catdaddyp

I was referring more to the ability to keep the guys headed to other G5 programs, like Spriggs to Southern Miss. No way we’d be able to match what most of the power programs are offering.

That’s too bad. He had the physical ability to develop into a really good lineman for us.

Impressive. Goodrich is doing work. Hopefully the football program will have a budget on par with the rest of the MAC soon as well. The current staff has shown they can consistently identify talent and develop those players. We have to raise enough funds for retention. It’s a tough road losing the best players year after year.

I think he made some good points and had some informative things to say, but he was clearly lost when it came to most of the portal additions. It seemed like he wasn’t too familiar with backups who didn’t play much last year either and ended up throwing out the one name he could think of. Definitely not the best look, but it wasn’t a terrible interview either.

If quarterback play lives up to its potential and the offensive line gels quickly, this year’s offense has a chance to be explosive, especially with the skill positions being talented and deep. Defensively, there are plenty of question marks up front, but this unit could surprise. The question is how long it will take for this year’s defense to sync. There’s enough talent on that side of the ball to keep Akron in all of its conference matchups, and Tibesar always has them playing a physical brand of football. I also expect special teams to make a bounce back this year, as there are players in place who should be able to not only make routine plays but have the ability to produce a big play from time to time. Honestly, I feel there’s enough talent on this year’s roster to win most games on the conference schedule, but this year’s lineup is more difficult than last year’s, so similar results in the win/loss column wouldn’t be surprising. At Wake Forest - Wake may be hard pressed to reach the eight wins they collected in 2025, as they will be working in a good amount of new starters. However, they still have more overall talent than the Zips. Even though I’m calling a win by the Deacons, it’s Week 1 and wild things can happen. 0-1 Vs Robert Morris - Robert Morris was probably better than their three wins indicated last season. Unfortunately for the Colonials they lost almost all of their production on both sides of the ball. Chances are they’ll struggle to hit three wins again in 2026. Zips win handily. 1-1 At Minnesota - Unless the Gophers are completely looking past the Zips and towards their conference lineup, this will be Akron’s second loss of the season. Depending on which publication is being utilized, Minnesota sports around nine players on preseason All BIG teams. 1-2 Vs UNLV - It’ll be nice having a strong G5 program come into InfoCision. What won’t be nice is the likely loss that’ll come with it. UNLV is expected to be a contender for the G5 playoff spot this season. Who knows if that’ll come to pass, but the Rebels will likely be too much for the Zips to handle. 1-3 At Central Michigan - The Chippewas should be strong along both lines of scrimmage and field one of the better run games in the MAC. There are questions about who will be the starting QB, but if the Chips figure that out, they are going to give opponents all kinds of issues with their power spread offense. Akron caught CMU by surprise last year and I doubt that happens again. Also, I don’t like the Chips physical style against Akron’s remade defensive front. 1-4 (0-1) Vs Eastern Michigan - There hasn’t been much separating Akron and Eastern Michigan over the past few years, and despite EMU returning a bunch of production, I suspect there won’t be much separating the two programs again this year. This will be EMU’s second road game in a back-to-back, and it could also be the highest attended game of the year for Akron. If that turns out to be the case, there will certainly be more energy in the stadium, which should help lead the Zips to their first conference win. 2-4 (1-1) At Miami - Miami has been picked as one of the best teams in the MAC again. If rumors are true that the RedHawks have the most revenue share of any program in the conference, then Miami should be fielding the strongest team on a consistent basis. The Zips have had issues scoring points against Miami whenever they’ve played over the past few years, and I doubt that changes in 2026. Miami wins. 2-5 (1-2) At Kent State - Zips shouldn’t have lost to Kent last year. They won’t lose this year. Akron takes back the Wagon Wheel. 3-5 (2-2) Vs Ohio - This could be the year all the coaching changes finally catch up with the Bobcats. Couple that with losing all-conference quarterback Navarro, who bailed out the Ohio offense with his scrambling ability an insane amount of times, and this may line up as an “upset” victory for the Zips. Ohio has plenty of talent, but QB play is what has set them apart in recent seasons. I’m expecting a drop-off and calling for a Zips win. 4-5 (3-2) Vs Western Michigan - Western Michigan was the most physical team in the conference last season, and that will probably remain true in 2026. WMU returns a lot of production on the offensive side of the ball, including the 2025 Offensive Player of the Year in quarterback Lowry. However, the Broncos are replacing a number of players on defense. At this point in the season, I feel like the Zips will be situated to take one of the two games between Ohio and WMU, so if I’m wrong about Ohio, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a win against WMU. That said, since I called a win against Ohio, I’m going with a loss here. 4-6 (3-3) At UMASS - The Minutemen should be improved over last year, and if they aren’t, their administration may be forced to make yet another change with the coaching staff. Especially considering how they’ve sunk plenty of money into the program, by G5 standards. Regardless, this is a matchup the Zips should win. 5-6 (4-3) Vs Buffalo - The Bulls lost a ton on defense, multiple playmakers on offense, and will be replacing practically their whole offensive line, although it won’t matter much by this point of the season as Buffalo will have already figured out what they have. Even so, I’m calling for another win for the Zips and a bowl invite, as this staff usually has Akron playing their best football at the end of the season. 6-6 (5-3)

