University of North Texas Athletics
Green Gang: Breaking Down North Texas And Ball State
9/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Return to Play
By Steven Bartolotta, September 2, 2009, 10:03 a.m.
It's time to peel the curtain back on the North Texas-Ball State matchup and go position-by-position to see who has the edge going into the game on Thursday night. We begin our breakdown with the offense.
Quarterback
Both teams are breaking in new QB's and both have some big shoes to fill production wise. Riley Dodge and Kelly Page were both highly touted QB's in high school who are redshirt freshman making their first career starts. Page has a little more size than Dodge but both are unknown quantities. Replacing Nate Davis isn't going to be easy for Page and expectations are high. The one who has the most composure and makes the least amount of mistakes is likely to come out on top. EDGE- Even
Running Back
If this was 1-5, I'd take North Texas in a second, but it's not. Ball State is returning one of the top running backs in the nation in MiQuale Lewis while Cam Montgomery was just a few yards shy of 1,000 last season. Lewis is a speedy, shifty, elusive back who is hard to find at just 5'6. If North Texas is to have a chance against Ball State, Lewis must be slowed. Montgomery has a stable of guys behind him who have playmaking ability, but none have shown what Lewis has done thus far. EDGE- Ball State
Offensive Line
Ball State had one of the best lines in the country, as evidence by three players ending up in NFL training camps this year. However replacing those three is not easy and besides QB might be the biggest question mark for the Cardinals this season. North Texas meanwhile has every starter back from last year and a healthy Kelvin Drake back at 100 percent. The Mean Green has 102 starts back; Ball State isn't close to that figure. If either QB is to get rolling early it's going to start up front with the lineman. EDGE- North Texas
Wide Receivers
Both teams are a little thin on this side in returning starters but Ball State does have back two of its top four receivers from last season. Briggs Orsbon had 68 catches last season as a freshman and Lewis out of the backfield had 35 catches. Alex Lott is the leading receiver for the Mean Green and the starting lineup heading out of fall camp has just a combined 36 catches among them. The X-factor for North Texas is going to be the newcomers, Jamaal Jackson, Michael Outlaw, and Darius Carey. How well they do will go a long way in seeing how successful the WR's are. EDGE- Ball State
Defensive Line
This one on paper isn't fair if you just go off of last year. The Mean Green's biggest question mark heading into the year and the Cardinals biggest strength heading into 09' is right here. Ball State returns all four starters and is led by 33-year old Brandon Crawford. The ex-Marine isn't your average college athlete and gives the Cardinals almost an extra coach on the field. North Texas meanwhile has seven new players on the two-deep from this time last year and they are eager to prove people wrong. Privately the North Texas d-lineman are anxious to show how much improvement has taken place. Publicly Ball State is proven so until North Texas does on the field it's still unknown. EDGE- Ball State
Linebackers
North Texas returns all three starters from last season and has moved some people around in the meantime. The leading tackler back for Ball State from last season in the linebacking corp is Davyd Jones who had 85 tackles last season. The Mean Green's biggest question mark is how will Kylie Hill do after moving from the safety spot to linebacker this year. The rest of the group is as solid as it gets though. EDGE- North Texas
Secondary
Both teams have a lot of talent back and some holes to fill. Newcomer Ira Smith takes over for Kylie Hill at the safety spot and DaWaylon Cook is going to be making his first start at the other safety position. The corners are led by two veterans in Royce Hill and Adryan Adams. For Ball State it's the opposite. They return their top two safeties in Alex Knipp and Sean Baker, the 2008 MAC Freshman of the Year. Baker was also a Freshman All-American. The cornerbacks however are going to be two new faces in the starting lineup in Charlie Todd and Koreen Burch. EDGE- Ball State
North Texas Will Win If....
Riley is as good as advertised, the Mean Green forces Ball State into mistakes, and Lewis doesn't run wild. In the two losses last season, Ball State turned it over eight times and averaged only 18.5 points a game, well off its 34.5 average for the season. North Texas must be able to contain Lewis and make the freshman QB Page beat them. Pressure on the QB is another must. A good start is also key for North Texas to gain some confidence.
Ball State Will Win If....
Lewis runs for his typical 125 yards a game, the Mean Green defense can't slow down Ball State, and Riley struggles. For Ball State they simply want to follow the game plan and execute as if 2008 never ended. Stan Parrish was promoted to do just that and Ball State wants to prove that 12-2 was no fluke and this program has arrived.
