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So I went to my 1st G league game. Those guys are really good. Stronger and faster. Enrique had a great 4th quarter. Hit a few 3s, a dunk and the Mad Ants won a close game. The arena was super nice and the locals seem to really support their team.

The coaches allegedly hate these games. And there's also a certain segment of fans who wish-away the season in anticipation of 3 days in Cleveland. And that's fine. I really enjoy "measuring stick" games against like-competition. This Groce team has a lot to prove. They completely whiffed in the early OOC schedule. Yeah they were on the road...yeah it was a new group of players that needed to gel....yeah the teams are near the top of their respective conferences...etc. etc. etc. We lost every. Single. One. If we are going to have a shot at winning a 1st round NCAA game, we need to not only challenge ourselves with a tough OOC schedule, we need to start beating some of these teams. It's been proven that whipping downtrodden Buffalo, pathetic EMU and soon-to-be-Horizon fodder NIU doesn't prepare the Zips for squat. The bracketbuster was great. How else could I drive 20 minutes south of Hudson to see Top 25 team in the JAR? Nevada, VCU...great mid-majors like Oral Roberts and Creighton? I've seen crappy BGSU teams for 30 years. It is refreshing to see someone like Arkansas State, South Alabama, James Madison, etc. on our schedule. Beat South Alabama handily at home, like we should, and grow a bit. Prove something. We've lost 80% of our measuring stick games in the past. We always have a great MAC record. We'll have another one in 2025. Outside of our SWAC and OAC cupcakes we have yet to really ascend in OOC games. We're Kings of the MAC...which is great...but that's been our ceiling for 20 years. I'm greedy. I want more. Beat South Alabama by 15, run roughshod over the MAC, and beat somebody in the Big Dance.

A few thoughts on last night's basketball celebration and reunion. The event was the brainchild of Karl Schwarzinger, former 70's player and huge supporter of Zip basketball. The night sold out. Tickets were $100 each plus fees. Approximately 220 were sold, but not attended. It was a class event. I asked if the proceeds were going to NIL. Karl said no, but they would go to the program. The team showed up. They are a great group of guys. Groce once said if you go to Akron you have to buy into our culture because we don't change for you. These players have bought in. They are very athletic and because of that, and no dominant low post player, for now, Groce said they will play faster and emphasize transition. All have bought into defense. Josiah Harris came over and introduced himself. He is very personable. I asked him how he liked the team and he was very optimistic they will keep Akron at the top of the MAC. I asked him why he came to Akron. He said he liked the program, Groce, the tradition and it got him closer to home (Canton). He loves the new practice facility. He thought it was equal to what he had at WVU. Tressel was there. You could not get to him as all the old, deep pocket supporters were always surrounding him. When he spoke he was typical Tressel. Joe Dunn asked him to comment on the changing world of college athletics. His answer was 5 minutes long and he said zero. My friend leaned over to me and said "that is why the media in Columbus called him the senator. He talked and talked and said nothing concrete." Huggins was asked to describe how he built Akron by Joe Dunn. Hugs answered he got guys who wanted to get better and would play defense. That's it. He has lost weight, but he now looks like a recluse or hermit: beard, long hair, slicked back. At my table were three players who played for him. To a man they all loved him as a coach and said he made them better every day. Bud Wentz talked. I thought he and Len Paul were the best speakers of the evening. Bud said he is having more fun with Akron basketball than any other time in his life. He said our NIL will aid in retaining players, not poaching them. Akron was one of the first schools to set up a collective. Bud contacted the lawyer who set up the first collective he knew about, for Arkansas baseball, and learned all he could about doing it right. His enthusiasm for the program, the coach and our future are very high. Len Paul, perhaps the best player to ever play for UA, spoke more from the heart. He said if he had it to do all over again he would still go to Akron. He loved Wyatt Webb and his teammates. Brian Westover, a 6'8" center on one of Len's teams told his wife that the reunion with his teammates was one of the best moments in his life. Len actually left a school in Texas to come to Akron. When Wyatt called him he was already in Texas but said send me a ticket and I'll be on your team. The rest is history. Guthrie was very circumspect about leading an athletic dept in these changing times. He noted he is talking more with lawyers that anyone else. He believes the MAC is the best place for UA. Our focus would be conference championships, not trying to find a seat with the big boys. He noted the AD's and presidents do not want to get into player bidding wars, which we will not win. Instead Akron needs to focus on retaining players thru offering a place that cares about them, builds personal relationships, gives them great facilities and educates them. He told me later NIL will play little role at Akron. Football has little, if any, NIL money to offer. Basketball has what it needs to hold our players. Finally, other administrators feel we need to be ready for a G5 championship. This was not said in any remarks by the speakers. There were many other speakers like Steve McNeese, Eric Mclaughlin, Dr. Climon Lee and Enrique Freeman. All talked glowingly about their time at Akron. Thru the eyes of these former players you realized we have a special place at UA, despite all its challenges. The last speaker was Groce. He captured the crowd. His thoughts on continuous improvement got you excited for the future. We were listening to someone who was ready to move the program still higher. And he knows how to do it. Another night like this is already scheduled for the last weekend in July 2025. The focus on using this weekend for all teams to reunite will be emphasized.

