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12. North Texas Mean Green 2019-20: 20-11 (14-4), Conference USA regular season champion Grant McCasland hasn’t wasted any time getting things up and running in Denton. The Mean Green won 20 games for the third straight year, and the 34th-most efficient offense, per KenPom, propelled them to a C-USA title. The biggest revelation was the emergence of Javion Hamlet, who turned out to be one of the best JuCo transfers in the country last season. The guard led the Mean Green in scoring at 14.6 points per game and assists at 4.7. His play earned him C-USA Player of the Year honors, and it’s reasonable to think that he enters next season as one of the frontrunners to take home the award next year. Hamlet will need to be a star again to help pick up some of the slack from the departures of Umoja Gibson (transfer to Oklahoma) and Deng Geu. However, he won’t be alone. The Mean Green bring back four other seniors, including starters James Reese and Zachary Simmons. Thomas Bell also returns after leading the team in rebounds and hitting just under 37 percent from deep coming off the bench. It all runs through Hamlet, though. When he goes, the Mean Green go. Lucky for McCasland, he has one of the best point guards in the country at his disposal. North Texas should be in the top tier of C-USA again. Read more: https://www.midmajormadness.com/2020/5/14/21256196/the-other-top-25-2021-dayton-flyers-st-bonaventure-bonnies-austin-peay-jalen-crutcher

We're Doing it Again! Come watch the Mean Green take on LA Tech with Austin alumni and friends! Waterloo Ice House Burnet Rd $3 beers $6/7 wings A good time by all!

Hello mates, Mean Green fan and graduate of '79 reaching out to you from across the pond. Does any one think that UNT to the Big 12 is even a remote possibility within the next decade? Granted, the conference might not exist by then but I've heard that a potential membership would require our athletic department to net over $25 million annually to even be considered. Surely with the development efforts we've seen in the last two years (both on the court/field/etc. and in the business side), it is not THAT crazy to believe we can be competing in a power five conference. Why not UNT and UH? Adding two state schools with more than 38,000 students and a demonstrable upward trajectory in multiple sports seems like a win-win in a few years. Not to mention, adding UH to the Big 12 could possibly hurt TAMUS recruiting which I am sure more than a few current Big 12 member schools would like.

Join @Evan, @Harry and @TheReal_jayD as they recap a big 30-7 home win against Southern Miss and the upcoming HUGE road game against UAB. GMG.com Barbershop Podcast #199 AUDIO LINK

