I am publishing a 2009 Fall E-zine through Dfwfootball.net.  Ah yes, the Fall football season is almost here!  I hope you are excited as I am!

The E-zine will be available (with figures crossed), on Friday, August 28, 2009.  All you will have to do is go to Dfwfootball.net, and click on the link that will be front and center on the home page.  The E-zine will be published in a pdf format, so keep that in mind.

The E-zine incldes articles from our friends at SpitbloodTCU.com and GoMeanGreen.com.  So, if you get a chance, navigate over to their sites and tell them thanks!

In the future, I hope to have an article from Adam Jones of JonesTopTen.com previewing the Texas-OU game.  I am also looking for other guest writers, so if you would like to write an article at Collegefootballtopten.com about your favorite team, or anything college football related, drop me a note.

We will begin are Texas Tour next week.  I hope to have an article on Texas and Texas A&M, and we’ll see what else we can come up with.

For the preview article on TCU and UNT, check out the E-zine.

It wasn’t a good year for SMU and UNT.  The two combined for the 2 wins, the same number of losses that TCU had on its own.  SMU’s only win was against a Football Championship Subdivision team, and UNT’s

only win was against a FCS team who is transitioning to the Bowl Championship Subdivision.  Does that make UNT better?

June Jones, SMU’s coach, came in with reputation of turning around a program quickly after his one year turn around of Hawaii.  However, he endured all kinds of problems this year.  Can Jones get this program turned around?  SMU ponied up the cash, and now its time to see if June really do “cometh.”

A lot of people around Denton aren’t sure what to make of the Todd Dodge “experiement.”  However, Dodge had an unusual number of bad circumstances to happen this year.  He lost multiple players to suspension, injury or simply leaving the program.  Many of those players were receivers, a position in which numbers are important to the Dodge Spread Offense.  Dodge recruited extra receivers in his first two classes to get the numbers, and then lost several of those.  More importantly, UNT needs to recruit some good offensive and defensive linemen to begin the process of winning the trenches.  To improve his defense, I would recommend that the UNT coaching staff travel south to Fort Worth and take a defensive coaching clinic from Gary Patterson and Dick Bumpas.

What they are saying

UNT

Brett Vito–DRC

Brett Vito–DRC

Brett Vito–DRC

SMU

Bobbi Roquemore

Bobbi Roquemore

You can check out my write up at Pegasus News here.

And thus, I will start with UNT.  It has been a tough year for the Mean Green, and one win over a team stuck between Division I and I AA will not erase all of the damage.  However, it gives a much need jolt of confidence and momentum into a program that has face all kinds of adversity this year.  Ironically, it came the Saturday after it was revealed that 15 players tested positive for recreational drugs.  (Incedentally, it also came right after I wrote an article on how to turn around the Mean Green football team this year.  Maybe Coach Dodge read the article and used my advice.)

The offense got 51 points and the defense got 4 turnovers including a 97 yard INT returned for a TD by Tobe Nwigwe.  Even though the defense gave up 40 points, they had several big plays to preserve the victory.  This doesn’t mean that that UNT will rally and win the rest of their games, but a win in the remaining games gets them back to last year’s 2-10 record.  And, considering all of the problems that this team has faced this year, that doesn’t look so bad right now.

UNT 51, Western Kentucky 40

TCU

What can I say about the Frogs?  They went in to Vegas to play a tough and gritty UNLV team who has given teams fits and knocked off Arizona State in Tempe earlier this year.  I thought it might be hard-fought since TCU has the Utah game coming up.  Never mind.  The Frogs dominated the game 44-14, and right now, look like they might be the best of the non BCS schools.  I guess we’ll find out on Thursday night as they travel to Salt Lake City, UT to play the Running Utes.  Utah, however, struggled on the road against New Mexico to win 13-10.  Find a way to watch that game Thursday night.  TCU is on a roll.

SMU was idle.

What are they saying?

UNT

Brett Vito–Denton Record-Chronicle

Brett Vito–Denton Record-Chronicle

TCU

Josh Harvey–Big Purple Nation

Mercedes Mayer–FWST

Mercedes Mayer–FWST

Once again, TCU won and UNT and SMU did not.  You can read my write ups at Pegasus News here and here.

