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Has anyone already received their tickets, yet? I was told they'd be sent Wednesday, which means they probably won't get to me til Monday, but some of yall tend to get faster delivery (based on past season tickets threads).

UNLV may have advantages offensively with a solid run game and more capable passing attack. Caleb Herring posted a stellar 22-4 TD-to-INT ratio and also showed the ability to run the football. I also like that UNLV did a good job taking care of the football with only 13 turnovers lost. That's an important stat considering North Texas posted the nation's fourth most takeaways with 32. And in NT's two most impressive wins (Ball State and Rice) they were +6 in TO margin. It is pretty formulaic – if UNLV doesn't cough up the football, the gap between these two squads is minimal. After looking closely at this matchup, my opinion hasn't changed much. I like and respect both teams and while North Texas has a few fundamental edges, this isn't a "class difference" type game. I think it is telling that the contest opened 6.5 at CRIS and Pinny and hasn't budged much if any offshore or in Vegas – not unusual as early bettors like to key in on motivational angles. As mentioned, both teams obviously excited to be in this position. Probably a lot of bettors, including myself, that hope to see a good old fashion +7 at some point. Not sure we'll get there but I'll be a buyer if it happens. read more: http://www.sportsmemo.com/blogs/view/?name=Heart-of-Dallas-Betting-Preview:-UNLV-Rebels-vs-North-Texas-Mean-Green&blog_id=14090&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

North Texas is happy with the early response its seeing from fans who are buying tickets for the teams New Years Day showdown with the UNLV football team in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. Just like UNLV, the Mean Green are offering discounted student tickets, and the response has been good. "We had some students camped out", UNT athletic director Rick Villarreal told the Denton Record-Chronicle. "It was a really neat thing to watch." Villarreal said that near the end of the first week the university had sold more than 1,200 student tickets. The Mean Green are selling their regular tickets for $75 and student tickets for $25, with boosters already donating nearly $40,000 toward offsetting the student discount. UNLV is doing something similar with its tickets also going for $75 and student tickets discounted to $20. UNLV Athletic Director Tina Kunzer-Murphy said last Wednesday the department had brought in around $22,000 in ticket money, including some donors contributing extra for the student discount. Kunzer-Murphy was in Phoenix last weekend for Mountain West meetings and expects to have some updated UNLV ticket numbers available on Monday. No matter how well they do, the Rebels are almost guaranteed to come up short of what UNT is able to sell. The Mean Green campus is about a 45-minute drive away from Cotton Bowl Stadium. Read more: http://lvsun.com/news/2013/dec/16/unlv-football-awards/

For those who have not yet seen the Heart of Dallas Press Conference Video here is a link to watch it. Its located at the bottom of the page. GMG. http://www.meangreensports.com/

The Heart of Dallas Bowl had its media call tonight. Here are a few highlights: – The real zinger was that Rick Villarreal and Dan McCarney talked a whole lot about how important it is for UNT fans to show up on New Year’s Day. “The fan base challenged us,” Rick Villarreal said. “Now we are challenging them.” Villarreal believes UNT has put the product the fans asked for on the field. Now he is expecting UNT’s fans to show up and support the team. Read more: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2013/12/hod-press-call-notes.html/

In a New Year’s Day matchup at the Cotton Bowl stadium, the Rebels (7-5) will play their first postseason game since the 2000 Las Vegas Bowl. “We do kind of mirror each other,” fourth-year UNLV coach Bobby Hauck said. “Sort of like the guys at North Texas, we’ve had to kind of believe in ourselves when maybe there wasn’t a whole lot of others that could, or should. It’s just tremendously rewarding to be where we are right now.” North Texas (8-4) has won six of its last seven games in its 100th anniversary season of football, and its first in Conference USA. The bowl comes in the third season under coach Dan McCarney, who took over a program that had gone 13-58 the six seasons before he arrived. “This is validation for all the hard work put in by this team and the leadership of this senior class,” McCarney said. Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/north-texas-to-play-unlv-in-heart-of-dallas-bowl/2013/12/08/df9e6190-6077-11e3-a7b4-4a75ebc432ab_story.html

I know that DT tweeted UNLV but the Heart of Dallas folks are saying our opponent won't be announced until tonight after the Big 10 Selections:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20131208/college-football-bowl-projections/index.html

99.9% official!!! This post has been promoted to an article

BC Athletic Director Brad Bates is exploring the possibility of exiting the Atlantic Coast Conference bowl structure that would have the Eagles (7-4) playing in the Advocare V100 Bowl in Shreveport, La., on Dec. 31. The ACC has two bowl eligible teams, Syracuse and Pittsburgh, that could take BC’s place in Shreveport. “At this point there are still moving targets but the one thing I can tell you is we are exploring every and all options that serve the Boston College community and the students on the team,” said Bates. “Anything that that resonates over those two variables is something we are working with the ACC to try achieve. “We obviously don’t have complete autonomy over the decision but we are trying to position Boston College the best way possible.” If Bates can maneuver BC into the Heart of Dallas Bowl, the Eagles would be the only ACC team playing on Jan. 1. Houston based Rice University of Conference USA is a potential BC opponent. Rice (9-3, 7-1) will host Marshall (9-3, 7-1) in the Conference USA championship game on Saturday. North Texas is another program in the picture. “It’s a shell game in some ways,” said Bates. “There are a lot of variables but at the end of the day the conference office is working with the bowl executives to determine who goes where and that is really where we are spending all of our time.” Read more: http://bostonherald.com/sports/college/college_football/2013/12/boston_college_explores_new_bowl_option