It was just barely enough. Winless UTEP, playing like a team desperate to snap the nation's longest losing streak, hung with the Mean Green all night. Twice North Texas built a 10-point lead in the second half, and twice the Miners pulled within a field goal. It took a quarterback sack by North Texas' E.J. Ejiya and Bryce English in the final two minutes, then surviving a Miners' near miss on fourth down, before the Mean Green finally sent the Miners to their 18th-straight loss, 27-24. "I want to give coach (Dana) Dimel and UTEP a lot of credit," North Texas coach Seth Littrell said. "They played extremely hard. "But we have to play a lot cleaner," he added. "We couldn't get into rhythm or sync offensively in the first half. We didn't play to our standards whatsoever. Just way too many mistakes." North Texas is 5-1, its best start since 1988. The Mean Green got off to their slowest start of the season, failing to score on their opening two possessions as UTEP generated early pressure on Fine. The Miners, meanwhile, with Ryan Metz starting at quarterback for injured Kai Locksley, put together a pair of sustained drives and jumped out to a 3-0 lead. An interception by North Texas' Tyreke Davis, however, turned away the second threat. North Texas mounted its first scoring drive late in the first quarter on the strength of a 38-yard pass from Fine to Bussey, followed by an 18-yard TD pass to Darden, who broke a tackle at the 7-yard line and tight-roped down the sideline for a touchdown. But the North Texas offense could not find consistency. Big plays were followed by critical mistakes, including dropped passes by multiple receivers and an inconsistent running game. UTEP, meanwhile enjoyed success through the air, especially on yards after catch, including turning a short toss into a 29-yard touchdown early in the second quarter to give the Miners a 10-7 lead. However, North Texas made three plays late in the half to stem UTEP's momentum. First, wide receiver Cudjoe Young fought his way through a defender for a 23-yard reception on third and 10. Five plays later, Cole Hedlund made a 52-yard field goal, the longest of his career and tied for the ninth longest in school history, to tie the game at 10-10. Then defensive back Nate Brooks stopped a UTEP threat just before halftime with his fourth interception of the season at the goal line. "We had some come-to-Jesus talks," Littrell said of the Mean Green halftime locker room. "We had too many drops. That's when we lose focus a little bit." The Mean Green found its offense in the third quarter, getting another field goal from Hedlund and an 11-yard touchdown on a shovel pass from Fine to Bussey for a 20-10 lead, as Fine completed 14 of 15 passes in the second half. But UTEP refused to fold. It responded early in the fourth quarter with a 90-yard scoring drive, the longest march North Texas has allowed this year, to edge within 20-17 with 10:43 to play. North Texas answered with a nine-play, 75-yard drive, burning up half of the period's remaining clock and opening a 27-17 lead on a Nic Smith 20-yard touchdown run. And UTEP struck back immediately with a 67-yard touchdown pass. The Miners then stopped the Mean Green's next possession, setting the stage for one final comeback attempt. That final rally, however, was foiled by Ejiya and English, who sacked the Miners' QB for a 10-yard loss to set up fourth and 17. The fourth-down play narrowly failed when a pass over the middle slipped off the receiver's finger tips. "A W is a W," Littrell said. "We're going to enjoy this win. But we are going to clean up these mistakes." Quick Hits North Texas' 5-1 start is its best since 1988, when it opened 6-1. The 1988 and 2018 starts each include a road win over a Power 5 opponent; at Arkansas in 2018, at Texas Tech in 1988. Junior quarterback Mason Fine (Peggs, Okla.) moved into second place in career passing yards at North Texas, surpassing Heart of Dallas Bowl MVP Derek Thompson (2009-13). Fine has 7,542 yards, and trails only Mitch Maher (1991-94) on the all-time list. Maher had 8.519 yards. If Fine maintains his current pace, he will overtake the top position this season. Fine had the 22nd 200-yard passing game of his career, second most in UNT history. Sophomore defensive back Tyreke Davis (Denton Ryan) had the Mean Green's 11th interception of the season and the first of his career when he undercut a UTEP receiver and made a diving catch to stop a Miner drive at the North Texas 28-yard line. Junior wide receiver Rico Bussey, Jr., (Lawton, Okla.) continued what is becoming the best season by a North Texas wide receiver since Casey Fitzgerald rewrote the UNT record book in 2007 and 2008. With 117 yards on 8 receptions against UTEP, Bussey is on pace to join UNT's list of top-10 single-season receiving seasons in yards, receptions and touchdowns. An 11-yard score in the third quarter was Bussey's eighth receiving TD of the year, which ties for the 10th most in a single season at UNT with Troy Redwine (1993-95). Bussey had the sixth 100-yard receiving game of his career, which ties for sixth most all-time at UNT with Johnny Quinn (2003-06), Redwine and David Yaege (1971-72). Senior wide receiver Cudjoe Young (Chattanooga, Tenn.) had the longest reception of his career, a 23-yard catch to set up UNT's game-tying field goal in the second quarter. Senior kicker Cole Hedlund (Argyle, Texas) hit a 52-yard field goal in the second quarter, the longest of his career and tied for the ninth longest in school history. Sophomore wide receiver Jaelon Darden (Houston) had a career high in receiving yards with 91, on 5 catches. Senior defensive back Nate Brooks (Whitehouse, Texas) recorded his fourth interception of the season, matching his season best in 2016. It was the eighth of his career. Redshirt sophomore running back DeAndre Torrey (Gautier, Miss.), who took over the primary rushing duties following the season-ending injury to Loren Easly, had a career-high 70 yards on 19 carries. Sophomore defensive lineman Dion Novil (Abilene, Texas) had the first field goal block of his career, tipping a 53-yard attempt in the third quarter. It was the Mean Green's first field-goal block since Zach Orr blocked a field goal in 2013, also against UTEP. Senior linebacker E.J. Ejiya (Blaine, Minn.) had one tackle for loss Saturday to give him 26.5 for his career, moving ahead of Corbin Montgomery (1996-99) for fifth most in UNT history. UNT's Keegan Brewer, of the famous punt return against Arkansas, was again on punt return duty. Each time Brewer called a fair catch, the Miners had a defender keeping a close eye on Brewer until he actually surrendered the ball to the officials. Although North Texas and UTEP have met in football 27 times (with UNT holding a 16-8-3 advantage), this was just the sixth meeting since 1980. All six have been since the Mean Green joined Conference USA in 2013. This was UNT's first win in El Paso since 1980, and it levels the C-USA series against the Miners at 3-3. Saturday was UTEP's homecoming, and the Miners celebrated their 1988 team. A member of that squad was North Texas defensive coordinator Troy Reffett, who, in addition to playing at UTEP, was on the Miners' coaching staff for 14 seasons. The UTEP-UNT connections run both ways. UTEP offensive coordinator Mike Canales was offensive coordinator, associate head coach, quarterbacks coach and twice an interim head coach at North Texas from 2010 to 2015, and UTEP offensive line coach Mike Simmonds held the same position with the Mean Green from 2011 to 2015. link: https://meangreensports.com/news/2018/10/6/football-mean-green-escape-el-paso.aspx View full article