TCU

TCU played a Thursday night game against BYU on national TV (sort of, it was on Versus) and really drummed eighth/ninth ranked BYU 32-7.  TCU had not done so well on Thursday nights lately, but this time, they got the job done and looked good doing it.  They showed the nation that they have a very good defense.  For some people, the BYU/TCU game was more compelling than the Florida State/NC State game on ESPN.  Kudos to the guys from the Northeast (or the “mouse ears” as Randy Galloway calls them) for picking the best game ahead of time.  I suppose they thought this was the year that Florida State would be good again.  Of course, those are teams from the ACC, a BCS conference.  At least that game was closer.  TCU gets a couple extra days to rest, and then they get a hapless Wyoming team at Amon G. Carter Stadium.

SMU

SMU is playing competitively.  They have been close to getting wins the last three weeks including a near upset of Tulsa.  I really do believe that a team has to be able to run the ball and stop the run to be a championship level team.  There defense doesn’t seem to be getting the job done.  They can’t hold the leads that their offense gets for them, and the Pony offense is still too young to complete the come-from-behind victory.  By young, I mean young in the system and at QB.  They have some mature, older players such as Emmanuel Sanders along with the emergence of Aldrick Robinson.  SMU’s offfensive line has had injury problems too.  I think that Mustang coach June Jones is about a year away from a significant turn around.  He will need to get help on both sides of the line as it seems he has been able to find guys to step in to the skill positions and make plays.

UNT

The students have approved a referendum which will allow a Athletic fee to be charged so that the Mean Green Athletic programs can experience improvement.  One of the areas of improvement needed is a new football stadium.  Fouts Field, the UNT home, is old and deteriorating.  The facility was not kept up very well, and the Mean Green stadium and its facilities are among the worst in the Sun Belt.  Just imagine that your a young man being recruited by UNT and you visit their facilities.  Every where you turn you see outdated facilties that are falling apart.  Then, you get a phone call from SMU or TCU with their nice facilities.  Is there any doubt where you would rather go play?  I have been in the TCU’s Justin Athletic Complex.  It is brand new, and it is awesome.  The first step is to get the stadium up to par and then build athletic facilities for tutoring, meetings, etc.  You can check out the concept drawing at GoMeanGreen.com.  Unfortunately, the Mean Green football could not match the referendum’s success on the football field.

What are they saying?

TCU

Matt Zemek–BigPurpleNation.com

Mercedes Mayer–FWST

Trae Thompson–FWST

Gil Lebreton–FWST

SMU

Bobbi Roquemore–DMN

PonyPride.com

UNT

Brett Vito–DRC

Brett Vito–DRC

Another week and another loss for SMU and UNT.  Could there have been improvement?  Check out my write up at PegasusNews.com.

UNT

The Mean Green’s offense finally woke up after its season long slumber putting up 30 points on Louisiana-Lafayette.  Too bad the needed to score 60.  The Ragin Cajun beat UNT 59-20.  There does seem to be some hope for optimism according to GoMeanGreen.com.  UNT’s defense has some work to do, and it probably starts up front.  They are going to have to find some guys who make plays in the front four during recruiting season.  That being said, Eddrick Gilmore has been playing, but had to move inside to DT due to injuries.

SMU

The Mustangs let an upset slip away against Tulsa for the second year in a row, but the fact that they had a lead in the fourth quarter against one of the most explosive offenses in the country is good news for the Pony faithful.  The Mustangs seem to be close to getting their first Conference USA win.  They have been competitive the past couple of weeks.

TCU

In case you haven’t heard, there is a big game in Fort Worth on Thursday night.  Ninth ranked BYU comes to town to play TCU.  Both teams are undefeated in conference with TCU’s loss to Oklahoma as the only loss among the two.  Both team were sloppy in their wins last week.  TCU needs to find its offense.  If Andy Dalton can come back and play well, and the running game is clicking, then this game will be a great one.  However, as Spitbloodtcu rightly pointed out, there are some problems with the offense.

What are they saying?

UNT

Brett Vito–DMN/DRC

Brett Vito–DMN/DRC

SMU

Bobbi Roquemore–DMN

Bobbi Roquemore–DMN

TCU

Josh Harvey–Big Purple Nation

Michael Hicks–DMN

Mercedes Mayer–FWST

Mercedes Mayer–FWST

If you really need a wrap up of what happened this weekend, you can check out mine a Pegasus News.

TCU

The first question I want to ask is, “Has Andy Dalton become a dual threat QB?”  Dalton ran for 91 yards and passed 145 against Stanford.  Apparently, TCU used a lot of Zone Read plays out of the Shotgun to move the ball against Stanford and keep the clock moving.   TCU’s defense is awesome.  There is no other way to say it.  They held Stanford to 192 total yards on offense.  Compare that to LSU holding UNT to 210 yards of total offense.

