casual fan

We're in such a better position now. Our division of CUSA should be pretty stable. We finally have local rivals that are recognizable. CUSA should add 2 more schools to help insure against any future defections. The only team I looked up and compared us against was Kansas State. Our starters out weighed them on both sides of the ball. McCarney has recruited size. We should have a good bit more talent next year. I just hope it translates into a winning season and a bowl bid.

If you want to build a power house team from a small conference, Boise is the school that has shown the way. 1 They scheduled only one mid ranked team a year. 2 They recruited 2 & 3 star high school recruits and red shirted them. (Very few jucos) 3 They let them develop and learn the system well. 4 They always took care of business on their home field. It looks like we are finally doing the same thing. Granted if we could recruit 4 and 5 star recruits it would speed the process. However, the UTs of the world gobble them up like a fat kid at a Thanksgiving buffet.

+100 Exactly! I record Cowboy games so I can fast forward until Lance gets the ball. Tonight when I get home, I'll have to watch all the Dallas offensive plays because of Craig. Wow... I'll be cheering for and against both sides. My hypocrisy knows no bounds.

If we ever make it back to even from a Karma standpoint, we should be national champions!

My son was sitting a few seats over from me when it happened. We both leaned forward and said "that was out of bounds" at the same time. We all thought we got a huge gift. I had recorded it and looked the play up when I got home. The announcers were adamant that there should of have been a flag for defensive holding because the player who got the interception had a handful of jersey as the pass was being thrown. So we really didn't catch a break at all. We should have had a first down 20 yards up the field.

Some of you guys are real buzzkills. I brought some friends and family to the game last night. It was the first time some of them had attended a UNT football game . They thought the stadium was totally cool, liked the windmills, and really got into the game. While I will concede that is was far from a perfect game, it was a nice come from behind win that had its exciting moments. We all had a good time. Look, it's ok to be a homer every once in a while. I hope we get to 6-6, But, just for once, enjoy the win.

KRAM1 I'm just messing with you. I'm excited about having some friends and family up to see Apogee. I also want to walk across the new bridge as I haven't yet. Even though I graduated from NTSU, I chose the name " casual fan" as a way to put an outsider's view into the often overheated mix. Trust me, I'm still with you. Go Mean Green!!!

Thank you for clairifying your acceptance of "casual fans" to the Mean Green fanbase. It helps explain some of the reasons why there are so many empty seats. We talked some other "casual fans" into driving up for the S. Alabama game. They asked if we might consider going to the TCU-K.St. game instead. Thanks for your input as it will be duly noted and taken into consideration when we make our decision. And, BTW...there is an "s" in "casual fan."

Thanks for the post. +1 The last thing you expect out of young players is consistency. To his credit McCarney has resisted the easy "fix" and is weathering the storm. It should pay dividends in the next couple of years.

If we are going to have this debate, maybe the question should be why isn't Jeremy Brown getting the bulk of the carries. He averages 5.8 yrds per carry. He has 319 yards on only 55 carries. He also has the longest run from scrimmage at 48 yards. Just saying.

I see a light at the end of the tunnel and this time I don't think its a train.

How can you say relax? Can't you see we are in crisis mode? The Mayan Prophecy is wrong. We won't make it to 12-21-2012 without another loss.

Well, I was just trying to inject a little satirical humor to point out that there might be a tiny amount of negativity in "OUR" postings. I debated about using "we" rather than "some people" in an attempt to not overly offend anyone by including myself in the term "we." However, if the shoe fits........... If it doesn't then "WE" isn't talking about "YOU." Thanks for pointing that out as I strive to stay as politically correct as possible in a world that is so obviously contentious.

McCarney is bring in several transfers next year. Berglund at qb, Pegram (Purdue) at rb, Terrell (Texas) at wr and some others. Plus he is redshirting a bunch of players this year. He will also get back some players from injuries and problems like Stojkovic at LB. Next year we won't be such a young team as we have very few seniors on scholarships that graduate this year. McCarney will have worked through most of the scholarship mess he inherited. He won't be under as much pressure to redshirt as many incoming freshmen since we will finally have most of our scholarships back. All that should also give us some depth. We will be more talented.

