DRC: In this week's UNT newsletter we examine the Mean Green's 7-game C-USA winning streak. What's working for UNT?

[Brett Vito]

 

[Old Denton]

I hear we run the ball well.  Hope I'm not stealing your thunder, Brett.

[NT80]

I think Vito is secretly Seth's agent.... or at least his biggest Cheerleader.

[emmitt01]

In tomorrow’s column, we will discuss how I’ve beaten my 8-year-old son in twenty straight arm wrestling matches.  What is the secret???

[untjim1995]

23 minutes ago, emmitt01 said:

In tomorrow’s column, we will discuss how I’ve beaten my 8-year-old son in twenty straight arm wrestling matches.  What is the secret???

It’s amazing how much changes and yet stays the same…SBC run vs CUSA streak 

[UNT 90 Grad]

You can't have a thread title like this without this video clip.

 

[TheColonyEagle]

3 wins: 2 FBS teams with losing records  and an FCS team 

3 losses: 2 FBS teams with winning records and SMU 

He’s only been doing this for 6+ years…

Maybe it’s a pattern?

 

[NorthTexasWeLove]

[MeanGreenTexan]

I think we've beaten the heck out of the UTSA fluke win.  A win that will most-likely see revenge in the air-conditioned confines of the Alamodome in a few weeks.

Take that flukey win out of the win streak, and the teams we've beaten have records of 23-55 against FBS competition (2 of those wins VS UTEP):
Rice: 5-10
SoMiss: 3-12
UTEP: 9-9
FIU: 1-14
  (UTSA: 14-4)
FAU: 5-10

NT's record against FBS competition outside of those 7 games over the past 2 seasons?
0-10!!!!

Let's try to keep some perspective.

[Udomann]

Examining what's working for UNT:

A weak@ss conference is what's working

 

[TheColonyEagle]

3 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

I think we've beaten the heck out of the UTSA fluke win.  A win that will most-likely see revenge in the air-conditioned confines of the Alamodome in a few weeks.

Take that flukey win out of the win streak, and the teams we've beaten have records of 23-55 against FBS competition (2 of those wins VS UTEP):
Rice: 5-10
SoMiss: 3-12
UTEP: 9-9
FIU: 1-14
  (UTSA: 14-4)
FAU: 5-10

NT's record against FBS competition outside of those 7 games over the past 2 seasons?
0-10!!!!
 

[UNTLifer]

3 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

I think we've beaten the heck out of the UTSA fluke win.  A win that will most-likely see revenge in the air-conditioned confines of the Alamodome in a few weeks.

Take that flukey win out of the win streak, and the teams we've beaten have records of 23-55 against FBS competition (2 of those wins VS UTEP):
Rice: 5-10
SoMiss: 3-12
UTEP: 9-9
FIU: 1-14
  (UTSA: 14-4)
FAU: 5-10

NT's record against FBS competition outside of those 7 games over the past 2 seasons?
0-10!!!!

Let's try to keep some perspective.

Agree with all except calling the win on utsa flukey.  What was flukey about it?

[MeanGreenTexan]

1 minute ago, UNTLifer said:

Agree with all except calling the win on utsa flukey.  What was flukey about it?

Really?!?  
Were you there, or did you watch the game?
They LITERALLY could not hold onto the ball between the cold and rain.   Frank Harris put the ball on the turf no less than 4 times (he fumbled twice in 1 play) in the first half before he was pulled at halftime.   
Our ground game had already been established and we played in the rain at FIU the week before.   We were ready.   If that game was played in the Alamodome or in better conditions, UTSA continues rolling.    
If NT was truly better than an undefeated, conference champion, #19-ranked team in the nation... we wouldn't have been embarrassed in a home bowl game 2 weeks later.
Fluke.

[Glory to the Green]

10 minutes ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

Really?!?  
Were you there, or did you watch the game?
They LITERALLY could not hold onto the ball between the cold and rain.   Frank Harris put the ball on the turf no less than 4 times (he fumbled twice in 1 play) in the first half before he was pulled at halftime.   
Our ground game had already been established and we played in the rain at FIU the week before.   We were ready.   If that game was played in the Alamodome or in better conditions, UTSA continues rolling.    
If NT was truly better than an undefeated, conference champion, #19-ranked team in the nation... we wouldn't have been embarrassed in a home bowl game 2 weeks later.
Fluke.