Could Boston College be headed back to Dallas to play in a bowl game? There were indications Tuesday night the 7-5 Eagles, bowl-eligibile for the first time since 2010, were exploring an at-large berth as a Big Ten replacement in the Heart of Dallas Bowl Jan. 1 opposite a Conference-USA opponent, possibly Rice. “It obviously would resonate with the BC community because it would be played in the Cotton Bowl, because we have a lot of history there,’’ said BC athletic director Brad Bates. “But there’s just too many moving targets with all these bowls right now to really say, one way or another, that we’re going to end up at one particular place at this point.’’ It would appear to be a bowl destination for BC on several fronts. Read more: http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2013/12/03/play-heart-dallas-bowl-jan/mJVLk82tT7oqjnXoQYZnrJ/story.html

Heart of Dallas Bowl, lets see... Another non-Pac-12 bowl that could see some attention should they choose to select a Pac-12 team. Washington State and Oregon State should be hoping the Big-10 gets two BCS teams. I spoke with Heart of Dallas Bowl executive director Brant Ringler, who said... "We have agreements with CUSA and the Big 10. CUSA has enough teams that have qualified to fill all CUSA bowls. The Big 10 currently has enough teams, but if they play two teams into the BCS then we will be forced to go at large. There are a lot of teams in the marketplace, so it will be interesting to review all our options should we need to do so." Stay tuned to this one... Read more: http://washington.247sports.com/Article/Breaking-Down-the-Pac-12-Bowl-Situations--164224

I know that we have not yet officially been invited to the Heart of Dallas Bowl but it would not hurt to start making arrangements for if it does transpire. This could be a BIG celebration... with the new president coming on board, our inroads at UNT Dallas (new president there as well) and the Law School we could throw a huge New Years Eve party that could be a lot of fun! I think having a big venue where we could have a lot of fans and also have Coach Mac and Dr. Smatresk, Dr. Rawlins, Lee Jackson, Mean Joe Green and RV speak to the crowd would be fantastic... Faculty, students, alumni, fans, the Band, prospective recruits and their families --- invite them all... make it a scene get Mayor Rawlings and other Dallas dignitaries to be a part. The Heart of Dallas helps the homeless so make some type of food drive where if you bring canned goods you get free admission. We have so much musical talent at our disposal I just know we could get some major acts to play. On the venue -- you KNOW there is a cool place in Deep Ellum or lower Greenville or heck even Gilley's over off of I-30 that we could talk into making it ours for the evening...it needs to be big but not too big.. you want there to be a demand for tickets.. you want it to be a good crowd. The other thing, don't just make this a boring speech fest. Yes some speeches and get fired up stuff needs to happen but the main thing is entertainment make it fun! Have some great food and ambiance. Show a highlight video from Beyond the Green! Let the players come by early to be recognized... This could be a HUGE opportunity to really open up doors in Dallas if you play your cards right. Don't miss this chance!

Heart of Dallas Bowl Gametime: Wednesday January 1st, 9:00 AM PST Location: Cotton Bowl, Dallas, TX Coverage: ESPN Payout: $1,100,000 Website: theheartofdallas.com Twitter: @HODBowl This bowl has to be high on Bill Moos' want list, and WSU has to be high the bowl's want list, too. In order for it to become available, the Big Ten needs to have one team selected for a BCS at-large bowl. Previously, we were rooting for Wisconsin, which finished its season this weekend losing to Penn State (on sanctions, not eligible). Now, we're all fans of Sparty, and to some degree Ohio State (gross). A few different scenarios could play out here. Michigan State beats Ohio State in the Championship and goes to the Rose Bowl. Ohio State would then be eligible for an at-large selection, and has a real good shot at getting one. Ohio State beats Michigan State and plays in the BCS National Championship. If Ohio State can hold on to a No. 2 ranking, it will earn the privilege of facing Jameis Winston and the Florida State Seminoles in the BCS Championship; that would also send Sparty to the Rose Bowl and open up the Heart of Dallas for us Cougs. Ohio State beats Michigan State and is not ranked No. 2. If the Buckeyes aren't ranked No. 2, and there's a chance of that despite a perfect record since the computers don't really like their schedule and there's a perceived weakness of the B1G this year, Ohio State goes to the Rose Bowl and Cougs are left hoping Michigan State has enough to grab an at-large. With a few different scenarios that make it possible, it's very likely this bowl opens up. If you're into social media activism, tweet at these people, they're awesome and that sort of stuff truly does not go unnoticed by committees. Read more: http://www.cougcenter.com/2013/12/2/5163688/college-football-bowl-projections-WSU-new-mexico-heart-of-dallas

