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When Astroturf installed the new stuff last year, they made a mistake and put twice as much crumb rubber in as they were supposed to. Water could not drain properly. You are supposed to be able to spill a bottle of water and see it disappear into the drainage system. With too much of the crumb rubber, water (in the form of rain) was pooling on top, potentially causing a safety hazard/unsafe playing surface in inclement weather. The company who installed the turf is at fault and is on the hook for the $1 Million+ mistake. Totally new surface coming in. After 13 seasons with the same turf, we get a new surface two years in a row.

Damn. I was hoping we could get him on the cheap after Groce departs for the Dayton job following the Zips Sweet 16 run next year! 😡

This isn't at all why people are reacting negatively to his words. I had a supervisor at UA who had an incredible impact on my life, probably moreso than anyone aside from my parents. He taught me (and others) about professionalism, responsibility, leadership, and so much more. Helped myself and countless people better our lives and our careers and become better people. Truly a remarkable man. He also happened to be gay. I recall one day my Junior year overhearing a classmate use disparaging remarks toward LGBT people. This supervisor heard it too. He was an educator first, so he approached the situation with love instead of anger and helped the student to understand why his words were wrong to use. But I could tell hearing one of his students say them was hurtful to him, and I never forgot it. You may not have been impacted by Huggins' words, and that's ok. But I promise they had an impact on others. A LGBT student-athlete hearing a powerful and respected coach use them, possibly even someone on his own team. Or another coach. Or a professor at the school. Or any WV student or employee, for that matter. Recognizing that although words may not have hurt us personally but likely hurt others isn't "herd mentality", it's having empathy for others. I don't know Huggins - I'm guessing most here don't. I don't know if this was a reflection of who he is or if he got caught up trying to be funny and had a really bad moment. I'm not going to say he should be fired or not fired.so much more context is needed to make that decision. But what he said was wrong and hurtful to many, and I hope he genuinely learns and becomes a better person and leader from this. Now, I move on. Go Zips.

I met him for the first time recently at one of the alumni events they put together around the country. He was awesome and the event the University was great. What I think he understands is events like alumni gatherings in major cities should be a normal course of business for a major University like Akron.

Dr. Miller has totally changed the culture at UA. He is not willing to settle for "good enough". A perfect mix of an Academic and a Business man.

It's damn good to be on this list again.

So much so I can’t keep up. I’m having to save the names and come back to them. A number of 2025 offers going out too.

A lot of activity on twitter today.

We are, which is interesting. They just announced the recruiting class the other day, and now we have this offer go out. Is someone not happy with Ali Ali returning? With Ali Ali coming in, does that bump someone out of a rotation spot based on style of play? When you look at the roster, we have 2 incoming freshman, so unless one of them somehow decommits, their scholarships aren't opening up. Tribble/Freeman/Dawson are seemingly locks to return. Hunter/Scott/Thornton are transfers who would have to sit out another year (Scott & Thornton are incoming this year, so I guess they could technically decommit? I don't know how that would work). Prather Jr/Lyles/N Johnson/T Johnson are the sophomores/redshirt freshman that can freely move and aren't seemingly locked into returning based on their limited time here. Does Ali Ali push Lyles down the bench? Are one of the guards unhappy/looking for more PT? Interesting situation.

I would love to see the MAC tourney return here next year if they're going to a 6-team format. The high school softball state championships are held there every year.

Did we find out any other info on this? Is this a possible walk-on?

Ask the person that followed up a similar sentiment with a story insinuating those who don't think a certain way in this situation are lesser people for it. Convenient how that person's similar sentiment and follow-up post weren't called out - just mine. All good. Go Zips.

What happened to this 😂

So Kent State and Coach Eric Oakley "mutually agree to part ways".... Had a few good seasons, but 2023 was very lackluster.

Wonder if they could sell part of the turf they just tore up? or send me some for free. That would be pretty cool in a man cave! Although I can already hear my wife "What the hell are we going to do with all this fake grass?!"

...and to think some of us come here as a diversion from the persistent debates in society...

I guess it's truly a million dollar question.

Funny enough I think many on this board pointed out the turf looked too “black” when it was installed. How does a company specializing in turf installation make such a mistake?

He at the very least regrets saying it publicly. There is no escaping that truth. That same poster also said he has no problem keeping Huggins name hanging in Akron's rafters and that the HoF comment was just a cheeky comment and not how he actually felt. It WAS a bigot comment. There is no escaping that. He literally used f*g in a derogatory context. Actions do have consequences. If I said that at my place of employment, I'd most certainly be sent to HR. At the very least get reprimanded, likely even fired. Do I think he should be fired for it? No, but he certainly deserves criticism for the comments. I think you're mistaking this forum for other areas on the internet, like reddit, that have been much more critical of Huggins comments. People here seem to be rational acknowledging that he screwed up, but aren't coming after him looking to burn him at the stake. Nobody here even said he deserves to be fired. Although some acknowledged that it's a possibility that he will be.

Bob Huggins is literally on record saying it was an insensitive remark that was inexcusable on his part. Even in hindsight he admits he was in the wrong. Meanwhile, here you are trying to play it off like he did nothing wrong... I didn't really see anyone here trying to burn him at the stake for this or cancel him as you put it, but it's blatantly obvious he messed up. He should have never said what he said, simple as that. https://sports.yahoo.com/west-virginia-coach-bob-huggins-apologizes-for-using-anti-gay-slur-in-radio-interview-212451232.html

That'd be really fun to see the core of that group together again!

