BobFam

From Vito's Blog: August 17, 2007 North Texas has added Kedrick Hogans, a 6-7 power forward from New Orleans, to its 2007 recruiting class. Hogans averaged 13.8 points and 9.5 rebounds a game last seson when he was named all-state and the MVP of the Class 3A Top 28 Tournament in Louisiana. UNT received his letter of intent this morning. For more on Hogans, check back on the blog later today and be sure to pick up a copy of the Denton Record-Chronicle tomorrow. Tomorrow's content will also be on our Web site late tonight.

This is what rivals.com has for NT as depth chart for 2007. http://collegefootball.rivals.com/cdepthte...TEAM=NORTHTEXAS This appears to be projected for 2005.

South Region Link No. 5 Rutgers 38 ... No. 26 North Texas 0 New head coach Todd Dodge was supposed to kick start the offense, but Rutgers had other ideas, holding the Mean Green to just 58 net yards helped by nine sacks. The Scarlet Knight offense was efficient early on, with Mike Teel throwing two touchdown passes and Ray Rice running for two short scores on the way to a 28-0 halftime lead, and coasted from there. Player of the Game - Rutgers DE Jamaal Westerman made seven _______________________________________________________ Beginning of the season? Yeah. End of the season, with over 10 games under our belt? No way. I bet it'd be a squeaker for Rutgers. P.S. - I should have said #26 UNT instead of #28 - my flub.

Saints waive LB Faulk, WR Ridgeway Posted by Mike Triplett August 08, 2007 4:34PM The Saints waived former LSU linebacker Trev Faulk and receiver Dante Ridgeway on Wednesday. In their place, they signed rookie receiver Derrick Doyle from Northwestern State and former Harvard offensive tackle Nik Sobic. I swore I was going to see Johnny's name after reading that Ridgeway was cut. Hope he still has a chance. Bob

I did a quick search and found a couple of recent articles I haven't seen posted. I apologize if these have shown up before: Beaumont Enterprise - These days, the early bird is catching the worm in recruiting Lufkin Daily News - Penson ready for challenge at UNT The Beaumont is impressive since it originally focused on UT and A&M. Enjoy! Bob

Here's the link ......"We want to play regionally," SMU coach Phil Bennett said. "We're in Big 12 country, so we want to play one Big 12 team, home-and-home, (archrival) TCU, home-and-home, and then two Sun Belt Conference (teams), with North Texas, preferably."....... ______________________ That's all about NT in the article. Do you think Bennett sees UNT as an easy win since we're in the Sun Belt, geographically convenient, or both? I can't help but lean towards him thinking easy win since he wants to play two Sun Belt teams on his OOC schedule. He needs to go winless against the Belt for the next few years and we'll see SMU's new coach looking at I-AA teams for his regional OOC fillers.

Here's the link Other Rankings: 83. SMU 92. Navy 102. Troy 103. Rice 108. Ark. St. 109. MTSU ___________________________________________________ 113. North Texas The ranking is too low because ... the defense should be good enough to be competitive in Sun Belt play until the offense comes around. The linebackers should be among the most productive in the league, while there are just enough good players on the line and in the secondary to hope for big things. The offense can't be any worse than it's been over the last two years, and it won't be with RB Jamario Thomas the centerpiece of the new spread attack. The ranking is too high because ... the quarterback situation is shaky at best, and there might not be any semblance of a passing attack over the first half of the season. The receiving corps needs a lot of time with the only real playmakers coming in from the freshman class, while the line could be a nightmare early on. There's no established pass rusher on the front four. Relative Strengths: Running Back, Linebacker Relative Weaknesses: Offensive Line, Wide Receiver

