DRC: Fine vows to return for senior season after pondering transferring

[KenTuck]

Coaches and jocks have never been great real world strategists.  

[peanuts104]

4 hours ago, Brett Vito said:

DRC:

https://www.dentonrc.com/sports/unt-press-conference-notebook-fine-vows-to-return-for-senior/article_e536ed9d-5bb3-581e-bd6f-4ffb4abe5630.html

You just had to write this story didn't you Bert.

[FirefightnRick]

2 hours ago, Mean Green 93-98 said:

I assume he is in position to graduate early, so he could transfer with immediate eligibility.

This was going to be my question too?  

And I agree with many others in that it’s tough to tell anything at all without context  to the question? 

So I’ll just consider the source, .....roll my 👀  and move on.  

Rick

Edited November 21, 2018 by FirefightnRick

[southsideguy]

Thank you for staying here for your senior year.  I have enjoyed watching break the records and love to see you add to them. At my age, I doubt I will ever get to witness another Mason FIne in my lifetime.  Thanks for the ride.

[untcampbell]

This is an exceptional kid. I don't hero sports idols anymore. Gave it up after Nolan Ryan left the Rangers. But this guy comes as close to "total package" as this school has seen since Mean Joe. I appreciate every moment I have been given getting to watch this team, including what I saw in Norfolk. Littrell, Fine,  Ejiya, Lawrence, Hambone, Garner, Brooks, Easley, with a hat tip to Brewer and Biagi, et al, have given me two fantastic and never-to- forget  memories ($MU, Arkansas). I am grateful in this Thanksgiving season for those memories, and happy, but not entitled, with what happens next.

We spend way too much time on this board with speculating to the point of panic about what we can't control.

Our punditry, while boring if done like this, would be much more honest and healthy:

 

With an attitude of gratitude, I say thanks, Mason. I have never doubted you give your best every down. If I could buy stock in Mason Fine Corporation, I would do so immediately.

Do great things, for Faith, for you, for family, for school, for fans. In that order. Thanks, Mason.

Edited November 21, 2018 by untcampbell

[UNTexas]

1 hour ago, KenTuck said:

Coaches and jocks have never been great real world strategists.  

Dwight D Eisenhower played football for Westpoint! He was pretty good with real world strategies!!!

[BillySee58]

I wish more UNT fans would realize that UNT can win without Fine and Littrell. We have a good administration in place and we have inherent advantages over our CUSA West peers (i.e. Recruiting base, alumni base, facilities, tier-one research university, etc.). 

These aren’t the RV days. If Littrell leaves we have a good AD who can make another good hire. And that coach can find another QB who can put up good numbers. Fine is not the only QB capable of putting up modern-day QB stats at North Texas.

[Harry]

[NM Green]

That’s right. I am confident we will survive once Littrell moves on and at some point mason is not going to run out of the tunnel.

I think it would be shortsighted to leave when he commands this offense and can carve out his stats in Apogee. You need playing time and the pros want consistency.  His best shot at that is in Denton with this team. He can have a banner year again in Denton and get noticed. 

I love Littrell but he’s young and climbing the ladder as fast as he can is his thing. I get it I did it too. I wish I would have stopped to enjoy the roses a bit more where planted but I was young and eager. Either way great memories great accomplishments. Littrell and mason have laid the foundation. With Wren and Dr S. It is strong and poised nicely for the future.

beat utsa 

GMG

[Venson]

I usually try not to say bad things about Brett Vito, but for him to write this article without giving the full context on which it is based reflects badly on him. If Mason wants to play at the next level and a major P5 contacted him indirectly, then I can see why he said it crossed his mind and he weighed the pros and cons. All of us sitting at home behind our computer screens would have most likely thought about it as well. Especially if it is a program that consistently has someone drafted every year. You would have to consider that North Texas has not had anyone drafted since who, Cody Spencer? That is a long time. Maybe he thought I really love UNT and want to finish here, but if I transfer will I have a better shot at the NFL? I really love living in Texas, but if I had the chance to make $100k more than I make now by moving to Nebraska, I would certainly think about it and weigh the pros and cons. It doesn't mean I don't love Texas or that I am not grateful to all that Texas has done for me. Maybe he should not have answered the question honestly. maybe he should have been PC with his answer. That's why I always say we want people like politicians to lie to us. If they are truthful and say something that we think we they shouldn't, then we don't vote for them. However, if they lie through their teeth, we vote for them because we liked the lie they told us. Mason answered a question truthfully and now people are upset with his honesty. At the end of the day, Brett should have never written this article because it makes it look as if Fine is not grateful or that he really doesn't care about UNT like we thought he did. I think that is far from the truth. I believe Mason loves UNT and that he is 100% grateful to them for giving him a chance. 

