North Texas doesn't get a lot of publicity nationally. They play in the Sun Belt Conference, they're one of eleven Division 1-A schools in Texas, and they don't have much of an NFL presence at all. If it weren't for the New Orleans Bowl every December, I doubt anyone would know anything about the Mean Green (look, I just taught you something about UNT). But don't let that keep you from being a part of one of the most intriguing stories I can recall ever hearing about.
QB Riley Dodge, only a freshman, is playing for his dad's job.
Todd Dodge, Riley's father, is one of the best high school coaches that the state of Texas has ever produced. In his time at Southlake Carroll High School, Dodge implemented a high-octane, no-huddle passing attack and amassed a 98-11 record in seven seasons. In the final five years of his tenure, Southlake Carroll lost only one game and won four 5A state titles. The loss was by 1 point in the state championship game. Feeling that he had mastered the high school level (ya think?), Dodge turned his energy to a new challenge -- rebuilding the once mighty North Texas Mean Green.
There was a time when North Texas winning the Sun Belt Conference was about as certain as taxes being due in April. Upon entering the conference in 2001 (their first as a full member in Division 1-A), the Mean Green won four straight league titles and went to the New Orleans Bowl every year as a result, even winning the 2002 edition. Coach Darrell Dickey was the up-and-comer du jour, times were good, and thoughts of North Texas not winning the Sun Belt were as far away as could be.
Then, in a flash, for reasons unknown, it all came crashing down.
In 2005, the Mean Green went 2-9, finishing 7th in the Sun Belt. An aberration, most thought. Even a juggernaut can have an off year. But when North Texas lost 9 games for the second year in a row in 2006 (going 3-9), the university's administration decided that they'd seen enough and fired Dickey. Only two years removed from being top dog in their conference, the Mean Green were now going back to the drawing board.
Enter Todd Dodge.
In Dodge's first season, the Mean Green got even worse. The 2007 North Texas football team went 2-10 and had one of the worst defenses in the country. Last year, in 2008, North Texas went 1-11 and didn't win a single game in the Sun Belt. What had been unfathomable 4 years earlier in Denton was now strikingly real. The boosters, administration, and alumni are not happy about the direction of the program, and the feeling around the UNT program is that if progress of some kind isn't made in 2009, Todd Dodge will be unemployed.
Enter Riley Dodge.
The triggerman for his dad's prolific offense at Southlake Carroll, Riley Dodge put up video game-like numbers in high school. His junior year, under his father's tutelage, Dodge threw for 4,184 yards and 54 touchdowns and ran for 1,119 and 13 scores. Absurd. A big time recruit, Dodge verbally committed to the University of Texas, making his lifelong dream of becoming a Longhorn a reality. However, when it came time to sign his letter of intent, Riley was unable to watch his father struggle from afar, and jilted Texas at the altar to become his father's newest quarterback project. After redshirting in 2008, Riley Dodge was named the Mean Green's starting quarterback for the 2009 season, a crucial year for his father's hopes of being employed at North Texas in the future.
No pressure, Riley; just put up some numbers, win a bunch of games, and bring the program back to prominence. Oh, and save your dad's job while you're at it.
In his season debut Thursday night, Riley Dodge was solid, totaling 289 yards and a touchdown. The biggest thing he did was win. Going on the road to do it, no less. Yes, Ball State is bad this year and won't win a lot of games, but that's not the point. The point is that North Texas couldn't beat anybody the past couple years, but won a road game to start the season. With Ohio coming to Denton next weekend, it's not entirely implausible to think that the Mean Green could be 2-0 before heading to Alabama to collect a loss and a nice paycheck. Remaining home games against Army, Western Kentucky, and UL-Monroe give North Texas a puncher's chance of getting a few more wins this season. Getting 3 or 4 wins would show the administration at UNT that Coach Dodge has the Mean Green headed in the right direction, which should, in turn, take some of the pressure off of him.
Translation: if Riley Dodge performs well this season, his dad keeps his job.
Due to the economic downturn, my dad is unemployed and has been for some time now. It's frustrating to me to see such an intelligent, talented individual without work, especially when he's willing and able to work. If there was something, anything, I could do to keep him from being unemployed, there's no question in my mind that I would do it without a second thought. I'm not alone in feeling this way; I'm sure thousands of sons and daughters around the country share in my thinking.
Maybe that's the reason I'm pulling so hard for Riley Dodge. I'm living vicariously through him because he has the power to do something that I wasn't able to -- save my dad's job. If Riley succeeds and his dad stays employed, it gives me hope that all of my hoping and praying isn't for naught. It will prove to me that it is possible for sons to help their dads improve their situations even if our impact may not be as direct as Riley's.
So, Riley, do your thing this year. Put up sick numbers. Win 10 games. Win a conference championship. Go to the New Orleans Bowl. Do it for your teammates, do it for your school, do it for your coaches, but most importantly, do it for your dad.
In the process, you'll indirectly be doing it for me.
~~ Lank
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