Zip44

So Kreads, will you be happy if next years team finishes with 22 wins & 2nd best record in MAC & loses in MAC championship game? I hope not, because we became spoiled by Dambrot success & has considered that result a failure by not going to NCAA tourney. so we must judge Groce same way. He had 5yrs to show at Illinois & his teams got progressively worse. Now we have Groce for 3 more years & overpaid at $600k +

Cannot believe you are comparing & accepting Groce to Dambrot!! dambrot inherited the bad teams a from Hipsher that never got beyond 1at round in MAC. his 1st rebuilding year was 19-11 2nd year was 22 wins followed by 11 more 22+ wins in a row with 9 MAC Championship games. As Thad Matta stated to me why he would not recommend Groce, his long time asst: Dambrot’s conf record was over .700 Groce’ combined conf record in MAC & Big 10 combined is below .500. Remember, Akron was only school that would offer him a job after his debacle at Illinois. So don’t expect more than mediocrity.

You don’t give up on a talent like Cotton, especially with his ability to want & make a game winning shot as a Freshman. Those are hard to find. Remember What Ivey was like as a Frosh/Soph. Does that mean Groce would have given up on him too. His transfer is a big loss.

You don’t give up on a talent like Cotton, especially with his ability to want & make a game winning shot as a Freshman. Those are hard to find. Remember What Ivey was like as a Frosh/Soph. Does that mean Groce would have given up on him too. His transfer is a big loss.

Dambrot takes Akron to the MAC Championship game 7 years in a row, 9 of 11 years. wins championship 3 times. 2007 loses to Miami on 2 missed foul shots & a prayer 45’ of the board buzzer beater 2016 loses to Buffalo on 25 footer Remember Abreu would have been reinststed ,but got busted again, Treadwell was kicked off team & Forsight tapped out at end of year. Big Dog got over worked. Still in position to win. that team w/ all the firepower in tact was a sweet sixteen team or better 2017 best record in Akron history - lose to Kent because Walker was unstoppable. This year he is a bust. 9 championship games out of 11 3 tourney champs. Without some bad look could have been 6. you really believe anyone can duplicate that? He brought in some great players, made us proud to be a Zip, gave us great excitement & he loved Akron. He was & still is one of us. Give him his due credit, quit bad mouthing him & move on.

You are so right. Let’s talk a bigger issue: A few years ago UA had a real chance at bigger conference. The UA board had a chance to hire Jim Tressel. They balked because he wanted 5 yr contract & they only offered 3. He wanted the job. He believed Akron belonged in bigger conf for our athletic survival & he would have taken us there. He would have brought instant credibility & reached out to the Community & raised the required funding & support. As evidence look at what he raised for Youngstown State a D2 school. Look at the meeting & school visits he has made to raise funding & enrollment. With Tressel as president, Dambrot stays & we get the funding & the JAR would have been renovated, eventually even a new arena, bigger conference, better talent & multiple NCAA at large bids. Sadly our past & current board & 2 Presidents did not & do not really believe strongly enough in the importance of athletics. The President & AD want to leave this ship. The big donors have seen all this & have pulled their funding. Why do you think the JAR’s major renovation has not yet started. We got a facelift paint job & a badly needed scoreboard. Don’t expect any major renovations this off season. No funding. Can’t build a consistent winner when the successful coaches leave & we have to strike gold each time to continue that success. Look at UA past: Webb, Huggins, Dambrot. After their departure- immediate drop off & insignificance. The leadership- board & President - have to change their ways & realize the importance that athletics bring to the success of the entire school. Sad to say, until then, we are stuck in mediocrity.

Antino is a nice kid, respectful, has positive attitude. I am happy for him & wish him well.

To NWAkron: everyone has a right to their opinion. Show some respect & quit displaying your bullying tendencies.