[PlummMeanGreen]

11 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

Gets it.

Pay attention people.

It’s part of what we love about Fine: his candor.   We can’t hate him for having a fleeting thought & casually mentioning it when asked.  With what he said to reaffirm his love for NT, this shouldn’t be a story at all...

The headline was absolutely inflammatory though.  Now he’s going to have to answer all kinds of additional questions about it.  & deal with fans who cannot discern what was said & why due to how it was framed.

Vito likely put himself at the top of Fine’s s*** list.

 

Yellow journalism seems to live in Denton, too. 

[untbowler]

maybe Mason wanted to see what it would be like to have O-Line that blocks for him so he is not fearing for his life every play, maybe he is getting older and does not have the stamina to run 25-30 yds every play while a 265 lb DE is chasing him ready to level him. 

Either way Vito is a t**t Waffle for even bringing it up now. 

[HoustonEagle]

12 hours ago, TheColonyEagle said:

He's gotten enough attention doing what he's doing at UNT. If he's going to the NFL, transferring won't help him. Either he can drop a dime in the corner of the endzone and hit a receiver in the hands on a 15 yard out or he can't.

And he can.

I just HATE the way the media does this....(Unless I'm missing something that wasn't reported) Mason Fine's words were "it crossed my mind" because obviously if someone brought it up it naturally would. But Vito takes that and turns it into Fine "briefly considered" transferring. That suggests so much more. And Vito knows it...it's why he wrote that.

F'ing media. They're all the same. Fine's only mistake was he answered honestly. And Vito turned it into so much more. And this is going to turn into more. And there's nothing to it.

This is why athletes don't give any substance or answer questions honestly....

He should've just said: "I just want to give 110% and by golly win some games" over and over....

 

Why F'ing media?  It's a reporters job to report a factual story.  It's our job to measure our reaction to the story.  People always seem to misunderstand this principle.  

 

 

[meangreenlax]

12 hours ago, outoftown said:

If somebody did that before Mason notifies anybody, it would be a MAJOR NCAA violation. Doubt anybody would ever admit to it.

The rules are only loosely applied to the P5's

[Big Z]

16 minutes ago, untbowler said:

maybe Mason wanted to see what it would be like to have O-Line that blocks for him so he is not fearing for his life every play, maybe he is getting older and does not have the stamina to run 25-30 yds every play while a 265 lb DE is chasing him ready to level him. 

Either way Vito is a t**t Waffle for even bringing it up now. 

Ya but he is the beat writer for the team and probably has more inside information than we do. But why in the hell would you out this story out at the end of the season is beyond me. 

[TheColonyEagle]

50 minutes ago, HoustonEagle said:

Why F'ing media?  It's a reporters job to report a factual story.  It's our job to measure our reaction to the story.  People always seem to misunderstand this principle.  

 

 

 Vito’s words were misleading. 

Having something “cross your mind” (Fines actual words) and actually “considering” it (Vito’s addition) are two very different things. He didn’t report facts. He twisted Fine’s words and suggested Fine was more serious about it than he was. Then he goes on twitter and adds more of his own opinion as to Why Fine would “consider it” (which he never said he did)

If someone asked me one time what I wanted to do with my life. It would cross my mind that I would quit my job and move to the beach and sell coconuts. But I would never consider it. 

See how that works?

but I’m gonna guess his article will get loads of clicks. That’s the goal for the media today anyway. 

So you’re wrong. He didn’t report facts. He twisted words. 

[southsideguy]

8 hours ago, BillySee58 said:

I wish more UNT fans would realize that UNT can win without Fine and Littrell. We have a good administration in place and we have inherent advantages over our CUSA West peers (i.e. Recruiting base, alumni base, facilities, tier-one research university, etc.). 

