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"We will immediately launch a national search for our new basketball coach, and we reaffirm our commitment to building our basketball program and all of Akron Athletics into a nationally recognized program across the board. In addition to finding a new coach, we are working to be in a position to upgrade the James A. Rhodes Arena" -- Larry Williams I'm staying optimistic that Larry and Matt will bring in a coach that reenergizes my enthusiasm for MAC basketball. I feel I've watched (listen and read) the same cycle for long enough, I'm ready to move forward. Start with a good hire, upgrade the JAR, and make the schedule better now that resume padding is finished. I'm sure there is somebody out there that can achieve the goal of winning an NCAA tournament game. Go Zips!!!!

Where are all the brainiacs that wanted KD gone? Crickets.

Sounds like someone who attended too many Bernie Sanders rallies last year.

I'm now willing to admit this openly, I physically went to only one game this year. One. And I live in Akron. Why did I only go to one? Because I have watched watched the slow downhill loss of momentum for four years. The program has been stagnant. I'm really sad to see Dambrot go...he's the only Basketball Coach I've known since I've been a Zip. I had hoped at one point that he'd be here forever and become that legend that every big program at some point seems to have. Hopefully in Dambrot moving on it will re-energize my interest in Zips basketball. NOT because Dambrot is no longer here, but instead because there is nothing new to see. What's the point of the third most consecutive 20-win seasons if you lose to a team that was under 20 wins (18-13) in the regular season?

I wouldn't. Let them go. I don't want anyone here that doesn't want to be here. Also, I hate when schools "block" a transfer. If a student - not an athlete - transfers, there is no "block" put in place, at least I don't believe so. These are 18+ year olds, AKA adults. They're big boys; let them make their own decisions. Not to mention I think it's a bad look for a mid-major like us to be blocking transfers. It wouldn't make me feel warm and fuzzy about a University if I were a recruit, that the University is preventing student-athletes from furthering their playing careers and academics with a different University that might suit them better.

I'm curious to see what our perspective will be in a couple of days. Right now, we're the "jilted lover." Today, we'll strongly profess that "she realllllly wasn't that hot anyway." In a couple of days, maybe we'll admit that maybe she was.

We all know the MAC isn't good. Luckily close to half of the season is made up of the OOC schedule. Schedule there better and actually BEAT some of those teams and you can make a case for an at-large. Outside of St Marys and Gonzaga, the WCC is not better than the MAC. The difference St Marys and Gonzaga go out and get it done in the OOC. If we were able to beat Gonzaga or Creighton and avoided blunders like YSU, Miami, and BG, I think we would have had a real shot at an at-large. We did nothing to prove we were worthy of an at-large this year or any other year and blaming it on our conference is a cop out. KD can go to that 3-4 bid conference, but he isn't in the MAC anymore. Its going to be hard as hell to break in the top 3-4 of that conference. Harder than winning the MAC probably.

Take your agenda elsewhere. A new stadium was needed. Keith was the highest paid coach in the conference. The University has done everything they can to improve the JAR/get a new arena.

AKZipper I totally agree with you. As a fan, I'm looking forward to something new in the JAR instead of stagnation. Each season was a bone chilling repeat of prior season. Will we go 15-15 next year with a few awesome wins and some upsets? Maybe. And that would be better at least to me than this ho him meaningless 20 win seasons.

I'm hoping, and guessing that the next HC of the Akron Zips will not have recent ties to coach Dambrot. I'm ready to watch some different coaching philosophies at the JAR.

Yes. That's exactly what I thought. Thank you for clarifying my already imperfect analogy.

Im out of likes. I agree 100% The current state of the MAC reminds me of teams in the Colonial Athletic Association a few years back where they were pretty much going through the same situation. VCU, George Mason, Richmond and Old Dominion all left for the exact same reason we are enduring in the MAC.

If an unproven player from the MAC thinks he's going to make it in and A10, so be it. At best, the guys purportedly jumping ship will be serviceable players in the A10. Quite simply, if they were the types of players that were front line A10 talent, they'd have already been in the A10 or similar conferences. In summary, don't let the door hit you in the @$$. With a new coach, we may see a completely different approach to recruiting. A new staff, especially pressed by defections, may be more open to junior college players and transfers. I get that in middle age, KD may need another challenge. I wish him well with that. However, blaming it on the lack of MAC NCAA seedings is running from the challenge rather than taking it on. Stop settling for the Radfords and Coppin States and maybe you'll get a little more respect at the end of the season. I was always a KD supporter, but the record tells us the Zips may well have reached a ceiling under him and maybe, just maybe, a change expands their horizons.