When we see the big turnaround next year, (yes, I think we will because of the influx of talent) what will everyone complain about then. 1. We only won by 7 points when we should have won by at least 3 touchdowns. 2. We won but there were too many rushing plays called. 3. If they would start the other running back, we could have had well over 300 yards rushing instead of just 250. 4. On our 3rd TD drive why did the qb throw short for a first down when there was clearly a man wide open down field. 5. We won, but how on earth did we let them get back in game. 6. We need to make some changes because we didn't deserve to win that game. 7. We made too many mistakes and it will eventually cost us a game. 8. We just got lucky. Our play calling sucked. 9. We won, but we wouldn't have had to make that 4th quarter comeback if we had be ready to play from the start. 10. Why aren't we in a better bowl? I can make one prediction with absolute certainty. We will always find something to complain about.

+100 We are light years from where we were.

The bright side is we should have more talent and depth next year. I think we might make a pretty significant jump. We are headed in the right direction. I'm not going to go too ballistic over a game or two.

I get the feeling that a few fans would like to find some way to blame McCarney for the scholarship fiasco. That blame is totally misplaced. He inherited the mess. Signing a bunch of jucos for an instant fix without an eye to the future is one way to go, but it will bite you in the long run every time.

With Berglund being a real dual threat qb this could be a very explosive offense. The future looks brighter. In a few years we might all be wearing McCarney shades.

Wardly you make a good point. Coaches leave for various reasons, but what they leave behind has an affect on the next coach. For example, if a talented team is racked with injuries and underperforms, the next coach may look like a turnaround genius. But, if a perennially losing team has very little talent left over and is saddled with a loss of scholarships, the next coach had better be a miracle worker. We are getting back up on par with scholarships. Our talent level is improving and should take a bit if a jump next year. A sudden turnaround may happen and McCarney may be called a miracle worker. However, it may suddenly happen a year or two down the road.

Building a consistent winner from a consistent loser isn't easy. Having a good year or two doesn't quite make a consistent winner. Getting on the juco recruiting treadmill doesn't build a consistent winner. When we can get back to having our full allotment of scholarships along with 3 or 4 solid recruiting classes and several 5th year seniors, then we will be in a position to become a consistent winner. I don't know if McCarney will lead us to the promise land, but he won't leave us in the same mess that he inherited. Give him time and let him recruit and develop his players.

In the past four years TCU has had 70 3 star recruits and 9 4 star recruits according to Rivals. We have had 21 that are 3 stars. Dodge had 11 his last 2 yrs but only 2 were from high schools. Not only that, he left us in a deficit scholarship mess that McCarney has had to work through. The cupboard may have had a can or two of beans, but that was about it. Winning=good recruiting and good recruiting = winning. That's why so few turnarounds happen in the first 2 years.

Face facts. It doesn't matter what Dickey left or what Dodge did or how many years they had to do it. McCarney inherited a team that had not seen a winning record in years. He was also saddled with fewer scholarships than other schools and a team that had been heavily built on juco recruits. He could have continued the cycle by recruiting a bunch of juco players and possibly put together a winning season by sacrificing the future. I read on here somewhere that he is the run version of Dodge. He's exactly the opposite. Look, he has had only one and a half recruiting classes under his belt if you consider how many players he's redshirting. He's working his way through the scholarship mess he inherited. He has gotten his players grades to where they should be. Laying the proper foundation takes time. Don't expect consistency from young players. Don't judge this by 1 or 2 games. Have a little faith.

Patton was the leader on his team and is both a scorer and a rebounder. He lit us up when he was here 2 years ago. We may have caught a break by having him sit out a year. Our best chance to rock the basketball world is now. The stars are starting to align.

Dickey may be the best coach they can get considering how little money they have to spend. Idaho can"t even afford decent announcers, only common taters.