Groce will have to get past Buffalo in next few years. Oats is now best coach in MAC & his program is one to beat until he advances to bigger stage. Can Groce do it?? Combined history record in MAC/Big Ten: sub.500. 5Yrs in Big Ten: 1st: NCAA 2nd: NIT 3rd: no bid 4th: last place 5th: 10place Nagging Questions: Why could Groce not convince last years players to stay in program? Can Groce keep Ivey from transferring? Are current Frosh really going to get a lot better over the years & are his transfers & incomig recruits difference makers? Can he now convince top HS talent & transfers to come to Akron after finishing last in MAC? Can he beat Buffalo head to head in THE BIG GAME? A lot of big questions marks! Improvement is not good enough next year. Remember, anything short of MAC Tourney champ & a WIN in NCAA Tourney will fall short of his promise & AD/UA fans expectations. He has a streep road ahead of him - next year will tell a lot.

Toledo is the dirtiest program in the MAC Fact: Willie Jackson former Cleve Hts &Missouri transfer commits last Dec to Akron, expecting KD to pay off $18k car payment (present fr Missouri). KD says no way, goes to Kent & Senderoff also passes. Kowalczyk quickly agrees. Also look up article fr Toledo Blade about Athletic Dept holding money from parking & having lose cash available not on the books. Yes Toledo is a dirty program!! Every coach in MAC knows it. NCAA & FBI just have bigger fish to catch.

Can’t start Riak & E-man together. E-man is a 5 & can’t play the 4-spot. His play will be limited his entire career at Akron. Also, just because 1 scholarship is officially open, don’t be surprised if another transfer or 5th year man is offered scholarship as well. Groce can easily let a player (Patton) know he will not have opportunity to play & suggest transfer elsewhere to play. No scholarship is a guarantee.

Don’t hold yr breath on further JAR renovations. All the big money pledges have been taken off the board. Donors frustrated with lack of leadership & development. Do not have a clue how to present & sell a plan.

Nobody won the 1st win on the road for 2017. How about this question: will the Zips win a game on the road for the remaining season?

Williams had all year to follow through on promises to Keith & Basketball program. He knew Keith could get major offers & took no steps to keep him until right before the Kent Champiionship game. They came to an agreement quickly - most importantly to upgrade JAR, offices, bball dorm,... money was coming in. But nothing was put in writing. That is all he asked for. Even on the 11th hour he ageeed to stay if they put their terms & promises in writing. How many of you would take a job without the terms in writing. Williams just blew it. Refused to put it in writing

Tell me again about that rude awakening Dambrot will get in conf play. 3-1 who has the rude awakening? Groce at 0-3

Throw in Groce awful record at Illinois, his combined MAC / Big 10 conf record is well below .500. Williams hires a leftover. No one else wanted him. If Williams does not hire him he is an assistant somewhere & no head coaching job in sight. You all need to know that Keith did not want to leave. It was not about his salary. He would not have left if Williams would have put into writing what he had promised for Keith’s program. All his efforts went into saving football. In the end Williams told Keith he could do nothing for him. He left Keith no choice. He should have locked Keith up well before MAC tourney started. Should have known offers would be forthcoming. Williams showed he is reactive not proactive & proved ineffective. Tired of him telling people he got blind sided. He just blew it.

Skip Zip has it right. At Duquesne Dambrot went through the same setup as Groce, except the cupboards were somewhat bare. He had to convince players to stay plus bring in transfers. Groce had talent back, but could not convince many to stay. Look what Dambrot has done: split at Vegas Tourney, started out 3-1 in Atlantic 10, having VCU on the ropes until foul trouble shot their chance. The players have bought in & are playing intense M-M defense. No slacking off any night. There it is like Riley coming to Miami Heat. Groce cannot use “young team” excuse any more. If no effort is shown by the players, or if they are not ready for a big game,that is on him. I also don’t buy that this had to be a losing season. Never heard Keith sat that his 2st season here nor now in his 2st season at Duquesne

Buffalo wins by 20 anybody still think Zips will win more than 16 games??

This is just a bad defensive team. Would be better off playing zone most of the time. Also would help W-man not getting into foul trouble