As others have already said, it wasn’t a true spring game—just a “thud” practice—but it was still great to watch the players move and compete. QB: Finley is head and shoulders above the rest. Roggow and Broughton each had some good moments, but if the season started today and something happened to Finley, I’m not sure either one is ready to lead us to a win just yet. Like I mentioned before, Broughton’s smaller frame is probably part of the reason we were able to land him, but he’s special and he’s only going to get better. He also lined up at receiver a bit. RB: There weren’t many run plays, and the few they did call were blown dead pretty quickly, so there wasn’t a whole lot to take away there. That said, the backs caught the ball really well out of the backfield, and you could easily see their talent from that angle. Gant and Patrick are the two to keep an eye on. Patrick still needs to put on a little more mass, but once he does—look out. WR: I’m calling it now—Kyan Mason will be all-conference this season as a redshirt freshman. He’s dynamic, and our defense had a tough time covering him all night. Polk and Davis look like they’ve kept progressing and should both have solid seasons. I was expecting more from Hills. He got separation a few times, but just couldn’t haul it in. His catch radius seems somewhat limited. He’ll probably be used more on the short stuff. It was good to see Adams back out there, but he doesn’t look quite like the explosive receiver he was before the injuries. He’ll help us, no doubt, but expectations should be tempered. And once again, another spring and another strong showing from Walker—caught almost everything thrown his way, including a tough grab against Reed to end the period. TE: Backups Whisner and Witherspoon saw a lot of action at tight end tonight. Witherspoon was a bit up and down as a receiver—dropped a few easy ones but also came down with some tough, contested catches. He moves well and has all kinds of length. Pretty sure I saw Newell and Cravaack out there too, just don’t remember them getting many reps. OL: Western Kentucky transfer Darrell Johnson looks to have the inside track at left tackle. He’s got all the physical tools and should be solid. Morris and K. Davis looked really good at center and left guard. Right guard and right tackle still need to be sorted out. Based on what I saw tonight, I’d say transfer Allen Jones has the edge at right guard. Right tackle looks like it’s between JUCO signee Massai King and Jonas Mann. Pretty sure I saw Mann take a few snaps at left tackle too. DL: There was some good out there, but overall, we need immediate help. Arizona transfer Cyrus Durham is the real deal and will help soften the blow of losing Nunnally. Dall looked ready on the opposite side. Inside, Ronald Hull looks good to go. Beyond that, when it comes to starting D1 talent, that’s about it. The rest of the group has potential and might provide depth in 2025, but that’s where things stand for now. The portal and JUCO are going to be critical for our D-line moving forward. LB: Similar to running back, it’s tough to get a full read in this type of practice. That said, our backers move well and can fly downhill when needed. Spriggs came up with an interception when a receiver wasn’t expecting the ball. DB: The defensive backs rotated a lot and played all over the place. I actually thought Jarmon looked the best tonight. If I had to guess, I’d say the starters will be Jarmon and Reed at corner with DeWalt at the nickel. Tranfer Ben Kamara looked good too. We might not have an elite secondary, but we’ve got guys who move well and have plenty of length. The safeties rotated quite a bit too. The biggest thing that stood out to me was seeing Daymon David on the sideline in a red jersey. ST: Wiley looks like a completely different kicker than he was a few years back. When he connects, the ball jumps off his foot. I’d be surprised if he’s not our starter. Hard to say much about the punting, other than there was plenty of hang time—kicks kept smacking the ceiling. I came away feeling really good about our offense. This group has a real chance to be the best we’ve had under Moorhead. Defensively, though, I’m not too confident about our D-line depth. There’s too much youth and inexperience, and we definitely need more help for this season. I think we’ll be solid at linebacker and in the secondary. Now we just have to wait and see who hits the portal and who we can bring in.

Last night everybody was a winner thanks to Bud Wentz. In the putting contest, a new target sign was revealed that was 50% larger and had no target hole. The announcers said all that was required to win the $10,000 prize was to hit the sign. The young lady contestant took aim and sent a straight putt right at it. Just as the ball got there, the helpers lifted the sign and the ball passed underneath. The contestant started to walk away but was informed she had indeed won $10,000! Bud was waiting with the check at the other end of the court. The shot for tuition contest took a similar twist. A student was selected as always who could win a semester of tuition by sinking a layup, a foul shot, a three point shot and a half court shot in 30 seconds. It was then announced there would be a substitute celebrity shooter. Ali Ali! He calmly sank the first three shots on his first attempt. After about 10 attempts he banked in the halfcourt shot and the crowd went wild! Kudos to Bud for thinking outside the box to make senior night special.

