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Good for Chuck. Someone finally said it.

I just hope they're all past the bug that's been going through the team.

I'm usually not a fan of teams wearing black unless it's part of their color scheme, but these are fine for a game or two. They still feel like they "fit" with the rest of the uniforms the Zips wear. Unlike Kent who has like 4 different uniforms that are all atrocious and have no consistent branding direction.

Welp, that settles it. Moorehead to the Patriots.

It was actually 800 pennies, 20 nickels and 10 dimes.

My thoughts on this stuff: 1) If you live in Summit County, there's a fair chance that public transportation is an option to you to get to games and not have to pay parking. Don't be afraid of the bus. 2) Someone made this point earlier, but there's a tendency for people to think that attendance would improve if they addressed whatever their personal bugaboos are with respect to going to games, but people don't necessarily think like you (the royal you), so stuff that bothers you may not bother a lot of other people, and stuff you're not bothered by might be a problem for others. In the macro, that means catering to/trying to pull in casual fans probably makes more sense financially than appeasing the diehards when those two groups are at odds. In the micro, I'm looking at start times. People are complaining about the 9PM starts, (that's only 3 of 14 home games, although I realize more could be added), and obviously that's being done for TV purposes. Are you sure it's better to tell CBS Sports Network/ESPNU/ESPN2(!) "no" to a 9PM start time, and forsake that TV money, and maybe get some more butts in the seats at the JAR, then it is to foresake those butts and get on TV? This is still a capitalist society and however we improve attendance is gonna take money. As lowly as you may think of UA marketing or athletics financial offices, I doubt they haven't bothered to look at the $ difference between 7PM ESPN+ start times vs 9PM CBSSN/ESPNU/ESPN2 start times. P.S. I doubt a meaningful number of viewers are looking at empty seats on 9PM Friday or for Tuesday night football games and saying OH MY WORD HOW DISGRACEFUL I SHAN'T EVER ENTERTAIN THE NOTION OF WATCHING A GAME WITH THESE AKRON FELLOWS AGAIN AND MY SPORTING OFFSPRING FORSWEAR TO ATTEND THEIR INSTITUTION. P.P.S. I include ESPN2 in this because if you haven't heard, our home game against Toledo is indeed on the Duece on Friday, February 2nd. I am happy about this! 3) As far as societal changes with respect to going to games, I think Covid really messed that up - I must admit I am way less active and going out-y than I was pre-Covid - and I am not alone. That's the only aspect of our attendance issues that really don't have much of an guess on how to resolve. That said... 4) I think both camps are correct in this "promotional gimmicks!" vs. "promote the hell out of the great product on the floor!" debate. These are only anecdotes, and anecdotes are not data. But while I don't live in Ohio anymore, growing up in Akron, I went to a Zips football game that featured the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders performing at halftime (since they were able to be there during football season makes me think this must have been a season opener and probably and Acme-Zip game, speaking of promotions.) I was probably 8 or 9. In front of us in the stands was an older couple, and the woman was wearing a Dallas Cowboys....bandanna? I'm not sure what to call it. Older women wore them all the time on their heads in the 80s or earlier. Anyway, shortly after the third quarter started, they left. 8-year-old me was SO confused about this for about 5 minutes, before it dawned on me....they were only here to watch the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders. So, it's like how someone mentioned upthread about people buying tickets just to giveaways and not staying for the game. Do I wish they would stay and become Zip fans and regulars? Of course. But this is better than not coming at all, right? We get their money, we get to count them as paid attendance, and these are beneficial things, no? Fast-forward about 15 years. I drag my sister (pretty much hates sports) and brother-in-law (only cares about the Browns) to a Zips basketball game. Jimmal Ball era. They had a GREAT time and LOVED it. That's the thing about basketball, IMO, that hasn't been mentioned in this thread. If you have good seats, which are plentiful in the JAR, it is thrilling. No other sport can compare (again, my 2 cents here). We weren't even particularly good around this time! We didn't even win the game I took them to (it was a close loss against Miami IIRC)! Now, full disclosure, this did not in fact make them lifelong Zip fans and the only other games they went to were because I went with them and paid for their tickets. But if I can show these non-Zips, non-sports fans a great time simply by taking them to a game with good seats, imagine what is possible with people (students or otherwise) who already care a little bit? I've also been told in this forum we used to indeed fill the JAR for pitched games vs. Cleveland State in the late 80s. Mouse McFadden vs. Eric McLaughlin. If true, how do we recapture that lightning in a bottle? Should we start trying to schedule CSU/YSU yearly (perhaps even for home-and-homes) and promote the hell out of these now-dormant rivalries? Probably not the worst idea. I also think we should partner as strongly as possible with the city of Akron to try to get the whole city aware of, and hopefully then excited about, the Zips. Living in Texas now, the mucky-mucks at Baylor often point out that there's no real connection to the city it's in (Waco). It's like Baylor is its own city, Waco is its own, and the two don't care about the other. If that's at all the case in Akron, it needs worked on ASAP. I personally don't see much value in trying to get people from the surrounding counties, especially those with their own D1 schools or pro teams, to come support the Zips. But this Akron's team, dammit. Summit County's, too. I grew up in Akron. North Hill. I hate the way people make fun of Akron. I am up to my eyeballs in Akron pride. Zips basketball could and should be a gift to the city. The city and the university need to figure out a way to make that happen.

We'll find out this year. 2-10 won’t cut it in Year #3. I believe in the guy. He needs to pull of at least 5 wins this fall or I'll be completely alone, like Linus in the pumpkin patch.

2 years ago, a reeling Kent team off the heels of a home loss to NIU saw its coming out party at home vs. the Zips behind 30 from Carry. This team likely doesn’t have the same potential as those Flashes, but as we know, if they get it rolling in that building, throw out the records. Zips need to bring it for 40 minutes.

Rubber black. That escaped me. I like it! 🔥🔥

No Script Akron...no lame "A"! Luv it!🦾🦾🤘

The first time Mr. Pinky sends a double team at Enrique to help out Payton he will have clearly cast his vote as to who he thinks is the better player.

I I still see zip players breaking into the paint when he has the ball. It never happens and just clogs the lane for an easy double or triple team. They need to move on the perimeter and not clog the paint.

A 2024 HS offer amongst the portal madness. 3 star DL that was committed to Syracuse.

Ethan Wright signed with Youngstown State

Outside of Cincinnati/Dayton area college basketball just isn't that big of a deal. Even the Buckeye "fans" I know don't really start following OSU until the conference tournament is about to start. $4 waters, $10 parking, $4 tickets, etc isn't the problem. People pay those prices to see the Rubber Ducks. They pay several times those prices to go to a concert as Blossom. There is just a lot of apathy surrounding the program. Outside of the Kent game, going to Akron basketball just isn't "the cool thing to do". It's a shame because when the Zips have those 4500+ fan crowds, the games are very exciting. I don't really have a solution, but they need to change the perception surrounding Akron sports.

Shawn dies at age 29.