I get what you’re saying, but UTSA’s weaknesses were exposed. Our strengths were emphasized. It wasn’t a fluke, playing in the elements is part of the game.  We had to play on the same field.  Had we played in the Alamodome, we probably would have not had the same result.  That’s just part of the game.  

[MeanGreenTexan]

2 hours ago, Glory to the Green said:

I get what you’re saying, but UTSA’s weaknesses were exposed. Our strengths were emphasized. It wasn’t a fluke, playing in the elements is part of the game.  We had to play on the same field.  Had we played in the Alamodome, we probably would have not had the same result.  That’s just part of the game.  

Yeah.   By the weather.   Not by NT.   
If the game had been played a day earlier or a day later, it's a different result.  FOR SURE.   But, you're right.  Providence aligned and NT was the better, more prepared team that day.  It's what made it a "fluke".  A stroke of luck.  Whatever you want to call it.  It may, or may not have been the first time Frank Harris had ever seen rain.

[UNTLifer]

36 minutes ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

Yeah.   By the weather.   Not by NT.   
If the game had been played a day earlier or a day later, it's a different result.  FOR SURE.   But, you're right.  Providence aligned and NT was the better, more prepared team that day.  It's what made it a "fluke".  A stroke of luck.  Whatever you want to call it.  It may, or may not have been the first time Frank Harris had ever seen rain.

Yes, I watched the game and I don't call it a fluke.  Both teams had to play in the elements.  Was the 1967 win by Green Bay over Dallas in the NFL Championship Game a fluke because it was played on ice?  The elements are part of the game.

Edited October 11, 2022 by UNTLifer

[Glory to the Green]

37 minutes ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

It may, or may not have been the first time Frank Harris had ever seen rain.

[MeanGreenTexan]

6 minutes ago, UNTLifer said:

Yes, I watched the game and I don't call it a fluke.  Both teams had to play in the elements.  Was the 1967 win by Green Bay over Dallas in the NFL Championship Game a fluke because it was played on ice?  The elements are part of the game.

We're comparing Apples to Rotted Oranges here.   The Ice Bowl pitted to divisional champions against each other.  Both teams were 9-win teams and the Packers were FAVORED in the game by 6.5.

Getting back to a genuine effort here, because I really thought the UTSA win was understood by all NT fans... I'm trying to figure out why a 45-23 beatdown of an undefeated, ranked, C-USA champion team would not translate in a game against a 6-6, barely-bowl-eligible Miami, OH game less than a month later?
   
If what you're saying is true, and NT was indeed the superior team to UTSA, and would have beaten them regardless because we had "turned the corner" as many here were saying at the time, wouldn't UNT have beat Miami, OH in Frisco pretty one-sidedly?

[emmitt01]

10 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

Really?!?  
Were you there, or did you watch the game?
They LITERALLY could not hold onto the ball between the cold and rain.   Frank Harris put the ball on the turf no less than 4 times (he fumbled twice in 1 play) in the first half before he was pulled at halftime.   
Our ground game had already been established and we played in the rain at FIU the week before.   We were ready.   If that game was played in the Alamodome or in better conditions, UTSA continues rolling.    
If NT was truly better than an undefeated, conference champion, #19-ranked team in the nation... we wouldn't have been embarrassed in a home bowl game 2 weeks later.
Fluke.

I was there.  It didn’t get less cold, nor did it stop raining, when we had the ball.  And neither cold or rain makes a defense get pushed around while you run up 340 yards on the ground. 
 

Did it ever occur to you that the angle you’re missing isn’t that we were some juggernaut, but rather that UTSA was (and is) highly overrated and unworthy of that #19 ranking?  They should have lost the game just prior to their trip to Denton against UAB and beat Western by a whopping 6 points last year. 

Edited October 12, 2022 by emmitt01

[UNTLifer]

7 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

If what you're saying is true, and NT was indeed the superior team to UTSA, and would have beaten them regardless because we had "turned the corner" as many here were saying at the time, wouldn't UNT have beat Miami, OH in Frisco pretty one-sidedly?

Talk about apples to rotted tomatoes. 