Old news to us. La-La coach Rickey Bustle had an interesting comment that makes me want to call him Dickey Bustle. http://www.dentonrc.com/sharedcontent/dws/...5.aabff0a3.html Football: Dodge Getting Sun Belt's Attention By Brett Vito / Staff Writer NEW ORLEANS -- Since he took over as North Texas head coach in December, Todd Dodge has made a big impression on the Mean Green’s fans and boosters. After the conclusion of Sun Belt Conference media days on Tuesday, it’s safe to say he is also quickly winning over the league’s coaches and administrators as well. The unusual jump Dodge made from the high school level and the players he has received commitments from were both topics of conversation throughout the league’s annual kickoff event. A few of the league’s coaches knew Dodge previously from recruiting and his time as the starting quarterback at Texas. The rest got to know the Mean Green’s new head coach over the last few days that included a coaching clinic preceding media days. “Dodge is a heck of a coach, and football is football,” Arkansas State head coach Steve Roberts said. “We have a lot of respect for what he has accomplished in his coaching career. He is very sound and capable of leading North Texas to success.” Dodge made the jump to the college coaching ranks from Southlake Carroll, where he reached a Class 5A state title game in five straight seasons. The Dragons won four of those games, including the last three in a row. Dodge was hired at UNT before leading Carroll to the last of those state titles. UNT has yet to play a game under Dodge, but he has caught the attention of the league’s coaches in the spring by receiving early commitments from 10 high school players who will be seniors in the fall. All 10 are from the state of Texas, a hotbed for recruiting in the Sun Belt. Dodge’s son Riley recently switched his commitment from Texas to UNT and became the Mean Green’s highest-rated recruit thus far this spring. Rivals.com ranks Riley Dodge No. 38 on its list of the top athletes in the Class of 2008. Riley is expected to play quarterback for the Mean Green. “I have taken some players early, but I don’t like to do it because they can be tough to hang on to until signing day,” Louisiana-Lafayette coach Rickey Bustle said. “It will be interesting to see how many North Texas can hang on to. I hope he gets them all.” Dodge came to UNT with a good working knowledge of players in the state. He worked in Texas high schools since he left UNT the first time -- after serving as the Mean Green’s passing game coordinator in 1992-93. “I don’t think that we went in with guns blazing saying that we had to get this many commitments at a certain time,” Dodge said. “We went through our evaluation process after May recruiting. We had great junior video and had evaluated their transcripts. A lot of times we knew the players’ high school coaches well enough to get an evaluation. We have gotten a great response and kids want to be a part of what we are doing.” Roberts said what UNT has done in recruiting follows a trend that is trickling down from other leagues like the Big 12 and Southeastern Conference that have teams that are taking on recruits before their senior seasons. Dodge is leading that charge in the Sun Belt, which is just one reason he has already made a big impression on the rest of the league’s coaches and officials. BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com.

I haven't seen this before but apologize if it's been previously posted. Scroll down to get to the Sun Belt predictions for 2007: http://preseason.stassen.com/consensus/2007.html You can go here to view previous years: http://preseason.stassen.com/ Enjoy! Bob

Didn't see this posted previously. Here's the link: http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=691636 Not top 5 but a mention anyway. Bob

Unfortunately, Baylor would probably fit in at C-USA if they were bumped out of the Big 12. MWC might sneak Boise out of the WAC to replace TCU, and the WAC takes........who? Apparently not us but would we balk at a second chance?

Here is another MUTS forum link I pulled off of the FIU list on their site: http://middletennessee.rivals.com/forum.asp

Lance Dunbar was just given a two star rating this afternoon and the same Rivals Ranking as Troy Franklin - 5.4. I happened to refresh the page about half an hour after I saw Troy's ranking.

We had a similar drill where we stood up on our feet but weren't allowed to let go of the stick - period. One hand off = loss. Situations would arise where guys would fall to the ground, one on top of another, and coaches encouraging the student on top to use the stick to choke his opponent until he let go. Never heard of lawsuits from those situations, but you brought back some forgotten memories!

So true - it's going to be nice to be able to track some of these guys on a week-to-week basis and see their stats.

Vito Blog UNT lands Vernon safety Vernon's Darien Williams said Thursday that he has orally committed to play for North Texas. The 5-11, 188-pound safety was a first-team All-District 6-3A selection as a junior last season. He is also a member of the Wichita Falls Times-Record-News' Red River 22, a list of the top college prospects from the paper's coverage region. UNT was the only team that had offered Williams a scholarship, but Arizona, TCU, Rice and Tulsa had shown interest. For more on Williams, see tomorrow's edition of the Denton Record-Chronicle.

