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Two former Wildcats will be in action representing the University of North Texas (8-4) in the Heart of Dallas Bowl, vs. UNLV (7-4) Jan. 1 at 11 a.m. in the Cotton Bowl. The game will be televised on ESPNU. Blake Macek is No. 40 for the team and the starting punter for the Mean Green. Macek, a 5-9, 186-pound redshirt freshman, has earned high praise in Denton. He was named the 2013 Conference USA All-Freshman team. He has the highest freshman punting average (40.8) in school history. Forty percent of his punts were downed inside the 20-yard line, that was 15th in the nation. Macek had 11 kicks of over 50 yards and a career long of 61 yards against Georgia. In seven games he had at least one punt downed inside the 20-yard line. Mason Y’Barbo has already received his diploma from North Texas. He is a 6-2, 307-pound offensive lineman wearing No. 57. This year he was named to the 2013 Conference USA All-Conference Second Team at offensive line. He also was named Midseason All-C-USA Third-Team by Phil Steele while starting all 12 games. A highlight of his season was when he recovered a fumble for a touchdown at Tulane. Y’Barbo has been part of an offensive line that has allowed only 10 sacks on the season and the fewest sacks in the nation with 16 over the last two years. He blocked for Brandin Byrd to rush for over 1,000 yards. In 2012 he was named Honorable Mention All-Sun Belt Conference in 2012 for the first time in his career. That year he started all 12 games and has started 24 straight games. Y’Barbo was part of an offensive line that led the nation in allowing the fewest sacks in 2012. The Mean Green offensive line gave up just six sacks last season and did not allow a sack in nine of the 12 games in 2012. That year the North Texas squad rushed for over 2,000 yards for the third time in the last four years He helped North Texas rush for over 200 yards in four games in 2012 and a season-high 352, which was the ninth-highest total in school history. Y’Barbo played and started all 12 games as a freshman. The Heart of Dallas Bowl is the Eagle’s second appearance in a New Year’s Day bowl. North Texas played Jan. 1 in 1948 in the Salad Bowl, which was a precursor to the Fiesta Bowl in Phoenix, Ariz. North Texas is he only school in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to earn a bowl invitation this year. Read more: http://www.myssnews.com/news-telegram/sports/24148-5-former-wildcats-in-bowl-games.html

Read this letter in the Dallas Morning News (link): http://letterstotheeditorblog.dallasnews.com/2013/12/heart-of-dallas-bowl-unt-is-now-a-football-team-worthy-of-a-bowl-game.html/ On January 1 we have a great opportunity to showcase Dallas and the University of North Texas Mean Green Eagles on national TV. Just imagine the excitement of being at the original Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Day. We need all UNT alumni, friends, and people who love football to put on your green and join us at the Heart of Dallas Bowl. These student athletes deserve our support. In the three years since Coach Dan McCarney and his staff arrived at UNT, we have transitioned into a team worthy of playing in a bowl game and capable of winning. I hope to see you in the stands when we kick off at 11 a.m. on New Year’s Day. Let’s fill the stands with green and show the nation we stand behind the Mean Green. GO MEAN GREEN! Phala Finley, Dallas

I stopped to talk with Quenton Brown a couple of days ago about what will be one of the feel-good stories of UNTs trip to the Heart of Dallas Bowl, one will go into greater detail on in the next couple of days. Brown is back to feeling pretty good and will be in the rotation when the Mean Green takes on UNLV in the Heart of Dallas Bowl. Read more: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2013/12/the-feel-good-story-of-quenton-brown.html/

The best season UNLV’s seen in 13 years had plenty of moments worth talking about. Here are eight of the most notable — not necessarily because they were the most glamorous, but because together they paint a picture of a team that fought its way to the finish line against the odds. 1. One play to rule them all When quarterback Caleb Herring talked to RJ reporter Mark Anderson late last month, Herring said there was one play this season that made all the difference in the world: A 50-yard pass from Herring to Devante Davis that changed the momentum of what was looking to be a blowout loss to Central Michigan. That pass set up a touchdown just before halftime that changed not only the outcome of that game — which ended in a 31-21 UNLV victory — but of the season, too. The game gave UNLV the push it needed to have a successful season and is widely viewed as the game that saved Coach Bobby Hauck’s job. 2. Kohorst’s game-winning field goal The Rebels were down 36-37 against Hawaii in October when things started to look up at the end of the fourth quarter. With five seconds left on the clock, the Rebels found themselves in field goal range and sent senior placekicker Nolan Kohorst onto the field. Kohorst kicked a 44-yard field goal as time expired to give the Rebels a 39-37 win. The victory marked the first time UNLV had won four games in a row since 2000. 3. Fremont Cannon comes home When the Rebels won the Battle for Nevada in October by beating UNR 27-22, they got to bring the Fremont Cannon back to Las Vegas for the first time since 2004. That’s almost as long as it had been since UNLV was last bowl eligible. The annual Battle for Nevada was first played in 1969. The cannon, painted with the winner’s colors, was built in 1970 and is a replica of the cannon that accompanied John C. Fremont on his 19th-century expedition across Nevada. This year’s UNLV victory also broke the series’ longest win streak: Nevada had won the annual matchup for eight years straight. Read more: http://www.reviewjournal.com/sports/8-unlv-s-best-moments-football-season

