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Ranked #1 by Sports Illustrated

Joe Moorhead gave a great interview this morning at 7:30 on SiriusXM Channel 84 - Dusty and Danny in the Morning on ESPNU Radio. I heard that he was on and I was able to go back and replay the interview on the SiriusXM app.

What a great second half by the Zips. They were patient to get their good looks and there was no doubt about it in the end. Perimeter shooting was bad until late. Other than that, another nice win. Pack the JAR on Saturday! Help give these kids the environment they deserve for their biggest game of the year!

This isn't your mother's CMU team that's for sure. However, the Zips closed the gap before half. When they came out in the 3rd period, they had pulled themselves together, adjusted, and dominated CMU the remainder of the game. Akron didn't make a 3 until the 4th period. I think Jordyn had 29 points. She really is the male LCJ. She makes things happen on both ends of the floor. Big game Saturday against Kent. And, yes, Coach Jackson is surprising me, and I stand corrected. FYI: The Zips sit in 3rd place but the gap between 3rd and 8th is 2.5 games.

Another big home game for this team tonight! If you had told me that in the middle of February the mens team would be a bigger disappointment than the women’s team, I would’ve called you nuts. Go Zips!

Dawson and Aziz replace Trimble and Ali in the starting lineup

I would love to see the Zips come out and execute right out of the gate. Good passes and shot selection, energy and aggressive defense. Is it too much to ask for a 6-8 point lead at the half?

https://instagram.com/stories/uakron/2775762046030907463?utm_source=ig_story_item_share&utm_medium=share_sheet

Substitute the word "I'm" for "we're" and you can see what he was really thinking.

Can we please get the Las Vegas bowl sometime, somehow? Need a good excuse to tell my wife we're heading to Vegas for a few days LOL

Thank you. I will go back and listen as well.

I hope you guys are having fun? I can’t believe I actually read all that bs 😂

I would say he is mostly physically and mentally imposing. He's super athletic and has a good body, and plays his tail off especially on the defensive end. He is what I imagine Mikal Dawson to develop into if he sticks around for his whole career.

SEC baby, SEC.

Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Louisville, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Wake Forest, Duke, Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Virginia, Virginia Tech and THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON.

That’s what makes this team intriguing to watch. If we have the capability to beat anyone, who says we can’t win 3 in a row in Cleveland? Just because we lost at WMU doesn’t mean this team doesn’t have the potential do go on a run

Agreed - it's a fun discussion. Re Re Paragraph 1: $2.25M is a big deal for Akron, considering they're presumably only getting ~$750k from the MAC's media deal. Add in the rest of the revenue, and that's $4-5M. Half the conversations surrounding Akron are discussions about their financial troubles. How do I know the AAC will be around in 10 years? Because ESPN is paying them ~$1B over 12 years starting a year or two ago. Over the next 10 years, I think we'll see another seismic shift in the organization of college athletics as well. I'm not saying the AAC should be the end-all-be-all goal, but whichever conference is the best G5 conference, that should be the next target for Akron after dominating the MAC. The AAC currently is THE G5 conference, and that's supported by ESPN's $1B media deal, their $43M in annual media revenue, and $111M total conference revenue. They dwarf the other G5 conferences. Re Re Paragraph 2: I don't disagree that Akron has the ability to be successful and draw fans while in the MAC. I disagree it has everything it needs, but that would be a digression. The point of the schedule: Joe Akron doesn't give a damn about Directional Michigans, NIU, Canada, etc. They care about Ohio State and P5. What schools have made a name for themselves consistently knocking off the Ohio States and other P5 schools? They're largely in the AAC. "Oh look, Akron is playing Wichita State Tuesday night at the JAR. I used to not attend Tuesday night games, as they're inconvenient, especially when it's against a garbage NIU team, but I think I'll attend this time against Wichita State." Case and point: Remember the Bracket Busters and return games from that series? They vastly out-drew the other OOC & non KSUcks/OU/Buffalo/Toledo/Miami crowds. You'd have 2.5-3k against Western Michigan, and 4.5-5k against North Dakota State, or sellouts for VCU, Nevada, MTSU, etc. I'm sure the same reflection would be seen in football if football was competent enough to make the every-week opponent matter. Sure, making the Akron campus a place to be is a component, but that's an easier sell when there's built-in excitement of not being a MAC school, but rather AAC or whatever the top level G5 conference is. Re Re Paragraph 3: Here is what you have (excluding basketball-only Big East & A10)... Tier One: Big Ten, SEC, PAC12 Tier Two: Big 12, ACC Tier Three: AAC, MWC Tier Four: Sun Belt, CUSA, MAC Tier One pulls from Tier Two to grow. Tier Two replenishes with Tier Three. Tier Three replenishes with Tier Four. That is the cycle of growth in college athletics. Thus, colleges do get "promoted". Programs may be in decline from a results standpoint, but their bank accounts probably aren't hurting given the revenue the bigger conferences generate. Look at Kentucky. Kentucky was a dormant football program for years, and now they're a top 25 program consistently. They raked in the revenue while being dormant, and have found success. Texas A&M just produced the #1 football recruiting class in the country. Will it translate to success? Who knows under Jimbo Fisher, but they're raking in the SEC revenue while doing so. Do you think Maryland or Rutgers regret gaining a share of the Big Ten revenue? I doubt it. And they're programs have elevated more and more each year. I doubt TCU is hurting. They're raking in Big 12 revenue, while getting a chance (and successfully at times) to knock of #12 Baylor, #4 Oklahoma, etc., in football. Basketball is even better with WVU, Kansas, Iowa State, etc. Re Re Paragraph 4: $1B evidence that the AAC leadership is better. Agreed in holding the leadership at Akron to the highest standard possible. I don't care to hold a stagnant mindset. There is living in the moment, which is great, but it's empty to me if you're not striving for growth in the future. I don't see how not striving to grow to the fullest potential athletically (and ultimately as a university in its entirety) benefits anyone.