Link HONORING A FRIEND Cobbs hoping to take part in Andrew Smith Jr. Football Camp May 17, 2007 - Posted at 12:00 a.m. Patrick Cobbs and Andrew Smith met under the worst of circumstances and became the best of friends. Cobbs and Smith were touring the University of North Texas campus in Denton on a recruiting visit when they came upon members of a fraternity, who were waving Confederate flags and chanting racist slogans. Cobbs and Smith didn't let the incident stop them from attending North Texas and both were happy with their decision. Cobbs set North Texas and Sun Belt Conference records for career rushing yards (4,050), rushing touchdowns (36), rushing attempts (818) and all-purpose yards (5,255), while leading the nation in 2003 as a junior by rushing for 152.7-yards per game. Smith, who threw for 2,281 yards and 23 touchdowns while directing Bay City to the 2000 Class 4A, Division I state championship, took over as North Texas' starting quarterback as a redshirt freshman in 2002. Smith threw for 1,206 yards and was the first North Texas quarterback to lead the team to an undefeated conference record and conference championship and became the first to win a bowl game when the Eagles captured a 24-19 victory over Cincinnati in the New Orleans Bowl. Cobbs overcame an injury that sidelined him in 2004 and completed his North Texas career in 2005. He signed with the New England Patriots as a free agent in 2006 and is currently on the roster of the Miami Dolphins. Smith played for North Texas in 2003 but while returning to Denton for fall practice in August of 2004, he was killed in a car wreck at the age of 21. Cobbs joined his North Texas teammates and traveled to Bay City for Smith's funeral. If all goes according to plan, Cobbs will return to Bay City on Saturday under more pleasant circumstances. Cobbs must attend an offseason training session at the Dolphins' headquarters in Davie, Fla., on Friday. He hopes to leave the session and return to his Fort Lauderdale residence before driving to Miami to catch a flight to Houston and driving to Bay City to take part in the Andrew Smith Jr. Football Camp. "It's a great thing," Cobbs said of the camp, which was created by Smith's family in 2005. "It's a way to kind of honor Drew and honor something he loved to do. It's a way to spread the knowledge of football throughout his little community. I think it's a great job by his family." Cobbs lived across the hall from Smith at North Texas and spent quite a bit of time with him on and off the field. "I remember him being a fun guy and a great competitor," Cobbs said. "He loved the game of football. He was really down to earth and easy to joke around with and he never got too serious about anything. "He was one of those guys who was a true friend. He'd do anything to help you. Those are the kind of people I like and Drew was like that." Cobbs was unable to attend last year's camp because he was working out with the Patriots. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 1 and waived a week later. Cobbs joined the Dolphins' practice squad before being activated by the team and making his NFL debut on Dec. 3 against Jacksonville. He played in three games last season. "The biggest change is the playbook," Cobbs said of going from North Texas to the NFL. "Behind that it's a business. There are no scholarships and no guaranteed contracts. It's what have you done for me lately? I remember (former defensive back) Merton Hanks telling me you never make it in the NFL until you're retired and done. Any day you can be gone. It's cutthroat. You know there are people back there trying to hustle your job." Cobbs is used to overcoming the odds since going to North Texas from his high school in Tecumseh, Okla., where he rushed for 4,729 yards and 61 touchdowns and also had 16 interceptions. "I always thought that I could play," the 5-foot-8, 210-pound Cobbs said. "I knew I was going to have to prove myself. At every level, I've had to prove myself. I like to work hard. I don't want anything given to me." Cobbs is looking forward to sharing what he has learned when his football career is over and he believes this weekend's camp would be the perfect place to start. "I want to do something with children," Cobbs said. "I got my degree in sociology and I want to go into counseling or be a football coach. I want to do something with kids, especially with kids who are old enough to understand. There are lots of kids who need leadership and don't have it." Andrew Smith Jr. Football Camp When: Saturday, 8 a.m. Where: Memorial Stadium, Bay City Registration: $15 before Saturday and $20 on Saturday beginning at 7 a.m. Facts: The camp is open to boys ages 6-17. Campers should bring gym shorts, T-shirt, socks, shoes and a mouthpiece. Campers will receive a camp T-shirt, lunch and certificate of completion. All proceeds will go to the Andrew Smith Jr. Scholarship Fund. For information, phone 979-245-9000.

The Detroit Free Press caught up with your comparison four days later! LINK GMG!

Nice comment from Seth Davis in SI: Here's the link SI.com: Looking forward to tomorrow, what games are you most excited for? SD: There are a lot of good games on the board. I think Nevada-Creighton is going to be similar in style and level of competition to that BYU-Xavier game. Those are two good offensive teams that are really smart and competitive. I think Notre Dame-Winthrop is going to be tomorrow's Maryland-Davidson. It's two high-octane teams who can really score. Notre Dame has the bigs inside, so you have to like them; but they're going to have to play well to win. I think Memphis and North Texas should be a good one. North Texas, first of all, has the best nickname in the tournament -- the Mean Green. They're really entertaining. They have this 6-foot-5 guard Calvin Watson who flicks threes like they're layups. Memphis likes to play that style, too. The problem is it's hard to see North Texas out-Memphising Memphis. Of course, there's Kansas and seeing if they can get out of the first round this year. Niagara is not your typical 16-seed. It could have popped up as a 14 and no one would have batted an eye.

