Random Week 2 UNT Quick Hits

[Harry]

It's interesting to see the comments on the board after a big opener win against Idaho. The emotions range from elation to uncomfortable to even paranoia. You can tell we're not used to winning games like this. It's like this great suit that we never wore before that everyone loves but we aren't used to wearing.

It was interesting on Mac's radio show, Jub asked him about the improvement at defensive end hoping for players to be named and he wouldn't or couldn't give a specific player response. He sort of made some general statements and reiterated that John Skladany was doing a great job and there had been stability etc... Mentioned that Sarge was still out and might play against Ohio. I thought our defensive ends looked super at times in the game especially Aaron Bellazin, Jarrian Roberts (2 sacks) and Chad Polk. Is it just me or does it sometimes seem like Sarge misses more games than he plays in?

He made a clear point to say that kickoffs were still Zach Olen but did not say that about PAT's and short field goals. It appears they may platoon Olen with Paul and that worries me a bit..

On another special teams note, really didn't get to see Macek much at punter and again his performance could be HUGE against Ohio... Ohio has a short week and probably will be pretty banged up after locking horns with a very physical Lousiville team. Mean Rob pointed out the line was -8 but I could see that get below 5 by gametime...the Ohio game was one most of us penciled in as a loss so I see this as more a big game for Mac AND the program. Mac's teams just don't usually win on the road and it's a trend he/we really needs to change.

Gotta give my due to UTSA on winning a road game against a Mountain West team. think of the exuberance we might have had beating a team like New Mexico on the road in say 1995 or 1996... That game against them @Apogee is building momentum. Anytime you can beat a team on the road it's big.

Hat's off to our good fans who weathered some major heat all day. Tony's tailgate was terrific as usual and we did the best we could given the heat. A good time was had by all. Thanks to everyone who came by and said hello.

Zach Orr -- the only difference that I see from last year is that he is bigger and stronger and instead of just making tackles he is truly punishing an opponent every single time. He is a joy to watch and his family will be so missed at our tailgate next season...what a joy they are to be with..just like part of our family.

I congratulate Derek for an outstanding game. He really threaded the needle all day long and seemed to be a step quicker. He deserves a lot of kudos for giving us a MUCH needed win to start a season. However, I still remain amazed at how comfortable and good Dajon Williams looked. I mean like REALLY good. I don't think any of us realized what a tremendous catch he was for this program. How much fun it will be to watch him for the next four years.

The wide receivers played like gamers and look like a completely different unit. If I were to give a coaching game ball it would go to Mike Grant. He has those guys fighting and scrapping like we haven't seen in a long long time.

Mac praised guard Cyril Lemon for an outstanding and dominating game. I would agree 100% but also feel the RS Freshman center Kaydon Kirby really played well for it being just his first game.

James Jones elevates the entire secondary. This kid is electric and has great speed. They won't be able to keep him off the field for long.

I saw some nice things from Austin Orr at defensive tackle for him being a sophomore. He's gotten a lot bigger (thanks Coach Wentrich). I also wanted to single out linebacker Will Wright. He sort of gets overshadowed by Orr and some of the others at his position but let me just say this kid played magnificently against Idaho. His speed really caused problems for them both in the run and the pass.

There were still some tell tale signs of that team that disappointed us last season. Not being able to grind out a short 4th down against a weary Idaho defense sort of stuck with me driving home and still today. I hated the slow start, I mean that game started out like Houston last year...had we let that happen against Ohio we would perhaps never recover. Not trying to rain on the parade but I think these are valid concerns. How can you come out as fired up as we were and let a team like Idaho march it down your throat for a touchdown?

Note to Brock Berglund - don't get too down about how things have played out thus far. We all know that crazy things can happen in a season. McNulty didn't do himself any favors with that INT and it is absolutely possible that you will see the field this season so you can prove yourself. Keep your chin up and keep working hard. I see you working hard with your teammates on the sidelines and sending in signals for the coaches. Keep it up.

Last hot sports opinion... to echo a sentiment that Gray Eagle pointed out so accurately -- we need to hope and pray that Brelan can stay healthy. If he does we could be a very dangerous team in C-USA. The problem is there is no dimmer on his light switch. He plays 150 percent every single time he steps on the field. He is just one of those amazing athletes whose determination matched with his athleticism is so exceptional.

Finally how about some kudos to RV and the administration for coughing up the bucks to get us this game. Many of us spent all summer worrying about the ramifications of laying an egg in this game and the first five minutes were a nightmare. Still, it turned out great and turned out to be money that was very well spent. No Idaho may not be that good but I thought their QB was pretty good and they had some pretty big physical players.

It was a great win, a much needed win for this program at this particular time. Let's breathe in the air of victory and optimism even if only for a couple days. It is deserved.