Date North Texas Opponent Location Time/Network Official/Fan Website 09/01/18 vs. SMU Denton, Texas 6:30PM CST Stadium SMU Official Football Site Ponyfans.com Football Fan Site 09/08/18 vs. Incarnate Word Denton, Texas 6:30PM CST ESPN+ Incarnate Word Official Football Site 09/15/18 @Arkansas Fayetteville, Arkansas 3PM CST SEC Network Alt Arkansas Official Football Site Hogville Fan Site 09/22/18 @Liberty Lynchburg, Virginia 5PM CST Liberty Official Football Site A Sea of Red Fan Site 09/29/18 vs. Louisiana Tech Denton, Texas 6:30PM CST beIN La. Tech Official Football Site Bulldawg Bark and Bytes Fan Site 10/06/18 @UTEP El Paso, Texas 6:30PM CST beIN UTEP Official Football Site MinerDigs Fan Site 10/13/18 vs. Southern Miss Denton, Texas 1PM CST ESPN3 USM Official Football Site The Perch Fan Site 10/20/18 @UAB Birmingham, Alabama 6:30PM CST beIN UAB Official Football Site Blazer Talk Fan Site 10/27/18 vs. Rice Denton, Texas 3PM CST ESPN+ Rice Official Football Site The Parliament Fan Site 11/10/18 @Old Dominion Norfolk, Virginia 2:30PM CST ESPN3 ODU Official Football Site Lion's Den Fan Site 11/15/2018 vs. Florida Atlantic Denton, Texas 8:30PM CST CBSSN FAU Official Football Site FAU Owl's Nest Fan Site 11/24/2018 @Texas San Antonio San Antonio, Texas 6PM CST ESPN+ UTSA Official Football Site Rowdy Talk Fan Site * Home games denoted in bold

Come on guys, let's have some honesty here.

What will it be folks?

I had this discussion with a fan last night and it turned it to a good debate.

The Mean Green could be a threat if they can get their defense up to speed with their offense. They’re a one sided opponent - outscore them, because they can go on offense but they can’t dictate pace." "Strong offense, the wide receiver from Notre Dame [Jaylen Guyton] really stands out on film." "The offensive system is interesting, they’re doing more experimental stuff than you’d expect from a Leach tree OC [Graham Harrell].” read more: https://www.google.com/amp/s/athlonsports.com/college-football/c-usa-coaches-talk-anonymously-about-conference-foes-2018%3Famp

Join Harry, @TheReal_jayD and @GMG24 as we discuss UNT's first Fall Camp practices of the 2018 season as well as the latest in recruiting and of course the big opener against SMU.

As North Texas prepared for its CBI opener at South Dakota, Grant McCasland had a problem. The Mean Green were limping when they accepted the tournament invite, having lost seven of their last eight games. McCasland had a dynamic, slashing playmaker in sophomore point guard Ryan Woolridge but the court had shrunk around him. UNT had shot just 28.3 percent from three in the previous four games, and McCasland needed to create space for his lead guard. As the morning shoot around unfolded, junior guard Michael Miller missed shot after shot. McCasland couldn’t take his eyes off of him. “I saw him staring at me and I was thinking, ‘what’s going on?’” Miller said. What was going on was that McCasland had come up with an idea to fix his team’s sagging offense. The first-year UNT coach called over Jon Trilli, his Director of Basketball Operations, and bounced the idea of him. It was out there. Miller, who had made just three of his 23 three-point attempts, would be given the green light from deep against a tough Coyotes’ defense. And he’d have to shoot them with his right hand, which for most players would go unsaid. Except Miller was a left-handed shooter. Miller was told to switch to his normally non-dominant hand the rest of the shootaround. He immediately made six shots in a row, missed one and then made four more in succession. That’s when McCasland called him over. “I told Mike, ‘here’s the deal: I’m going to start you tonight and I want you to shoot eight three pointers and I don’t care if you make them,’” McCasland said. Miller didn’t hit the quota, but it paid off. That night, he scored 19 points and went 4-5 from three, more than doubling his season output from distance. It helped the Mean Green knock off a 26-win South Dakota team, and started them on the path to a CBI championship. read more: https://www.midmajormadness.com/2018/7/13/17551840/michael-miller-switch-hands-shooting-north-texas-unt-basketball-mean-green-mccasland-cbi-champions