Link corrected!

This was great stuff..... I apologize if it was posted before - I didn't see this yet...... GMG!! Bob Link North Texas shows what the tourney is about — including the little guys March 15, 2007 A big charm of the NCAA Tournament is the inclusion of the little guy. And a team doesn't have to go George Mason on everyone to prove that point. It can come in the form of Davidson making Maryland sweat, or it can be as simple as North Texas upstaging the likes of Florida and Memphis during news conferences before tomorrow's subregional in New Orleans. Earning points in the interview room won't help the Mean Green on the scoreboard. But it did show the diverse personalities, perspectives and paths that come together for three weeks every March. The Mean Green's talking machines are Kendrick Davis and Calvin Watson, who also happen to be the team's best players. The self-described brothers brought their sibling rivalry to the media, going back and forth on who's the better shooter and whose Houston high school team won when they played a few years back. Watson says it was his Madison team and that he scored 30, including a sweet dunk that he accessorized with a "little chest pound." Alas, not all of it was true. "We won the game," Davis said, shaking his head. "But I did score more points," Watson proudly retorted. When Watson felt not enough of the media's attention was being given to teammates Quincy Williams and Keith Wooden, Watson asked if he could toss some questions their way. He then identified himself as "Calvin Watson, Denton Sports," and asked Williams about the development of his jump hook and Wooden about his growth since joining North Texas as a transfer. (Interestingly, these were two of the better questions of the day.) I've been to a load of these NCAA Tournament interview sessions, and most are as exciting as white bread. Davis and Watson were like warm beignets with extra powdered sugar. Aren't the Mean Green intimidated by playing Memphis, a No. 2 seed and winners of 22 straight? "Intimidated? Nah," says Watson. "We're kids. Well, some of us are 21. But we're having fun. If we don't embrace the moment, we won't be able to share this experience with our kids and grandkids someday." North Texas can put the ball in the basket. They are athletic. They have size. Memphis has all those things, too--but in plus-size. Still, this one should have more intrigue than your typical No. 2 vs. No. 15 game. And if the Mean Green play as well as they can talk, then Watson really will have some stories to tell. MORE MEAN GREEN Watson played on the same high school team as Vince Young. Davis started his college career at Arkansas and Wooden began at Arizona State. Williams' brother is Shelden Williams, who played some pretty good ball in the ACC. Now go wow your friends with your Mean Green knowledge.

Personally, I haven't seen anything on the Nevada school site..... The next best source I can think to watch (besides the Mean Green Athletics blog of course) would be the Dallas Morning News recruiting blog: DMN Recruiting Blog I checked the Reno Gazette-Journal and haven't seen anything on Vizza in the past week. I type Vizza in their news search engine and it tries to take me to pizza sites! Maybe some of our DentonRC guys can get some info.

Didn't see this posted yet. Here's the link and story: Link Huskies add offensive line coach January 30, 2007 From STAFF REPORTS DEKALB - Northern Illinois football coach Joe Novak has hired former North Texas assistant Harold Etheridge to be the team's offensive line coach. Etheridge, who has spent 18 years as a Division I coach, worked with current Huskie offensive coordinator John Bond during his four seasons (2000-03) at Army. Prior to that, he coached for nine seasons at Illinois State. Etheridge replaces Sam Pittman, who has moved on to North Carolina. "I am very pleased to have found someone who brings a great deal of experience," said Novak. "Harold worked with John Bond for several years at Army, so it will be an easy transition for our offensive staff. It's a key area going into next year because we have to replace two starters (left tackle Doug Free and guard Matt Rogers) on the offensive line." Etheridge was on the North Texas staff the past three seasons. UNT head coach Darrell Dickey, who coached at the school nine seasons, was let go with three games remaining this season when his team was 2-7. They finished 3-9. Dickey had won four straight Sun Belt Conference titles and made four straight trips to the New Orleans Bowl from 2001-04 but went 2-9 in 2005.

I thought about that - it's probably my work ip that's being banned - must have a Tx State hater in the building.

Of course, I try the link and get this: You have been banned from this forum. Please contact the webmaster or board administrator for more information. Ok.... who's shaming me?? Harry??? Just Kidding...... anyone else see this?? And how is it happening since I'm not even logged into their site?