GMG

[UNTLifer]

Agree with everything and second tge comments on Will Wright. So athletic and just blew up 2 screens.

[PlummMeanGreen]

We've started out this season 1 and 0 instead of 0 and 1 and how many years has it been for that? I've run out of fingers and toes to count em'. Hopefully, we will have more season openers at Apogee.

Obviously more team speed on this team, especially on the offense. When we played Rice U at Fouts a few years ago, it shocked me (but not that much) how so much more team speed they had than UNT. It was the main difference in their winning that particular game IMHO. Who said you cannot coach speed?

I think Coach Mac's experience as an NCAA FBS level HFC in the Big 12 would have him recruiting more speed even when some of the recruits don't have as many Rivals stars as alums would want them to have. Yet whose to say that many of our recruits can't develop some of those stars while their official residence is inside a Mean Green Village dorm and on the DD practice fields?

QB's? You just can't have enough of them at the NCAA FBS level IMO and is a reason Brock Berglund need not get discouraged (if he is discouraged, that is).

DT/#7 has a bevy of receivers to throw to this year who can (1) catch the ball and then (2) do something with it after they catch it.

Jub commented on the MGRN post game show how he saw our offense getting off plays quicker Saturday night compared to last year and he felt DT/#7 functioned better because of that.

Year 5? I think Derek is fitting in quite nicely into his role as a 5'th year senior QB. Yes, true freshmen Dajon Williams showed he has "IT" to all of us in so short of time Saturday night, too.

Edited September 3, 2013 by PlummMeanGreen

[UNT90]

And we came out injury free. Underrated part of college football and the reason I think we have a shot against the Bobcats.

[JesseMartin]

Wasn't it UT that snubbed Dajon? I'm sure you'll all think I sound like a lunatic for saying this (if you didn't already), but I'd love to see Dajon play and win against UT so much I'd be glad to go 1-11 in that season if the one win was against the Longhorns. I don't hate UT the way most of you do, but with our one "win" against them being taken away by what even many of their fans agree was a crap call, it's about freaking time and if they shot him down I'd love to see him be the one to do it. Kind of like how everybody turned down Jamario because of dyslexia and then when he blew up, they came calling and his only response was WINNING.

[CaliMeanGreen]

Beleive it or not, DW was not highly recruited out of HS. He had very few interest from D1 FBS schools, just a few D2 schools. Canales recruited him and definitely found a diamond in the rough.

[JesseMartin]

Regardless, I thought someone mentioned (maybe the comments on Walker's write-up?) that he wanted to go to UT and they didn't want him. The thought that he might have come on board to work his ass off and become the starter just to get a shot at them...let's just say I can identify with the whole "I'll show you just how good I can be" mentality. It may not always be healthy, but it can sure as hell be effective.

[UNT Mean Green]

Thought that Baylor got hot on DW close to signing day?

[jdennis82]

great summary of the biggest take aways I shared

Positives:

- DT's decisiveness in the pocket

- WRs determination to win with the ball in the air

- Team's emotional stability after early momentum swing

- One on one tackling

- #3

- Intentionality in forcing fumbles when tackle secured

Concerns:

- Interior lines (both offense & defense)

- Extra points

As I've mentioned elsewhere, I see a great benefit of having to respond to early momentum deficit as Ohio will come out ready to prove the UL game was a blip on their season's radar.

[Mean_Green09]

Line is now -5.5 Ohio.

I wasn't surprised by the slow start of the defense, because lets be honest that was the only thing that started slow. No I wasn't surprised because they weren't quite sure what to expect offensively from Idaho. Once they saw it, they made the adjustment and kept them out of the end zone. The offense was able to tune it up right away for a touchdown on the first possession.

[Harry]

Thought that Baylor got hot on DW close to signing day?

I heard A&M.

[LongJim]

There were still some tell tale signs of that team that disappointed us last season. Not being able to grind out a short 4th down against a weary Idaho defense sort of stuck with me driving home and still today. I hated the slow start, I mean that game started out like Houston last year...had we let that happen against Ohio we would perhaps never recover. Not trying to rain on the parade but I think these are valid concerns. How can you come out as fired up as we were and let a team like Idaho march it down your throat for a touchdown?

It was a great win, a much needed win for this program at this particular time. Let's breathe in the air of victory and optimism even if only for a couple days. It is deserved.

Your concern above is valid, and I share it. Very concerned, frankly. On a positive note however, adjustments were made and the big plays were pretty much stopped. I am concerned about defense against the run game, and though there were 4-5 sacks, I want to see what kind of pressure the defense can put on Tettleton. He is good, and to have a chance, UNT is going to have to come up with something to disrupt him.

I will take wins any way they come though.

