SCREAMING EAGLE-66

I like the comment "North Texas can only go there so many times"-----It appears he thinks we will continue to win the SBC (SunBelt). SBC (Southwestern Bell) should sponser a SBC bowl.. the name fits.

---It is nice to have experienced QBs but Tech has done pretty well the past years with QBs with virtually no playing time.... They are in the same boat again.. and may end the year with a sophomore (red-shirt reshman) . They have done pretty well. Smith and Hall had no experience either, as GreenBat said, and they did ok.

---Could not find any email address...Was going to mention that we are approximately the same size as SMU, Baylor, and TCU "combined".... They were missing a very large group (market)..... ---We are getting better in that area, I see a lot more NT "things" worn and for sale out here in West Texas than a few years ago. Not good yet, but there is more since the demise of the SWC and since our football program has been more sucessful. Playing more name schools helps get attention as well (even that UT mess makes people aware of us). I had overheard several comment three years ago when NT sacked Simms about 9 times and kept them out of the endzone for over a half, they weren't happy.. There is less SMU, Houston, TCU and Rice stuff it seems since SWC is gone. ---Not being in metroplex, I get a different view that most of yawl do. The Tech folks were REALLY unhappy when NT defeated them about 4-5 years ago and were shaking their heads the next time when we almost won but fumbled after a long pass near the 10 at the end of the game. ---We are slowly making progress. I expect UTEP to also get more Texas attention now that they are playing in CUSA. Everyone out here has pretty much always ignored them. I really get upset at some of the posters who constantly put us and the Belt down, we are gettting more attention than I can ever remember outside of metroplex. It will get better as time passes and the SWC years and that "click" is forgotten. During that era NT and UTEP were the only I-A teams not in the SWC (cuss SMU) and we were unfortunately put into I-AA part of that time.

Under Texas Tech it is just red... no logos. They did no better. Here is Green: http://www.target.com/gp/browse.html/601-8...8&node=14218431 It was left off the main list but it is there.

I am agreeing with you, we did not deserve any top 25 votes.... I just dislike the post that considers us a joke and claims there are a 100 better teams. Quote--"......there are probably 100 schools in this country that makes our record look like a damn joke."

Funny----good translation of what it really means..

SOUTHBEND:.. apparently you did not read this...... It makes us sound pretty terrible......(my opinion of comment) .......... "100 schools that make our record look like a joke" .... get real. ---My point was most of the recognized programs have several weak teams on their schedule as well as most of us play a few high ranked ones. Tech has two opponents in the top ten, we have one. They are playing two I-AA opponents, we have none. A&M has two top ten teams, one team in I-AA and SMU who has been a constant loser. There are many posts on different threads that don't show much confidence in our program and constantly refers to us as a member of the worst conference in America. (You know that is true that that is regularly posted) This a new conference---have patience. I did not attack you.

---A lot of "top notch schools" don't play all that great of schedule either, they just have better conference opponents. TxTech has Florida Internatonal, Sam Houston State, and Indiana State on their schedule this year and they are listed 21. Our first games are more difficult than theirs. UT even has Rice and LaLafayette on their schedule. We probably don't deserve any top 25 votes but neither did a lot of those on the "also" list. ---I don't think we are a top 10 team but at the same time I don't beat us up and think we are terrible or in a terrible conference either. If we don't have any self-respect, then how do you expect others to respect us or our conference.... A better self image by some of our students and alums would sure help our program, attendence, and recruiting. ---Let us wish everyone in the Belt good luck this year and hope for several good OCC wins, it helps us all.

---We are the newest of the eleven (11) I-A conferences. The Mountain West is fairly new but really it is a reorganized version of the old WAC. Patience, give us time. ---Quit beating us up....... we are not that much different than several other ones... We are just now having teams filled with recruits have only played in the Sunbelt. Even last year we had players (ones that were reshirted or were injured) that were recruited before the Belt existed in football. Some teams have just been added to the Belt and some did not even have a football program 10 years ago......... Some people on this board probably have their picture by the word pessimist in the dictionary. ---Let us hope several teams can win some good OCC games this year which helps us all. I find it interesting that Troy last year defeated Marshall, Missouri, and almost upset LSU but could not defeat several Belt teams........Think about it.....

There are a lot of fanatic bird lovers out there......... Rice and North Texas may be in trouble because they think our mascots (Scrappy & the Rice owl) is insulting to birds. Personally those NFL Vikings insult me and my heritage....... my anscesters never put those silly horns on their helmets when they were pillaging, axeing, and stealing from folks. ----LOL. ---we must be politically and socially correct---

---If that is absolutely true then Auburn would definitely been better off with a non-voting coach. They barely missed out being one of the top two and playing for a national championship. Votes from another coach ballot would have listed them and could have put them in the top two. ---How do they handle this inequity....especially if Oklahoma or SoCal had a coach that did not vote.... which would give them about a 20+ point advantage..

---If that is true then it would be a disadvantage to be able to vote. Suppose than are 25 voing coaches.... A highly ranked team without a "voting " coach would get votes from 25 ballots while a team who has a voting coach could gather votes from only 24 ballots. That could make a diffrence. ---Surely a voting coach could place his team as high as the previous weeks standing in the poll to give his team an even break. ---If every coach voted then it wouldn't matter, but not every college has representation in voting, do they? It appears only 62 ballots were cast.