[GMG_Dallas]

16 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

We're comparing Apples to Rotted Oranges here.   The Ice Bowl pitted to divisional champions against each other.  Both teams were 9-win teams and the Packers were FAVORED in the game by 6.5.

Getting back to a genuine effort here, because I really thought the UTSA win was understood by all NT fans... I'm trying to figure out why a 45-23 beatdown of an undefeated, ranked, C-USA champion team would not translate in a game against a 6-6, barely-bowl-eligible Miami, OH game less than a month later?
   
If what you're saying is true, and NT was indeed the superior team to UTSA, and would have beaten them regardless because we had "turned the corner" as many here were saying at the time, wouldn't UNT have beat Miami, OH in Frisco pretty one-sidedly?

You're wasting your time with all of this. I tried in another thread. Taking away the UTSA win is taking away one of the good wins against a good team in a decade. It's a memory some want to remain as positive.  One of the common responses is that the weather was for both teams which completely ignores the fact that passing games are limited in torrential downpours and limiting Harris vs limiting Aune are two completely different impacts on an offense. They're also ignoring that Harris was taken out at halftime, presumably to prepare for the conference championship game which they won while we were preparing to get clobbered in another bowl game. Weather being part of the game doesn't make a win any less fluky. Both can be true.

Edited October 12, 2022 by GMG_Dallas

[meangreenbob]

18 hours ago, Udomann said:

Examining what's working for UNT:

A weak@ss conference is what's working

 

And yet we’ve never won the Conference Title. That says it all. 
Don’t be deceived or distracted into accepting mediocrity. 

[MeanGreenTexan]

9 hours ago, emmitt01 said:

I was there.  It didn’t get less cold, nor did it stop raining, when we had the ball.  And neither cold or rain makes a defense get pushed around while you run up 340 yards on the ground. 
 

Did it ever occur to you that the angle you’re missing isn’t that we were some juggernaut, but rather that UTSA was (and is) highly overrated and unworthy of that #19 ranking?  They should have lost the game just prior to their trip to Denton against UAB and beat Western by a whopping 6 points last year. 

Good grief people (not just you Emmitt)...   I understand that both teams play in the elements.   
I understand NT was much-better prepared for those elements, seeing as we had a ground game that worked well (more difficult to throw in cold rain) & had played in rain the week before (already used to slippery conditions).   UTSA plays in an air-conditioned dome.   Yada, yada, yada...

The "fluke" part is that the elements showed up in NT's favor that day.
If you're saying NT would have beat UTSA last year without those elements (say, sunny & 55 degrees, like it was the day before the game) when there were 6 fumbles recorded for UTSA, then by all means, believe that.  I don't.   
If UTSA was exposed by NT as a fraud, as you're saying, they wouldn't have won the Conference championship the following weekend.   And you're citing tough wins against really good teams as evidence (To provide frame of reference, UNT lost to that same UAB team 40-6) that they were overrated?

Look, I know a lot of people loathe UTSA.   Whatever.   But you're deluding yourselves if you believe UNT was the better team in 2021.   Thankfully, UNT was the better team on November 27th, in Denton, TX.  That's it.  It was fun.  My butt was cold & wet, as was my son's.  High-fives aplenty.  Laughing and finger-pointing at Frank Harris' butterfingers...   It was a good day.   But we can't lie to ourselves.   I didn't that day.   I'm still not today.

The proof of my argument is in the pudding: the smoke & mirrors (& luck) went away when Miami, OH came to town.  

[MeanGreenTexan]

9 hours ago, UNTLifer said:

Talk about apples to rotted tomatoes. 

Beating around the bush, as usual.
Help me understand this part:
In 2021, UNT football was superior to UTSA football.    Yet we finished with a losing record while they won the C-USA championship.

[NT93]

fluke

[flo͞ok]

NOUN

1. an unlikely chance occurrence, especially a surprising piece of luck

    

    

   The win over UTSA is the textbook definition of a fluke, especially considering the way we dismantled them.

    

   This discussion got me thinking:  What's the difference between a fluke win and an upset?

    

   I'm thinking maybe an upset would have been if we had beaten them by 3 in "nice" weather.  The way we beat them and the weather being to our advantage made it a fluke.

Edited October 12, 2022 by NT93