Just trying to see something. React if you are going to the game!

What a waste of John Groce's work ethic and talent. He does all the heavy lifting of identifying young talent, nurturing it, living through the tough times...and when it comes to graduation day, a new "dad" with a fat wallet buys his way onto the scene and walks John's players across the graduation stage, taking pictures and smiling with his arm around them. John's left with a few hollow tweets, and yet another rebuild. The Zips steal no one's players. We get Freshman, castaways and reclamation projects. Groce works his ass off to get those guys into a cohesive, championship unit that the school and fans can be proud of...until the next April when another new fat billfolded MF'er buys his way onto the scene and strips the Zips down to the frame again. Go Zips...

Enrique Freeman and Anjali Silverheels at the Pacers formal team dinner earlier this evening in Paris.

#10 Ben Finley is the hands down #1 QB. He began the scrimmage with a 20 yard pass to Adrian Norton, then a 30 yard TD to Norton. A severely blown coverage nets #88 TE Jake Newell an easy TD Ben sprinted to the endzone to celebrate The OL acquitted itself well today. The starters were #55 Blanchard, #58 Burrell, #56 Davis, #54 Williams and freshman Jayvin James at RT #15 Terrance Thomas broke up this pass intended for Adrian Norton. It was one of the few times Norton was stopped on Saturday morning. Isiah Jones made a nice over the shoulder TD catch in the back of the endzone. Boding well for the future, it came courtesy of a nice Brayden Ruggow toss. Jordon Simmons got a lot of PT today. He looks to be the #1A RB. Kellom looks to be #1B. Simmons breaks the goal line for a 10 yard TD. Tahj looked better today than in the spring, but there is no QB competition. He'll likely get some early season opportunities as we try to keep Finley as healthy as possible for MAC play. But he's entrenched at #2. Tahj moved the team down the field, but an ill-advised pass was snatched by Syracuse transfer Aman Greenwood and taken the distance for a pick 6! Like the Zips, the scoreboard remains a work in progress. Oddly enough, it's probably as effective right now as it was the past 2 seasons? Joe addresses the team after the scrimmage. Overall he was happy. He liked the physicality. I agree, as there were some hard hits, and tough running. It was a noticeable ramp up from the spring. He like that the defense generated 3 turnovers, and made several stops on 3rd and short. A few final words from the Coach before the players hit the shower. Owen Wiley hits a FG. We seem in MUCH better shape with special teams this year. The FG/XP holds were flawless. #47 and #99 hit some solid FG's. #99 and #36 both nailed KO's into the endzone. #95 Castle had some great punts. #37 Garrison Smith (McNees State transfer) kicked two second half FG's (both < 30 yards). Hoban's Grant Gainer pulls in a swing pass from Brayden Ruggow and waltzes into the endzone. #3 Jarvis Rush (Jr. JUCO from Mississippi) eyes a deep ball from Ben Finley... ... and pulls it in for the TD! A guy I am very high on is #9 Paul Lewis III (Safety). He's all over the place on coverage, physical against the run, fun personality...you will LOVE him. Shown here dapping up #13 Rodrick Hunter. Adrian Norton, celebrating after a Finley TD pass, can't be stopped in 2024. He seems to be Finley's go-to guy. He has great hands, and uses his body to shield-off defenders really well. #7 Alex Adams showed so much promise 2 seasons ago. If he could regain his 2022 form, the Zips could have a hell of an aerial attack. Other notes: Marquese Williams, the Minnesota transfer, seems to be the #3 RB. #29 Jordan Castleberry got some carries, and also scored a TD. Starting DL was #95 Andre Proffit, #90 Demitri Madden (UTEP), #16 Fr. Dahvon Frazier and #94 Kabbash Richards Bennett Adler is wearing #1 this year!?

Nice gesture by the Cavs.

