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NCAA tournament to go to 76 teams. All the 16 seeds and half of the 15 will play in the opening round. Just another excuse to shove the automatic qualifiers down further so they can shove a few more P4 teams in. I hate college sports more everyday.

Softball won two more yesterday and are now 19-4 in the MAC with 4 conference games left. 2nd and 3rd place both have 14 wins but have more games remaining so I don't think we've quite clinched the regular season title but are getting very close.

I received mine yesterday as well. I plan to get a case and display it in my home office. There have been some talks here about how the success of the program warrants our attention, but it's also great seeing Ford, Bud, and the assistants engage the fan base. In a day and age where college athletics has become more transactional, it's great to still see the sense of community they're trying to instill in the program. They genuinely seem to want to be here and do great things.

According to an email from Coach Embick about Day of Giving, the 2026 home schedule features matches against the following (potentially more as he said they are finalizing some dates). Dayton, Army, Wake Forest, Syracuse, Creighton, Georgetown, Xavier, Butler and Robert Morris

Article from the Beacon on the Spring game - https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/akron-zips-football-coach-joe-095601341.html

I talked to a coach about him. He said the player was brought in for depth and development. This staff does an impressive job in mining and growing under-developed players. Another interesting part of the discussion was that the staff rates itself on the performance of the players they bring in. Regarding JUCO's they have a hit rate of about 50%, but on high school players they are near 90%, especially in O linemen. The obvious problem is that we are developing high school players for other programs with money. It is what it is until Congress changes things.

This is a fantastic home schedule. We will see some of the best collegiate soccer in the country. I am so glad we got out of the MAC and into the Big East. We need big crowds for each of these games to cement our reputation as a near impossible place for visiting teams to win.

I think we also need to equally keep in mind that some of the other MAC programs are catching up. Even without a decline in the Zips program, the competition is getting closer as they learn and adapt to the NIL era, an area where UA was in the forefront and got a head start on the rest of the MAC.

I definitely expect a step back this season, but I expected one had Groce stayed, too. Tavari, Shammah, and Amani are all really tough to replace. With that said, I do think this team can be competitive in the conference, if for no other reason than I believe in Coach Ford.

No. Willis Jr. missed the entire season. Who knows if he's the same player as he was at WMU, and that was during a really bad year for the MAC (23rd or 25th ranked conference when he was averaging double digits). A 6'2" without a 3P shot is an interesting add as the MAC will seemingly be as tall as it has ever been next season. Not impressed with either of Kent's or Toledo's Portal classes so far. BG & Balls have had the best Portal classes along with Akron IMO. Simon thrives in the Portal but can rarely get the pieces to fit together on the court. Balls looks like they'll have a pulse for the first time in years. I can't tell what Toledo, Kent, Miami OH, and Ohio are doing with their classes. Akron is getting bigger and more physical while maintaining athleticism. This final piece Akron adds will complete the roster and I'm curious to see who that is. If they can add another 6'7"-6'9" Forward or a sniper from 3 (G or F), look out.

He has impressive film, that’s for sure. We might’ve gotten a steal. If Duncan stays at LB, then I think we’re done there. If not, I imagine one more will be added.

Players have 5 years to play 5 years of college ball from the time they graduate high school or the time they turn 19 - whichever comes first. No more redshirts (which is a good thing).

On the defensive line regarding the high school players that they brought in last year that sat and were not allowed to get any reps "to develop" going into next season ... Brown - Demery is 6'4 about 330 lbs had a sack/force fumble Saturday and is going to be hard for anyone to stop at the zero gap; Watkins is about 6'4 240 and looks raw but has been getting a lot of reps, he returned the fumble that Brown-Demery forced for six; Bivens is listed on the roster at 6'0 255 although I think he is much heavier; and Kavals is listed at 6'5 265; he is 6'6 and is between 275-280. Not sure if they are going to move him to tackle or leave him at end, (last year on scout team he played both and did well; he has long arms and is quick and athletic) he played end in high school and qb so he is athletic. Should be interesting to see if these guys can contribute right away this year.

I checked in to see how our three most recent Zips have been doing. After starting just one of the first four matches for Crown Legacy, Ashton has started the last four matches in a row. Austin FC 2 have only played 6 matches so far and Stefan has appeared in all 6 matches including 4 starts. One assist. Mitch Budler has not appeared yet for Pittsburgh but has been on the bench for 7 of the past 8 matches.