By Drew Harris, www.heartofdallasbowl.com No player on the UNLV football team personifies the gritty 2013 Rebels better than senior quarterback Caleb Herring. “He’s a classic example of guys who persevere and are persistent,” head coach Bobby Hauck said. “It seems like we are in a day and age where when kids see the first sign of adversity, they bail or try to find an easier path. He didn’t do that. He stuck with it.” Herring, who was the starting signal caller as a sophomore before losing the grasp on the job in 2012, lost a hard-fought battle for the starter’s job again this year. But after the squad began the season 0-2 and trailed 14-0 in the early going against Central Michigan, a change was made that altered the course of the Rebels’ season. Following another CMU score, Herring led the Rebels to 31 unanswered points in a 31-21 win, orchestrating the largest comeback in school history. The native of Moreno Valley, Calif., threw for 266 yards and three touchdowns in three quarters and set an all-time school record for completion percentage in a game (24-for-28, .857). Including that contest, the Rebels won seven of their final 10, scoring 33.9 points per game and earning UNLV its first bowl berth since 2000. The Rebels, which scored 23 and 13 points in its first two games without Herring, totaled at least 24 points in all but one of the final 10 outings. “My mindset was to be ready whenever the team needed help,” Herring said. He was more than ready. For the year, he completed 234 of 364 passes (64.3 percent) with 22 touchdowns and just four interceptions. A consummate team player, Herring even played wide receiver last year, starting four times while still taking reps as the No. 2 quarterback. The 2013 media guide even lists Herring’s position as QB/WR. “He competed hard for the (quarterback) position and when he got his chance he was really, really good,” Hauck said. “He’s a guy that shows what can happen when you keep working. He played very consistently and has been invaluable to his team.” Junior wide receiver Devante Davis, who reaped the benefits of having Herring under center, put it simply when asked about Herring. “Great guy, great teammate, great quarterback,” he said. “I try to make every play for him.” “He works harder than people even know,” Davis continued. “He never had a bad face (when not starting). He could tell you every play that happened in the game, and on the sideline, he’d be coaching you.” Herring split a pair of top awards at the UNLV postseason banquet, claiming Co-Offensive Player of the Year honors while also sharing the Bill "Wildcat" Morris Most Inspirational Award. “I was so happy for him,” Davis said. “We knew what he could do.” While it was an important season for him individually, Herring prefers to think about it in the context of the team. “It’s definitely been a big year for us,” Herring said. “We wanted to leave a mark as outgoing seniors.” Drew Harris (drew@firstpitchpr.com) is the founder of First Pitch Public Relations, a sports-focused media relations company in Fort Worth. He has 15 years of experience in the sports communications industry with UW-Green Bay, TCU, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Kansas City Royals. His current clients include: ESPN Events, UT Arlington Athletics, The Ben Hogan Award and the Fort Worth Stock Show Syndicate.

UNT will be back to work in the next day or so in preparation for the Heart of Dallas Bowl. It will get down to crunch time here in the next couple of days. This has been brought up before, but its worth mentioning again that the extra time UNT has had to practice will be huge for the programs future. Read more: http://meangreenblog.dentonrc.com/2013/12/unt-headed-back-to-work-after-the-holidays.html/