America East Sixth player of the year in 21-22. Experienced player at DI level. Should be a solid pickup.

Holy cow. Coming to the defense of someone using any type of slur towards anyone in 2023 is not a good look.

Probably because of the distance I don't see everything UofA does in terms of advertising and community outreach, but what I do see I really like since Dr. Miller has taken over. I have to believe the opinion of people around NE Ohio about UofA has to have trended upwards since Dr. Miller started.

Huggins may or may not be a drunk. Huggins may or may not be a homophobe. Huggins may or may not be an anti-papist. What can't be argued is the inescapable conclusion that he's really really stupid to say something like this in today's world.

Quick update. I’m still working on getting our recent JUCO commitments (and the rest of the MAC) rated. Even if they are all given a 5.2 star, it would catapult this class above Toledo and into 3rd place. It would also place Akron in the top 100.

It's because fans want to apply professional sports to college. They don't understand the mission and consume too much of the idiocy ESPN pumps through TV and radio. Let's review. College athletics should benefit the athletes, students, alumni, fans and greater communities around their school. During KD's time at Akron he checked all five boxes. I'd provide evidence, but I don't think any intellectually honest person needs it.

Enjoyed the spring game today. I thought it was a great idea to open up the lounge/box seats. There were not many people in that area until halftime, when it became flooded with fans and recruits that were guided to free food. Well done and way to show off the amenities of the stadium, which otherwise may not often be seen. The game itself flew by. A few things really stood out to me. 1) This team is way ahead of where they were last spring. They look disciplined (minus a few penalties), physical, and know their assignments. 2) The athleticism and maturity was noticeable. 3) The secondary is much improved. It seemed like last spring game WRs and RBs were running free in the passing game nearly every pass. Not the case this year. 4) Tackling was outstanding. I think there were only two missed tackles the whole game. Last SG I remember coming away thinking Wiley had more lower body strength than what he showed on film due to his ability to break tackles. Turned out our defense was just terrible (as a whole) tackling at that point. Position Takeaways: QB - Undercuffler looked confident and in command. He also had the benefit of playing behind what looked like the first string OL. There are still some passes Undercuffler struggles to complete. That being said, he can get the job done. The offense should be in good shape if Undercuffler has to play meaningful snaps this year. Jennings and Wasel received the rest of the snaps. Both did some good things and also looked like young QBs at times. Jennings throws a nice ball and is clearly a solid athlete, but listing him as 5’11” might be generous. Wasel has a big arm and forced a few throws today. He also made a few that gave reason for excitement. His mechanics need work and he seems to realize that as he was focused on the sideline going through step by step motions before the 3rd quarter began. (Irons and Jankowski were sidelined). RB - Lingard is good. He didn’t break any big runs today, even though it felt like he might a couple of times. Not sure what happened at Florida, but the guy has “it.” He did have a nice touchdown run and is the number one back. Lingard will be a weapon for this offense barring injury. Kellom looks ready to contribute when his number is called and Hester also had a nice run. It’s unfortunate Price is out for an extended period, but I have no doubt this group will provide more production than last year. WR - Might as well mark down George for All-MAC. The guy looks the part in every way. It was good to see some of the other guys get substantial playing time today with Adams out and SJL gone. Like @LZIp mentioned, Walker had the best day catching the ball. Thomas, Golden, Anderson, and Gathings were all noticeable. TE - Banks and Ognenovic took most of the snaps. Nothing substantial to report here. OL - My biggest takeaway is that T. Williams and K. Davis look ready. I can’t place who the other guard was, but the lineup blocking for Undercuffler was LT Chambers, C T.Williams, G K Davis, RT N. Williams. Takeaway from the opposite OL was freshman OT Jayvin James. James is huge, has long arms, and moves well. He’s going to be a good one. I locked in on him for a number of plays and came away excited about what he could become. (Landers and Robarge were on the sideline). DT - Terray Jones is a force. It’s unfortunate Holt left because those two could have been dynamic. Robinson seems to have come a long way and will challenge for a starting spot. Nothing stood out about the other DTs, but they did not make it easy on the OL. (Murphy was on the sideline). DE - Pass rush from this position is still a concern. Rabah and Johnson look like the starters for now. We need the incoming players to step up and provide more. (Richardson was on the sideline). LB - This position looked great. Bubba was Bubba. McCoy is physically impressive even though he surprisingly missed a tackle. Fish looks like he knows what he’s doing this year. I noticed him around the ball often. Griffin and Behm also had their moments. CB - The coverage was solid today despite often not having much of a pass rush. Golden-Nelson and Terence Thomas look ready to cause other teams some serious issues. Those two kept popping up over and over. I believe it was Judson Tallandier who also looked good here. All the DBs seem to have added muscle mass. (Joey Hunter was sidelined and I don’t recall seeing Cam Threatt). S - So many of these guys are built and move so similarly now it was hard to tell them apart at times (that’s a good thing). Martin saw plenty of time and Johnson chased down a miscued pass for an interception. This group was solid against the pass and came up well in run support. (Nate Thompson was sidelined). ST - Some good and some not so good. As a group they struggled at the start, but found their groove as the game progressed. Im sure there is more that I missed or forgot to say. It’s late and I wanted to report as much as I could while I had it on my mind.

He’s not listed on VC. So maybe a walk-on