I wanted to touch on most of the potential starters. Not mentioned are many new players in backup roles who may also work their way into significant action. QUARTERBACK - California transfer Ben Finley was clearly the best QB in the spring game and seems to have solidified his position as the starter through fall camp. Tahj Bullock (former Virginia Tech transfer) will be the backup and participate in situational packages. RUNNING BACK - Michigan State transfer Jordan Simmons will likely be the starter and split snaps with redshirt sophomore Charles Kellom. WIDE RECEIVER - 2022 1st Team All-MAC Alex Adams (former LSU transfer) will reprise his role in the slot, if healthy. True sophomore Adrian Norton is set for a breakout season. The third receiver spot could be claimed by a number of players. Juniors Bobby Golden and Myles Walker will see significant playing time. Newcomers Jarvis Rush (JUCO) and Ahmarian Granger (Old Dominion/JMU) should also push for significant roles. TIGHT END - After coming on strong late in the 2023 season, Jake Newell (former Arizona State transfer) will claim the starting spot. The top backup will be Missouri transfer Max Whisner. OFFENSIVE LINE - This is an area that could feature a number of different players. The top offensive tackles are Josh Blanchard (former South Florida transfer), redshirt freshman Jayvin James, NC Central transfer Da’Quan Thomas, and Alabama/UCONN transfer Dayne Shor. The guards are Miami(FL) transfer Laurence Seymore, redshirt sophomore Keylen Davis, redshirt junior Colin Lyons, and JUCO Jerrod Burrell. Center should be filled by either redshirt sophomore Tyhler Williams or JUCO Alex Fox. DEFENSIVE LINE - 1st Team All-MAC CJ Nunnally (former JUCO) will start at one end, while senior Bennett Adler will start on the opposite side. Lama Lavea (former New Mexico State transfer) returns as a starter at defensive tackle. The other tackle spot will be occupied by either New Hampshire transfer Nathan Kapongo or true sophomore Marcus Moore. LINEBACKER - A deep linebacker corps returns three players that started over the course of 2023 in 3rd Team All-MAC Bryan McCoy, Antavious Fish (former JUCO), and Shammond Cooper (former Illinois transfer). DEFENSIVE BACK - Devontae Golden-Nelson (former Memphis transfer) has one cornerback spot locked up. The opposite CB spot could be filled by either Joey Hunter (former South Carolina transfer), redshirt freshman Catrell White, JUCO Justin Anderson, or JUCO Iesa Jarmon. Darrian Lewis returns at Nickelback. Safety will likely be a rotation between Cornell transfer Paul Lewis, Oregon transfer Daymon David, and Syracuse transfer Aman Greenwood. SPECIAL TEAMS - Owen Wiley returns at kicker and will be challenged by McNeese State transfer Garrison Smith. Punter Dante Jackson (former JUCO) has competition with Augustana transfer Avery Book.

