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Let's get this going again. Link to CAL roster: https://calbears.com/sports/football/roster Cal Head Coach Justin Wilcox Actor Chris McDonald Happy Gilmore, Grease

Weldon Dean Parks born in Fort Worth, attended UNT and was part of the one o'clock lab band. He would go on to play with Sonny and Cher, Steely Dan, Michael Jackson, Gordon Lightfoot and Bread. Link to bio: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dean_Parks

The Mustangs are reportedly willing to absorb at least a half decade of zero dollars in media revenue for a chance to join the ACC. And it’s kind of hard to blame them. College football realignment absolutely sucks, and the suckiest part of all is that there’s no end to it on the horizon. The process is hoovering the soul out of the sport, warping a regional product rich with history and rivalry into a quasi-national game increasingly devoid of both. The further college football goes in that direction, the less it becomes anything but a glorified farm system for a pro league that everyone could just turn on 24 hours later each weekend to see dramatically better football. The collateral damage will be athletes in other sports, who will be forced into extra travel without much of a shot at earning any name, image, and likeness (NIL) money. Nevertheless, schools have decided that the only thing worse than being party to all of this is being left without an invitation. And absolutely nobody is more desperate to score one than SMU. We know this thanks to a report from The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy, who has a source claiming that the Mustangs are so eager to join the ACC that they are willing to forego any media rights revenue for the first five to seven years. For reference, Oregon and Washington are catching hell for joining the Big Ten for half a share of the maximum revenue over the life of its current deal, which will start them at $30 million annually. Their former conference, the all-but-extinct Pac-12, crumbled because its member schools were staring down a deal that may only guarantee them around $23 million. Yet here are the Mustangs, sending very loud signals that they’d be super down to get zero dollars and zero cents for a not-inconsiderable amount of time in exchange for the privilege of slapping a bigger brand on their athletic department letterhead and their athletes spending half of each season playing on the East Coast. Is this thirsty? Oh, buddy, is it. Is it smart? Yeah, probably. read more: https://www.dmagazine.com/sports/2023/08/smu-mustangs-acc/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=dmagazine&fbclid=IwAR1DSdKNIxA0M017xetHdzIBVikf68ZvHm0l4BR9DJCJJNbo2QQmlavmklE_aem_AdGgvq4NFKpjU1N1rnzTRwvXJCoYTc9EotOeDxHnEjHuWpLQHVFEpoZHqhZpDSKQZik&mibextid=Zxz2cZ

Michael Kelly said American Athletic Conference members have held several meetings with commissioner Mike Aresco over the past week. TAMPA — American Athletic Conference members have spoken about the possibility of adding schools left behind during the most recent round of conference realignment. USF athletic director Michael Kelly said Friday that he and administrators from other conference schools have been in communication with AAC commissioner Mike Aresco after six Pac-12 schools announced their departures for other conferences in recent weeks. The remaining Pac-12 members — Washington State, Oregon State, Cal and Stanford — would be considered among the best schools left behind by this round of realignment. ESPN’s Heather Dinich first reported last week that the AAC was open to adding a combination of all four schools from the Pac-12. read more: https://www.tampabay.com/sports/bulls/2023/08/11/michael-kelly-aac-conference-realignment-pac-12-cal-stanford-mike-aresco/?outputType=amp

