University of North Texas Athletics
No. 75: The Man, The Myth, The Legend
6/27/2011 12:00:00 AM | Return to Play
No. 75 - Mean Joe Greene Defines An Era
I think Dictionary.com's explanation of the word "legend" misses the mark when it comes to North Texas' own "Mean Joe" Greene.
legend (ˈlɛdʒənd) - noun - A person whose fame or notoriety makes him a source of exaggerated or romanticized tales or exploits.
Sure, we romanticize the time the legendary Mean Joe spent in Denton - how could we not. But, there is simply no need for exaggeration. He is the greatest defensive lineman to ever play the game of football, and the greatest ambassador our program could ever ask for.
His superlatives on the gridiron for North Texas speak for themselves; Consensus First-Team All-America (1968), three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference (1966-68), First-Round Draft Pick (1969, No. 4 to Pittsburgh), College Football Hall of Fame (1983).
He anchored a Mean Green defensive line that allowed just 71.2 rushing yards per game in 1967, a scary number considering that the next best season in school history was 104.7 yards per game (2003). That squad also set the mark for the fewest total yards allowed per game at 182.1.
Greene followed up his No. 4 selection by the Pittsburgh Steelers with immediate results. He was named the NFL Rookie of the Year in 1969, and eventually earned 10 Pro Bowl selections. The centerpiece in the famed "Steel Curtain" defense racked up 66 career sacks, four Super Bowl titles, five First-Team All-Pro nods in 172 career starts.
He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987, and has been a tireless spokesman for his alma mater ever since. As a matter of fact, keep your eyes peeled for the new Mean Joe themed commercials hitting the airwaves.
| No. 100- | 100-yard fumble return for TD | No. 75- | "Mean Joe" Greene | No. 50- | Friday, July 22 | No. 25 | Tuesday, August 16 |
| No. 99 | Fitzgerald Goes The Distance | No. 74- | Tuesday, June 28 | No. 49 | Saturday, July 23 | No. 24 | Wednesday, August 17 |
| No. 98 | Sears Woods' Stuns Knoxville | No. 73- | Wednesday, June 29 | No. 48 | Sunday, July 24 | No. 23 | Thursday, August 18 |
| No. 97- | NT Blows Out Decatur Baptist | No. 72- | Thursday, June 30 | No. 47 | Monday, July 25 | No. 22 | Friday, August 19 |
| No. 96- | 96 Years Of Football | No. 71- | Friday, July 1 | No. 46 | Tuesday, July 26 | No. 21 | Saturday, August 20 |
| No. 95- | The Jump To Division I-A | No. 70- | Saturday, July 2 | No. 45 | Wednesday, July 27 | No. 20 | Sunday, August 21 |
| No. 94- | Optimist Bowl Offense | No. 69- | Sunday, July 3 | No. 44 | Thursday, July 28 | No. 19 | Monday, August 22 |
| No. 93- | Michael High KR Yards | No. 68- | Monday, July 4 | No. 43 | Friday, July 29 | No. 18 | Tuesday, August 23 |
| No. 92- | Gowin 92-Yard Punt | No. 67- | Tuesday, July 5 | No. 42 | Saturday, July 30 | No. 17 | Wednesday, August 24 |
| No. 91- | Chancellor Saves The MGRN | No. 66- | Wednesday, July 6 | No. 41 | Sunday, July 31 | No. 16 | Thursday, August 25 |
| No. 90- | Renfro/Haynes Tally 90 pts. | No. 65- | Thursday, July 7 | No. 40 | Monday, August 1 | No. 15 | Friday, August 26 |
| No. 89- | Redwine Bursts Onto Scene | No. 64- | Friday, July 8 | No. 39 | Tuesday, August 2 | No. 14 | Saturday, August 27 |
| No. 88- | Mean Green Robbed | No. 63- | Saturday, July 9 | No. 38 | Wednesday, August 3 | No. 13 | Sunday, August 28 |
| No. 87- | Fitzgerald Fries Competition | No. 62- | Sunday, July 10 | No. 37 | Thursday, August 4 | No. 12 | Monday, August 29 |
| No. 86- | Mean Green 86 The Toads | No. 61- | Monday, July 11 | No. 36 | Friday, August 5 | No. 11 | Tuesday, August 30 |
| No. 85- | Adrian Awasom | No. 60- | Tuesday, July 12 | No. 35 | Saturday, August 6 | No. 10 | Wednesday, August 31 |
| No. 84- | Brown Delivers For NT | No. 59- | Wednesday, July 13 | No. 34 | Sunday, August 7 | No. 9 | Thursday, September 1 |
| No. 83- | 83 All-Conference Selections | No. 58- | Thursday, July 14 | No. 33 | Monday, August 8 | No. 8 | Friday, September 2 |
| No. 82- | Corky Nelson | No. 57- | Friday, July 15 | No. 32 | Tuesday, August 9 | No. 7 | Saturday, September 3 |
| No. 81- | One Of The Greats | No. 56- | Saturday, July 16 | No. 31 | Wednesday, August 10 | No. 6 | Sunday, September 4 |
| No. 80- | Cedric The Sack-Getter | No. 55- | Sunday, July 17 | No. 30 | Thursday, August 11 | No. 5 | Monday, September 5 |
| No. 79- | "Blow George, Blow!" | No. 54- | Monday, July 18 | No. 29 | Friday, August 12 | No. 4 | Tuesday, September 6 |
| No. 78- | J.T. Smith Joins the NFL | No. 53- | Tuesday, July 19 | No. 28 | Saturday, August 13 | No. 3 | Wednesday, September 7 |
| No. 77- | North Texas Goes 10-1 | No. 52- | Wednesday, July 20 | No. 27 | Sunday, August 14 | No. 2 | Thursday, September 8 |
| No. 76- | Blizzard Battle With FSU | No. 51- | Thursday, July 21 | No. 26 | Monday, August 15 | No. 1 | Friday, September 9 |