Zips Baseball sweeps OU in Athens to improve to 20-24 and 10-14 in the MAC. Both are the highest winning percentages since the program returned. Baby steps in the right direction? The downside is they have 9 conference games left against three very good programs (Kent, CMU, and Miami).

Not sure if this is known already or not.

Right now, I've seen two of the current Zips who combined played 20 minutes a game last year. I've never seen Dustin Ford be a head coach. There are still roster spots to be filled. As such, I'm not quite ready to make predictions.

Personally, I think this season will be unlike any other and damn near impossible to predict. Of the 15 players named as All-MAC 1st-3rd teams, I believe Luke Skaljac is the only one with eligibility remaining returning to his school. With so much turnover everywhere, I think it's damn near impossible to project who will do what next season. This level of universal turnover is unprecedented in the MAC. Now, that doesn't mean there isn't talent, or there won't be good teams. I just don't think we'll know who that will be until we see every team on the floor for 8-10 games.

Okonkwo couldn't stay out of foul trouble against the better MAC teams. He would have fouled out in 6 minutes of PT against Tech. Eric is the one that hurts . He is going to be so much better than his brother and it sucks we won't get three more years of watching him just keep getting better and better. That makes the Freeman run even more amazing.

This is so cool.

Was just about to post this to call that out. First hint we've seen at the style. Looks like we'll be getting a bigger, more physical version of All Gas No Brakes?

I am actually with you here. I think Amani is better than any C we have on the roster currently, but our production outside of him was very minimal to non-existent. We got 25 minutes of good to great C play then 15 minutes of pretty bad play. Theoretically Barre/MMK (I expect both to improve), Burton, and even Hammer (all of who I expect to see play minutes at the 5) should give us more depth in the front court. Also, gives us more versatility to adjust our style of play depending on the opponent. We can play Barre if we want to get bigger. We can play Hammer if we want to push the tempo. Burton something in-between both. I would expect more consistent 40 minutes out of our C even though none of them are probably getting All-MAC honors.

He looks to be the perfect roster add at this point. No matter if he starts or comes off the bench. At minimum, he should be an 8pt, 6reb, 20-minute guy with ability to deliver much more at any spot along the baseline. Those kind of players are hard to find.

Technically a senior as he did 2 years of JC, but with new NCAA rule of 5 years to play 5 I think he would have 2 years left.

Barre 6'10" Burton 6'10" Christion 6'9" Hammer Jr 6'7" MMK 6'6" White 6'6" Pence 6'6" Halligan 6'5" Henderson 6'5" Jones 6'5" Head 6'3" Staveskie 6'1" Wilson 6'1" Perkins 6'0" Average height is 6'4". Last year's average height for the 9 main contributors: 6'3" (this is with Tavari and Sharron listed at 6'0" according to ESPN.com). It may not seem like much but that 1"+ is a big deal. This year's Sweet 16 featured an average contributing roster height of 6'5" - the tallest Sweet 16 ever. Akron was almost 3 inches shorter on average vs the standard of teams we strive to compete with. Better yet, this roster is more versatile in their skill sets. As much as Hardman saved our butt at times last season, he was largely a one-trick pony. I'm not seeing anybody like that on this roster at this point in time. Safe to say I'm excited.

Fingers crossed it's a stretch four who can get physical defensively and rebound🤞

Connections made with high school recruits can pay dividends 2-3 years down the road now.

I would think twice about recruiting another HS player ever again.

I feel it's a given several teams have stepped up spending, as have many other mid-majors in other conferences. We had been spending 2x-3x compared to most other MAC teams in prior years. That margin has probably narrowed. It's still challenging to project with any certainty which team is winning the portal war in the MAC. Pretty much every MAC team is relying on D2, international, or low minute P4 drop down players to fill major holes. Some will produce. Others will be hype, but flop during the regular season

He redshirted, but I am also not saying Akron is recruiting over anyone else because we got him. We have no idea what players like Wilson or Henderson for Ball State will do in the MAC.

Senderoff lands Chansey Willis, who scored 28 at the JAR when he played for WMU. He always reloads, despite the odds.

That might have been turgent and busty. But just a guess. 😉

Dewalt signed undraftee with Atlanta....

