University of North Texas Athletics
Green Gang: Mean Green Offense Goes Down In Eighth Round
8/23/2009 12:00:00 AM | Return to Play
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| By Stephen Howard, August 22, 2009 - 7:31 p.m. |
The North Texas offense won last week's scrimmage with Mike Tyson-esque first-round knockout punch. I think the defense won this Saturday's decision, but it was more like a late-round TKO.
Everyone wanted to know how the Gary Deloach defense would respond after getting kicked all around Fouts Field last weekend, and they certainly came out firing on Monday. They took last weekend personally, and that showed in everything from their blitz schemes to their intensity on Saturday morning.
That said, I don't think the offense was all that bad. They certainly moved the ball with precision passes and the running game was clicking despite Cam Montgomery's bobbles. But if getting into the endzone is all that matters, they had troubles doing that early.
Late in practice, the offense recollected itself and was able to punch in multiple scores in the red-zone drills, which was a little consoling after a less than stellar practice.
Here's what I thought of the Mean Green offense position by position.
Quarterbacks: B-
Riley Dodge at his best (see last weekend) will remind you of a pocket version of Longhorn great Colt McCoy, but he looked more human this week. NT's defensive ends got into the backfield with regularity and forced him out of the pocket a couple of times on each drive. He made a few freshman mistakes forcing the ball today, and paid the price with a couple of interceptions. Still, he looked more than crisp on most plays, and his timing with even our newest of receivers was impeccable. Nathan Tune showed a little bit running the ball and marched the second team offense down the field on multiple TD drives.
Offensive Line: C+
The defensive line and linebackers stepped up their game in response the embarrassment of last weekend. The result was a handful sacks and pressures that stopped drives. I would call the pass protection inconsistent, because it was more than adequate at times. The running game was sharp, especially from the backup positions, which means that holes are still being created by guys down on the depth chart. Run blocking might be our best asset in '09.
Running Backs: B+
Cam Montgomery lacked his usual burst and fumbled in the red zone, a cardinal sin of football. Aside from that, the running back position was our best weapon today. Jeremi Mathis and Lance Dunbar continue to amaze with their quickness on the edge, and even in the middle of the big-uglies. Micah Mosley, aka the Lawnmower, is a powerful back that will be great in the red zone.
Receivers: B
Riley and Co. continue to distribute the ball to multiple receivers, which will only pay dividends down the line. Darius Carey is going to be a playmaker this season and looked very elusive on a catch in the left flat where he made multiple defenders miss in the open field and got into the endzone. Jamaal Jackson dropped a pair of early balls, but showed why his speed will be a threat on multiple occasions. BJ Lewis is now a lock to fill in the large void left by Casey Fitzgerald, and I think we've all been impressed with Chris Brainard. We have a couple of capable tight ends with Bryant Seidle and Forrest Rucker, who both caught passes today.