Editors note: During our 10 days of UNLV football, well run a UNLV list a day leading up to the Heart of Dallas Bowl on New Years Day. It was an unusually good season to be a UNLV football fan. Die-hard fans are seeing their loyalty pay off, as UNLV is bowl eligible this season for the first time in a decade. Those who havent made it to Sam Boyd Stadium in a few games or years may need some convincing to hop back on the Rebel train. Heres our list of nine reasons to be a UNLV football fan: 1. Free Cane's if we return a kickoff Who doesnt love free food? If a Rebel player returns a kickoff for a touchdown, anyone with a game ticket gets free chicken fingers and french fries at Raising Canes. Talk about a good deal. 2. Tailgating at Sam Boyd Stadium is a great experience We may not be the south, but Las Vegas knows how to throw a party especially since UNLV relaxed the tailgating rules early this season. Yelp reviews say even if the game is a disappointment, the tailgating makes it worth it. Read more: http://www.reviewjournal.com/sports/9-reasons-be-unlv-football-fan

What happened in Vegas this year didn’t stay in Vegas. And that’s a good thing for head coach Bobby Hauck and his 2013 UNLV football team. When Hauck took over the UNLV football program four years ago, he knew the challenges facing him. “We knew it was going to be a big job to turn it around,” Hauck said. “There have been a lot of really, really fine coaches go through here and no one’s had much success.” The program had been to just three bowl games in school history, and hadn’t played one outside of Las Vegas since 1984. Furthermore, UNLV managed just three winning seasons in a quarter century, from 1987 to 2012, with the most recent coming in 2000. And despite having players such as Randall Cunningham, Ickey Woods and Keenan McCardell go on to successful NFL careers, UNLV was unable to turn Sin City into Win City on the gridiron. Instead, the university has been much more readily identified with its basketball program. The Runnin’ Rebels gained national fame under Jerry Tarkanian, winning the NCAA title in 1990 in the first of two straight Final Four appearances. That program continues to rank as one of the nation’s most storied in college hoops. “The four letters are recognizable, but not for the football program,” Hauck said. “We want to build it into a football school as well.” This year, Hauck and his crew have started to get noticed thanks to a 7-5 record that included two consecutive impressive wins to end the season. ESPN Events, which operates the Heart of Dallas Bowl presented by PlainsCapital Bank, was among those who saw the growth, and extended an invitation for the Rebels, over several other bowl eligible teams, to face another program on the rise: North Texas. “We’re excited. It’s a big deal for us,” Hauck said. “Our guys have had to overcome some things at UNLV in order to get to where they are. As you build a program, one of the major milestones is getting to a bowl game, and that’s what we’ve done. It’s been a fun season.” Hauck knows how to win. To take the UNLV job, he left a juggernaut Football Championship Subdivision program in Montana, where he had fashioned a Big Sky Conference all-time best 80-17 (.825) record from 2003-09. The Grizzlies also reached three FCS championship games (2004, 2008 and 2009) during his tenure. Now he is changing the culture at UNLV. This year, the Rebels won three road games, which was as many as the squad had won over the previous eight years combined. “He came in a tackled a tough task,” quarterback Caleb Herring said. “He took some lumps early, but he stuck to his plan. How we are turning it around is just a reflection of his leadership.” “We’re moving forward,” Hauck said. “We’re evolving as a program. We started from below ground, basically, and built a foundation. And now we are seeing the rewards for that.” And the first of what UNLV faithful hope will be many rewards to come will be this national television appearance on New Year’s Day 2014 in the historic Cotton Bowl. Drew Harris (drew@firstpitchpr.com) is the founder of First Pitch Public Relations, a sports-focused media relations company in Fort Worth. He has 15 years of experience in the sports communications industry with UW-Green Bay, TCU, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Kansas City Royals. His current clients include: ESPN Events, UT Arlington Athletics, The Ben Hogan Award and the Fort Worth Stock Show Syndicate. UNLV's INTERACTIVE ONLINE GUIDE - IMG College and UNLV Athletics launched the first-ever interactive, online bowl guide for Rebel fans as the team prepares for its New Year's Day appearance in the Heart of Dallas Bowl presented by PlainsCapital Bank. With head coach Bobby Hauck holding his final 2013 practice in the city of Las Vegas, the team has was released Monday for a holiday break before reconvening in Texas on Saturday. The 24-page guide, which includes click-on videos and game reviews, is available online at UNLV's Gameday Central or at following link: http://www.unlvdallasbowlguide.com/.

http://unlv.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=1093&tid=195844671&mid=195844671&sid=915&style=2

