Mean Green

Steve Hammond sent me an e-mail today inquiring about the whereabouts of former North Texas quarterback Scott Hall. I talked to Scott a few days ago for our on-going series about Fouts Field's history and the possibility of the school replacing the stadium. By the way, the last part of the series will be in tomorrow's paper.

While I was at it, I asked Scott what he was up to these days. Scott is -- get this -- a lumber trader. He helps broker deals for a company in South Texas. Scott said he thought about getting into the coaching profession, but thought better of it after his career started to take off.

When I talked to Scott, he had just gotten back from his honeymoon. He mentioned that he planed to have kids someday and that might be his path back into football. Maybe UNT will have another quarterback on the way someday.

It is interesting that Hall's name came up on the day UNT announced its latest Hall of Fame class. Scott should be a shoe-in for a spot in the Hall soon after he becomes eligible.

The wave of publicity from the hiring of Todd Dodge at North Texas is about to reach a new level. UNT athletic department officials said Friday that both Sports Illustrated and ESPN The Magazine were on campus this week working on UNT stories.

ESPN The Magazine featured a story about UNT's back-to-back national rushing champions Jamario Thomas and Patrick Cobbs a few years ago.

The media attention should help UNT carry its momentum into the season this fall and help with recruiting. Having your name in the headlines never hurts.

The Sun Belt Conference just released its preseason all-conference team and coaches poll at the league's annual media days.

UNT is picked to finish seventh out of eight teams in the league in the poll that is voted on by conference's head coaches. Troy was picked to win the title and received five out of the eight first-place votes. Arkansas State, Louisiana-Monroe and Florida Atlantic also received first-place votes.

UNT had four players named to the all-conference team that is voted on by the league's coaches and select media members. Linebacker Maurice Holman, defensive lineman Jeremiah Chapman and defensive back Aaron Weathers were all named to the team. The Mean Green's other selection was punter Truman Spencer.

Troy quarterback Omar Haugabook and Arkansas State defensive back Tyrell Johnson were named the Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, respectively.

The following is the poll and the all-conference team.

Preseason Sun Belt poll
The following is the Preseason Sun Belt Conference Poll as voted on by the league’s eight head coaches. First place votes are in parenthesis.
1. Troy (5) 59
2. Middle Tennessee 44
3. Arkansas State (1) 43
T4. Louisiana-Lafayette 37
T4. Louisiana-Monroe (1) 37
6. Florida Atlantic (1) 36
7. North Texas 22
8. Florida Internationa 10

Preseason All-Sun Belt team
The following is the Preseason All-Sun Belt Conference as voted on by the league’s head coaches and selected media members.
Offense
QB: Omar Haugabook, Troy
RB: Tyrell Fenroy, Louisiana-Lafayette; Calvin Dawson, Louisiana-Monroe
WR: LaGregory Sapp, Louisiana-Monroe; Gary Banks, Troy
TE: Zeek Zacharie, Louisiana-Monroe
OL: Matt Mandich, Arkansas State; Jesse Newman, Louisiana-Lafayette; Kyle Cunningham, Louisiana-Monroe; Adam Hill, Louisiana-Monroe; Franklin Dunbar, Middle Tennessee
Defense
DL: Josh Pinnick, Florida Atlantic; Tavares Jones, Middle Tennessee; Erik Walden, Middle Tennessee; Jeremiah Chapman, North Texas
LB: Koby McKinnon, Arkansas State; Cergile Sincere, Florida Atlantic; Maurice Holman, North Texas
DB: Tyrell Johnson, Arkansas State; Damon Nickson, Middle Tennessee; Aaron Weathers, North Texas; Leodis McKelvin, Troy
Special teams
P: Truman Spencer, North Texas
PK: Drew Edmiston, Louisiana-Lafayette
RS: Damon Nickson, Middle Tennessee
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Omar Haugabook, Troy
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Tyrell Johnson, Arkansas State

Sun Belt Conference Media Days begin tomorrow in New Orleans, and once again the Denton Record-Chronicle will be there to provide updates.

The Preseason Poll and All-Conference team will be released tomorrow with a coaches' press conference to follow on Tuesday.

It will be interesting to see just how low UNT is picked to finish in the poll this season. Most projections have UNT finishing near the bottom of the league. This poll likely won't be any different.

There will be a preview of Media Days in tomorrow's edition of the Denton Record-Chronicle, along with a photo of the Mean Green's new helmet. Photos of the helmet have been on the Internet for a few days now, but this is the first chance we have had to run one in the paper.

Caddo Mills wide receiver Desmond Brigham (6-2, 180) said Wednesday that he has orally committed to North Texas.
Brigham caught 42 passes for 742 yards and seven touchdowns last season when he was named first-team All-District 12-2A. Brigham said he chose UNT over offers from Arkansas, Iowa State, Missouri and Louisiana-Monroe.
Oral commitments are non-binding. The first day a recruit in the class of 2008 can sign a national letter of intent is Feb. 6.

North Texas women's basketball recruit Brittani Bailey had a solid night at the Texas Girls Coaches Association All-Star Game on Thursday.

The 6-3 post from Alvin scored eight points for the South in its 81-74 loss to the North in a game that featured the top Class 4A and 5A players in the state. Bailey was the fourth-leading scorer for the South team.

Bailey averaged 16.2 points and 10.8 rebounds a game for Alvin last season and was named the Defensive MVP of District 24-5A. She was a first-team all-region selection as a senior, when she was also one of 20 players named to the Greater Houston All-Stars.

