kreed5120

It is sad that I'm surprised there are 6 teams worse? If blindly asked I would have thought we would be 2nd or 3rd worst.

I do agree there should be more standardization in compensation. Regarding is other tweet the big reason why power programs stopped going to mid-major schools is money. Not only do they get ticket sales and concessions, but the home team dictates who has broadcasting rights. Now that all these big conferences have their own networks they have to not only fill TV slots for ESPN, Fox, CBS...but also need programing for the SEC, ACC, Big 10 networks. Purdue-Akron might not draw millions of eyeballs, but it will get more viewers than a random Big 10 volleyball or soccer match.

It was an ignorant tweet. If he actively scheduled 3-5 games against teams like Yale, McNeese St, any of the top half teams in the MVC, etc. nobody would be commenting on the lack of a P5 game on their schedule. If anyone did risk assessment it was Miami. Actively avoiding quality mid-majors, but expecting a mid-tier (not a Purdue, Alabama, UM, Duke, etc.) to agree to play you. Edit: I will give him Wright State as a quality mid-major. He needed another 2-4 (excluding SunBelt challenge)

Not sure why it would matter for us when the last time Miami was the 1 seed. I'm more pointing out that our team is used to going to Cleveland without being the favorite and still winning. Although I'm not sure Miami is much of a favorite. If Akron and Miami do meet in the finals I think it would pretty much be a pickem game.

The thing is that's subjective. I don't think anyone can really argue that Miami's résumé is at least on the bubble and deserves a look. From there it just depends on how one weighs things. That's the problem with a committee picking the teams. Everyone has their own opinion and weighs things differently. What you might feel deserves more importance @clarkwgriswold might not or vice versa.

But $2 Bud Lights are.

Give it a few more years of the B1G spanking the SEC and then some senator from Alabama or Louisiana will make reform a priority. Just look at how involved the Louisiana Governor was in the recent coaching change. It's an easy way for them to gain favor with their constituents without having to do a whole lot.

The answer is no

I would agree with this statement most years, but the Big East is having a bad year (by their standards). Buffalo beat 5th place DePaul by 13 earlier in the season. I think this season both Akron and Miami would compete in that 5-7 range in the conference.

Sure we are. Last season was the only year this senior class has had the #1 seed in the MAC tournament. I imagine in many of those years few had us slotted into the field a week before the tournament.

It looks goofy, but I honestly don't hate the fact that they re-seed after the opening round.

Kent teaches them what not to do.

$1 beers is an incredible deal. Kind of sad not even that can get a few hundred people to show.

I would hate to see it happen, but if Groce has an itch to test his luck at a P5 programs there isn't much we can really do. I would hope Dustin Ford would be in consideration as the next coach in such a doomsday scenario. Considering Oats job looks secure in Alabama and no way any of us would want Hurley, I can't imagine there being another Groce falling into our laps.

Yes, especially once you consider his wife's family has a $4.5 billion net worth. That would be like you or I getting fined $1.

I'm not really surprised. Some voters throw a vote to a mid-major, even if they might not think they're really top 25, just to give a school some recognition that might not otherwise be getting attention. It seems those votes are going to High Point, Navy, and Santa Clara instead. Probably because they think giving Miami votes is already drawing enough attention to the MAC. If I'm to shed my Zippy colored glasses for a minute I can't really argue with Santa Clara. They probably should be ahead of us. High Point I don't think should be, but they're close enough that an argument could at least be made. There is no reason that Navy should be getting votes if we're not. That's the lone outrageous one IMO.

I mean if we leave Cleveland with a win over Miami, Ohio, Toledo, or whoever that's entertaining, at least to me. Regardless if it's by 1 point or 20.

Not to mention I would expect a good number of Miami fans who rarely or never make the trip to show up. It should be a decent day or two for downtown Cleveland hotels.

A big part of why our games get pushed to Fridays is the lack of compelling matchups in MAC play. If UMass was competently run there would be at least 3 intriguing teams in the MAC. Meaning on weeks that 2 of the 3 didn't play one another one of Miami, Akron, or UMass would keep their Saturday game since only 2 games get flexed per week. Majority of the time it was Akron and Miami getting flexed even when they played MAC bottom feeders. Personally, I think if we call sell out Kent at a 6PM start time on a Friday then we can't really make an excuse that our other Friday games don't draw better. Not saying they need to all be sell outs, but it's disappointing we can't get 3000+ to show up. It's not like we're in Athens where only a small number of alumni live in the area and most have to drive in a far distance. Under the current format you only host 9 MAC home games. You have to remember half of those would automatically be on a Tuesday. Meaning at most you get only 4-5 weekend home games. The MAC could do a better job guaranteeing 2-3 of those are against your rivals, but it's not really possible to guarantee 5-6 games, especially since many teams would want to host an Akron or Miami but not everyone can. For Akron I'd say our two top rivals are Kent and probably OU. After that it kind of just fluctuates based off who is good at the time. Buffalo was up there a few years, then Toledo, and now Miami. Edit: When the MAC used to have divisions we were guaranteed to play all the Ohio teams (besides Toledo) twice. Along with UB. Many complained back then because it wasn't fair that Toledo got an easier schedule than us because the MAC East was so much better. It seems no matter what people will find something to complain about.

I'm not sure if we're in a good place to judge. I didn't fact check it, but someone on the Miami board said we drew ~5k for the Kent game, but our next highest home attendance was ~2,500.

I know the new one in North Canton has them so I would imagine Boston Heights does as well. I buy a lot of my clothes from Costco. The Akron stuff I've seen has just been very bland so I haven't bothered purchasing anything. Maybe if I didn't already have a closet full of Zips gear I would have picked up a piece or two.

This is pretty much me. I think for me it was a $40 hoodie I got on sale at Dick's sporting goods, which isn't much more than what a t-shirt would cost at the team shop.

I choose the wrong field as well.

It seems like a foregone conclusion that Boals, barring a miracle, is canned at seasons end. I peaked at UMass message board and it seems they want Frank canned as well. The problem is they can't fire him because his contract is fully guaranteed through 2028-2029 with a reported $6-$8M buyout. Between giving out that large of a guaranteed contract and the performance of the football team that AD needs fired.

For me it's not that I'd be concerned with losing to UMass (although anything is possible in single elimination tournaments). It's more that having to win 3 games in 3 days requires being able to recover quickly. The bumps and bruises we take on Thursday can have an impact on Friday or Saturday.