The amount of spring coverage we’ve gotten from the program has been disappointing. To be fair, spring coverage across college football has taken a hit in general. As of this writing, only two SEC schools are even televising their spring games. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a vote next year to allow schools to play other programs during the spring. Colorado and Syracuse gave it a shot, but the NCAA shut it down, saying it wouldn’t be fair since other schools had already wrapped up spring ball and didn’t have the same opportunity. In any case, here’s my take on the current roster and what I’ll be keeping an eye on during our spring event. QB: Finley is one of the few returning starting quarterbacks in the MAC, and with a full year in the system under his belt, he should be in the mix for an all-conference season—assuming he stays healthy. With Bullock hitting the portal, the QB-run threat takes a hit, so that element of the offense will have a different feel in 2025. Roggow didn’t look like an overwhelmed freshman during spring ball in 2024, and there's a good chance he’s ready to lock down the backup role as a redshirt freshman. Then there’s true freshman Cibastian Broughton. He’s a bit undersized for the position, but he’s physically gifted and could force his way into the conversation if he puts it together quickly. RB: Top rushers Simmons and Kellom have moved on after the 2024 season, opening the door for new faces to step up and take meaningful snaps. Jordan Gant, a transfer from Tennessee State, looks like the best bet to grab the starting job, while Chris Gee out of Colgate might end up being a sneaky good pickup. Don’t sleep on redshirt freshman Sean Patrick, either. He was electric in high school and may be ready to make an impact this season. WR: Golden and Norton decided to go portaling, which leaves a production void—but honestly, I don’t think we’re looking at much of a drop-off. Adams returns, and if he can stay healthy, we’re getting back a former 1st team All-MAC player. Polk showed real growth late in the season, and that development should keep trending in the right direction. Walker, Louis, and P. Davis should be ready to step in and contribute. Redshirt freshman Kyan Mason was an absolute nightmare to cover in high school. He flashed that ability with a tough touchdown grab last year, and if he’s added some mass, he should start seeing regular snaps. And I’m pretty high on the upside of Brandon Hills, the Washington State transfer. He’s got the physical tools to become a big-time player in this offense. TE: Newell and Cravaack form what is likely the best tight end duo in the MAC. I’m curious to see what strides redshirt freshman Khalil Witherspoon has made. OL: What the starters at this position will look like is anyone’s guess. Coach JRod has done a fantastic job recruiting the high school ranks since he got here—but keeping those kids around has been a challenge. We lost starters James and Williams to the portal, and Blanchard is out of eligibility, but we might actually be in a spot where we can replace them without too much of a drop. The new additions don’t lack size or athleticism, that’s for sure. Morris and K. Davis will be locked in as starters somewhere on the interior, and we’ll have to see how the tackle spots shake out. If he’s healthy, Mann could be ready to make a push at right tackle. DE: 1st Team All-MAC Nunnally took advantage of his extra year and hit the portal to Purdue, and his running mate Adler is out of eligibility—so we’re looking at some new faces at this spot. Arizona transfer Cyrus Durham will battle it out with redshirt sophomores Cheatom and Dall for the starting jobs. Right behind them are the Frazier brothers, both redshirt freshmen. None of these guys are short on length or athleticism. DT: This position probably concerns me the most on the defensive side right now. Moore surprisingly moved on to Bowling Green, and Kapongo is out of eligibility, so we’re thin. This would be the perfect time for Murphy to finally tap into his potential and lock down a starting role. Redshirt freshmen Ronald Hull and Elijah Davis definitely have the talent, but the question is whether they’re ready to handle the workload. Madden flashed at times last season, but even as an upperclassman, he’s still pretty green. We’ve added two JUCO signees, but I don’t know when they’ll actually get on campus. We probably need a few more DTs before we can start feeling good about depth. LB: Starters McCoy and Fish have moved on—Oklahoma State and Sam Houston snagged them—but there’s some good news: Cooper looks to have been granted an extra year, and Summers is listed on the spring roster. I’m actually really high on this group. All the young guys have a ton of upside—it’s just a matter of when the light comes on for each of them. If it clicks, this unit could surprise. NB: D. Lewis and Greenwood will once again handle the snaps at Nickel, barring injury. They have plenty of experience and provide stability to the secondary. CB: Golden-Nelson transferred out, but outside of his departure, we didn’t really lose much at this spot. Reed, DeWalt, and White are the top returners and should collect the meaningful snaps. Upper Iowa transfer Ben Kamara is definitely one to watch. He has all the physical tools to be a really good player—it’s just a matter of how quickly he adjusts to this level. S: P. Lewis is off to try his hand at the pro level after a one-and-done, all-conference season. David and Anderson should be the starters heading into the year. Quality depth was a real issue last season—once David went down or anyone else missed time, it really showed. We’ve added two transfers to help shore things up: Jamarii Somerville from James Madison and Mehki Flowers from Penn State. I’m not sure if Flowers is on campus yet, but if he’s able to pull it all together as a former 4 star, he could be a game-changer. ST: We fielded one of the best special teams units in the conference in 2024, but now we’re looking at a full reset—our starting kicker, punter, kickoff specialist, and long snapper have all moved on. Wiley and Castle will both have shots to earn starting roles. They have been in the program for several years now and should be noticeably improved from their freshmen campaigns. I’d imagine we’ll see a few more specialists brought in after the spring for competition purposes. Ending Thoughts: I’m sure we’ll lose a handful of players after the spring when the next portal window opens. By my count, we still have nine scholarships to fill, not counting the three usually allocated to special teams. There are still plenty of players out there who could help us, whether from JUCO or the portal, so we’ll see how everything shakes out over the next few months.

Went to today's practice. Here's what I gleaned... Check out some of the defensive numbers if you'd like... Starting DL was: 97 / 10 / 5 / 41 Second unit was: 50 / 90 / 98 / 30 Joe's post-practice speech. He seemed pretty pleased Joe spent the bulk of his time observing from 20 yards behind the offense. #3 Cibastian Broughton is intriguing. He's a diminutive kid, but has a strong arm. Completed a long TD pass to #7 Adams (who's back and looks healthy). Had another nice TD pass to St Ed's Kyan Mason (#11) and one to Jake Newell too. Moves well. He's like Dijon Jennings, but good. He will see the field somewhere this season. 2nd Unit OL. First unit was (left tackle to right tackle): 78/56/52/50/73 Second unit was: 60/55/52/79/51 Finley's left leg was apparently cold? He played a lot today. Looked in-command, but understandably a bit rusty. WR's screwed up some routes that probably made his accuracy look worse than it was. Owen Wiley and Dublin Fr. Matt Schramm split the kicker duties. Both missed from 42 yards out. Tough to kick indoors, into netting with goal post stripes that's often only halfway dropped from the ceiling when the ball is snapped. Wiley seems to have the bigger leg, but Schramm is no slouch. This position will be an interesting battle. I forget who caught this Finley pass? It's spring practice for me too. 🙃 Ruggow on the run. He threw an early pick (S #18 DeMarco Johnson). Probably threw more bad balls than good ones today. Back up QB will be a battle this year. I expect Broughton (#3) will see the field, even if not at QB (like above). He's pretty athletic. Maybe a few of the 2024 "Taj" wildcat plays go to him this season? Kyan Mason blocks for Ben. Washington State transfer Brandon Hills (Soph.) made a couple nice receptions. Washington State transfer Brandon Hills again. A Cibastian Broughton INT ended the scrimmage. Overall or DB's looked surprisingly good? I think they had a pick of each Blue QB. Other notes: #95 Joey Castle punted well (albeit indoors). It looks like we'll be ok at punter this year. #22 Jordan Gant (Tennessee State) started at RB. He fumbled on his first carry. But rebounded with a tough 10 yard run on next opportunity. #25 Chris Gee from Colgate was the #2 RB today. Got a lot of action. Runs hard. Showed good hands on swing passes. #13 Sean Patrick saw a lot of reps today. Played at WR and RB. Overall the defense looks good. Solid tackling and created several turnovers. #88 Newell looks to be a beast this year. Made several nice plays. Caught a TD from Broughton. Starting LB's were: 42 (Spriggs), 32 (Summers) and 17 DeWalt (Butte College - listed as a DB) #5 Ronald Hull from Wise HS in Maryland played NT. He's mistakenly listed as #55 on the Zips roster Late game RB's included #28 Luke Reed from Benedictine and Cam Macon from Walsh It was heartening to see the Zips had sufficient depth to field 2-deep offensive and defensive units, even without the guys who will be joining in the summer. The country "Rock me like a Wagon Wheel" blasted on the speaker system for the final few minutes. Overheard in the crowd - Adrian Norton is ineligible...that's why he hasn't signed anywhere.