Dan McCarney's press conference was this morning, as always. Turns out the sun did in fact come up after UNT lost to UTSA. Here are a few tidbits of note: Dan McCarney and UNT officials are still convinced that they are headed to a bowl game somewhere. It looks more and more like it will be the Heart of Dallas Bowl. C-USA commissioner and Heart of Dallas founder Britton Banowsky was at UNTs last game. Read more: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2013/11/mccarney-presser-notes-video-coming-3.html/

July 23, 2013 The Big Ten Conference extends its relationship with the Heart of Dallas Bowl presented by PlainsCapital Bank and enters into an agreement with the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl to secure a commitment to have a conference school play in the postseason games, on a rotating basis, during a seven-year period following the 2013-2019 seasons. Starting in 2013, the Big Ten will place seven teams over a seven-year period in the Metroplex. The 2013 Heart of Dallas Bowl presented by PlainsCapital Bank will host the Big Ten on an ESPNU televised game. Their opponent will be a school from Conference USA and the game will kickoff at 11 a.m. (CT) on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2014 at the Cotton Bowl stadium in Dallas, Texas. "The Big Ten has played bowl games in the state of Texas annually since 1995 and we look forward to continuing that tradition by participating in the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl and Heart of Dallas Bowl presented by PlainsCapital Bank," Big Ten Commissioner James E. Delany said. "The opportunity to play in a historic venue like Cotton Bowl Stadium first drew us to the Heart of Dallas Bowl, and the hospitality of the people of Dallas and the charitable generosity of the bowl committee make this an ideal partnership. In addition, the agreement with the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl will allow the Big Ten to maintain an annual presence in the state of Texas, which is home to a large alumni base from conference schools. These two postseason games in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex area are welcome additions to our national bowl lineup." "We are extremely pleased to extend our relationship with the Big Ten for the Heart of Dallas Bowl game," said Kern Egan, Heart of Dallas board member. "The ongoing support of one of college football's premier conferences will continue to help the Heart of Dallas raise money for charities to make our city a better place." Owned and operated by ESPN Regional Television (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN, the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl has featured the "armed forces" theme since 2006. Patriotic overtones recognizing all five branches of the service are prevalent throughout the game. Past Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowls have included fan-fest areas showcasing armed forces hardware; flyovers; demonstrations by several of the military's top skydiving teams; custom homes awarded to wounded warriors; on-field induction ceremonies; armed forces bands and honor guards; the annual Great American Patriot Award presented by Armed Forces Insurance; and the Armed Forces Merit Award presented by the Football Writers Association of America. "This is another major milestone for the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl," said Brant Ringler, BHAFB executive director. "We look forward to working with the Big Ten Conference officials and Heart of Dallas Bowl representatives during this process to produce exciting postseason football games in North Texas." With Rice defeating Air Force 33-14, the 2012 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl drew an attendance of 40,754 and the largest TV audience in the game's history with an average of 2,584,000 households. The ESPN telecast had a 2.6 average household coverage rating - marking the bowl's second-highest rating in the event history. After two seasons as the TicketCity Bowl, the name of the postseason game at the Cotton Bowl was changed to the Heart of Dallas Bowl. The 2013 game featured Oklahoma State defeating Purdue before a crowd of 48,313. The bowl game raised $100,000 for the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance. ESPN Regional Television ESPN Regional Television (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN, owns and operates collegiate sporting events worldwide, including two Labor Day Kickoff college football games; seven college bowl games and eight college basketball events. These account for approximately 200 hours of programming, reach almost 64 million viewers and attract nearly half a million attendees each year. The owned and operated events build relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as provide unique experiences for teams and fans. In addition to event ownership, ERT manages the Big 12 Corporate Partner Program. Collegiate Football BBVA Compass Bowl (Birmingham, Ala.); Beef `O' Brady's Bowl St. Petersburg; Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl (Dallas-Fort Worth); Gildan New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque); Las Vegas Bowl; MEAC/SWAC Challenge presented by Disney (Orlando, Fla.); Texas Bowl (Houston); AdvoCare Texas Kickoff (Houston); Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl (Honolulu) and The Home Depot College Football Awards Collegiate Basketball Armed Forces Classic (TBD); Charleston Classic (S.C.); Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (Honolulu); Jimmy V Men's & Women's Basketball Classics presented by Corona Extra (Madison Square Garden & Durham, N.C.); Old Spice Classic (Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla.); Puerto Rico Tip-Off (San Juan, PR); State Farm Champions Classic (United Center, Chicago) and Wooden Legacy (Orange County, Calif.) http://www.bigten.org/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/072313aaa.html