Great post!! We cannot win without X playing well. If he dishes the ball to Ali on the last possession and Ali makes the 3 I do not believe they would lose to Western. They played their worst game of the season yesterday. I still think this team can advance in Cleveland. Kent beat Toledo at Toledo and the Zips had the opportunity to beat Kent. This team has some offensive weapons. They just took the night off yesterday. Lets see how we do tomorrow.

Paragraph 1 Response: $43M / 14 = $3M & some change (AAC) $9M / 12 = $750k & some change (MAC) ~$2.25M added to the budget each year is pretty significant. And that's just their media deal. Here is a better breakdown of the AAC financials. The American Athletic Conference carries much more prestige than the MAC, hence why ESPN gave them a 12 year, ~$1B media deal. "MACtion" is the butt of college athletics jokes. Attaching yourself to the AAC is a much smarter business move. Paragraph 2 Response: You're telling me Akron fans the average college sports fan who lives in the Akron area wouldn't be more intrigued to watch Penny Hardaway (Memphis) & Wichita State at the JAR, or SMU, ECU, etc. at the Info? The road contingency is a moot point for me, because I don't see droves of Akron fans at WMU/CMU/EMU/Balls/NIU/Canada/Miami/any MAC road game minus KSUcks. I don't know what Wake Forest has to do with anything. Paragraph 3 Response: Cincy was CUSA, got promoted to AAC, and has now found its way into the Big 12. Why can't Akron follow a similar path? They are very similar in size. I don't know for certain that Guthrie has a bigger vision than the MAC for Akron, but I do know he had a bigger vision for the football program than a MAC-level coach, and football drives college athletics. What a resume builder it would be to elevate Akron out of the MAC. I'm not sure how growing athletics revenue doesn't benefit all parties involved. "Fantasy time" seems to be believing the opposite. Paragraph 4 Response: Glad we agree on something. Not sure why you'd be ok staying under poor leadership, though.