I think Zips fans are going to love this LB in a few years. While he has good size, he may not be quite as athletic as some of the other linebackers we’ve recruited, but he’s incredibly physical and has a good nose for the ball. Reminds me of Bubba in that sense.

I think he falls under the “transition” category, meaning he still has this season left to play. If I’m not mistaken, the new 5-for-5 rule applies to incoming players in 2026, while athletes who still have eligibility under the old rules can continue playing under those rules.

He’s a guy I’m excited about. The question is how quickly he’ll come along. Will he be ready to step in and contribute right away, or will it take a season or two? For comparison, I liked DeWalt coming out of JUCO, but it took him a full season to get comfortable and figure things out before everything clicked in year two. We seem to have good depth this year and there’s no denying Galloway’s upside, that’s for sure.

I think Cravaack has the potential to make it. He’s another player I’m not sure we’ll be able to keep if he takes the next step in his development. Hopefully our specialists will have a great year, but we’ve had a lot of inconsistency there.

Thanks, happy to do it. I think the offense could be really good this year. If Poffenbarger plays as well as I think he can, he’ll be a candidate. I’d be surprised if Mason and Williams weren’t selected at WR. There’s a chance both Patrick and Gant will be worthy, but neither make it if snaps are split fairly evenly. In that situation they wouldn’t have the same amount of opportunities as some of the other backs in the conference. Lyons and Jones are probably the best candidates along the OL. I think the collective parts of the defense will make it solid, but I’m not sure if we’ll have that many standouts this year. I like Hull at DT, but for some reason even when we’ve had strong DT play in the past, our players have been passed over. Then at DB, White at CB and David at safety could be candidates it if they can stay healthy.

Kicker: M. Schramm had a solid first season with the Zips, splitting time with former kicker O. Wiley. Schramm went 16-of-17 on extra points and 12-of-13 on field goals, with his only miss coming from beyond 40 yards. Based on last season’s production, he should enter 2026 as the clear favorite to handle field goal and extra point duties. J. Westrich has been added for what I assume is primarily kickoff duties, as that was his main responsibility at the Division II level last season. While he possesses a strong leg, he went 0-for-5 on field goal attempts, which suggests his path to playing time is likely through kickoffs rather than challenging Schramm as the primary placekicker. Punter: J. Castle had his best season to date averaging nearly 43 yards per punt. He also split some snaps with former punter B. Johnson. I believe A. Satire is being brought in primarily as a punter to compete with Castle. He did not play as a freshman at West Virginia this past season. Long Snapper: F. Miner was the backup at long snapper in 2025 and will compete with portal addition S. Dean for the starting role this coming season. Returner: B. Hills is set to reprise his role as the main kickoff returner. His competition will likely come from S. Patrick, T. Thomas, and JUCO addition G. Hilburn. On punt return, it’ll likely be the same competition of players as kickoff return, except Patrick should be the lead man. Looking forward: I believe most specialists are non-scholarship players for Akron, with the exception of whoever earns the starting jobs. So typically only three scholarships are allocated to special teams. With that in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised if one more kicker is brought in before fall camp. Returning: P - Castle (Sr.) LS - Miner (R. Sr.) K - Schramm (R. So.) New: LS - Dean (Jr.) = DII K - Westrich (R. So.) = DII P - Stire (R. Fr.) = West Virginia Out: LS - Dennis (Gr.) P - Johnson (Gr.) K - Samaha = Eastern Michigan K - Wiley = Portal

