SPORTS Page 7
THURSDAY, MAY 5, 2016
NTDAILY.COM
FOOTBALL
MEAN GREEN QUICK HITS Men’s golfers bring in conference honors
A trio of Mean Green men’s golfers received end-of-season honors from Conference USA on Wednesday, marking the first time North Texas had three honorees since 2013. Ian Snyman was named C-USA Freshman of the Year after posting the second-lowest scoring average on the team at 73.39. Snyman was joined by freshman Thomas Rosenmueller and junior Cory Churchman on the All-Conference Second Team, tying North Texas with UAB for the most All-Conference honorees.
Tennis team earns four C-USA accolades
The young talent on the North Texas tennis team was recognized for their stellar performance this season, as the freshman duo of Maria Kononova and Tamuna Kutubidze each earned spots on the C-USA First Team. The pair was also honored as a First-Team doubles duo after posting a 10-5 together this spring, earning the most wins by a doubles team for North Texas since 2005-06. Senior Anastasiya Shestakova rounded out the Mean Green’s award winners, getting named to the All-C-USA second team.
Volleyball signing class
Head coach Andrew Palileo signed four high school players to national letters of intent last week, completing his first full signing class since the graduation of Carnae Dillard. Two of the newcomers are Texas natives (middle blocker Emma Eakin and outside hitter Bryncaitlin Walker), while the other two both come from the west coast. Karissa Davis (California) and Lekaleka Kiner-Falefa (Hawaii) are both expected to solidify the Mean Green back line as defensive specialists.
THAT’S A WRAP
Swimming and diving makes a splash in end-of-year awards
Junior defensive end Andy Flusche (99) tries to break a block during the spring game. Colin Mitchell | Senior Staff Photographer
New-look football closes out spring, looks forward to fall
By Brady Keane Staff Writer @BradyKeane3 The North Texas football team has undergone a complete overhaul since the completion of a 1-11 season last year, tied for the worst record in school history. The Mean Green has an almost entirely new staff led by head coach Seth Littrell, a new offensive philosophy, a new quarterback, new receivers and a revamped unit and scheme on the defensive side of the ball. Amid all the change, the team had just 15 spring practices and one public scrimmage of sorts to begin its rebuilding process. And while there was visible improvement across the board, the team still has a ways to go before kicking off the season against Southern Methodist University on Sept. 3. “There’s a lot of good tape that will help us become a better football team next fall and heading into the summer,” Littrell said. “Overall, we have a lot to work on, and we still have a lot of room for improvement. There is no doubt about it.” As the team heads into the summer and continues to prepare for the upcoming season, the offense, defense and special teams each showed flashes of what is to come. Offense The offense had two big questions entering the spring – who would win the quarterback battle between Alec Morris and Quinn Shanbour, and how would the team be able to run a pass-heavy offense with such
little experience at receiver. Despite returning a combined career total of just 649 yards and three touchdowns, the Mean Green receiving corps emphatically shut the door on any concerns at the position. Sophomore Tee Goree proved he’s ready for a standout sophomore season, while Sophomore O’Keeron Rutherford had a great spring game and has the size at 6’5 to be an impact player in the red zone. Goree, Rutherford, and Freshman Kelvin Smith combined for 274 yards and three touchdowns in the spring game and looked much more athletic and versatile than the offensive weapons of the past. “We’ve had talent on the outside. We just haven’t been able to showcase it,” Goree said. “Now, with this offense, we’re able to showcase our talent.” As far as the quarterback position goes, Morris seemed to enter the spring game with the confidence of the team.. However, Shanbour played well enough in the spring for Littrell to refrain from naming a starting quarterback heading into the summer. Morris remains the favorite, but Shanbour is putting up a fight. “There are always things that you can improve on, but I think that as a whole we came a long way this spring,” Morris said. “I didn’t really have a set expectation in mind, but I’m pretty happy with how this spring went. There’s a lot of potential for this offense to get better.” While the quarterbacks battled it out, the spring was rough on the offensive line. The Mean Green have just one returning starter from last year in senior Sam Rice, but he is moving
over to center to account for the loss of Kaydon Kirby. The line struggled in the spring game, but still has time to improve before September. The growth of senior transfer Trey Keenan and junior transfer T.J. Henson will be important, as the two are listed on the depth chart as starters going into the summer. “We’re nowhere near where we need to be,” Littrell said. “There’s been a lot of stress put on them. The kids are responding well, and it’s not that they aren’t working hard, it’s just a transition. We just have to get better, and we will.” Defense Entering the spring, it looked as though the secondary had the potential to emerge as the anchor of the defense. The team returned prized sophomore corners Ashton Preston and Nate Brooks and has experience with upperclassmen Chad Davis, Kishawn McClain and James Gray. Although there was some miscommunication on crossing routes in the spring game, the first unit was as advertised. Co-Defensive coordinator Mike Ekeler said the team wants to have the best 11 players on the field, and it looks as though the 3-3-5 scheme best fits that philosophy. “The defense is really starting to settle in the system,” Littrell said. “They’re playing well together, and the DB’s are doing a nice job in the secondary. They’re continuing to learn.” On the defensive line, there is an entire new unit from last year. But despite only having three linemen
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in the new scheme, the defense was able to get significant pressure on the quarterback in the spring game. Junior Sid Moore and senior Jareid Combs looked particularly good, and redshirt sophomore T.J. Tauaalo has the size to anchor the line at nose tackle. As a whole, the defense will continue to improve with the addition of several players from the 2016 signing class that could have an immediate impact upon their arrival in the summer, including William Johnson and Eji Ejiya. Special teams The special teams unit is just about
the only position group that is mostly the same from last year. Junior kicker Trevor Moore is back for his junior year after going 9-14 on field goals last season, including 9-10 on field goals inside 40 yards. Moore was named a freshman All-American by Sports Illustrated in 2014 and gives the Mean Green a solid option if the offense struggles to finish off drives. Moore knocked down 4-6 field goals in the spring game, including a 43-yarder. In the punting game, the Mean Green has Eric Keena back as well, which should bring a steady diet of good field position. Keena was ranked
After earning the highest finish as a team in school history at the C-USA Championships, one swimmer and one diver received individual honors. Sophomore breaststroke specialist Claudia Kitching was named Co-Freshman of the Year after becoming a top-three fastest swimmer in school history in each of her two events. Meanwhile, Averie Ruiz earned the honor of CUSA Freshmen of the Year for her performances in the 1-meter, 3-meter and platform events.
21st among Division I punters last season with an average of 44.2 yards per punt. The return game will be without breakout star Tre Johnson, who scored the lone special teams touchdown of 2015 on a 53-yard punt return, as the rising senior left the program in the offseason. The Mean Green look to have Johnson replaced with junior wide receiver Turner Smiley, and there are several players in the 2016 recruiting class, including Deion Griffin, that have the speed to make an impact in the return game.