We will start out the breakdown with the linebacking core. This is a group that is losing two long time contributors in KD Davis and Larry Nixon. That is 671 career tackles that new LB Coach Colby Kratch is tasked with replacing. With his Iowa State variation of the 3-3-5 defense, we will see a third linebacker on the field. Last Season at Iowa State they ran out a LB core that had sizes of 5-11 231, 6-2 260 and 6-4 242. We will not see a LB trio with that same kind of size this season. But I do believe they will make up for it with speed. Here are my overall thoughts on the LB group. TOP RETURNERS Jordan Brown and Kevin Wood are the veterans of this group. They are the top returning players in this group. Both have seen extended periods of playing time in the last few seasons. Woods and Brown combined for eighty-nine tackles this last season. I can see one of the two along with Oklahoma State transfer Carson Kropp locking down the MLB spot this upcoming season. BREAKOUT STAR Redshirt Freshman Ethan Wesloski from McKinney Boyd could very well have a breakout season. He has the measurables at 6-1, 229. While at Boyd, Ethan was a tackling machine. He had almost three hundred tackles in his Jr and Sr years. After a year on campus and redshirting this past season, he will look to take a leap this upcoming season. Wesloski made great strides this spring. If the growth continues this fall, I would not be surprised to see him starting at WLB come September 2nd. SAME FACE/NEW POSITION A name that is new to the Linebacker room but not to the North Texas program is Jaylen Smith. Smith has played in 27 games the past two seasons for North Texas, mostly on special teams. But the new defensive staff moved Smith to linebacker from defensive back this past spring. He will add speed to the linebacking core. Smith, who is a Jr., goes a solid 5-11, 212. Smith could also be in line to break the 2-deep this fall at the SLB position and if he does remember you heard it here first. If he does not, then I will not recall ever saying it. NEW ADDITIONS Three names that are new to the North Texas program that could break the 2 deep this fall are Chavez Brown, CJ Garnett and Matthew Moore. Brown and Garnett both came from the JUCO ranks. Chavez Brown is an interesting story. He is a converted TE coming from Butler CC. He has size and athleticism that should be able to contribute early at North Texas. I had the privilege to interview CJ Garnett after he committed from Blinn this spring. He is a super intelligent kid that is super excited to be a part of the North Texas football program. He had an impressive tape out of Blinn. I think he will battle for the SLB position come fall camp. The third and final new addition on my list is HS addition Matthew Moore from Killeen. Moore is one of my favorite signees from the 2023 class for North Texas. He is a super smart kid that flew around the field like a missile. If you watched his high school film, you could not miss it. Moore not only brings speed but decent size for a true freshman, coming in at 6 ft 218. He and Brown will be battling for a chance to break the two deep out of fall camp at the WLB position. GOMEANGREEN OVERALL THOUGHTS I think even though North Texas is losing some key contributors in the linebacking core, this group has the potential to be a bright spot this season. I believe due to several players with high ceilings and a new defensive scheme this group could surprise a lot of North Texas fans this season. Interview Links CJ Garnett https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tOS3CBUvwo Matthew Moore https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbuFoj5EqcM

Allow me to be the first to inform you that DATCU Stadium is not, in fact, the place where the Horned Frogs play. I must confess that, prior to today, I had no idea what DATCU was. Our online managing editor and intrepid UNT alum Matt Goodman informs me it is a Denton-based credit union, so it makes all sort of sense that they would be interested in partnering with the local university. That’s doubly true considering DATCU was founded by UNT faculty following the Great Depression as Denton County Teachers Federal Credit Union (which is known today as Denton Area Teachers Credit Union; here’s a video about it). And it’s triply true considering DATCU president Melanie Vest is a Mean Green alum and the new subject of this moderately disorienting GIF. Alas, sometimes good intentions trump good ol’ common sense. Such is the case now that, in a new naming-rights agreement, UNT’s Apogee Stadium will now be called DATCU Stadium. If you’re in the Denton community, this may not scan as odd to you. For the rest of us, I’ll pause as you read that name a time or three, then you inevitably arrive where I did: the University of North Texas will play its football games at a place people will clown as DA TCU Stadium. And by “will,” I mean “already have.” More than once. This is going to be awkward. read more: https://www.dmagazine.com/sports/2023/07/unt-datcu-football-stadium/

OUTSTANDING NEWS> We are receiving confirmed reports that the new UNT stadium naming rights sponsor will be Denton-Area Teachers Credit Union (DATCU). This is reported to be a long term partnership that will be extremely beneficial to both parties. More to come! GMG LINK to the DATCU Story: https://www.datcu.org/More/Our-Story

Just posting this as a comparison as it appears that the DATCU/UNT deal will be similar what University of Houston did with TDECU, ie naming rights but also becoming the official financial services partner of the university. read more: https://stories.uh.edu/2023-june-tdecu-extension/index.html

