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Missing a Zips game to hang out at the Portage Lakes?!

Groce commented on the difficulties in scheduling at the reception and laid out the strength of mid-majors on the schedule. I took a look and the following schools are all one or more mid-major top 25s- Princeton (ranked as high as #3); St. Mary's (ranked as high as #4); OU (ranked as high as #11); Yale (ranked as high as #13); Arkansas State (ranked as high as #17); and Toledo (ranked as high as #19).

What a loser that guy was

It's a winnable game. Let's go win it.

First two rounds on Flo, final on FS2

Looks like I'm not making it to this one. 4 club seats to whoever wants them. Send me a PM.

I did watch both halves, and I was pleased to see Coach change up her tactics. They utilized the fullbacks in the offense more than in any match this year, and the defensive centers played a higher line as well. They tried to score, and as @adzip said, the defense continued to play tough. Yes, we'll have to see what the missing forwards can do when they return to action. And they were also right - a junior or senior transfer student with experience in playing at a MAC or higher level school would make a huge difference on this team. Yesterday was a nice statement that they weren't going to quit. And I liked that they didn't make a ton of substitutions like past games, which showed in the continuity on the field. IMHO.

Run effectively. Make UB respect the run. Show them that the O line can block for the run. Akron doesn't have to get 150 yds. on the ground. But, they do need to be able to get 3-4 yds. a pop consistently. Can't just run on 1st down then pass, pass, pass. Might involve some 3 and outs but might chew up clock and keep Akron's D off the field. Still think Akron's O line is a key. Get some yds. on the ground and protect the QB's. Sounds simple but hasn't been done consistently all season.

Another frustrating 1-0 defeat. I am not a soccer expert but I am a loyal fan of both the men and women Akron teams. I was only able to watch the first half and, given the final result, have little desire to watch the second half replay. Akron had the wind in the first half but it did not appear to be a large difference-maker and EMU did not score when they had that advantage in the second half. Several thoughts- Akron played them even in the first half. We were not dominated. Every player for Akron at forward was a freshman. It seemed Akron committed a bit more to attack- specifically Morgan Pentz seemed to play more forward and it made a difference- IMO. The defense continued its tough play with effective use of body positioning, etc. The problem is that Akron simply has no goal scorers. Where are the goals going to come from? Which players would worry another team as potential attacking players? In this layman's view, there are four potential scorers on the roster and three didn't play (Pentz being the exception). Some of the freshmen display potential in terms of speed, hard shots, etc. but do not possess the touch, ability to put shots on frame, or skill with the ball to be productive- at least not currently. So- to win more- the other three have to overcome injuries and/or whatever is keeping them on the sideline and return. Next Akron has to find multiple players who can score at the MAC level and fast. Hopefully several 2025 freshmen can do that. In addition, I think the coaches have to find a transfer student(s) who can make the kind of difference that Emil has made for the men. The final piece that can turn their hard work into wins. Know they will not get someone as good as Emil but still she needs to provide the attributes that are missing currently with the other players. I think the current coach has the persuasive ability to make the sale! She needs to.

Groce did a good job explaining that our OOC schedule this season features some of the best mid-major programs this season. Ark St, St Mary's, N Kentucky and Milwaukee are all predicted to be March madness contenders. Sit back and enjoy the ride. By March we will be there too.

I'm grateful all of the Zips games weren't on Flo.

In the Toledo Blade article, one of the MAC basketball coaches was quoted as saying that basketball is the lone sport where the MAC schools can make money. I'm sure football would be able to make money if we had a better media deal, but I'm with you - MAC commish needs canned for what he has done to the conference. I don't think mid-week MACtion is all that detrimental, as many CFB fans nationwide love it, but the amount of money schools get for sacrificing traditional Saturday environments isn't worth it. In addition, he has failed to grow the conference with schools who actually give a damn about sports. Regarding the Mountain West, they're embarrassing themselves with their rebuild plan.

Grand Canyon? Conference realignment has hit rock bottom.

My prediction: zips 77 ASU 75 Seth Wilson MVP with 6 made 3s

I'm curious to see how it is once the season starts. Michael Beaven was at the Tip-off Reception front and center. Anything is an improvement over the disinterested George Thomas we had there for a while.

Article also mentioned Toledo's Justin Ingram was perhaps the best recruiting assistant coach in the league. Surely this is debatable, but considering how TK was running through assistant coaches there for awhile, the fact Ingram has stayed and obviously delivered is a big plus. On another note, these are the kind of articles the ABJ and PD used to trot out several times a season. But nothing close to this right now. In Groce and others used to say NE Ohio had the best 'MAC' media coverage in the league. But that is far from the case these days.

It wouldn't just be Bud tightening his donation belt if a major recession hit. Every school would feel it.

This is... AWESOME 🔥🔥🔥

That doesn't include Yale and Vermont, which are perennial March contenders. I love this schedule. Sure the "big names" aren't on it and there isn't even a flashy early season tourney, but the competition should be some of the best we've seen in recent memory. I laughed at the coach who said they haven't had anyone good enough to be plucked and paid. 😂