You are looking live at CPA! ZipsWin!

Step away from the bridges people. These things happen every season. The other MAC teams have figured out how to attack the Zips reliance on the 3 point shot. It was all a matter of time. This team has the coaching and talent to adapt to how they are now being defensed and will respond. Groce, Ford and a staff will figure this out and the players have the experience, maturity and leadership to carry it out. They've lost one game in 2025. It's not time to shake up the lineup or the rotations. Pay attention to who is in the game at crunch time, not who plays the first 5 minutes. That will show you who Groce trusts.

I never met Gerry in person. Only attended one of his games, when Terry Forbes' McKinley team whooped Moeller in the snow at the Rubber Bowl for the OHSAA title. However I know what a truly fine man he was. I attended the Notre Dame game versus Hawai'i at Aloha Stadium in the early '90s. Several Notre Dame fans saw my AKRON ZIPS cap and came up to tell me we were fortunate to have a great guy and leader of men as our football coach! But an even more personal story occurred around that same time just around 1990 or '91. I used to call a service that you would call on your land-line phone and listen to college basketball and football games -- it was HQ'ed in Akron. Well after a while I got the idea it would be cheaper to call Akron's radio station myself (WHLO then) and listen to the games. I called and they would put me on hold so I could hear the broadcast. About the third time I called the receptionist asked for my phone number. I thought she meant in case I was cut off she could call back. But about a week later I got a call about 5:00 Hawai'i time (10 or 11 in the evening in Ohio. After answering, the voice on the other end said "Hello, this is coach Gerry Faust. I hear you've been calling the station to hear our games! I just wanted to thank you for being such a great fan". I almost peed my pants! Again, late at night a college football coach makes a cold call to a stranger to just say thanks. That's the kind of guy Gerry Faust was!

I don't think we've got a general preseason 2024 thread going yet, so I'll post this here.

It's happening.

Hello - Just registered to tell you all you are getting a quality person. Dr. Tire is very approachable and yes, brings energy. GW, like most smaller private liberal arts schools, is having big financial challenges, which he dealt with here from day one. We are also in the midst of a Presidential search on campus as well, this is a critical time for the future of the school. He picked the right time to strike oil and move up the chain. We wish him well. He really didn’t do much hiring, he did hire Cris Reisert as football HC (from Tiffin up your way) to replace the young juggernaut Tre Lamb (now already HC at Tulsa) and he just hired Penn State assistant Terri Williams as head women’s hoops HC. The financial resources at GW, for a D1 program, are scarce, which made his job, especially hiring/fundraising, challenging to say the least. I read some posts mentioning a thin budget at Akron. Goodrich can easily adapt and get your fundraising apparatus kicked into gear. Go Dawgs. Go Zips.

My son is being born this morning - they're getting a new fan. 😂 The baby's room is nothing but sports with plenty of Akron, and I'm wearing an Akron sweatshirt and the 2025 MAC Champions t-shirt, so he has no choice.

I just got off the phone with Amani. He is excited about next season and ready to put in the work to take his game to the next level. He is a great kid and a perfect fit for Akron. I would expect his offensive game to take a step forward next season.

I know it’s been mentioned already, but kudos to Groce & Co. for green lighting the Evan Wilson start. Very nice.

