "Do you miss Johnny Jones and Josh White now, you ungrateful fans?"
    1 point
  23. Because in 21 years of gambling on sports, I've yet to win a single red cent, I let my kid fill out my bracket this year. It's got some interesting picks, which I would never bet on, which means she's gonna win the whole damn thing.
    1 point
  24. Tech now heading to College Station to face A&M
    1 point
  25. I didn't read past this cause you said year 3, which is still rediculous to claim that this fan base,... especially those not predicting hurricane patterns in Denton Texas, was calling for JJ's head. Rick
    1 point
  26. That's good for another Eagle1855 plus one!
    1 point
  27. Well there's not many around here left to grumble, so I don't see him being a stand-off'ish dick a problem if he's getting the job done. Just a guess here, but he is successful because he probably has a stated goal, demands effort to reach that goal, and holds himself and his staff accountable when they don't. I doubt he cares about being everyone's buddy and he probably has no problem at all being the barer of BAD NEWS. I can see why people would feel comfortable investing in a program they know is going to be accountable and responsible with their time and money. Rick
    1 point
  28. some major donors close to this program have insisted that next year will be Benford's breakout year. Always next year... fixed it for ya and self ban begins again...............now
    1 point
  29. Complete bullshit. JJ took a team that won 4 games the year before and turned them into a .500 team his very first year. No one was calling for JJ's head in year three. To say so is a complete fabrication of the truth. Rick
    1 point
  30. Don't know why anyone expected 20 wins without a point guard and a center. (The most key positions on a team) What really needs to happen (but will not) is to convince more guys to not come back. We need more impact guys on the team instead of backup role players. I thought TJ Taylor was a great HS player but he lost all his explosiveness due to his injuries. He is also a tweaner that we need to move on from. (Good player though). We definitely need another (larger big body) big in the middle; to assist Brice during his development. Though Voss was the best we had and gave his all, we need more production than 8.8 ppg and 5-6 boards. There is a lot of talent still available to help this team improve. I think we will be better. We also need Taylor's spot for a transfer for 2016-17. Just my thoughts
    1 point
  31. To me, the Sigs are representing their chapter worse than SAE, I know I'm in the minority here. They were singing a song that every single SAE member knows, did they actually mean it? Thats up for debate. When your high school daughter is singing "Drunk in Love" by Beyonce do they actually mean what they are singing? For those who don't know what I'm talking about, here's a link http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=SurfBoard
    1 point
  32. Agree. Like a medieval monk, he has been living in isolation and honing his craft.
    1 point
  33. You know, I haven't complimented you on here, but you've been providing some shockingly good material as of late. Maybe not Tasty level, but damn funny nonetheless.
    1 point
  34. 1 point
  35. Thank you SSP. Your input is much appreciated.
    1 point
  36. Healthcare and Internet are very different. Did you not like how the Internet operated before? The "new" rules are basically the old rules in a different package. And you haven't given a real reason why this regulation is a bad thing, just that you don't trust the government. If you cannot articulate beyond Frankensteinian "government BAD" then I don't know that you have a good reason beyond not liking the president.
    1 point
  37. I'm talking about building a time machine and your beef is that Tom Robinson is fictional?
    1 point
  38. You are right. I don't know what goes on behind closed doors in the AD, and I don't care. And you know what, I don't want to. I want to have expectations and never get too close that my judgement is clouded because of personal friendships. I could care less about being called a jerk (I'm pretty sure you called me this and not an idiot, but either way no biggie). Truth be told, I can be a jerk, so no harm, no foul. What does bother me is you choose to blame the only 5 star player ever to attend this university for a lack of effort, suggesting that was our undoing last season. This is the same thing I have heard from others close to the AD. Hell, it's the same thing RV basically said on a podcast with Harry. What worries me is that this group will continue to close their eyes and lie to themselves, telling themselves "just wait till Carrington Ward and Greg Wesley play next year," while conveniently ignoring the fact that Benford HAD AN NBA TALENT on his roster and screwed it up. You want to blame Mitchell for last year, yet you seem to lack the basic understanding that motivation IS the coach's responsibility. You also completely dismiss the dismal performance of Benford recruited bigs this year. Was that their fault, too? Keep your eyes closed all you want, but you shouldn't be able to ignore the rapidly declining attendance numbers and the view of the crowd from your seats. Maybe some want to keep UNT athletics a club. Hell, I don't know. But I think they should recognize that this isn't working. I think they should have recognized at the end of last year that the massive first year failure when expectations were high and knowledgable basketball people said we had the talent to make some noise only to have a 1st year head coach lay the terd of all terds directly on our program, that Benford would never be forgiven by many of the fan base. And that it was an experiment that should have been quickly ended. But they chose to lie to themselves and double, no, triple, down. You should know this is a pretty good concensus for those outside the AD inner circle. Please don't believe me, just look at all the empty seats next year.
    1 point
  39. Not from one person. He knows who he is. "I have college friends that go to UT games and laugh at my invite to tailgate". Then go to the damn UT games!!!! How am I missing the point?