---At this time of the season there are quite of few teams that just get an extremely low vote by someone (perhaps an alum) to just get their college listed. Don't take the list at the bottom very seriously especially those getting less than 5 votes. That lower list will shrink in size shortly as rankings become more realistic. The low ones now are often "political" or sentimental picks. ---Do you honestly think Duke (2-9, last place in ACC), Kansas (4-7, and last in Big-12 North), plus Maryland (9th in the ACC) belong on that list? Someone just wanted to see their name there. --- I am slightly surprized Dickey (if he had a vote) did not put us at 25 on his ballot. No one would have complained at this point of the season. I guess he assumed the results of our first game will take care of that one way or the other.

---LaTech should read this....The situation will be even worse for them this year .....Rice had some close opponents including LaTech, SMU and Tulsa.... La Tech will have none in the future unless they call NMSU close. LaTech isn't even located near a major airport nor are some of their oponents. ---North Texas has no business going into the far-flung WAC. I am not even so sure TCU did the smart thing going to their new conference. The new conference might be better than CUSA athletic-wise but the economic issues needed to be considered. ---We need to help improve the Belt and if CUSA happens then it does, if not, make the Belt a good conference. The Belt stretches across a highly populated football crazy part of the country. It can be done by several teams with good programs defeating other confernece's teams. sic 'em, Belt..

Thanks again. I am sure you are aware it but the opponent's Forums that appear in the origianl version is missing.... "Slowly you work, step, by step, it will be restored.....inch by inch etc."...... Appreciate the work...

---His memory is bad: Miami had four winning seasons in those 14 years he mentioned, one was 8-2-1... but he was right in general..... Miami had a bad record but were playing a lot of tough teams. ---The year before he arrived in Miami they were 6-5 with losses to Notre Dame, Florida State, Colorado, Tulane, and Georga Tech. They went 5-6 the first year he was there..... one game worse

A look at Tulsa Schedule is awful.... . They could start 0-6. 2-4 is optimistic I would say. They may be rather beat down when they play us (OU the week before). I will be amazed if UTEP gets close to a perfect season, likely 2-3 losses. I can't see SMU doing that well or Rice doing that poorly and I think putting us ahead of A&M is being too kind. We might have more victories but I would think they would be better. We are likely the biggest mystery on the list, we could do rather well or have a rather bad year. The questions on both offense and defense lines plus QB will be important. Stay tuned.

----I don't think anyone really want a TxTech "throw it almost every down" offense. We just want to throw some and especially BE ABLE and THROW SOME when the opposing defense stacks up the line of scrimmage as happened in New Orleans last December. This allows our capable running game to excell when the opponent has to respect the passing game. If the passing game really works then use it even more.

Tech may use Sam Harrell this year at QB ... I am guessing he eventually gets the job before year is over . He was red-shirt freshman last year and extrmely effective at Ennis in HS. In an even deal he would be the better choice because he is going to be around a while. Sam's father is the head coach at Ennis and was a HS QB also,. He was a QB on State-Championship team in Brownwood under Gordon Wood. Sam was QB at Ennis when they won state. True, Aggies have challenging first game, but not un-winnable. The next four of their games should be wins and including those "powerhouses" of smu and Texas State. Those should build confidence and minmize injuries with the bench getting some experience.

Tech/A&M: You may be right..... After looking a schedule, Tech has an very easy beginning schedule and by the time the Aggies show up in November the TxTech QB will be experienced and probably have a lot of confidence. The begining is not all that difficult for the Aggies either but the last three will be tough... Tech, OU and UT. North Texas... we are difficult to evaluate, lots of inexperience---we may be better than Houston, Baylor, even TCU and UTEP..... a lot depends on how the QB situation shakes out plus will both (O&D) lines be very effective.

Baylor rank: which week??... those guys are psycho..... They defeat NT and A&M, barely defeat a weak Texas State, and get stomped by a rather bad Nebraka team. I expect Aggies to take Tech out this year.. Good Qb and Tech is searching for one (again)...they may be using one that was a freshman redshirt. It will be interesting.

Nothing like optimism. Late in the year the price may drop. They can always ship some to Monahans later...they are Lobos but they also use the "Mean Green" term. ( If the items don't have North Texas on them also ) Option two: Sell them on the Parking lot of NT at a reduced price later in the season.

The MVC does not exist in football but still exits as a basketball confernce. A 30-year "All SunBelt Team" is crazy. If they worded it differently that might come up which a "team" of players that had current SunBelt teams as their alma mater,------ that could make some sense..

Apparently they (Sporting News) thinks LSU plays Arizona State first. http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/news?slug=pa...v=tsn&type=lgns

--The difference in success and failure is usually very little. It is true in every aspect of life. How many "games" or are decided by one play, a few inches, or one fortunate or unfortunate decicison. In Ulrich's case it was the existence of Lance and his decision to be a cyclist that keeps Jan from being the greatest cycleist of all-time. ---How many seemingly uneventful decisions at the time change our life forever...? Some of those decisons weren't even ours..... NT had me return to campus one day while student teaching which caused me to get th job I took, took me to where I live and as a result marry who I did. This demonstrates that many seemingly trivial decisions or statements can change people's lives. --This is the greatest thing about being in front of a classroom..