North Texas, a brief look

North Texas (5-7, 4-4)--The Mean Green had a pretty good season considering all of the drama that came with the late 2010 season and coaching change. Although injured more and less effective than previously, Lance Dunbar led the offense from the running back spot. Even with a stud running back, UNT was only able to run for just over 152 yards per game putting them at 66th best in the country. The passing game never really took off as the Mean Green averaged 189.3 yards in the air putting them as the 31st worst passing offense in the country. The offense seemed to show up every other week as after a 3 game losing streak to start the season ended, the Mean Green alternated wins and losses for the rest of the season.

Defensively UNT just gave up too many points to have a realistic chance at a winning record and bowl game in 2011. The Mean Green defense gave up 20 or more points in 9 of 12 games including 40 or more in the first 3 games of the year. 7 of the top 10 tacklers from the defense were seniors meaning that some underclassmen will need to step up and take over some major roles for the defense in 2012. On the positive side, linebacker Zachary Orr is returning for his junior season and had 74 tackles in only 9 games averaging just over 8 tackles per game. Building around Orr, sophomore linebacker Stojkovic and senior defensive lineman McCoy will be key. 

Coach Dan McCarney dodged a major bullet in the offseason suffering a mild stroke but seeming to not suffer any long term damage from the ailment. This is coach McCarney's second head coaching stint. McCarney coached 12 years at Iowa State compiling a 56-85 overall record and getting the Cyclones to 5 bowl games in 12 years. McCarney won 2 of those 5 bowl games. McCarney was a former Iowa Hawkeye  playing offensive line for Iowa in the 70s before moving to coaching.

Overall, replacing a great running back as well as 7 of the top 10 tacklers in 2011will make it hard to compete for a conference title in 2012. The Mean Green should be stagnant more or less in 2012 and looking to 2013 and 2014 to make some waves in the conference. Another 5-7 record and just missing out on a possible .500 record would be great but 4-8 with some close losses seems much more reasonable for the 2012 season.