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Highlight of the night was the healthy return of Sammy Tojaga. Hard working young man. Sammy was very good on the 2018 National runner up team Sammy and William Portman will be great leaders for this team over the rest of the year. If the zips can figure out how to defend corner kicks, this could be a very good team. I want to rewatch the key moments of the game......to see the very key no-offside call...and the very key offside call. Ryan Kingsford looked the best that he has all year. Great performance by him (with Shooky out). I agree with what the announcers said that they heard from Coach Embick. they said "Coach Embick said that Mitch Budler has been very good as GK this year. IMHO - Mitch has made some great saves against high powered talented teams

These are a joy to watch and listen to. I had to stop watching the Arth ones, just awful nothing every week. Joe brings it here discussing playing those kinds of opponents, the QB's role in the run game, and emphatically states that Noah is our kicker. This guy gets it, Akron is on the rise!!!

A college football fan can invest his/her entire day (driving there, tailgating, watching the game, driving home), or spend the day watching every game, including the Zips, on a 65" HDTV. A Zips fan can only take so much losing in their lifetime. I would be embarrassed to add up the amount of Zip losses I have witnessed in person, and I'm probably not even in the top 1k. Most Zips fans are Browns fans as well, how many times can that fan watch their team lose on Sat, only to turn around and watch it happen on Sun as well. The Zips\Browns fan is a special kind of person. There should be a local therapy office specializing. Many more reasons, but they are all excuses. Winning solves everything. I'm confident JoMo has the Zips on the right path. Once they become an entertaining team, fans will show up.

I would say a few factors off the top of my head unfortunately play into this: 1. Akron football has not been a very good product for a long time. I get ragged on by a few people I know, who are sports fans, for having season tickets to Zips football. However, they have admitted they would probably go to games if the Zips produced good teams, or at least competitive teams. Their losing ways for SO long has turned a lot of people off. If they start winning consistently, I think people would be more interested. 2. Ohio State. I hate to say it, but in Ohio, many children are Ohio State fans and grow up watching them with friends and family. Even if no one in their friends or family ever graduated from Ohio State, people are still bred to watch them. It's easy, they always win, get a lot of coverage, so forth. Kids go to Akron for an education, but many will stay in their dorm or go to a local bar on a Saturday and watch the Buckeyes play on Saturday, even though the Zips have a home game on campus. This is frustrating!! 3. Coverage by local media. It is non-existent and any articles written by ABJ feel forced sometimes. I think the fact that no one, including the local media or university, really even promoted the fact that people could get FREE tickets to the home opener is a sign of how much change needs to happen on that front. I need to get back to work or else I'd go into further detail on these points, but those are just some thoughts off the top of my head. My suggestion: Win, plain and simple. And push local promotion of the team.

I just want to know how the announcers got the info on Chong seen above, and about how Embick was "going to try and wait until next week to bring back Sam Tojaga"? Our own broadcast, local media, match interviews, etc. get next to no information on injuries or insight from the team. For example, I haven't heard anything about Will Jackson being out for the past two games

Home wins at Infocision: 2009 - 3 (Morgan State, Kent State, Eastern Michigan) 2010 - 1 (Buffalo) 2011 - 1 (VMI) 2012 - 1 (Morgan State) 2013 - 3 (James Madison, Kent State, Toledo) 2014 - 4 (Howard, Eastern Michigan, Miami, UMass) 2015 - 3 (Savannah State, Buffalo, Kent State) 2016 - 2 (VMI, Miami) 2017 - 5 (Ark-Pine Bluff, Ball State, Buffalo, Ohio, Kent State) 2018 - 2 (Morgan State, Central Michigan) 2019 - Nope 2020 - 1 (Bowling Green) 2021 - 1 (Bryant) 2022 - 1 so far (St. Francis) So, 28. They're over 25!! Woohoo! 17 if you only count FBS teams, though.

The person covering the Zips for the Beacon didn’t even know that Tennessee beat Pittsburgh. That person is incapable of providing competent coverage even if the paper decided to support the home town team.

My advice about attendance for fans is....stop worrying about it. I love college football and enjoy going to games. In addition, I don't care if there is anyone else at the game other than Mrs. GP1, the luckiest woman in the world. Big crowds create inconveniences for me (lines and traffic) I would prefer to not deal with. My ideal Wake game would be as follows. I have a parking spot right next to the stadium to tailgate. Once in the stadium, all bathrooms and concession stand would be open. The people required to run the game would be there including the scoreboard operator. Cheerleaders and band would be there. Ideally my wife and I would be the only two in attendance. I've gotten to the age where I really don't care for large crowds and find the experience of them overrated.

It's really sad that the local media doesn't support (or at least cover) the home town team, inexcusable.

In recent years , they have given up way too many corner ATTEMPTS!!!!!!!!!!!. Not getting back on defense, thus causing who ever is back there to knock it out of bounce

GOOOOOOAALL!!! 2-0

I now live about an hour and a half outside of Lynchburg and plan to drive in for this game. Any other Zips fans plan to attend? I brought my daughter to Liberty for a track meet last year and their campus and athletic facilities are out of this world. Beautiful surrounding area too if you're into mountains and hiking. I don't know much about their team other than they finished the year as a top 25 team in 2020 and their QB from last year was drafted in the 3rd round. I did a little research on their fan site. Looks like Charlie Brewer, who was a 4-year starter at Baylor, transferred in and was set to be their starter this year but went out for the season their first series of the season. They're now down to their 3rd string QB, which is the guy that played against Wake, Kaidon Salter, a former 4-star recruit. Looking at their schedule, Southern Miss taking them into OT gives me some hope, but a win over UAB and a stupid coaching decision away from a win over Wake Forest doesn't bode well for our rebuilding Zips. Regardless, I'll be there rocking my blue and gold, so if anyone else is coming down and wants to link up, let me know!