    1 point
  40. Why are we even bringing up football on this thread. As far as I'm concerned we're on the right track. Winning will bring attendance. Shoot, attendance now is better than it was when I was in school (late 90s)
    1 point
  41. I'll try to keep this short, but in terms of budget and policy I'm nearly as good as you are at in-depth football position analysis. Maybe. Our revenue from Athletics comes from a few key places: endorsement/conference share revenue (usually able to estimate a pretty good range annually), fees (ditto), and on-site revenue (ticket sales, concessions/money from concessioners, stadium store, etc.). Even with a built-in fee, all segments of the revenue are reviewed in annual budget meetings, and projected expenditures are addressed, as you would expect. This is where it gets a little bit shaky. I don't have this year's budget info, but I'll outline this part in general terms. Most of the guaranteed revenue is budgeted into expected expenses, everything from facilities upkeep to salaries to team travel and uniforms. Some of it is put aside for marketing, promotions, events (even though some of them have a ticket cost like the HOD festivities, some of them are subsidized via revenue and some are completely subsidized). Then there's always a "to-do" list...will something need to be replaced or renovated in the next couple of years, if so, how is it prioritized? Stuff like that. Then we come to the issue at hand, buying out contracts. Let's say beyond the automatic expenses, there are 50 items in the "to-do" list and we'd also like to put on a few more events to rally fans. As has been mentioned, we do have a few people who put pretty decent money into the programs, and a bunch who give to the MGC and pay for club seats, season tickets, etc., but that's nowhere near the amount needed to be "comfortable" in a budget sense. To buy out a contract would require moving it up on the priority list, so you'd have to bump out some of the renovated this or new that (multiple unis and helmets would probably be gone quickly), and some of those events might not happen, or might require admission when they otherwise would have been free. We're in a much better place than we were a few years ago (and FAR better than 15-20 years ago), but any time our revenue exceeds the automatic expenses, there's a whole slew of things they have in line to spend it on. So generally speaking, yes, the money is there to buy out 3 years of his contract (900K, right?), but with so much of what the AD is bringing in going to stuff that should have been done YEARS ago and more of it going to trying to actually forge a relationship with fans (no matter how much it might not seem that way to some...geez, look at how it used to be), a cool million bucks is much more of a setback than it might seem with such a large budget. Rick's not getting through it by the skin of his teeth or anything, and no, he doesn't get a cut of what's saved by not buying out contracts, but until the recent slew of engineers, lawyers, doctors, etc. pony up more donations in larger quantities (unlike those of us who went back to our artsy ways and don't make much dough), the "extra" revenue isn't that large of a margin over the very large sum that comprises the automatic necessities to fund a very expensive athletics program. Like I've said before, it's a chicken-or-egg argument, because you want to sell more tickets and get donations so you can make tough choices about contracts and such, but people want to see a product they want to invest in before getting more involved. As a side note, I recently learned that about 70% of students who are in Moot Court go to law school and become lawyers/lobbyists/etc. In terms of "growing alumni before graduation"...I wonder how interested Rick might be in working to see when coaches, AD staff, etc. might have an afternoon open for things like MC, debate tournaments, and academic presentations. A little introduction to these students with a "We're very excited about your future and just wanted to come lend our support" could go a very long way, since most of us in those pursuits usually only have our peers and advisors present. If you key into a decent chunk of those who are likely to be a part of the top 10% of post-graduation earners and establish a good rapport while they're still in school...they'll remember it. Some people rarely even have family involved, so to be noticed and approached just as a gesture of goodwill can mean a lot.
    1 point
  42. Like all mortals, the people who head up the athletic department hit a time when they are past their prime. The average tenure for an athletic director is much shorter than the time RV has spent here. Talk among yourselves.
    1 point
  43. Progress from a set back year which Benford was responsible for. When does RV become accountable? Ever?
    1 point
  44. Maybe he doesn't deserve to be fired, but if he isn't then it'll set our program back years. We need a capable recruiter to handle these 7 scholarship spots next year. If the signees are more high school guys who don't make it in and late juco signees, we will be lucky to be a 10 seed in the conference tourney as long as Benny is here. Benford has a decent track record recruiting, but he's only as good a recruiter as his product is that he's selling. Some recruiters could sell ice to an Eskimo. Benford doesn't have the history and consistency of Marquette to sell, and he doesn't have the pitches that JJ established (20 win seasons, Sun Belt tourney success, Tony Mitchell, etc). Greg Wesley's main pitch that he received from Benny was that he would be used like Tony Mitchell, a player Benford had nothing to do with being on our roster. Combs was a good pickup, but the only school on his offer list that was impressive to beat for him was Texas Tech. We had proximity and playing time in our favor there. The other current 2014 signees didn't have any other offers. Luckily we have playing time to offer. We need that pitch. Need. Edit: sorry, forgot to explain what I was getting at. If the recruiting class tanks, and Benny does without JJ players to rely on, then RV does deserve to be fired. He has the option to fire him now and get a capable coach/recruiter to have for these 7 seniors' last season and for the 7-man signing class. He's chosen to let Benford handle that. Not to mention what's going on in women's hoops and football scheduling.
    1 point
  45. It's a good thing it wasn't something along the lines of... "According to UTEP SGA President UTEP is second choice for our students" Rick
    0 points
  46. Not sure how they're identical... Jj inherited a pile of smelly poo, Benford inherited a potential Top 25 team and a much better recruiting standard/presence.
    0 points


×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. Please review our full Privacy Policy before using our site.