OFFENSE QB: Finley Bullock - We are one of the few teams (maybe the only team) in the MAC returning their starting quarterback. Bullock will be the backup if he returns. If not, Roggow should be QB2. RB: Gant (Portal) Gee (Portal) - Transfers Gant and Gee should be the top backs initially. Redshirt freshman Patrick is the dark horse and may push for starting snaps sooner than later WR: Granger Mason WR: Polk Davis WR: Walker Hills (Portal) - The development of Granger and Polk in the back half of the season gives reason for optimism. Those two seem primed for a big year. If Adams returns (and is healthy) he’d be a nice boost. I really like the pickup of Hills from the portal. He’s the type of receiver who can excel in this offense and I think he’ll quickly work his way into the rotation. Redshirt freshman Mason is another one to keep an eye on. TE: Newell Cravaack - Newell was on pace to be 3rd team All-MAC before injuries sidelined him for a few games. However, Newell’s absence allowed Cravaack to gain substantial snaps. Cravaack became a fixture in the rotation once he had an opportunity. This duo should be one of the best in the conference. LT: Shor Johnson (Portal) LG: Archer (Portal) Fox C Morris McManus RG: Davis Mitchell RT: Jones (Portal) Mann - It’s really anyone’s guess who will be starting come kickoff. We lost some key players to the portal, but this group still has the potential to be solid. Coach JRod has had the OL on an upward projection regardless of who has been slotted along the line. We have some talented young players and a number of this year’s linemen will have previously spent time at JUCO. DEFENSE DE: Durham (Portal) Cheatom DE: Dall Frazier - Replacing Nunnally won’t be easy. That said, Durham ought to immediately be able to pick up some of the workload. The young players that are expected to play heavily into the rotation have high ceilings. DT: Murphy Hull DT: Brockington Madden - This position should have produced more than it did in 2024. Moore and Kapongo ended up being the only truly productive DTs once Lavea went down and we really didn’t have much of a pass rush from the interior. The DTs collected only 3.5 sacks as a group. The best talent here is the younger players. This position still needs addressing and 3-4 more interior linemen will be added. LB: Hollobaugh (Portal) Benenge LB: Spriggs Boswell - Similar to DE, this is a talented group, but most of the talent is younger and lacking experience. Hollobaugh should be an immediate starter and if Summers returns, that would help. I think Spriggs is in line for a breakout year. He has the physical tools and seems close to putting it all together. NB: Lewis Greenwood - Lewis and Greenwood return and will rotate at safety when needed. CB: Reed Branch (Portal) CB: Kamara (Portal) DeWalt - Reed was our best CB besides Golden-Nelson. Kamara should immediately slot in as the CB opposite Reed. If DeWalt can become more consistent, that would give us an incredibly long and athletic group to match up against opposing wide receivers. S: David Hunter S: Anderson D. Johnson - This group was inconsistent, at times, due to lack of experienced depth. David and Anderson will likely be the starters. Redshirt freshman Hunter may push his way into starting snaps. SPECIAL TEAMS K: Wiley Schramm P: Castle LS: Rhoades Special teams listed are returners and I’m assuming will step into starting roles. However, I imagine a few more specialists will be added.

Joe did what he was told. The customer is always right. During the selection process there were better designs. More clever designs. And Guthrie forced his lame, amateur Graphic Designer effort on us. Beyond that, he fixed a problem that didn’t exist, when he should have been focusing on real problems. Yay…he rearranged the deck chairs on the Titanic. There’s a reason the guy’s gone, and it isn’t because anyone was impressed with his graphic designer capabilities. Hope our next AD isn’t a putz. Based upon history there’s a 75% chance he/she/they will be.

Years ago...maybe during the Brookhart era...we were playing Kent (at Kent). The Zips were forced to punt from their own endzone late in the 4th quarter. If Kent just let the punt drop on the field, they could run out the clock and win the game. The Kent return man tried to field the ball, dropped it, the Zips recovered and won the game. Completely improbable. This era of Zips football reminds me of that Kent team. Or the Morgan State team that could have beaten the Zips last year if they just took a knee instead of running it and giving the Zips a scoop 6 on the ensuing fumble. The Zips do stupid things. Incomprehensibly botched executions of fundamentals. And it is repeatable. Dropped handoffs to close-out games against CMU and Buffalo 2 years ago. Missed 31 yard FG's to beat Indiana. Three turnovers + a turnover on downs against Buffalo last week...in the first quarter! Weekly fumbled punts... If you're a Zips opponent, just hang around long enough against them and they'll beat themselves.

Zips basketball TOMORROW!

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.

A friend of mine is a financial planner. He submitted a 30 day notice to leave for another job (customary notice in his industry). He was due a bonus at the end of his term. The employer told him he was free to leave immediately. He said "Ok. I still get my bonus, right?" The employer said "no." So my friend decided he was going to stay the entire 30 days. His new employer wasn't expecting him to start for a month anyhow. The old employer subsequently stuck him in a warehouse with a card table for 30 days. My friend dutifully sat at his card table in the warehouse for 30 days, and ultimately got his bonus. I feel Guthrie is treating Moorhead is a similar manner. If/when Moorhead departs, be very scared of the next coach Guthrie hires. It has a very good chance of being much, much worse. The uneducated person with say "How can it be worse...Joe's only winning 2 games per year?" Trust me, it can.