I know the first rule of the “Fight Club” movie starring Brad Pitt was you were never to talk about Fight Club. But when it comes to #F19HTCLUB, the official social media moniker for North Texas Football’s 2019 signing class, I feel compelled to break the rule. Not only is this class off to great start with fourteen 3-star ranked commitments in just early July, but potentially looking like it could be one of the best in program history. Perhaps it could even be in the running for one of the top G5 classes in the country. This is new territory for a North Texas program who has struggled at times to land higher ranked players, despite being in a hot bed of Texas high school talent in past years. The 2019 class not only has high rankings, but also many hold quality offers from G5 and, yes even *gasp* P5 programs with significant more funding and resources. One of the only knocks on Seth Littrell in his tenure thus far at North Texas is the perception he has not recruited at a high enough level, certainly in the eyes of the recruiting services. One argument was Littrell’s signing classes did not have enough 3 star ranked players. Another would be that his recruits did not have enough P5 school offers. Here’s the real story, in just over two years Littrell and company has done a remarkable job completely rebuilding the roster and culture of a program that had been decimated after a string of bad hires. You don’t take a 1-win team to a C-USA conference championship game in 2 seasons without upgrading the talent on the roster. Over 50% of the starting line up in the 2017 C-USA conference championship were brought in after Seth Littrell took over. The good news is that the proportion of Littrell recruits will only increase in the 2018 season and there were some good players who redshirted last season making their debut in 2018. And no one has ever questioned Littrell and his staff’s ability to identify and develop talent. One need only look to starting junior quarterback Mason Fine who most every division I program thought was too small to play. Fine passed for 4,052 yards in 2017 with 31 touchdowns making him the #6 ranked passing leader in the entire NCAA. In fact, he sat just one chair behind #5 ranked Sam Darnold of USC (4,143) who just signed with the NY Jets as the 3rd pick in the draft. As North Texas has improved in the win column (9-5 in 2017; 2 consecutive bowls) there are also encouraging signs the recruiting efforts have trended upward each cycle since Littrell’s hiring. That said, the 2019 class – thus far – appears to be the cycle where everything seems to be falling into place. Winning helps for sure, as top players want to join a program that is winning consistently and going to bowl games. In retrospect, the key difference may well be Littrell’s hiring director of recruiting, Luke Walerius. Walerius’ most recent stop was at Kentucky in the SEC and is primarily responsible for North Texas’ recruiting program including organization and talent evaluation. The social media efforts and communication have taken took huge steps since his arrival. When talking to both prospect and commits a common theme is that North Texas is the team showing the most love and the best family culture to them. Another key impact that Walerius has made has been to take the natural resources North Texas has, in terms of staff, location, facilities, academics and communicate it effectively in language that the prospects and their respective coaches understand. Twitter has become the king of football recruiting and North Texas has embraced communicating it’s strengths in that medium under Walerius’ lead. Two positions they may be set in terms of numbers in this class are WR and LB. Littrell and his staff have had great success at the wide receiver position since coming on board. They are returning Jalen Guyton, Rico Bussey, Michael Lawrence and Jaelon Darden, all guys brought in by current staff. They also have some exciting freshman and transfers that could contribute this fall including redshirt Greg White from Georgia and Kansas transfer Keegan Brewer. There are currently 3 receivers committed to North Texas this cycle including Damon Ward and Deonte Simpson both from West Brook as well as Kealon “Action” Jackson from Shadow Creek. All three have two things in common, speed and versatility. All three will contribute and be exciting in this spread offense. North Texas has had great success at LB in recent history including sending Craig Robertson (Saints) and Zach Orr (Ravens/Retired) to the NFL. In 2018 North Texas will have a very veteran LB Squad led by seniors EJ Ejiya and Brandon Garner. The quartet of 2019 LB recruits could be the most talented group of commits as whole by position. Twins Gabriel and Grayson Murphy (Bishop Lynch) and Taylor Jacobs (South Grand Prairie) all listed at 6-2, 215 and have versatility to play both linebacker positions and the potential to move down to defensive end. The fourth linebacker commit Kevin Wood (Judson) is listed at 6-0 200, and on film is a tackling machine with a nose for the ball. Watching his highlight film is exciting. He also has versatility and speed to not only play linebacker but also slide back to a safety position in the 3-3-5. The quarterback commit position is in good hands as well. North Texas went back to familiar territory and went back to Oklahoma landing the commitment of State Champion Owasso QB Will Kuehne. Kuehne is a very good QB prospect with a very bright future and a ton of potential. He held