Article from the North Texas Daily, UNT student newspaper.

The Joey Byerly referred to is a R/S freshman QB who's 6'4, around 250, 4.5-4.6 speed and a load to bring down when he tucks the ball in and runs. A Vince Young QB type.

Writer did refer to NMSU and USU as past tense in conference play which is not correct. There are only 3 OC games, not 5 as the article states. OC games are Texas, Baylor & Colorado.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NT football poised for strong season



April 13, 2004


With baseball season underway, the NHL playoffs getting heated, the NBA playoffs just ahead and the NFL draft less than two weeks away, there's plenty of nourishment on the sports fan's plate.

Even though it's only April, it's never too soon to begin thinking about college football. Any time the collegiate brand of pigskin is being pondered is a good time.

So, with that understanding out of the way, let's look at the Mean Green's upcoming football season, which begins Sept. 4.

With five non-conference games, three of which are on the road against Big 12 opponents, the Mean Green is making up for the loss of Utah State and New Mexico State in the Sun Belt schedule (NT will play Utah State on the road during non-conference).

Road games at Baylor and Colorado are winnable. The Mean Green should beat the Bears, and are capable of a mild upset in Boulder when playing the Buffaloes, considering the program is in total disarray. After NT beat Baylor 52-14 last season, the Bears turned around and beat Colorado, which definitely gives NT and its fans hope for a win at Colorado.

NT opens the '04 campaign down I-35 against the burnt orange. True to UT form, an acquaintance of mine said the Horns will "put 70" on NT come September. Umm, how 'bout no. The Horns are coming off yet another strong season that saw them win pretty much every unimportant game while getting rolled against Zero-U (read OU), 65-13, and being embarrassed in their own stadium by Arkansas, 38-28.

Mack Brown has to take UT-Austin up to Fayetteville this season, and is undoubtedly regretting his agreement to schedule the Hogs in a home-and-home series.

With their fleet of receivers gone, the Longhorns will rely on senior running back Cedric Benson and sophomore quarterback Vince Young to supply a potent ground game. Despite losing defensive tackle Brandon Kennedy, two-time Sun Belt Player of the Year, all three starting linebackers (Chris Hurd, Cody Spencer, Taylor Casey) and two starters in the secondary (cornerback Jeremy Pearl, safety Craig Jones), the Mean Green defense will be the focal point of the program, as always. Senior defensive end Adrian Awasom, who is on the 2004 Lombardi Award watch list with senior center Andy Brewster, will lead the defensive line, while senior Jonas Buckles, the team's most established head hunter, returns to the secondary.

During last month's Green and White Game, the new linebackers, such as Shawn Early and Arther McNac, showed the range and mobility the coaches like to see in their linebackers. Defensive lineman Montey Stevenson was an animal in the spring game, while returning anchor Evan Cardwell performed well also.

Considering all of that, NT won't be an early-season feast for the Horns, who are expecting to chalk up an easy win.

It's not beyond the realm of possibility that the Mean Green go 10-1, sweeping through Sun Belt Conference play while surprising the Buffs in Boulder.

Something the Mean Green will have this upcoming season it hasn't always had at its disposal is a proven offense with plenty of firepower.

Speaking of firepower, look no further than senior running back Patrick Cobbs, who led the country last fall with an average of 152.7 yards per game on his way to the national rushing title.

Cobbs isn't the only option at tailback. Sophomore Kevin Moore is a speedster and already has experience, while prize recruit Jamario Thomas, if not redshirted, will be hard to keep off the field because of his talent alone. Thomas was an All-State performer at Spring Hill (Longview) three times in high school.

Quarterbacks Scott Hall and Andrew Smith are back. In the event something happens to both of them, Joey Byerly, who is a monstrous 6-foot-4 and over 250 pounds, could step in as the signal-caller.

Wideout Johnny Quinn is back for his sophomore campaign after leading the team in receiving as a redshirt freshman. If the ball's in the air and anywhere within 15 feet of him, he'll catch it.

The offensive line returns all of its starters except all-conference Nick Zuniga, and Andy Blount will be manning the tight end position after scoring six touchdowns last season.

So, with qualified replacements ready to take the reins of the Mean Green defense and an offense that twice scored over 50 points last season returning almost intact, NT could make some noise next season. A 9-2 or 10-1 record is not impossible. And, hey, with a running game featuring Patrick Cobbs against a defense in Austin known to be gashed on the ground, you never know what may happen in the season opener.

Sounds like you guys could have a very promising season.