Mean Green Blog

There will be a story in tomorrow's edition of the Denton Record-Chronicle on UNT's spring game. Until then, here is a rundown of the good, the bad and the continuing concerns after spring for the Mean Green.

The good:

Heading into spring practice, there was no bigger priority than finding a way to fix the Mean Green defense, which was terrible last season. So far, so good. UNT's first-team defense progressed nicely and ended spring workouts by holding the first-team offense to 10 points in five drives and got after quarterback Giovanni Vizza all day. Defensive end Eddrick Gilmore looks like he could a playmaker.

UNT's kicking game was another big problem last season, one the Mean Green appears to have addressed with the addition of kicker Jeremy Knott.

UNT should also have a much more dangerous receiving corps. Redshirt freshman Sam Roberson looks like he could be a star for an offense that should be very productive again next season.

Giovanni Vizza got a whole lot of work in spring practice. He produced after being thrown to the wolves with very little experience as a freshman last season and should benefit from the experience.

The bad:

There never seems to be much in the way of bad news in spring practice outside of injuries. That happens when the only team you are playing is your scout team, but the Mean Green's offensive line could have had a better spring. Starting center Kelvin Drake missed all of spring with an ankle injury, starting tackle Matt Menard barely got any work in after surgery, backup Chad Rose never got on the field due to injury and backup Matt Tomlinson injured his knee and had surgery on Thursday. A lot of offensive line play is about chemistry, and UNT didn’t get a chance to develop much in that regard. UNT gave up six sacks in the spring game. Teams like Kansas State and LSU are going to throw much better pass rushers at UNT than what it faced in spring practice. The hope is a host of newcomers will help in the fall. They had better help, or UNT could be in trouble.

UNT’s cup is not exactly running over when it comes to impact defensive linemen, either. Joseph Miller is a solid Sun Belt Conference player and could threaten for all-league honors and Gilmore could be great. Outside of those two, UNT does not have much in the way of proven players. Tackles Isaac Thomas and Jonathan Stewart missed spring practice, Charlie Brown was once a wide receiver and is listed at 255 pounds and fellow backup Kail Krider checks in at 245. Marquis Sykes could be a solid defensive end, but is unproven. UNT signed a potential impact player in junior college end Alonzo Horton. The Mean Green could be in trouble if it suffers and injury or two. Losing Miller or Gilmore would be devastating.

The jury is still out:

UNT knows what it has in linebacker Craig Robertson, but most of the Mean Green’s other players on its two-deep are unproven. Tobe Nwigwe was a backup last season and started two years ago. He could be a standout, but has had issues off the field. UNT’s coaches believe AJ Penson has star potential, but he has yet to prove his value in the regular season. Colt Mahan is undersized as UNT’s backup middle linebacker at 220 pounds. It was tough to tell just how good the group could be with UNT’s offensive line in flux for most of spring. Could these guys be great? Maybe. Could they be a liability? That is also a possibility.

UNT’s defensive backs are also a question mark. Head coach Todd Dodge has made no secret of the fact he thought the group was a liability last season. UNT signed a host of junior college players and will likely start nearly from scratch. Adryan Adams and Kylee Hill showed flashes after transferring at the semester break, but no one will know how good the group can be until the fall when the rest of those key transfers arrive.

Running back Micah Mosley provided a nice complement to former national rushing champion Jamario Thomas last season and Cam Montgomery has looked good since taking last year off to recover from a hamstring injury. Can they carry the load together? That has yet to be determined. Thomas carried UNT to its second win last season over Western Kentucky. Dodge doesn’t exactly use the running game a whole lot anyway, but it would be nice to have an impact running back. UNT will find out if it has one or a good combination of a few in the fall.

What’s your take? Post your good, bad and jury still out on the blog.