Singer-songwriters Norah Jones, Meat Loaf and Don Henley are all noted as alumni of the University of North Texas (UNT), located in the far north suburb of Dallas in Denton. Another notable alum is Melanie Vest, president of the $1.5 billion DATCU in Corinth, Texas. On Monday, DATCU became even more connected to the UNT after the organizations announced DATCU has signed a deal to be the exclusive financial institution for the university, as well as securing the naming rights to UNT’s football stadium. The histories of the credit union and UNT actually go back to the roots of both institutions. DATCU began as Denton County Teachers Federal Credit Union on the campus of North Texas State Teachers College, which eventually changed its name to the University of North Texas. “It’s a great marriage between two distinctly Denton institutions,” Glen McKenzie, DATCU’s CEO, said. “We were founded in 1936 by UNT educators and teachers from local school districts for the purpose of serving educators. This partnership honors that original vision and further engrains us into the North Texas region.” read more: https://www.cutimes.com/2023/07/31/datcu-signs-exclusive-university-deal-in-texas/?amp=1

RVING, Texas – The American Athletic Conference announced the pairings for the 2023-24 men’s basketball season on Thursday. UNT will play 18 total regular season conference games and play every team in the league at least once. The reigning NIT champions will play UAB, East Carolina, Florida Atlantic, SMU and Tulane twice — home and away. The Mean Green will only play Memphis, South Florida, Temple and UTSA at home and they will only play Charlotte, Rice, Tulsa and Wichita State on the road. The complete 2023-24 men’s basketball composite schedule with dates and times will be announced at a later date. The first conference play dates will be January, 2-4, 2024 and will run through March 10. The 2024 American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Championship will expand to a 14-team tournament and be held at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, March 13-17. Home/Away UAB East Carolina Florida Atlantic SMU Tulane Only Home Memphis South Florida Temple UTSA Only Away Charlotte Rice Tulsa Wichita State North Texas has won a championship trophy in each of its last four seasons, including the 2023 NIT title last year. The Mean Green won a conference championship in three of its final four seasons in Conference USA. Longtime associate head coach Ross Hodge was elevated to head coach following last season. North Texas Athletics moved to the American on July 1. Season tickets for the 2023-24 Mean Green men and women's basketball teams are available now at www.meangreentickets.com. Tickets start as low as $99 for men's and $75 for women's basketball. For more information on tickets, contact the Mean Green Ticket Office at 940-565-2527 or at ticketoffice@unt.edu. Fans can visit the UNT Athletics Ticket Office located at Gate 2 of Apogee Stadium between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Thank you for your contributions and support of the program over the years. Hope you have a great day! Go Mean Green!

The Wyoming Cowboys and the North Texas Mean Green have added two games to their future football series, according to Wyoming’s 2023 football media guide. Back in 2017, the two schools announced a home-and-home series that was set to begin during the 2023 season. After an amendment to the contract was made, the series was then slated to begin on Sept. 5, 2026 at War Memorial Stadium in Laramie, Wyo., with the second game slated for Sept. 18, 2027 at Apogee Stadium in Denton, Texas. Per Wyoming’s media guide, the games in 2026 and 2027 remain as scheduled, but the series will now kickoff at Apogee Stadium on Sept. 21, 2024. Additionally, the Mean Green will visit War Memorial Stadium for the final contest of the four-game series on Sept. 21, 2030. Wyoming-North Texas Series Sept. 21, 2024 – at North Texas Sept. 5, 2026 – at Wyoming Sept. 18, 2027 – at North Texas Sept. 21, 2030 – at Wyoming Read more: https://fbschedules.com/wyoming-north-texas-add-two-games-to-future-football-series/

