Let'sGoZips94

College athletics are in trouble in general regarding attendance. The SEC is even having troubles with student attendance. Millennials aren't going to carry the torch once it's officially passed on by the generations before them. Unless Duke, OSUcks, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan, or any massive name like that comes to the JAR, you're going to need to use gimmicks and promotions to get them to show up. It is what it is right now. Meanwhile, I'm going to enjoy UMass coming to the JAR. Might even yell something about Calipari. 😎

Recognizable name from a solid conference, something we don't often get at the JAR. They've sucked in recent years, but they still hold more water with the common fan than North Carolina Alphabet Soup.

That's fantastic news. It's about damn time we benefited basketball wise from the UMASS/MAC football connection.

LOVE the tournaments O-Who and Canada are in. Our field has potential. It will be interesting to see what level the final two teams are, and who they are. It says we have 3 home games, while Louisville has 4 home games and NC Central has 0(?). Is it a round robin type of tournament? I'm assuming Louisville has a 4th home game cause they'd be hosting us, too? We are also in the Battle for the Capital in D.C. - Akron, Liberty, Towson, Tulane.

Until the program puts more than 2 players on the Dean's List (one isn't with the program anymore), we might want to refrain from mentioning academics as a factor in recruiting.

DANCING ON PORRINI! DANCING ON PORRINI! Pretty awesome roster.

Side note: How hilarious would it be for the MAC to add Duquesne in basketball, bringing KD back to the MAC?

"Bigs" do tend to take more time to develop typically, so maybe grabbing a player with 2-4 years of experience already is the better move? Here's what I do know. We were in nearly every single game last year with only one guy above 6'9" (Sayles was hurt most of the season). Our losses came from not being able to score/make jump shots at a consistent rate. If there's a concerted effort to fix that, I'll be very happy and will worry about the "bigs" later on.

No but I'm pretty sure Harney and the Zips had their best season following participation in this league. The key is for Banks to get back the confidence he had at the beginning of last season. Hopefully it works, because he was a special player last fall.

Pre-season favorites won't come out until closer to the fall, but if I had to guess, they'll put all the teams in a circle and play spin the bottle. Whomever it's pointing at, that's the favorite. Maybe Toledo if you are making me pick a team, but I think the MAC is that wide open.

Comfort/Production and athleticism are 2 different things. He gets up and down the floor well for a big man, so I consider him to be more on the athletic side. You're right, though - he needs to take the big leap forward and show he can contribute this year.

I agree, but I think it's a mix & match situation. With basketball moving towards the taller, more athletic wings, the vintage Power Forward that would potentially over-match Williams might not be seen as often. I'd rather have my "3" be able to over-power his defender and take him to the hole, with the option to dish to my stretch-4 - Williams - in the corner. Let's take Buffalo's roster for example (from last season). Perkins at the 5, Harris/McRae at the 4, Graves at the 3, and then Caruthers & Massinburg at the guard positions. Williams could very much handle a Harris/McRae matchup, and that would leave Reece with a pretty big mismatch against Graves - in favor of Reece.

My co-worker is very familiar with Joey & that program. I believe she mentioned he'd be even better with more talent around him. Could be a good one with some good competition in the QB room between him and the Georgia kid. Love the 4.3 GPA.

Welcome @AkronAlumnus! My prediction... LCJ Cheese Reece Williams Riak Darkhorses: Tribble & Dawson

Ding ding ding ding! Hit the nail on the head. KD found 2 big guys that contributed well - Zeke & Big Dog. He also had a system he could sell to them (by the way, we never made it to the NCAA Tourney with Big Dog). Groce has a system predicated around getting out and running, as well as off the ball movement in the half-court. It's not an easy sell to big guys whom are used to camping underneath the hoop and backing down their defenders. I think your timetable for the turnaround is completely unrealistic if you're only giving him two years. This program was left in worse condition than I think many of us realized when KD bolted. This roster is looking better and better with each off-season, though, and that's a positive. I know you have a Big Man fetish, but guard-dominated basketball wins not only in the MAC, but at the NCAA Tourney level as well. When's the last time we talked about a mid-major making a run with a big man leading the way? The majority, if not all of the "Cinderella" runs by mid-majors are led by guards. I'm looking at this roster, and thinking "Man, this has all the ingredients to be good." Xeyrius Williams & Sayles are your athletic front-court guys (assuming Sayles doesn't transfer). Riak is your big man. Then your backcourt & forwards (small forwards, traditionally) are all in the 6'2"-6'7" range, which is quite tall and not something we're used to (minus LCJ). This team is going to get out and run teams out of the gym, if they can execute the game plan properly and make their shots (that's the biggest factor). There are a few pieces I'm interested to see how they fit (Ali & Roscoe are the big 2), but otherwise I'm very intrigued. And can we quit railing on these 1-2 year transfers? Pro sports teams sign vets to 1 year contracts all the time to bring experience into the clubhouse/locker room. If they can play, even better. We have to stop the bleeding and rebuild the culture, though, and I have nothing against a couple 1-2 year players. Groce is at least even with the curve when it comes to the ever-changing & moving landscape of college basketball.