The Starter: Unless something drastically changes, R. Poffenbarger will be the starter in 2026. Poffenbarger was named an FCS All-American during his time at Albany where he threw for 6,613 yards and 60 touchdowns across two seasons. From there, he went on to become a backup at Miami and North Texas, sitting behind Cam Ward and Drew Mestemaker respectively. Poffenbarger throws a catchable ball and, at least during his Albany days, didn’t turn the ball over much. He’s not necessarily a “dual threat” quarterback, but he has enough mobility to pick up yards on the ground when needed. If Poffenbarger can produce anything close to the numbers he put up at the FCS level, Akron’s offense will have a chance to be the best it’s been in the Moorhead era, especially considering all the weapons surrounding him on the offensive side of the ball. Next in Line: B. Roggow moves into the backup role by default. The redshirt sophomore has been in the system for a few years now and, ideally, will be ready if called upon. Of course, there’s always the chance Broughton or Beals leapfrog him depending on development and overall performance. C. Broughton is an impressive athlete at quarterback. My question is whether he remains at quarterback if, for whatever reason, he’s unable to move up the depth chart. I’m not ruling him out as potentially being an all-conference player, but I am suggesting there’s a possibility it could happen at a different position. It’s still early for those types of decisions to be made, though. S. Beals is a talented freshman with a load of potential. This is the second year in a row Akron has landed a quarterback that had power program offers in high school. Beals isn’t the scrambler Broughton is, but he has enough wiggle and speed to make things happen on the ground when he needs to. He has plenty of arm strength and could make some noise sooner than most would expect. Outlook: This is easily the most talented quarterback room of the Moorhead era. Of course, physical ability is only part of the equation at quarterback. Plenty of players have the arm talent and athleticism but never put it all together because of the mental demands that come with the position. That said, I believe Akron has its starter in Poffenbarger, and I expect him to have a strong season in 2026. Beyond that, there is enough young talent in the room to make me believe at least one of the underclassmen will emerge as a highly successful quarterback over the next few years. New: Poffenbarger (Gr.) = North Texas S. Beals (Fr.) Returning: Roggow (R. So.) Broughton (R. Fr.) Out: Finley (Gr.) Johnson (Gr.)

In what is one of the more unusual developments during the transfer portal era, every scholarship running back has returned for 2026. The Room: J. Gant became the first back to eclipse 1,000 rushing yards in a season during the Moorhead era. Gant isn’t the biggest or most explosive runner — in fact, his longest carry of the year was only 36 yards — but he is excellent in other areas. He has a subtle shiftiness when hitting the hole that consistently makes defenders miss. Just as importantly, he has an excellent feel for tempo: knowing when to gear down, when to accelerate, and when to simply lower his shoulder to grind out extra yards. There were countless runs in 2025 that looked destined to lose yardage, only for Gant to somehow turn them into positive gains or at least get back to the line of scrimmage. His strong season earned him 2nd Team All-MAC honors. S. Patrick actually opened 2025 as the starter for the first four games before an injury sidelined him for several weeks. When he returned, he never quite looked fully back to form, and combined with Gant’s emergence, his opportunities became more limited. Still, Patrick remains the most explosive running back on the roster and seems primed for a breakout season if he can stay healthy. The combination of Gant’s consistency and Patrick’s big-play ability gives the Zips one of the better backfield duos in the MAC. M. Williams arrived in the 2024 class as a transfer from Minnesota. I still haven’t seen the level of explosiveness one would typically expect from a former Power Four transfer, but he’s proven to be an adequate option when called upon. C. Gee led Colgate in rushing in 2024 with over 400 yards while averaging 5.5 yards per carry. He brings a little more size than Akron’s top two backs and could carve out a role in the offense if he can stay healthy. T. Curry is the biggest running back on the roster. He hasn’t produced much during stops at UAB, ULM, or Akron, but he at least provides experienced depth and has the frame to step in if injuries start piling up. Outlook: This is the deepest running back room of the Moorhead era, and it’s unlikely Gant will put up the same volume of yards he did a season ago with the expected emergence of Patrick. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though. Akron finally has multiple backs capable of carrying the load and bringing different skill sets to the offense. With the combination of Gant’s consistency, Patrick’s explosiveness, and solid depth behind them, the Zips’ rushing attack should be able to improve upon last year’s numbers. Returning: Curry (R. Sr.) Gant (R. Sr.) Gee (R. Jr.) Williams (R. Jr.) Patrick (R. So.)

Finally someone with some FBS experience. He was a starter in 2024 before missing all of the 2025 season with an injury, so hopefully he’s able to bounce back this year. Johnson was strong against the run and will likely slide into the starting MLB spot with Nunno at OLB. JUCO additions Jones and Smith will probably round out the rotation