MeanGreenMailbox aka TFLF

Twice he said "it's like a home game"....which, someone here has said before, but was pooh-poohed for suggesting such. Good to have the coach have the same mindset. He got flabbergasted by Brett's Cortland Sutton/Carlos Henderson line of questioning. Bottom line, playmakers are going to make plays...don't get so spooked that others then start making plays as well. Still, Brett's not wrong. As he would say, it's a "key" to the game. If Sutton goes off like he and Carlos Henderson of La Tech did against us last year, we'll certainly be in a hole.

Someone from the spirit squads needs to keep an eye on the TV time out/commercial/official guy. (Also...and, I'm not picking on the spirit squad's football IQ here, but...if both teams are running onto the field to line up for a kickoff, that's probably a signal NOT to go onto the field; at least a close second to the TV time out guy also having walked off the field.)

This was my dad's first North Texas game since 1991 when he drove up for a Parent's Weekend. He's 75, but in good health. We also parked at old Fouts and walked over the bridge. His only comment about the walk over is that he thought having a pedestrian bridge over a highway wasn't safe. I reminded him of the pedestrian bridge they had for years over 635 over by Dedmon hospital area (approximately Josey Lane exit, etc.). As a few people posted yesterday, the speakers were too loud. And, they got too loud for him, so he got up midway through the 2nd quarter and sat at the tables under the Tail. Other than that, he had no complaints. The game was good. He's an old Okie, so he was pleased to see former Sooner and Houston Oiler LB Joe Bowden's son making plays for Lamar, at minimum, in their loss. He was also fascinated by Mason Fine's story. If you talk to my dad and name a town in Oklahoma of any size, he'll have a story about it, either one of three things from his Okie youth: he wrestled there in high school, knew a girl from there, or was arrested there. Anyway, he had a good time with the three generations of us there - him, me, my son and another nephew. I was pleased that the ushers seems much more mellow than in years seasons past. That was a good. My only complaints are: (1) PA volume (2) PA announcer's inability to correctly pronounce at least half of the last names of players (3) Band looking half-assed All in all, still a good experience. And, winning made it all the better!

As posted yesterday, fans of schools that win plan their vacations/holidays to include taking in the game. For some, it is the destination. RVs of diehard fans show up midweek in places like Tuscaloosa and Norman. We are not there yet. We need to do a lot of winning. And, I mean, a lot of winning. I don't mean "playing better than last year," "hanging in there with (P5) for a quarter or half," "went 5-8, qualifying for a bowl because the last staff did its job in getting the players' to pay attention to academics." We are an afterthought even to most of our own alumni and former students because we lose so often. It's a real battle. Most of us will always attend. But, we're not the target. The target is those not at Apogee with us. Holidays can't be an excuse. We have to quit the excuses. If people can find a way to vacation around Norman, OK/OKC, then surely they can find a way to vacation around Denton, TX/DFW. Denton and Norman are both about 30-40 miles from Dallas/Fort Worth/Arlington and OKC respectively. I'll say this while we're discussing it, I've never understood why as a music school, with bands galore, there isn't more done in conjunction with local music venues to have live music or advertise places to go after the game. Am I crazy to try to, maybe, tie the One O'Clock Lab Band, for instance, into a weekend experience here? Just trying to think "outside the box" for something that really shouldn't be "outside the box" for our school. How can we marry up an area where we're the best with an area we are trying to improve. Can we really not help ourselves here, even with programs within our own university?

Exactly. Can you imagine the bands at OU or Texas pulling that?

Thank you. Was wondering whether anyone else thought it was too loud as well. I'm an old school veteran of AC/DC, Metallica, Ted Nugent, and The Who concerts, and I thought it was too loud. Also, the PA guy is terrible at pronouncing any last name that isn't something akin to Smith or Johnson. Seriously.

The reason I hate the "it's this holiday or that holiday" excuse is that at winning programs, family schedule their trip to include going to the game! Thanksgiving weekend was never a problem for Texas-Texas A&M, OU-Nebraska/Okie Lite. Auburn-Bama? Come on. If we are winning, people find a way to get to a game - holiday or not. They won't pack it in for "well, if we can just manage to beat UTEP, we'll be bowl eligible." I hear you, but...let's say we do beat SMU, then lose to Iowa, as expected. We are then 2-1. That should excite those affiliated with the school. If at that point, we can't excite the former students and alumni to beat the Lamar 19,000... ...at that point, you just throw your hands up and say to the coach, you gotta just keep winning, this year and next year and the next year...etc.

