On Metroplex Monday, we will break down the past games from the DFW college football teams and look forward to the following week games and opponents. You can check out my wrap up report at Pegasus News here.
UNT
The Mean Green dropped its game to Tulsa. I didn’t really see that as a suprise. I expected Tulsa to put up big numbers against UNT, and they did.
A few observations. Freshmen Lance Dunbar and Riley Dodge gave the offense a bit of a spark. Dunbar was quick and agile and led all UNT rushers with 72 yards on 10 carries. He did muff an kick return, but those are things that he will get better at.
Dodge had 8 yards per touch playing as a slot receiver. Look for these two to get more playing time. On an end around play called for Dodge, QB Giovanni Vizza got out in front and made a decent block. It didn’t look like he was threatened that Dodge was playing. That is a good sign. The presence of Dodge and Dunbar should make things easier for Vizza.
Finally, the defense held Tulsa to 135 yards rushing. That may not seem very good, but put in context, it is a very hopeful sign. Tulsa got that 135 yards on 35 rushing attempts. That is an average of below 4 yards per rush. The first thing a defense needs to do to get better is stop the run. UNT seems to be getting better. Next up for the Mean Green, LSU. We have to keep up with Hurricane Ike to see if and where the game will be played.
SMU
SMU got its first win for June Jones. They beat Texas State. The Mustangs’ offense seem to be rolling, but the defense still has issues. That’s bad news because the Ponies play at Texas Tech next week. They will have to win a shootout to have a chance. And, I would take Graham Harrell over Bo Levi Mitchell at this point.
Nevertheless, the Tech defense should provide a good test for Jones’ Run and Shoot. I think the match-up is intriguing between Jones and Leach who has all but perfected the Air Raid offense. These two teams may run a total of 200 plays. There is a possibility that they mght combine for 1000 yards total offense. I think it will be raining footballs in Lubbock.
TCU
The Frogs did what they were supposed to do. They routed an out-manned team in Stephen F. Austin. Any chance that TCU would be witout focus was erased when the Lumberjack coach gave them locker room material. Ryan Christian had the most rushing yards, and Joseph Turner had three touchdowns in the first half. Turner is looking like he might be almost back to full strength which is good news in the absence of Aaron Brown.
A whole lot of guys got to play. The Frogs host Stanford on Saturday who will be looking for a little revenge after they lost to TCU last year–one week after they beat USC. Stanford better play better than they did against Arizona State Saturday. I am sure that Amon G. Carter Stadium will be sold out for this game.