What worries me the most is that we are now in the cycle of a mid major. Where two things happen: A coach is successful and moves on OR a coach is a dud and he's let go. I'd say go for a UA alum, but we just saw a UA alum leave.

This is my list of 15 candidates in no particular order(only the order I wrote them down on paper). Jeff Boals - Current StonyBrook head coach John Groce - Former Illinois and Ohio head coach Nick McDevitt - UNC-Asheville head coach John Brennan - Northern Kentucky head coach King Rice - Monmouth head coach Lamont Paris - Wisconsin associate head coach Travis Steele - Xavier associate head coach Larry Davis - Cincinnati associate head coach Kenny Johnson - Louisville associate head coach Larry Harrison - West Virginia associate head coach Terry Johnson - Butler assistant coach Billy Donlon - Michigan assistant coach, former Wright State head coach Dwayne Stephens - Michigan State associate head coach Matt Figger - South Carolina associate head coach Chris Jent - Ohio State assistant coach My finalists Matt Figger Nick McDevitt John Brennan King Rice Travis Steele

Not sure I agree. Ty Dalton isn't a significant loss and, while I liked TDM a lot, we'll be fine at PG if Noah/Antjno stay. If Hughes goes though, it makes an already-thin front line even thinner.

well....it was a joke but now!!! shaka or bust!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can I buy a few more "Likes?" Agree with LZip. Spare me all the pleasantries. I hope President Wilson is making personal phone calls to Noah, Antino, and Jimond.

TDM can leave for all I care. I don't want players who don't want to be here and he has severe limitations. Also, it would be very shitty to KD to poach players.

He is no longer a Zip, and so I could not care less what happens to him career-wise from this point on. Just another random mid-major coach at another mediocre program. There's hundreds of them.

You just managed to name my entire list of candidates. Amazing.

It was a nice run! But too good an offer to turn down. $7million Plus incentives Plus extra money for assistants. For 7 years, 50-60 Million renovation of an arena already nicer than the JAR. And the kicker, A10 conference. He wont have to win tournement to get in NCAA any more.

My wife is a Duquesne grad. I'm filing tomorrow.

I'd hate to miss out on playing Northern Illinois.

As was George Thomas's article.

No, since he failed to mention Boals was on KD's staff before going to OSU.

Another silly post. He was an EMPLOYEE. And a highly sought after coach. To suggest that he should pay for repairs out of pocket is offensive.

No doubt. I'm not saying he should have paid for the renovation all by himself. But he kept whining and whining about no renovations/new arena. Ponying up money himself, and going public with that to get help, would have been a good way to jump start the project.

I know I'm hammering this name lately, but it's more about the situation than the name. Nick McDevitt - UNC Asheville head coach Current annual salary: $114,000 “Well, we talk to (recruits) about (our philosophy) during the recruiting process, to be honest with you,” McDevitt sad. “We show them film of how we play, how we see them fitting in (with) what we do and the style of play we’re going to play on both ends of the floor. That’s something they kind of know before they get on campus. That’s how we’re going to win games – or the way we’re going to try to win games.” I highly recommend listening to the clip between 6:00 - 7:58 of the 10 minute interview http://da.radio.cbssports.com/2016/03/09/unc-ashevillle-coach-we-sell-defense-when-recruiting/ Another bit from that: "I think when you do things one way (defensively) all the time, in my opinion you better have the best five players on the court each and every game you play. And certainly our goal is to get to the NCAA tournament, so if we're going to go up against the Kentucky's, Duke's, and Syracuse's of college basketball, and we go toe-to-toe with them, and they're going to play man-man half court defense the whole game while we play man-man half court defense the whole game, then we're in trouble. So we have to find ways to try and keep teams guessing a little bit, a little off balance, show them some things they may not see every night. Because of that, we try mix it up from playing half court to full court, from man-man defense to zone defenses, and hopefully we can keep teams out of rhythm a little bit and see where things happen over the last 4-5 minutes of the game(s)." ======================================================================================================= If we can find anyone that is getting paid that much while having SUCCESSFUL DI head coaching experience, the salary increase and our current talent on the team could be enticing for someone from a smaller conference, like a Nick McDevitt at UNC-Asheville in Big South Conference. That's the type of guy we should be looking for. I think this program could fall off if we get someone learning to be a head coach on the job. If Ohio can get a DI head coach, we should be able to do so as well.

Being the son of a HS coach who averaged 12.48 wins per year for 25 years hardly puts you at the top of any list. lol

I'm with you. While I didn't want to see Dambrot go, there were some things that were getting stale. This is our opportunity to capitalize on those now

He may have been your favorite player or buddy, but heady he was not! I have had to deal with him and he is further from a coach than just a pinch of seasoning.