Listen, without the band filling in there, that side is basically empty except for the students. The alumni side is filling in two or three whole sections. Those empty sections...that's for the athletic director to figure how to fill. As of yet, none have been able to do it. Heart of Dallas Bowl, 5-8 record, and home opener scheduled with a sure win FCS opponent didn't do it. A couple of losses in a row to SMU and Iowa would make a UAB sell that much tougher. Again, we're not the ones who need to be sold. Most of us who post will be there every time we can, and will bring two or three along with us, family and friends. I always go back to winning. We must win. We can't "come close" or "play better than last year" against SMU, but still lose. Or, "hang in there for a quarter or half" against Iowa, then lose by 35. Those who are not diehards just see the final score. A loss is a loss is a loss. Like it or not, the casual fan will always be a fickle mistress. And, those who have had fickle mistresses before know how irritating and expensive they can be for the product you get from them. The only magic elixir in the college football realm is winning. Losing programs don't get invited to better conferences; nor do casual sports fans magically begin to follow them. The skin in the game for college football programs is always winning. That's the skin in the game. Not gimmicky promotions. Not this opponent or that opponent. If you are good, people will come see you beat whomever you schedule. OU's stadium wasn't half full just because they were only playing UTEP last weekend. F*cking beat SMU and quit f*cking around. Otherwise this is just another 4-8 or 5-7 bearfart uncorked so deep in the woods that not even the squirrels can smell it. It doesn't matter how many 20-page plans the AD posts on issuu - if the team doesn't win, no one outside the diehards really gives a sh*t. That's the cold, hard reality of competing for disposal income dollars in the sports entertainment world.

If Chandler, a junior, is good enough to start over a guy you've already promised a scholarship, a senior, why wouldn't you offer him? He's getting more work than they guy you've promised a scholarship, and will have two years of starting under his belt when he arrives on campus...unlike they guy you've already promised a scholarship.

Who hasn't given him opportunities? It's a two way street. Rules are rules. If you can't (won't?) get it done in the classroom, you are not going to be on the field. His eligibility is done. If he really believes that lifting weights, but not playing is a good way to become a pro football player, then agent up. Put or shut up.

Brought my 75 year old dad, son, and a nephew. We all had a great time. But... ...yeah, the attendance was less than I thought it would be. If we are blown out back-to-back against SMU and Iowa, it's hard to imagine selling UAB beyond the hard core base. Surely, tonight's crowd had to be an eye-opener for the new AD and assistant.

He's not going to play anywhere. Time to prepare for the 2018 NFL Draft...or, head up to Canada. If his eligibility is really up, he needs to go ahead and get an agent.

Well, he's completed 67% of his passes for 265 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs versus a Top 25 school...that is "bum?" If so, hope we can find a "bum" at QB this season.

Let's see how the season progresses. If he's not injured and not starting, he's not gaining much playing experience, even at the high school level. I doubt that when Littrell and Harrell pulled the trigger on this kids that they anticipated he'd be on the bench his senior year. (By the way...if this Chandler kid is that good, be the first to offer him!)

Look, it's pretty simple: the guy has a offer from us, has committed, yet he's not even the starter at his high school. He came off the bench yesterday and...did not lead his team to a comeback victory. Instead, he threw two interceptions, helping the other school seal their comeback victory. So, again, if he's injured, that's one thing and understandable. But, if this is what we really have committed to us, a senior who gets beat out by a junior...this isn't someone who is going to be close to FBS-ready next year...and, probably not the year after either, if ever. You kind of expect guys with FBS offers to be starters...in high school! Worst case scenario is Colorado State and Louisiana Tech did pull their offers, he panicked and committed to us, comes here on scholarship, never starts a game for us. The upside is that he'll get tuition, room and board paid for and a stipend for four years while he rides the pine.

Actually, Chandler must be a junior because his 247 thing says Class of 2019. Maybe Vito can sniff out the problem/issue here. Is Chandler just that good that he's forced the Lake Ridge coaches to have him split time with Bean? Is Bean hurt? If Bean isn't hurt and Chandler, a junior, has just flat beaten him out...? That really does say something toward what needs to be said about offering guys too early in the process. If there is no injury to Bean, and he's been beaten out by a junior, you also have to wonder whether or not his commitment to us was a result of Louisiana Tech and Colorado State pulling their offer off the table. Again, perhaps Vito can do some asking around to the coaches, player himself, etc. At any rate, if it turns out Bean can't beat out another junior at his own school, it's unlikely he shows up here and challenges for the job very quickly. Gotta have guys on the roster that just throw to receivers during the practices while the 1s are going. Everyone plays a part.