These aren’t the RV days. If Littrell leaves we have a good AD who can make another good hire. And that coach can find another QB who can put up good numbers. Fine is not the only QB capable of putting up modern-day QB stats at North Texas.

We will move on when Mason graduates and Litterll moves towards his dream job.   We are a stepping stone for college coaches. I hope Littrell is here next season.   But you are right we will move on when both are gone.   However, I doubt we find another quarterback that can do what Mason has done for a long time.  We got Mason here because the other programs overlooked him due to his height.  I trust Wren and our president to keep the ball rolling and I hope we can do what Boise State has done.  When on coach leaves one fills in right behind him and we don't end up with a has been coach.

[meangreenbob]

I agree with Harry. Should have been left unsaid. Also the only person who could have leaked this was Fine himself. I appreciate all Fine has accomplished at UNT but I will not see him in the same light as I once did. Regardless ALL P5"s now know Fine is available despite his affirmation he is staying at UNT.

[MeanGreenZen]

I think it would take a pretty unique situation to get Mason to grad transfer. It would have to be a national title contender. And how many of those are there, really?

Maybe Kyler Murray goes to play baseball and Austin Kendall tears his ACL this spring? 

Most national title contenders have 4 or 5 star QBs with multiple seasons of eligibility left as backups. Even Mason’s original “dream school” of OK State has Spencer Sanders in line for their QB job. Why would a good P5 prefer one year of Mason Fine to the potential upside of it’s own younger highly-rated QBs.

And why would he transfer to a P5 that doesn’t have a shot to win a national title? He already has a chance to play on TV and on the biggest stages in out of conference games. Heck, even at home games he is playing in front of large crowds. 

Plus, I would guess that he has relationships and loyalty towards teammates here that he would not want to betray. 

Most grad transfers switch schools for more playing time. When Russell Wilson left NC State it was rumored that it was because he had lost the starting job there. 

Also, many grad transfers don’t end up working out. They don’t even end up winning the starting job at their new school. 

I think Mason will finish his career at UNT and always be remembered as an all-time great.

 

Edited November 21, 2018 by MeanGreenZen

[drex]

The real question is whether or not it has crossed Vito's mind to transfer from the Denton R-C to Sports Illustrated....hope so.

[UNTexas]

59 minutes ago, HoustonEagle said:

Why F'ing media?  It's a reporters job to report a factual story.  It's our job to measure our reaction to the story.  People always seem to misunderstand this principle.  

 

 

Totally agree. Vito asked a question. Fine answered. Fine probably should pay better attention to coach speak. Coaches are great at not answering questions.

However, Vito could have asked a follow up question or elaborated on the original one. If he can graduate this Summer then it changes the entire question and answer. The way it was written, plus the title, could have been executed better. Vito did his job, Fine needs to learn from this. 

If you're wife asks you if she looks fat in an outfit, you don't say yes...

[KRAM1]

13 hours ago, Big Z said:

Doubt they would move Graham to HC

Please Jesus....noooooo!

[meangreen2016]

“It crossed my mind... I want to play all 4 years here...this is home”. Stop freaking out y’all. That’s an encouraging statement. He chose to stick around, he wants to be at UNT. Heck, if I took the beating he has the past 3 years I’d consider finding a school with a better protection/offensive line too! Dude has worked his butt off for this school. No reason to turn on him. 

[forevereagle]

MG Fans: "I want to be good at football, I don't care what it costs!"

Also MG Fans: "My successful coach and QB might maybe possibly use their success here to go elsewhere. I AM NOW VERY ANGRY AND DO NOT APPROVE!" 

Sometime success has side effects that may not be fun, but we have to deal with it. Still, this seems like a non story to me.

[UNTcrazy727]

2 minutes ago, forevereagle said:

MG Fans: "I want to be good at football, I don't care what it costs!"

Also MG Fans: "My successful coach and QB might maybe possibly use their success here to go elsewhere. I AM NOW VERY ANGRY AND DO NOT APPROVE!" 

Sometime success has side effects that may not be fun, but we have to deal with it. Still, this seems like a non story to me.

You do realize the list of decorated QBs, like Mason, who transferred to another school has like...zero guys on it. It's not going to happen, but it would be the first case of a great G5 player using the new transfer rule to jump to the P5 without punishment.