2011 North Texas Football Predictions

Written by Steve Janus

The North Texas Mean Green got off to a miserable 1-6 start in 2010, but a lot of that was because this team was decimated by injuries right off the bat. After just two games the Mean Green had already lost seven starters for the season. North Texas still finished 3-9 overall, but were a respectable 3-5 in Sun Belt play. Head coach Todd Dodge was let go after leading the Mean Green to a fourth consecutive losing season, and will be replaced by Dan McCarney who coached at Iowa State from 1995-’06 and was recently an assistant at Florida. McCarney is a great hire for this struggling program, and it will be interesting to see what he can get done in his first season. Here is a look at what North Texas will send to the field on both sides of the ball, plus my prediction on where they will finish in the Sun Belt.

Offense:

The first thing McCarney will have to do is find a quarterback to lead his offense. In 2010 the Mean Green had three quarterbacks go down with injury. Riley Dodge led the way with 1,212 yards with 11 touchdowns to just four interceptions, and was also the No. 2 rusher with 253 yards. The front-runner out of spring practice is sophomore Derek Thompson, who saw limited action in 2010. Behind Thompson is McCarney recruit Brent Osborn (JC transfer). While less experienced, I expect this unit to put up better numbers than what they did last year.

Making things easy on Thompson will be the return of running back Lace Dunbar. As a junior, Dunbar finished second in the Sun Belt with 1,553 yards and rushed for 13 touchdowns. Dunbar is also a threat out of the backfield, as he caught 28 passes for 332 yards and three touchdowns. He will be the focal point of the offense again in 2011, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he topped his incredible numbers from last year.

At wide receiver the Mean Green return their top threat from last year in junior Darius Carey, and also bring back senior Tyler Stradford. Carey led the way with just 38 catches for 524 yards and five touchdowns, while Stradford added 28 receptions for 332 yards and three scores. Added to the mix will be senior wide out Michael Outlaw and junior tight end Andrew Power. With improved numbers expected from the quarterback position, this unit should be a much bigger factor than it was in 2010.

The offensive line is a huge question mark heading into 2011. The Mean Green must replace First-Team left tackle Victor Gill, First-Team right guard Esteban Santiago, and left guard Kelvin Drake. They do bring back starting center J.J. Johnson, who was lost for the season after just one game in 2010, and starting right tackle Matt Tomlinson. A couple of redshirt freshman are expected to make their way into the starting lineup, as Mason Y’Barbo looks to take over at left guard, while Antonio Johnson figures to step in at left tackle.

Defense:

Despite the struggles of the 2010 season, the Mean Green made some nice strides on the defensive side of the ball. They held opposing teams to just 29.7 ppg after allowing nearly 36 ppg in 2010. This year they have seven starters back, but there is some concern that this unit will take a step back in 2011. A big reason for that is they lose two talented defensive tackles in Shavod Atkinson and Kelvin Jackson, creating a huge void in the middle of the defensive line. They do bring back starting defensive ends K.C. Obi and Brandon Akpunku, but will need juniors Tevinn Cantly and Brandon McCoy to step in and play well at the two tackle spots.

At linebacker the Mean Green lose two more talented players in First-Team outside linebacker Craig Robertson and starting middle linebacker A.J. Penson. While they appear set at middle linebacker with sophomore Zachery Orr ready to take over, replacing Robertson will be a difficult task. Robertson led the way with 133 tackles in 2010, the next best was junior outside linebacker Jeremy Phillips with 69.

While there are huge concerns with the front seven, all four starters return in the secondary. Senior corner Royce Hill and junior safety DaWaylon Cook are the top players in this unit, and overall this should be one of the top secondaries in the Sun Belt. The only problem is the talent could be wasted if the Mean Green can’t stop opposing teams from running all over them.

2011 Prediction: 5th Sun Belt - While I don’t think the Mean Green will compete for the conference title in McCarney’s first season, this should be one of the most improved teams in the Sun Belt this season. I think they have the potential to go 5-3, but will likely end up 4-4. We will find out a lot about this team in their season opener at FIU.

Sun Belt Football Predictions by Team
Troy Football Predictions	Florida International Football Predictions
Arkansas State Football Predictions	Louisiana Monroe Football Predictions
Middle Tennessee State Football Predictions	North Texas Football Predictions
Western Kentucky Football Predictions	Louisiana Lafayette Football Predictions
Florida Atlantic Football Predictions

College Football Predictions
ACC Football Predictions	Big 12 Football Predictions
Conference USA Football Predictions	Independents Football Predictions
PAC 12 Football Predictions	SEC Football Predictions
Big East Football Predictions	Big Ten Football Predictions
MAC Football Predictions	Mountain West Football Predictions
Sun Belt Football Predictions	WAC Football Predictions

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