kreed5120

Spradlin did an excellent job last year in year 1 as their head coach. He inherited a 32 win team, but much of their roster was turned over. He still managed to lead them to a 13-5 conference record after an understandably slow OOC start. I haven't followed their offseason, but with a full year of recruiting I imagine they should be one of the better mid-majors this year. A nice home opponent for the schedule.

Other than Kent, I'm not sure there is an opponent that's in the should win category (excluding FCS). There are certainly teams we can contend with and beat, but nobody I can say with confidence that's a win. In the grand scheme of things until we prove otherwise Akron is just above Kent in the food chain and below ~120 other teams. We are the cupcake that other fans pencil in wins against when they're projecting their teams win totals.

The college basketball season will expand from 31 to 32 games starting in 2026-2027 season. https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/ncaa-set-to-allow-college-basketball-schedules-increase-to-32-game-season-beginning-in-2026-27/

The thing is if you eliminate it you have to put something in place to replace it with. RPI was an even worse system IMO. Whatever new system gets lobbied for I'd say make it reward teams more for winning on the road against quality opponents. Teams have become too complacent at loading schedules with homes games against cupcakes. You get what you reward.

Maybe he wants an opportunity to actually play in a bowl game

Money meant for taxpayers has long found it's way to athletics in SEC. The difference before that money was used on facilities. Case in point the Mississippi scandal that Brett Favre was in the middle of.

I'm not even opposed to sin taxes. To me this just more so shows where the priorities lie for the state. Instead of investing in improving their education system, which is ranked in the bottom 10 nationally, they're prioritizing paying 18-22 year old kids who can throw or catch a football. I suppose it's an easy sell to those politicians voter base who care more about sitting in front of a TV watching football than they do about developing well paying industries in their communities.

EA Sports paying schools based off of how frequently the team gets played in the game. https://www.si.com/college-football/ea-sports-pay-schools-based-game-usage-college-football-26

It's challenging in the men's game as well. Guards and wings have always been easier to come by as they're more plentiful.

Didn't he have a similar title at Akron? It seems like a lateral move on the surface. I know there were comments about what Akron was achieving with a very small support staff. I wonder if feeling overwhelmed play a part in his departure.

I see they raised general admission ticket prices. It's still not a bad value when you break it down by game. It comes out to ~$6-$7/game depending on how many home games there are.

Not intending to throw shade, but being the first or second guy off the bench is probably a better fit for him at the P4 level.

Billboards and radio advertising I've heard frequently.

Coaching salaries have become absurd. Sure, guys like Nick Saban did enough to generate buzz and revenue at their schools to be worth their salaries. I just don't see how the math math's that guys like Moorhead are worth $500k and his assistants are worth ~$150k (or more) each. Most of the revenue Akron generates in football is fixed. The other revenue (ticket sales, concessions, parking) that a coach can impact is very minimal at schools like Akron. Camden Stockton I remember in an interview said ticket sales only generated ~$800k in revenue and that was for all sports. Even if we say football makes up 75% that would be barely enough to cover just Moorhead's pay. The whole system is propped up because of institutional support.

The simple answer is schools like Akron aren't expected to compete. There are even schools in the P4 (Northwestern, Vanderbilt, half the ACC, etc. that aren't expected to compete. Programs like Akron exist because someone needs to be at the bottom of the food chain to prop others up. The P4 isn't going to go away because there is no way the NFL can replicate a farm league that would generate the revenue that the top ~30 FBS programs do. There have been how many spring leagues over the years that have failed? There is no market for minor league NFL. College football thrives off tradition and millions of people feeling connected to schools they didn't even attend.

ESPN posted an article ranking all FBS QB rooms. I thought some of you might enjoy this tidbit. https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/45145716/ranking-all-136-college-football-fbs-quarterbacks-tiers-2025-season

Akron football players would be very upset if they could read this comment.

More like Akron against ourselves!

I'm not sure to be honest. From what I read the 4 hours of reduced practice time is supposed to be replaced with 4 hours of mandatory study tables.

It's worth remembering that these penalties come with a reduction in practice/meeting time. That's going to impact on the field performance.

What NIL money? Odds are we weren't going to go bowling anyway this year.

Unless there is one that I'm missing it looks like we were the only mid-major to make the list. Edit: I see Gonzaga/St. Mary's now

These ringers you speak of don't have to be non players. Just fill out the roster with guys who did well in school, but were maybe a few inches too short or a step too slow. It's not like all HS players are stereotypical jocks. Those guys can still contribute on special teams or in practice. I think the bigger problem is we just brought in too many JUCO or players that got by in high school because the school wanted them to play football on Fridays.

Only scholarship athletes.

I assumed those were the players @Hilltopper made mention to that the administration told them theh could come back and get an education for free. That was Akron's attempt to mitigate the issue.