Bailey committed to UNT early and will be the only freshman on the Mean Green's roster next season.

For the second time in two years, the New Orleans men's basketball team has introduced a new head coach. Last year it was Buzz Williams. Monday, it was New Orleans native Joe Pasternack.

Williams fared well considering all he had to deal with in his one season at hurricane-ravaged UNO, finishing 14-17. The former Texas A&M assistant appeared to have a perfect situation heading into his second year with several of his key players coming back, including shooting guard Bo McCalebb, arguably the best player in the Sun Belt.

Williams departed to become an assistant at Marquette and left Pasternack what amounts to a ready-made team. McCalebb averaged 25.0 points a game last season. James Parlow, a guard who averaged 12.9 points a game, is back along with fellow guard Shaun Reynolds, who averaged 10.8 points a game.

Pasternack was an assistant coach at California. He was a finalist for the UNO job when the school hired Williams last season.

In an interesting note, Pasternack was a student manager for current Texas Tech head coach Bob Knight while he was at Indiana from 1995-99.

The following is a link to the story on the UNO Web site:

http://www.unoprivateers.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=16700&ATCLID=1079054

A coach with a background at North Texas returned to the Super Pit on Monday to take in the championship games of the NBA Division at the Great American Shootout.

Kobie Baker spent the 2005 and 2006 seasons as an assistant on head coach Johnny Jones' staff at UNT before leaving the program. He landed at Alabama, where he was the director of operations until being promoted to assistant coach in May.

Baker was in town recruiting for the Tide along with a few other coaches who UNT fans would recognize. Louisiana-Monroe coach Orlando Early and former UNT assistant Chuck Taylor were also on hand. Taylor left the UNT staff after last season to join the staff at South Alabama, one of the Mean Green's rivals in the Sun Belt Conference.

Joe Hubbard checked in with a question today about the North Texas football team's voluntary offseason workouts. In short, he wanted to know if there were any going on.

The answer is, yes. UNT's players are actively getting ready for the season. Just today, incoming freshman quarterback Giovanni Vizza was on the practice fields outside the Mean Green Athletic Center throwing passes to a group of five or six receivers. Vizza is one of several incoming freshmen who are already on campus.

UNT's coaches are not allowed much in the way of contact with players in terms of offseason workouts, but there is little doubt the players are taking matters into their own hands.

On most days when one walks by the athletic department there are players filtering in and out of the weight room and on and off of the practice fields. Several remained in Denton this summer to get ready for their first season playing for Todd Dodge.

We interrupt this seemingly endless string of recruiting news for the North Texas football team with some good news for another UNT team -- Tina Slinker's women's basketball squad.

Ryan Green, a 6-2 forward from Crowley, said Tuesday that she has orally committed to play for the Mean Green.

Green was a member of the All-Region I-4A team last season as a junior and helped lead Crowley to the playoffs. I couldn't find a site that listed Crowley's season statistics, but Green said she averaged about 19 points and eight rebounds a game.

Green was offered scholarships by Southern Miss, Oral Roberts and Stephen F. Austin in addition to UNT. The Mean Green has three post players who will graduate after next season, so Green appears as if she will fill a void for the Mean Green.

Several experts in the world of recruiting said Monday that North Texas picked up momentum with the news that Riley Dodge has committed to play for the Mean Green.

If Riley sticks with his commitment to play for his father Todd Dodge at UNT -- and there is no reason to think that he won't -- he will be the highest rated player the Mean Green has signed since Jamario Thomas in 2004.

I covered UNT's recruiting effort that season and there was little doubt the Mean Green landed more and better recruits after Jamario committed. The experts expect Riley to have the same effect for the Mean Green in the next few months. UNT has eight recruits in the fold for 2008 and could pick up other top players who would like to play with Riley under his father at UNT.

There will be a story in tomorrow's edition of the Denton Record-Chronicle and The Dallas Morning News with quotes from Bobby Burton and John Talman of Rivals.com on the Riley factor.

While I am at it, I have received several questions about the status Jacob Kaiser, an offensive lineman from Pennsylvania who committed to UNT this week. What I have been told is Kaiser cannot sign a national letter of intent because the signing period is over. He is not bound to UNT, but has received an aid offer that will cover his school expenses.

I have yet to speak to Kaiser, but his coach confirmed Monday morning that he has committed to UNT and will play for the Mean Green this fall. In an interesting side note, he is the son of a high school coach.

It appears as if North Texas has landed another player for its 2007 recruiting class, even though the signing period is over.

Jacob Kaiser, a 6-7, 280-pound tackle from Greensburg (Pa.) Central Catholic, was being recruiting by several programs on the East Coast, but was still on the market long after signing day.

UNT appears to have stepped in and landed Kaiser, who could provide depth at tackle and maybe push for playing time this fall. The status of UNT's offensive line is one of the Mean Green's biggest question marks heading into the season. UNT came out of spring practice with redshirt freshman Matthew Menard at one tackle spot and sophomore Robert Peachey on the opposite side. Both Menard and Peachey are backed up by seniors.

UNT is hoping Josh Alexander will be able to return after sitting out last season with a knee injury, but his status is questionable heading into fall practice.

UNT only signed two offensive linemen in its 2007 recruiting class and one -- J.J. Johnson -- is a center. Kaiser appears to be the player UNT will pair with fellow 2007 recruit Matt Tomlinson and develop at tackle.

The following is a link to Kaiser's page on Rivals.com:

http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?pr_key=50960