2023 CFN All-AAC Team | CFN 2023 Preview @ColFootballNews 30. Jalen McMurray, CB Soph. Temple 29. LaJohntay Wester, WR Jr. Florida Atlantic 28. Jordan Miller, DT Sr. SMU 27. Ahmad Walker, LB Jr. SMU 26. Davion Ross, CB Sr. Memphis 25. Josh Pearcy, EDGE Jr. Rice 24. Jordan Magee, LB Jr. Temple 23. Jason Vaughn, EGDE Sr. USF 22. Jermaine Brown, RB Sr. UAB 21. Jeremy Lewis, EDGE Sr. East Carolina 20. Nelson Paul, DE Sr. SMU 19. Joshua Cephus, WR Sr. UTSA 18. Kam Pedescleaux, S Sr. Tulane 17. Jacob Busic, DE Sr. Navy 16. JT Daniels, QB Sr. Rice 15. Kendarin Ray, S Sr. Tulsa 14. Bradley Rozner, WR Sr. Rice 13. Jamal Ligon, LB Sr. UTSA 12. Layton Jordan, LB Sr. Temple 11. Darius Hodges, DE Jr. Tulane 10. Darius Monroe, CB Sr. Tulane 9. Trey Moore, LB Soph. UTSA 8. Mazin Richards, Sr. EDGE North Texas 7. Sincere Haynesworth, C Sr. Tulane 6. Prince Pines, OG Sr. Tulane 5. Seth Henigan, QB Jr. Memphis 4. Ridge Texada, CB Sr. North Texas 3. Rashad Wisdom, S Sr. UTSA 2. Michael Pratt, QB Sr. Tulane 1. Frank Harris, QB Sr. UTSA 2023 AAC Team Previews, Season Predictions Charlotte | East Carolina | Florida Atlantic Memphis | Navy | North Texas | Rice | SMU Temple | Tulane | Tulsa | UAB | USF | UTSA All 133 Teams | CFN Top 30 AAC Players @ColFootballNews

AMPA, JULY 18, 2023 – First-Year Head Coach Alex Golesh, senior quarterback Gerry Bohanon (Earle, Ark.) and junior defensive tackle Rashad Cheney (Atlanta) will represent the South Florida football program at the 2023 American Athletic Conference Football Media Days, July 24-25 at Live! By Loews in Arlington, Texas. The American welcomes six new programs to the conference in 2023, including Charlotte, UAB, FAU, North Texas, Rice and UTSA. UTSA won Conference USA titles the last two seasons and is projected as a potential preseason top 25 team. Golesh will be among seven new head coaches attending the AAC media events. The 2023 247Sports Offensive Coordinator of the Year will be joined by Trent Dilfer (UAB), Tom Herman (FAU), Eric Morris (North Texas), Brian Newberry (Navy), Bigg Poggi (Charlotte) and Kevin Wilson (Tulsa) among new conference coaches. The 39-year-old was named to CBS Sports' "Top 15 Coaches Under 40" list in April, was a Broyles Award finalist and led Tennessee's offense to nation-leading marks of 538.1 yards and 47.33 points per game. Bohanon started seven games in his first season for the Bulls before having his season curtailed by a shoulder injury suffered in Game 7 vs. Tulane. He passed for 1,070 yards and six touchdowns and ran for 386 yards and three touchdowns in 2022, including 100-yard rushing games at No. 18 Florida and No. 24 Cincinnati. The former All-Big 12 honorable mention honoree led Baylor to a 12-2 record and Sugar Bowl victory in 2021 before transferring to USF. The former Elite 11 quarterback and four-star recruit passed for 11,362 yards and 142 touchdowns in high school while running for 5,925 and 70 touchdowns. Cheney, a transfer from Minnesota, appeared in six games in 2022 for the Bulls before an ankle injury suffered at Cincinnati ended his season. He had three stops in the season opener vs. BYU, a season-high six vs. Howard, and three tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss vs. ECU. The former four-star recruit led Cedar Grove High School to a 14-1 record and state title while posting 45 tackles for loss in his senior year. read more: https://gousfbulls.com/news/2023/7/18/golesh-bohanon-and-cheney-to-represent-bulls-at-aac-football-media-days-july-24-25.aspx

A quarterback named Cash really should play for the Mean Green, shouldn’t he? That’ll be the case soon enough, as China Spring’s Cash McCollum made his commitment to North Texas on Friday. McCollum led the Cougars to their second straight Class 4A state championship last season as a junior, in his first season in the program after transferring from Wimberley. He passed for 3,201 yards and 37 touchdowns against 10 interceptions, while rushing for 454 yards and six touchdowns. He was the District 5-4A Div. I Offensive MVP, the Super Centex Offensive Player of the Year and a finalist for the Mr. Texas Football Award. McCollum (6-4, 213) also held offers from Tulsa, Arkansas State and Sam Houston State, among others. read more: https://wacotrib.com/sports/high-school/football/china-springs-mccollum-announces-commitment-to-north-texas/article_d84cc408-2283-11ee-9ed0-4b9ff1797033.html