Tim Hauck didn’t need to be informed about UNLV’s defensive woes. Ever since his older brother, Bobby, took over the program, Hauck had been following along closely. He even dug through the history book. “Defense here has not been good ever since the program started,” Hauck said. A couple of days after the Cleveland Browns cut Hauck, along with the entire coaching staff, Hauck accepted his brother’s offer to come to Las Vegas and try to change that. There are a lot of reasons UNLV was able to break through for a 7-5 season and only the fourth bowl game in history. It’s possible none are more important than Hauck and Timm Rosenbach joining the staff as coordinators. Both guys have NFL experience — Hauck played defensive back for six teams and Rosenbach led two organizations at quarterback — and Hauck was also on two NFL staffs. In their first year, the improvements on both side of the ball were drastic, and though it’s debatable how much credit to give each guy, it’s clear they made an impact. “It’s crazy how a bunch of little things can actually make a big difference,” senior defensive tackle Tyler Gaston said. On the practice field, in the film room and on game days, the defensive players seemed to enjoy being around Hauck. He can yell just as good as the next guy, but Hauck was also “relentlessly positive,” according to Gaston. Read more: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/dec/18/1st-year-coordinators-may-be-key-unlvs-breakthroug/

UNT North Texas, which will be playing UNLV in the 2014 Heart of Dallas Bowl on New Year's Day in the historic Cotton Bowl Stadium, placed four players on the 2013 Conference USA all-league football teams as selected by the league's 14 head football coaches. Announced Tuesday, North Texas's first team all-league performers were junior offensive guard Cyril Lemon, senior linebacker Zach Orr (114 tackles, three forced fumbles, four fumbles recovered), senior free safety Marcus Trice (83 tackles, five interceptions, 13 passes defended) and senior Brelan Chancellor. As the league's top punt (16.8 yards per return, one TD) and kickoff (28.1, one) returner, Chancellor is just the second player in league history to be named first team at both return positions (UCF's Joe Burnett in 2008). Chancellor, who caught 47 passes for a team-high 718 and four touchdowns, also earned second-team all-league wide receiver honors. Senior defensive lineman Aaron Bellazin (31 total tackles, 7.5 sacks) was also a second-team. Earning honorable mention honors were senior running back Brandin Byrd (1,023 yards rushing, 11 touchdowns), senior wide receiver Darnell Smith (65 receptions, 716 yards, three scores) senior defensive linebacker Richard Abbe, junior linebacker Derek Akunne (19 tackles, three sacks), sophomore defensive back Kenny Buyers (71 tackles, two interceptions) and junior defensive back Lairamie Lee (70 tackles, .three interceptions). Offensive lineman Kaydon Kirby and punter Blake Macek (40.8 yard average and 24 kicks inside the 20-yard line) were named to C-USA's 2013 all-freshman as selected by the league's head coaches. UNLV Heart of Dallas Bowl participant UNLV had 10 players receiving all-league mention in the Mountain West Conference. Senior running back Tim Cornett (1,251 yards rushing, 15 touchdowns), junior wide receiver Devante Davis (77 receptions for 1,194 yards and 14 touchdowns) and junior offensive lineman Brett Boyko were named to the second team. Honorable mention Rebels were seniors Frank Crawford (defensive back, 53 total tackles, four interceptions), Mark Garrick (defensive line, 31 total tackles) and Tani Maka (linebacker, 87 total tackles), juniors Cameron Jefferson (offensive line), Marcus Sullivan Jr. (returner, 28.8 yards per kickoff return), and Robert Waterman (offensive line), and sophomore defensive back Peni Vea (97 total tackles).

When people went to bed Saturday night there was no guarantee the UNLV football team would play in a bowl game. Then came Sunday morning and a phone call to Athletic Director Tina Kunzer-Murphy that announced the Rebels would have to wait until 2014. Well, a few hours into it anyways. Who would have ever thought that UNLV would be playing in a New Years Day bowl, said fourth-year Rebels coach Bobby Hauck. The Rebels (7-5) accepted a bid to play in the Heart of Dallas Bowl against North Texas (8-4) on Jan. 1 in the Cotton Bowl. The game will air on ESPNU at 9 a.m. Las Vegas time. The final tally had 79 Division I teams reach bowl eligibility for 70 spots. That included seven Mountain West teams for six league-affiliated games. Kunzer-Murphy worked her phone all week, talking to Mountain West Commissioner Craig Thompson, bowl officials and leaders at ESPN Regional Television, which operates five of the leagues six games plus several others nationally. The Heart of Dallas Bowl is a new one under ERT control. Read more: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/dec/08/unlv-football-bowl-bid/