offers from Maryland, Arkansas State and several Ivy League schools. Defensive back is one of the most important position groups in the 3-3-5 defense. Mean Green added 4 safeties in the last class. I project they will add close to the same number this class. Currently they just have one committed but that one is a BIG one. Jevin Murray (Shadow Creek) is one of the top defensive backs in the state. He can be an instant contributor for defensive coordinator Troy Reffett’s defense. He held 13 offers including multiple P5 offers. Jevin’s main recruiter is special teams coach Marty Biagi who is having a great recruiting season so far. Marty’s covers the critical Houston-area region which many believe has more prospects than any other region in Texas and possibly the nation. North Texas is having great success in Houston this year. including two of the top-rated recruits running back Garrison Johnson (Manvel) and tight end Asher Alberding (Clear Lake). Garrison choose to commit to North Texas over P5 offers including Syracuse and Nebraska. He has the talent to fall right in North Texas run of talented running backs. Asher (6-4, 235) is an intriguing combination of old school blocking and new age receiving tight end. Coach Littrell success with Rob Gronkowski at Arizona played a big part in Asher decision. It will be fun to watch him develop. The hardest position groups for G5 and even P5 teams to recruit consistently on both sides of the ball is the offensive and defensive lines. In the 2019 cycle, North Texas has done a great job finding big athletic guys that you can develop. They currently have two offensive linemen in John Brunner (6-5, 300 / Brock) and Chris Cassidy (6-4, 280 /Angleton). Both fit the build of athletic/people movers that can develop for offensive line coach Chuck Langston. Look for UNT to try and add at least one more offensive lineman this class. On the defensive side of the ball they have one defensive lineman committed in Demeco Roland (6-3, 275 / Broken Arrow, OK). He comes from the same school as Derrick Shaw a defensive tackle signee from last year class that the staff is very excited about. Demeco is another guy with a lot of potential. Look for him to have big senior season. With 14 commits so far, I figure the staff has around 9 to 10 more scholarships to fill out. I would expect 2 to 3 more commits before the season starts. Don’t be surprised if North Texas doesn’t save the rest of the scholarships for the frenzy that happens as signing day nears and prospects realize they can’t all go to Texas and A&M. With coaching changes and stuff, it is a mad dash as national signing day gets near. And in Seth’s time at North Texas they have really capitalized on some of these later commitments. There is also the opportunity to add some junior college transfers at positions of need. Of course, when you sign the best, you better be prepared when bigger schools lose their commits and decide to start poaching. In prior regimes, North Texas seemed ill prepared for this annual ritual. With Walerius managing the process, it appears that the program is doing everything you have to do to circle the wagons, maintain strong relationships and keep these committed players in place. Time will tell. This is an exciting time to be a North Texas fan. There can be no doubt that North Texas is trending upward in the college football ranks. Back to back bowl games and a trip to the conference championship is potentially just the tip of the iceberg. Between the talent added last class and the talent currently committed this could be the boost needed to push North Texas to the top of G5 rankings and beyond. For a long time UNT has been referred to as the “sleeping giant” due to great location, and school size. But now all the necessary pieces seem to finally be in place to take that next step. North Texas is benefiting from great leadership starting with university president Neal Smatresk and athletic director Wren Baker. North Texas made a phenomenal coaching hire in Seth Littrell and with the aid of director of recruiting Luke Waleruis. #F19HTCLUB could be the signing class that finally woke the sleeping giant.

This is a repost from another board in this forum to garner more responses. Why is our athletic staff so small compared to other CUSA schools? We only have two compliance employees, a relatively small marketing team, only one graphics guy on board and only three people working in the ticket office. Is this something we can expect to change in the near future? I read a post on this forum referencing the $26 million debt our athletic department has but perhaps this is one of those times where you have to spend money to make money. Also, I made arrangements to be in Denton for SMU weekend (some have speculated that game could be the first sellout in Apogee history) and would appreciate some recommendations for good restaurants and some fun activities to do with the wife and kids while we are in town. I'm trying to avoid the cliche places like Rudy's and etc.

Link to GMG.com 2018 UNT National Signing Day Recap Podcast on Soundcloud

The C-USA Conference Championship 11:00am start Look for Victor, Amanda, Luaren, Mike, and Me Will be in the Coop Room at Pluckers in Grapevine. Doors open at 11. 1709 Cross Roads Dr Grapevine, TX 76051 http://www.pluckers.com/posts/location/grapevine/ GO MEAN GREEN!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sooners receiving T25 votes. I want some momentum, but this one could be tough. MGS Game Page ESPN Matchup