[edcollopy]

I hope we take that pass play where the qb fakes the hand off to the right and then blindly turns and throws the wide receiver screen to the left. We ran it about 6 times and the last one (by DW) almost turned into a pick 6.

[UNT90]

Line is now -5.5 Ohio.

I wasn't surprised by the slow start of the defense, because lets be honest that was the only thing that started slow. No I wasn't surprised because they weren't quite sure what to expect offensively from Idaho. Once they saw it, they made the adjustment and kept them out of the end zone. The offense was able to tune it up right away for a touchdown on the first possession.

Perhaps you have forgotten about the slow start by special teams, who had a terribly inconsistent night overall.

So we started slowly in 2 of the 3 phases of the game. Do that against Ohio, and we may be down by 14 points before the halfway point of the 1st quarter.

[MeanMag]

Here's a quick hitter for any of you wondering. Yes, Their qb, tettleton, is mickeys son.

[drex]

A&M came in late after they found out that DW can sign autographs at a rate of 1,000 per minute.

[TIgreen01]

So, anyone know why Zed Evans didn't play? Seems like we heard a lot about him at least being a gunner on the special teams and playing some in nickel packages. Maybe I missed it, but was there a point where we played anything other than a 4-3? Or are we using Will Wright (and other quicker LBs) as another player in the secondary? For much of this game we were in control and had them needing to throw on most downs---yet I don't really ever remember us getting out of our base defense.

To me, that's pretty concerning once we meet up with some teams that can really move the ball through the air.

[KRAM1]

And we came out injury free. Underrated part of college football and the reason I think we have a shot against the Bobcats.

Call the paramedics...I think I am having a heart attack!!!

[MeanGreenTexan]

So, anyone know why Zed Evans didn't play? Seems like we heard a lot about him at least being a gunner on the special teams and playing some in nickel packages. Maybe I missed it, but was there a point where we played anything other than a 4-3? Or are we using Will Wright (and other quicker LBs) as another player in the secondary? For much of this game we were in control and had them needing to throw on most downs---yet I don't really ever remember us getting out of our base defense.

To me, that's pretty concerning once we meet up with some teams that can really move the ball through the air.

Good call. Lots of expectations from him from the way he was presented by coach Mac and staff...

[Christopher Walker]

Wasn't it UT that snubbed Dajon? I'm sure you'll all think I sound like a lunatic for saying this (if you didn't already), but I'd love to see Dajon play and win against UT so much I'd be glad to go 1-11 in that season if the one win was against the Longhorns. I don't hate UT the way most of you do, but with our one "win" against them being taken away by what even many of their fans agree was a crap call, it's about freaking time and if they shot him down I'd love to see him be the one to do it. Kind of like how everybody turned down Jamario because of dyslexia and then when he blew up, they came calling and his only response was WINNING.

It was indeed a classmate of DW's who commented on my 132+ post that Dajon was snubbed by Mack Brown & co.

Guess who else wanted to be picked up by Texas but was rejected who excelled this weekend? Jameis Winston, current leader in Quarterbacks ratings.

So let's see, that's:

RG III

Johnny Manziel

Dajon Williams

Jameis Winston

who have all been told no, you can't play for Texas by Brown.

Edited September 3, 2013 by Christopher Walker

[BillySee58]

So, anyone know why Zed Evans didn't play? Seems like we heard a lot about him at least being a gunner on the special teams and playing some in nickel packages. Maybe I missed it, but was there a point where we played anything other than a 4-3? Or are we using Will Wright (and other quicker LBs) as another player in the secondary? For much of this game we were in control and had them needing to throw on most downs---yet I don't really ever remember us getting out of our base defense.

To me, that's pretty concerning once we meet up with some teams that can really move the ball through the air.

Evans got some playing time, particularly in the second half. He's jersey #1.

[Mean Green 93-98]

It was indeed a classmate of DW's who commented on my 132+ post that Dajon was snubbed by Mack Brown & co.

Guess who else wanted to be picked up by Texas but was rejected who excelled this weekend? Jameis Winston, current leader in Quarterbacks ratings.

So let's see, that's:

RG III

Johnny Manziel

Dajon Williams

Jameis Winston

who have all been told no, you can't play for Texas by Brown.

Doesn't pretty much every HS player in Texas (with your occasion Blake Dunham-type exception) want to play for UT? But they only get to take 25 a year.

[Mean Green 93-98]

Evans got some playing time, particularly in the second half. He's jersey #1.

I sure thought I saw him out there . . . but he doesn't show up on the participation report. I'm still thinking you're right, though.

[Marty]

Yes I did see Evans out there in the 2nd half.

[eulessismore]

I sure thought I saw him out there . . . but he doesn't show up on the participation report. I'm still thinking you're right, though.

We don't need no stinking participation report. Zed is a player!