I think it was a good, thorough assessment of the team. Zips fans will like Finley. He has some of Charlie Frye's traits, with the ability to both run and pass. He is slight of build, so hopefully he knows how to slide too. If he gets time in the pocket, he will hit WR's downfield. The Nunnaly, Fish, McCoy trio is our best hope to slow down Ohio State. They are three Big 10 caliber players. Bennett Adler looks to be in great shape. He's my all-MAC sleeper pick. Our OL is a complete unknown. I hope they surprise me. Their performance, and the injury bug, at the two most critical factors in the 2024 Zips going 3-9, or 6-6. We'll hit on 70% of our FG's this season. Who kicks them remains to be seen. I see Norton as the #1 WR this season. Adams is a question mark. He was not a factor in the scrimmages I watched. I think the other guys are solid, and Finley will have no problem finding open WR's to throw to. I like our DL in MAC play. Good size, depth and experience. CB's are a small concern. I like our safeties. If Kellom and Simmons stay healthy, we will be better at RB than last year. Both are capable of seamlessly replacing Lingard, and upgrades over Anderson. The fun starts on Saturday. Hope we get out of it injury-free, while having punched the Buckeye's in the nose a couple times.

Parking passes are now included for all season ticket holders. This is for every sport.

Once a kid mentally decides to enter the portal, whether that's actually in December/April or weeks or months before the window opens, there is nothing the program can do to control that kids actions anymore. If an education is not important to that player, they check out entirely, often not bothering to finish their courses. There is nothing the program can leverage against the kid to enforce his actions. Meanwhile, the kids who stay suffer collectively due to their actions. Once the portal changed, this education requirement should not be enforced. The programs who are still maintaining the requirements are rich enough to fake it. The problem isn't all on the kids currently in the program, it's the kids who check out mid semester because they know they are hitting the portal.

With all the recent conversation about Akron football APR scores it makes me feel even more grateful to have Groce running a basketball program that we can be proud of. On numerous post game interviews over the years I've heard him talk about players getting their degrees and praise individuals success in the classroom. He's the embodiment of what a college coach should be. He could be looking to cut corners and bring in unruly characters in hopes of adding an extra win or two, but he's not. He genuinely seems to care about his players and their long-term futures.

Whoa.

I just got home. I am: 1) hoarse from screaming; 2) exhaausted; and 3) damn proud to be a Zips fan. We had an obnoxious Kent State fan in front of us rooting for Miami who about 8 minutes on said it was over. As the clock expired I leaned in, grabbed him by the shoulder, and said "I thought you said it was over about an hour and a half ago." It very mush enjoyed that.

I plead complete naivety on this one, I’ve been to the JAR countless times, but is the state of the JAR really a deal breaker for Groce? Or is this primarily a fan issue. Groce doesn’t care about the seating and bleachers does he? If he wins we come, when he plays Kent we come. It has nothing to do with recruiting as he’s proven already with the retention he’s had and the portal guys he’s brought in, many coming from places with top notch facilities. Sure a refurbished or brand new facility shows a deep level of commitment but it could also drain resources from elsewhere. I would think, in no particular order, salaries for his asst pool, NIL, funding for travel/tournaments, nutrition and perks for the athletes, and commitment from the University on things Bud has been paying for e.g. marketing AND ongoing operational support at the highest levels of the MAC are the things that would be much more relevant to him staying or going.

Great gesture from Indiana. Imagine telling Enrique 5 years ago he'd have an NBA All Star and Olympic Gold Medalist at his high school jersey dedication.

"Looking ahead, rookie two-way forward Enrique Freeman is a name to watch as a standard NBA contract conversion candidate after the trade deadline, league sources told HoopsHype."

Not only was he interviewing for a job on Akron's company time, he was apparently working on the rebranding of the Fordham logo while still employed at UA? Someone in the Athletic Department found these renderings when they were cleaning out his desk.

That actually made me laugh. Ive given stats about the game which were shot down. And now facts about recruiting that’s been shot down. I could debunk the “smaller players” statement with size stats that I’m sure would also get shot down. So not going to bother. When facts are ignored, it’s not worth my time to continue the conversation.

Game ball for his first NBA points.

Wonderful piece from the Players' Tribune by former Zip Darlington Nagbe- https://www.theplayerstribune.com/posts/darlington-nagbe-mls-soccer-crew

Those are three different elephants. Let's focus on the athletic one. I believe the athletic department should benefit the athletes students alumni fans and general community around Akron. Giving the taxpayers of Ohio a good gameday experience could make them believe their hard earned money being spent on public universities is a good thing. A paved highway makes taxpayers feel good. A pothole filled highway makes taxpayers bitter. The old scoreboard was a pothole filled highway.