UNT

The Mean Green had the biggest challenge of the DFW 3, and you just knew it was going to be a long night.  They did manage to get a field goal, and one positive is the Giovanni Vizza still continues to protect the football.  That improvement will prove to be helpful when they actually play teams they have a chance against.

SMU

The Mustang’s offense wasn’t quite ready to take on a Big 12 defense.  Bo Levi Mitchell had 5 INT’s, and backup Logan Turner came in to help stop the bleeding.  Later in the fourth quarter, Turner hit Aldrick Robinson for a TD to help the Ponies avoid the shutout.  They have to go back to the drawing board because I think TCU’s defense is better than Tech’s (see above).

What are they saying?

Spit Blood TCU

Go Mean Green

Brett Vito

Brett Vito: Bayou Blues

Brandon George

Mercedes Mayer

Bobbi Roquemore

Gil Lebreton

Trae Thompson

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.

Heading into the last week of preseason practices before the college football season starts, the three DFW teams are started to take shape.  Some questions have been answered and surprises have been revealed.

All three of the DFW teams, the TCU Horned Frogs, the SMU Mustangs and the UNT Mean Green have announced their starters for the first game.  In Fort Worth, coaches still insist that it is Andy Dalton at 1A and Marcus Jackson at 1B.  Gary Patterson has always done a good job of having two QB’s ready, but this year he has really outdone himself.  While Dalton will be the starter, Jackson has and will receive playing time.  The Frogs have two QB’s ready to play with extensive playing experience.

In Denton, UNT announced, just days after its first practice, that Sophmore Giovanni Vizza will start at QB in the first game against Kansas State.  This might come as a bit of a surprise to some who were penciling in Coach Dodge’s son and Freshman Riley Dodge as the heir apparent.  With a second QB an upperclassmen, who has the single game passing record for UNT, Dodge might be ordering a redshirt for his son.

Finally, at SMU, where the stars come to watch practice, Head Coach June Jones and his staff announced earlier this week that Freshman Bo Levi Mitchell from Katy (TX) will start in the opener, a big show in Houston against Rice.  This is also somewhat of a surprise as the record holding QB Justin Willis returns for his Junior year.  However, many know that Willis was suspended in the spring missing Spring Practice.  The SMU staff sited accuracy and knowledge as the main reason,  Furthermore, second team QB is Freshman Braden Smith of Rockwall.  The future begins now in Dallas.  Willis, however, is hanging around.

This week marks the beginning of the 2008 season for TCU, SMU and UNT.  Earlier today, TCU Head Coach Gary Patterson met with the media as a part of the Horned Frogs’ Reporting Day.  Among the things that Patterson talked about was the last minute addition of Atoine Hicks and the Texas heat.  The high temperature at DFW Airport on Sunday, August 3rd, was 107 degrees.  The Frogs will have their first practice on Monday, August 4th at 4 PM.  TCU will also host their annual “Meet the Frogs” on August 23rd beginning with Inflatable Games at 10 AM.  There will be an opportunity to meet players, coaches, cheerleaders and showgirls along with free posters and player trading cards.  To find out more about “Meet the Frogs,” visit GoFrogs.com.

In Denton, TX, UNT players report for the first practice of 2008 also on Monday, August 4th.  One of the interesting things in which the Mean Green website is doing is blogging the two-a-days workouts.  If you really want to know what is going at each practice during the next couple of weeks, you can log on to MeanGreenSports.com and follow the live blog.  That’s right, I said live.  Blogging begins at 7 PM Monday.  Check it out.

The Mustangs begin practice on Monday too.  SMU will begin practices for the 2008 season beginning at 9:30 AM.  Players report on Sunday, and the June Jones era will begin.  Fans are welcome to watch practices, but they are asked to watch from behind the “fence for practices on Pettus and from the stands for workouts held in the stadium.”  Jones will usher in a new era of “Pony Express”–by air.

Collegefootballtopten.com will be hosting a Texas Tour.  The Tour will begin at some point in the next couple of weeks as details are still being worked out.  The idea of the Texas Tour is have guest bloggers to preview one of the Division I Football Bowl Championship teams in Texas.  We have already previewed TCU, SMU, and UNT, so we are looking to have Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Baylor, Rice, Houston and UTEP previewed.  If you would like to preview one of these teams, drop me an email.  Just a note, I already have bloggers for Baylor and Texas Tech.

inbox@collegefootballtopten.com