Not saying he would... I do not know their $$$ situation. Cant be all that great being new to the D1 level. Im not even saying I would leave NKU, but from a pure coaching standpoint, that would be a guy that should be looked at.

I think people get a little optimistic as to Akron and the MAC's stature and position in NCAA basketball.

You are forgetting the MVC was even stronger when Creighton was a member. Even with their departure, the MVC is still much better than the MAC. If Akron drops off then the MAC drops off even more. Now that the Shockers have a strong program they are wisely looking to move up. I am a diehard Zips fan but you have to accept that the MAC is a weak, weak conference. Unless a MAC school has a once in a generation season, it is a one bid conference not only to the NCAAs but the THE NIT.

Im shocked at how much people are Defending the current state of the MAC

+1 Out of likes.

If I was Akron I would block any transfers to Duquense.... just sayin

$308k is way too much for a sport that attracts ~300 fans.

Do you 'whore yourself out' or continue to 'bring in the whores?' Per the Plain Dealer article, we brought in $300K for basketball home games and that didn't even cover half of KD's base salary. The 'whores' we brought in also didn't do much for our strength of schedule and at-large consideration. We won't get rich financially heading out on the road for 1 or 2 more road games but it might help SoS and at-large consideration. Beating a dead whorse but I'll gladly give up 1 or 2 cupcakes at home to see what we can do against better competition on the road. Who knows, it might also help us be a bit more ready to play under the bright lights of the MAC Championship game with a ticket to the Big Dance sitting right in front of us. I think this change is good for all parties involved. Good luck KD but remember one of the definitions of 'insanity' ... .

So instead of shooting down every solution, what is yours to take the next step? Or are you just being a contrarian? Or are you just comfortable with the way things are? KD himself said part of the reason he left is because he didn't feel good after a 27 win season. Yet others on here who stated that were attacked.

I have interpreted his feeling for years in many of his comments. Sounds like a good time to move on when you feel like that. I think he is making the right choice, and will learn something about his career one way or another from this choice.

I pretty much have the same list of players. The one player I would add for sure is Kurt Mangum, the LB transfer from Washington. He was an absolute stud for the one year we had him. It seemed like he made every tackle that year. Unfortunately Jatavis wasn't developed as a player yet as he was only a Freshman, but imagine the two of them on the field together in their prime.

Answer:... 308 Question:...How many days until Adrian or Hiram show up at the A.J. Palumbo Center

If we are talking budget, I'd start by looking at Kest. She is paid a lot for a very minimal revenue generating sport and her program has significantly dropped off the past few seasons. Her contract is up after this upcoming season.

After thinking about this situation, KD decided to leave for another program. Does anybody want a coach who does not want to be here? He is not making a jump to one of the big conferences, the salary although more is not astronomical, and he is going to a program that is not a name program and he will be rebuilding. I want a coach that wants to be here. Akron has not been to the NCAA the last 4 years, there is no question he is frustrated, and he is looking for a change and an opportunity presented itself. I agree with Skip Zip that if we get into the NCAA this year or if we made a run in the NIT, KD would be staying. However, we got killed in the second round of the NIT playing terrible basketball and I am sure KD was embarrassed that he cannot get his team to perform. KD mentioned the dysfunctional locker room a couple of times during the season. Last year we did the same thing, lost our conference finals and played horrendous basketball at Ohio State. We had a great win in Houston but that was not enough to make this a successful season. This is mere conjecture, but maybe KD was just getting tired of the same type of season and was looking for a change. Finally, I disagree with the post that KD is leaving because the MaC is only a 1 bid conference. Akron had a chance to be an at large team in the NCAA. During our winning streak, we were getting votes in the polls. If we did not lost at Ohio, Kent, Bowling Green and then at home to Miami, we would have gotten an at large bid if we had only lost the conference final. Our team was not good enough to get an at large bid. I don't care what conference you are in, if the team does not play great basketball, it will not get an at large bid. Being in the MAC gave us an advantage of not playing top teams each week. We faded at the end of the past 2 seasons and have nobody to blame but ourselves.

Good. I have no problem with that except for Thomas.

My list, in order... 1. Boals 2. Lamont Paris 3. McNeese 4. That Asst. from Xavier

Thank you coach Dambrot and best of luck at Duquesne. This is Larry Williams' opportunity to shine. I hope he doesn't go the cheap and lazy way promoting any of the current assistant coaches. I know that others have listed these names before me. But my list of people that should be interviewed in my opinion is (in that order): 1 - John Groce 2 - Jeff Boals 3 - Lamont Paris

Ianellaphobia