Littrell and Harrell know more than some ol' penny ante high school coach?

And, still not on the roster. Did he not qualify...again? For a DII school? http://lionathletics.com/roster.aspx?roster=138

FIU has no fans. They have parents and relatives that are kind of forced to show up because their sons (nephews, grandsons, stepsons, babychilds, etc.) are on the team...a lot like youth soccer in any given American suburb on a Saturday morning or afternoon.

Just storm the gates in a flash mob and see whether or not they can stop all of you.

Trying not to post specifically football-related stuff until after SMU, but this is a weather/human condition thing, so... ...can we make a concentrated effort to cheer the Lamar players when they come out of the locker room to run onto the field Saturday instead of booing, as many people often do? I'm not for cheering when they do well because, well, they're not our team. Maybe I can see that this one time because what little fanbase they would have otherwise brought will not be there. But, at minimum, let's give their guys a good cheer when they hit the field before the coin flip anyway. They are going well out of their way to prevent the headache of rescheduling this thing. I'm going to make an effort to find someone dressed in Lamar gear - and who has traveled up from that area - and buy them a cold one or the concession of their choice. Those who do find their way out of that area just for a college football game should be shown some love. Guessing majority of these will be player family types.

When it was just a one horse town, Frisco High School's mascot/name was the Fighting Coons. Well, once the population boom began, Coons was considered by some to (still) be a racially sensitive word. That is why Frisco High is now called the Raccoons. https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/commentary/2017/05/05/15-years-later-frisco-coons-mascot-debate-continues-facebook https://www.upi.com/Mascot-name-change-unpopular-with-some/14231015346342/

It's about more than getting butts in seats. It's about trying to win repeat customers/building loyalty. You want the butts to come back to the seatsseveral times a year. Then, be interested enough to maybe put their butts in the Super Pit seats during basketball season. And, here is where many of us will chime with obvious things like...can't we get some friendlier ushers? Can we have the band race out with some exuberance and pizzazz like they do at OU, Ohio State, and other like-minded schools? The kind of sh*t smaller minds here pooh-pooh, but that they eat up at "bigger, traditional" programs. (SIDE NOTE: Show the band some respect and get them new uniforms as well.) It all means something. If people just get a ticket...arrive, are hassled by ushers, see no enthusiasm even from the school's own marching band, watch them team get its ass kicked for the umpteenth time in a row by some other no name school? There is no incentive to return. So, it's not just getting a butt in the seat for a game. That's just the genesis of what the department should hope will become a loyal, repeat customer. But, you have to give people some reason to want to return.

Yep. And, as many of us have argued for years: empty seats don't buy concessions or souvenirs either. The other regime listened to consultants, who told them you have to price it at a certain level to show the value of it. That kind of sh*t goes on daily in the marketing world. And, it may work for some products - namely, products people want. That's why things like cell phones, which cost roughly $30-40 to assemble overseas, sell for hundreds of dollars here. But, when you have a product people do not want, you have to give them a sample. There is a reason brands hire people to stand in grocery stores and hand out free samples of their product. Not everything sells itself. And, for some products, like the one we have with North Texas football, there is a long negative drag on it in the public's perception from decades of losing...and, losing after voluntarily slipping out of sight for over a decade. We on this board don't have to be sold on UNT football. We've been suffering through it voluntarily since (1990, here...you fill in the blank for you). Other point many of us have made over the years is: why are you sneering at the "t-shirt fans" of schools like Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, etc.? They are making those schools millions of dollars! Maybe...maybe...we finally have an athletic department that will listen to consultants, then say, "Yeah, well, that all looks good on paper and makes for a swell power point presentation, but...the truth is, we need to get butts in these f*cking seats, okay? Let's teach 'em how to drive before we try to sell them the Cadillac." For f*ck sake...if we had just 5,000 "t-shirt fans" in the area who would show up games? That would do wonders.

I'm going to go out on a small geographic limb and guess that Houston and Lamar have a greater percentage of players from the greater Houston and Beaumont areas than the other Texas schools. It's just a guess, though.