Getting a share of $43M cut up 14 times still leaves a massive hole in the budget. I'd be more interested in duping Canada or NIU into joining the AAC so I could watch them get destroyed and the MAC could return to some sanity. Exposure?....Oh boy is this a fan trap if there ever was one. "Exposure" is what people who work in athletic departments claim is beneficial to their school just before they destroy it with another dumb idea. Paragraph 2: How do you know the average football fan is interested in Memphis, Temple, ECU, Tulsa and SMU? What about those schools is interesting? Every time I see Temple on Akron's schedule I roll my eyes. Memphis is a dump. Greenville, NC has almost no redeeming value. Tulsa?...the place in Oklahoma?...please. SMU is a cool place but not in driving distance for fans. Replace either of those names with Syracuse or Boston College and you know how I feel when the Wake Forest schedule is published every other year and both of them are on the home schedule. Heck, it's probably how Clemson fans feel when they see Wake Forest on the schedule. Paragraph 3: The American Athletic Conference WAS the bridge from G5 to P5. Now a few of those schools are leaving to play in the Big 12 where they will, within 3-4 years, turn into TCU....after thoughts. Why would any P5 conference want any of the schools remaining in the G5?....It makes no sense. The Big12 acted out of desperation. How do you know Guthrie is aiming for higher than the MAC and what is his plan to do so?...He's another guy who won't be around beyond 4 years. Whenever Akron has decided to make moves independently, disaster has followed. Be careful of what you wish for. I do agree Moorhead is higher than MAC level and I don't expect him to be here more than 4 years and wouldn't be shocked if he caught lightning in a bottle, had a great second season and was gone. My expectation as a fan is for Akron to establish a top level football program that competes year in and year out for the MACC. Moorhead will do that and the rest is up to future leaders. In the process, I expect the University to make the campus the center point of cultural activity in the fall with football games being part of those activities. To me, this would be a greater achievement than toiling away in further fantasy about playing at the P5 level while jumping conferences every five year in order to accomplish that goal only to be a bottom feeder. UofA is a taxpayer funded university and should operate in a manner that benefits the taxpayers of Ohio. Fantasy time is over. Paragraph 4: "The MAC blows". I agree. The leadership is terrible and cannot be trusted to do much of anything other than put on a pretty good basketball tournament in Cleveland. I'd go as far as to say most G5 conferences operate similarly to the MAC. All moves would have to be made in conjunction with the other G5 conferences and those ideas would have to be drawn up by people outside of the athletic departments of those schools because the leadership cannot be trusted to operate with the interest of their employers in mind.

The year's Zips team is a flawed one. Other than Freeman, who can you bank on? Freeman - double-double every night, brings it on both ends of the floor. Plays within himself. A joy to watch, always. Ali - Too indecisive. He's at his worst when he dribbles too much. If he tries to back someone down in the paint, it's an almost guaranteed turnover. Might score 32...might score 5. Casteneda - shooting 29% over his last 4 games. Formerly a 90% FT shooter, shooting at a 60% clip over his last 7 games. Dawson - Hustles, defends, but he's a role player. Clarke - Slowly improving, but can't be counted for anything other than spot duty night-in-night-out. Aziz - Improving. But still a role-player. Tribble - He's like Dawson, but less of an offensive threat. Wynn - 8 minute per game role player, at best. Trimble - sprinkles a few stellar nights of insane 3-point shooting amongst a sea of highly forgettable 2022 efforts. Not a great defender. Can't create his own shot...just looks to hoist it from 24 feet most of the time. These are the dog days of the MAC schedule. Driving 5 hours in the snow to play a horrible Bronco team, on a Tuesday night, after a bitter home loss to your rival, can't be a party. But that's part of the deal. The championship teams fight through it. Kent, OU and Toledo are better than the Zips this year. But we can beat them on a given night. We could also lose to Duquesne if we played like we did last night. Man, that was one horrible effort in Kalamazoo.

National rankings for Rebounds Per Game 1 Oscar Tshiebwe Kentucky Jr. 6-9 2 Fardaws Aimaq Utah Valley So. 6-11 3 Armando Bacot North Carolina Jr. 6-10 4 Norchad Omier Arkansas St. Fr. 6-7 5 Kofi Cockburn Illinois Jr. 7-0 6 Enrique Freeman Akron So. 6-7 National rankings for Double Doubles 1 Fardaws Aimaq Utah Valley So. 6-11 2 Oscar Tshiebwe Kentucky Jr. 6-9 3 Johni Broome Morehead St. Fr. 6-10 - Armando Bacot North Carolina Jr. 6-10 5 Justin Bean Utah St. Sr. 6-7 - Norchad Omier Arkansas St. Fr. 6-7 7 Enrique Freeman Akron So. 6-7 If Enrique Freeman isn't First Team All MAC, that would be criminal. And yes, he is in the conversation for the best player in the conference.

Gonna be tough...a MAC team hasn't played in it since 1996.

Well fine, but are you ready to give up Tuesday night football?