Jump to content

Diagnosing the bad taste that won't go away after the Houston loss


Harry

Recommended Posts

image.png

 

Just a thought, but as bad and disappointing as the Houston loss was to swallow, there is an on-going bad taste hangover that I sense which will not go away like a normal bad loss would.  It continues to linger.

I think part of the problem is we are all facing the realization that this ever so memorable Mason Fine era is coming to an end.

Like sand passing through an hourglass, every remaining game brings us closer to the curtain closing on a player who was larger than life and one that you will  probably only see once in a lifetime.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Harry said:

image.png

 

Just a thought, but as bad and disappointing as the Houston loss was to swallow, there is an on-going bad taste hangover that I sense which will not go away like a normal bad loss would.  It continues to linger.

I think part of the problem is we are all facing the realization that this ever so memorable Mason Fine era is coming to an end.

Like sand passing through an hourglass, every remaining game brings us closer to the curtain closing on a player who was larger than life and one that you will  probably only see once in a lifetime.

Don’t remind me😭

  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, it was sort of a reality check of how poor SL recruited his first 3 years + the fact that we just aren't very good. Losing at SMU...The excuse is made there...We haven't won there since the 30's, maybe we were flat, the coaches didn't know what to really prepare for because all of their transfers. Then, we come out and put up a decent (at best) performance on the road at a decent Cal team. So it was sort of trending upward to some degree after Cal. So a little hope starts to shine through. Word comes out that UH's best player is quitting. So we assume we will at least be ultra competitive and break away in the 2nd half with a dub.Then we get lambasted at home for a nice crowd to witness. Compile all of that with the fact that we know MF only has 3 more home games in his career then we will have a team full of unknowns going into Seth Littrell's 5th season. Breaking through that glass ceiling that is always and forever present for G5 programs seems kind of a hopeless achievement at this point. 9-4 might actually be the ceiling of UNT and it's difficult to fathom. Our year, under this grouping of kids, was last year and that year could have and should have easily been a 12-0 regular season. And now I feel like I'm ranting, so I'll stop. 

  • Upvote 1
  • Haha 1
  • Ray 2
  • Skeptical Eagle 1
  • Downvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, meanrob said:

Tennessee never won an SEC championship when they had Peyton Manning. 

Then Tee Martin came in and won a National Championship.

Who knows what happens in the coming years but we need to get better at a lot of positions not just replace one. 

Agree completely, but how many Mason Fine-like quarterbacks come around to North Texas to play football?

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

27 minutes ago, NorthTexasWeLove said:

Well, it was sort of a reality check of how poor SL recruited his first 3 years + the fact that we just aren't very good. Losing at SMU...The excuse is made there...We haven't won there since the 30's, maybe we were flat, the coaches didn't know what to really prepare for because all of their transfers. Then, we come out and put up a decent (at best) performance on the road at a decent Cal team. So it was sort of trending upward to some degree after Cal. So a little hope starts to shine through. Word comes out that UH's best player is quitting. So we assume we will at least be ultra competitive and break away in the 2nd half with a dub.Then we get lambasted at home for a nice crowd to witness. Compile all of that with the fact that we know MF only has 3 more home games in his career then we will have a team full of unknowns going into Seth Littrell's 5th season. Breaking through that glass ceiling that is always and forever present for G5 programs seems kind of a hopeless achievement at this point. 9-4 might actually be the ceiling of UNT and it's difficult to fathom. Our year, under this grouping of kids, was last year and that year could have and should have easily been a 12-0 regular season. And now I feel like I'm ranting, so I'll stop. 

Until we see differently, 9 is our ceiling for wins. We have won 9 games in a season all of 3 times since 1978. FBS or I-AA, getting to 9 wins is the best we can do.

  • Upvote 3
  • Thanks 1
  • Eye Roll 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I believe Mason can lead us to a conference championship. CUSA is winnable. I hope they take some time over the break to remember we have Tight Ends (thought they were going to be used more).