Looks about right assuming the class listed on GoZips is correct. I bet we end up bringing in another 10 transfer portal players this year. Still some roster manipulation to do I think.

you can have off years (arguably) if every year isn't an off year

Since 2009 (InfoCision opened), we're 42-112 overall. Maybe we have 25 total home wins spread across 13+ seasons?

Browns fans supported the (crap) Hue Jackson years.

Winning is the answer to attendance increasing. I have always felt that the NE Ohio fan is very intelligent when it comes to appreciating good football. Put crap in front of them and they will not come. Show them quality and they will begin to turn out. Quality also leads to winning games. Those two issues are intertwined. Joe has a huge task in front of him. Perhaps bigger than he initially thought. Nonetheless he is capable and will get the job done. These days look dark, but we are laying the foundation that will yield a MAC championship program under Joe. In Jo We Trust!

I think a lot of people feel if InfoCision doesn't sell out @ 30,000 butts in seats, it's a failure. That's not true. It should be filled near 30k for a big game, where a "big game" equals - A well-promoted season opener, in a season where the Zips have realistic MAC championship aspirations Kent game, in a year where the Zips have realistic MAC championship aspirations P5 team, when the Zips have realistic MAC championship aspirations Championship-caliber opponent @ InfoCision, in a season where the Zips are also contending for the championship If the Zips aren't championship contenders, all bets are off. Even in a championship-level season, if a mediocre-to-bad Ball State or NIU team visits Akron, no one cares, and you can only expect a mediocre crowd. I feel when the Zips are winning 9...10...11 games in a season, which top-tier MAC programs have proven is possible, and where Joe and Co. are capable of taking the Zips, that averaging a 2/3rd's full InfoCision over the couse of a season is a realistic goal. And that would eliminate the need to travel for payday bludgeoning's like the last two week's, because we'd be making money at home. And winning.

Too many "get off my lawn" guys commenting! I hate big crowds and traffic too but there is nothing better than a packed house for college football! The crowd, the band, the students and the energy are a major part of what makes college football great.

When Joe and Co. turnaround the Zips football program, and we start winning 9...10...11 games per season, the realistic average attendance expectation should be 67% of capacity. Playing Toledo with the MAC championship on the line, or home games vs. Kent, should be near sell-outs. Playing middling MAC schools or FCS programs won't probably ever draw more than 15-17k. Terry Pluto famously wrote: "If Tom Arth can't win at Akron, who can?" Joe and Co. can, will get the Zips to be championship contenders within a couple short years. Hopefully "The Next Scarborough" or "The Next Wistercill" doesn't come along and screw it all up. That's my only concern regarding the future of Akron football. Otherwise, it's incredibly bright. And attendance will climb.

I agree almost 100 percent. However, I'm not certain winning is the key to everything. Historical winners in the MAC still struggle with attendance. OSU is even having trouble filling their stadiums for early season cupcakes because sitting in peanut heaven to watch them destroy Toledo isn't worth the effort to attend. The fan experience has to be good. Winning is part of it. Competent play on the field also helps if the team loses. A scoreboard that doesn't make you laugh or cry or both at the quality helps. Cleanliness helps. Good concessions help. Playing the game at a convenient time and on a freaking Saturday for crying out loud would help. Games should be about providing an experience to the players, students, alumni, fans and general community that makes them feel like their time, money and tax dollars are well spent.

Well said. This post hit the on the double-whammy. 1. It's so easy to watch from the climate-controlled comfort of your couch; kitchen 30 feet away, bathroom 40 feet away, 65"HDTV, instant replay, etc. All sports across America are dealing with this new phenomena. Honestly, this is most likely a permanent sea change in American sports attendance. (But... I still think big crowds are exciting & make for memories & we definitely want to shoot for that critical mass.) 2. THE NONSTOP PERPETUAL LOSING. Only diehard Zips fans go to the games. Winning... and only winning... will solve that. Aside: I've always wished the lovable loser Zippers had a loyal following like the Cleveland Browns & Chicago Cubs. But alas, we don't. But hardly anyone does, save the Browns & Cubs. Just win, baby.

Very happy to see Sammy Tojaga back on the pitch. Also happy to see Will Jackson get a few minutes. Hopefully, both are well on their way to recovery and getting significant minutes again. I also enjoyed seeing and talking with Keith Dambrot. Always a pleasure.

Abso_ _ _ _ _ _ _lutely!

I believe this is year 4 of year 0 of a rebuild. I'll take Liberty minus 27. Liberty 38-7.

Me thinks Akron came to play tonight!

Excellent broadcast with very good announcers. Kudos to Pitt/ACC.

Gooooooal!!!

I feel like weapons charges happen a lot with athletes and it usually doesn't amount to anything serious legally (Kevin Porter, Gilbert Arenas, etc). The claim is that he was driving a borrowed car from a friend. Definitely seems like there are character issues at play here and will probably lead to a suspension at least.

There’s levels to this. Multiple payday games against top teams is worse than multiple pay day games (one against a top team and one against an average to below average P5) and so on. Sweet spot to me would be one pay day game against a middling P5 team, 2 G5 OOCs, and one FCS opponent. Even if the sweet spot doesn’t happen, it doesn’t mean scheduling can’t get a lot better, and it seems it will.

#PorterOut

The game ends in a draw (3-3).

Thank goodness we got the tie!!!!!, Way to fall asleep at the end of the first half!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the one Pitt announcer....did comment....that Gyuwon Chong of the zips was likely out for the year. Gyuwon Chong made a great impression for the zips in the first 4 games. I wish him a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him in fall 2023.