Women's soccer is doing a pop-up team store through BSN Sports. Great way to support the program and great way for fans to get some nice Nike gear. Plus, it's great for men's soccer fans too as it all says "Akron Soccer" and not gender specific. https://bsnteamsports.com/shop/GOZIPS26

UMass finishes the MAC regular season 7-0 to win the regular season title. Akron is currently beating CMU and looks like we'll finish 6-1 to get the #2 seed. The tournament is only the top 4 seeds. so a rematch might be in the cards very soon.

I donate every year and have a named scholarship in my parents name. I expect nothing in return. It's not an investment. It's a charity.

Tbh I don't have unlimited money. Would be nice. Football could use it more, but basketball has earned it and deserves it imo. Hopefully I can say that about football soon too

The difference IMO is that simply making the NCAA Tournament is bigger than anything the football team will ever realistically be able to do. I'd imagine a lot more people watch Match Madness (especially the first two days) than the Snoop Dogg Bowl, the Potato Bowl, or whatever other meaningless bowl game Akron would make.

Hello Zips Nation, The current software utilized for our site will cease to receive support. We will transition to Invision’s new Community platform. While the transition is anticipated to be seamless, it is important to acknowledge that minor challenges may arise. I have commenced preliminary work on the backend. The login process has to undergo a modification for enhanced security for the new software. Users will no longer be permitted to log in using their display name; instead, they will be required to utilize their email addresses. This change will be implemented in the near future. Sometime this summer, prior to football season, I will execute a comprehensive upgrade. This process may result in changes to the look and interactive elements of our site. I am providing this notification to ensure that all users are informed. I will post updates in this thread before proceeding with the full upgrade. Kind regards, Dr Z

I don't even think 8-10 games will be a good measuring stick. Buffalo was a different team in MAC play, even with Freitag, than what they looked like early. Ohio was a disaster early, then became MAC-average. Toledo was also under-whelming, but improved down the stretch. UMass didn't wake up until the MAC Tournament.

Time will tell. I'm just not seeing where the improvements are happening when viewing unbiasededly. Then again UB came out of nowhere last year before injuries made them irrelevant. But you're probably asking half the league to replicate that UB type overachievement to offset the MAC being weaker at the top. What really needs to happen for the bottom half of the MAC to improve is WMU, CMU, and EMU need to invest more, but that's not happening. Only Ball State has stepped up. It just seemed last year in the MAC there was a much more solid foundation to build off of. Existing players that people knew you could build a team around. This year more and more teams are relying on unproven players. There will be some hits, but also a lot of misses. Edit: Also, it does matter that the rest of the league went a combined 0-34 against Miami/Akron. That means every other team would have had to go 9-5 or 9-6 in non Miami/Akron games just to get to .500 in conference play.

"Our up-tempo style"

Investment or charity, I am much more likely to invest in a program where I see positive results.

I also think as the playoffs expand more and more of those bowl games will be eliminated. Two bowls were eliminated last year and the Detroit bowl was just eliminated. In full transparency 1 was added so it was a net decline of two. Many existing bowls are barely surviving.

Correct, it wasn't just Hardman, but we saw first-hand why his metrics from @kreed5120's site were so unfavorable. Nate wouldn't have required a double team. He wasn't overly athletic, quick, or threatening from deep. Okonkwo maybe down low but I think that's a stretch, too, considering he only averaged 2.9 ppg as a fully developed 5th or 6th year "senior" at Utah. Young will be missed for his energy, not his height, and we're seeing the future for Akron guards - taller. Tavari and Young got completely covered up by longer TTU players. We have now gone from 2 sub-6ft guards to 6'1" being our shortest (expected) key ball handler (Perkins at 6ft-even would technically be shorter but I'm not expecting a redshirt freshman to be relied on heavily, especially with Tahj/Wilson/Head on the roster). Eric is good and has a ridiculously high ceiling but he isn't the answer at this stage in his career. His game is still raw and his decision making is questionable at times. Not so sure Ty Pence will be much of a downgrade, if any at all. Athletically I'm sure there will be a little bit of a difference, but experience/decision making/etc. should all be upgraded with Pence given his experience. White is also a similar type player but with more physicality.

Bowen's greatest moment as a Zip was in Ypsilanti.