I think this also stings since it seemed to have come so easy the last two years. To go from were we had been to back-to-back 9 win seasons - we had arrived!!! Well the truth is it's not as easy as it seemed, but now we have set the bar so high a seven win season will seem like we have failed.

  • Upvote 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The really good news is that we wont face another team with the talent of SMU, Cal, or UH. They won't be as easy as ACU and UTSA, except for maybe UTEP, but we SHOULD win 5 more games at least. 

Don't let SMU's or UH's talent full you into believing we aren't CUSA good. Because we are still one of the best teams in CUSA. This league sucks something fierce, just as the SBC did back in the early 00's, but our non-conference losses never kept us from completely dominating some FBS dregs. I don't see why anything has changed on this front, except that we are now in CUSA instead of The Belt.

  • Upvote 4
  • Thanks 1
  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think what stings for me is we were favored. With the QB story if the week we had expectations going in. Then we played a team that was bigger and faster than us and it took me by surprise when I thought we would compete. We lost in front of the biggest crowd I have seen at Apogee.

However the 2 things I really wanted out of this season was a CUSA championship and a bowl win. Both of those things are possible. This season could be the reverse of last season.

  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, DeepGreen said:

Agree completely, but how many Mason Fine-like quarterbacks come around to North Texas to play football?

Well, you can start with Steve Ramsey and then add Mitch Maher.  Mr. Fine finally passed Ramsey's TD total this year. But as I've said before, Ramsey's records were done in 29 games.  Maher set his records in 44 games. If both of them had started the same time as Mason Fine, and went through drills in the same system, they would both have done just as well. And in the case of former Plano Wildcat, Mitch Maher, maybe better because of his running ability.

  • Upvote 4
  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, ntmeangreen11 said:

I don't understand comparing the early SBC days to now. We won like 27 straight conference games and 4 titles. I may have been 14 but I remember those games there was never a thought we were going to lose.

Really? I think the thing that made that run so remarkable is how we pulled out so many close wins.  Dickey was of the mindset that, you hand in there and give yourself a chance to win it in the end.

Your point still stands though: very different mindset from today’s teams.  Those SBC teams would grind you down physically and had a mental edge.

  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

24 minutes ago, SilverEagle said:

Well, you can start with Steve Ramsey and then add Mitch Maher.  Mr. Fine finally passed Ramsey's TD total this year. But as I've said before, Ramsey's records were done in 29 games.  Maher set his records in 44 games. If both of them had started the same time as Mason Fine, and went through drills in the same system, they would both have done just as well. And in the case of former Plano Wildcat, Mitch Maher, maybe better because of his running ability.

Ramsey, Maher, and Fine.  Great QB’s for sure.  All three of them.  Over a 50+ year period.

  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Mason Fine:

  #6 would make several P5’s schools with genuine QB problems a literal godsend & you can start with a certain Big 12 school in our area.  

Yes, we’re still all gut-kicked because of UH, but Mason Fine has given this “ancient” alum memories for a lifetime however long that will be.  At the top of my list are those 2 wins he commandeered over Army & “the Drive” against UTSA when all was lost. Glad my old college roommate & I stuck around for the finale. 

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, DeepGreen said:

Agree completely, but how many Mason Fine-like quarterbacks come around to North Texas to play football?

Mason is a fantastic quarterback. The fact he started so early, is talented, and the offense he plays in has allowed him to hold basically all of our passing records and he likely will for a long time. 

With that said, I think Mason is a once in a generation story. I don’t believe we will go a generation without having a QB that will match his talent/on field impact. 

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

57 minutes ago, Mean Green Matt said:

Mason is a fantastic quarterback. The fact he started so early, is talented, and the offense he plays in has allowed him to hold basically all of our passing records and he likely will for a long time. 

With that said, I think Mason is a once in a generation story. I don’t believe we will go a generation without having a QB that will match his talent/on field impact. 

I hope you’re right. But history says otherwise.

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.




×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. Please review our full Privacy Policy before using our site.