Big Zip

The Big East has to be worried this morning. There is no way Cincy deserved to be in a BCS bowl. This is a team that barely beat a mediocre Zips team this year. I know they didn't have their starting QB for the whole game, but c'mon they are a BCS school and should have beat us like a drum, right? The Big East is losing credibility as I type.

I was actually thinking about this topic recently. It seems it has been a few months since the last time someone talked about switching conferences. I think the it is quite comical to even think about moving conferences when we can't win or compete in the one we currently participate. It seems to be the type of conversation that if we saw it on the Can't site we'd laugh -- yet they have a basketball team that has actually won something. We have a basketball and football team that have won basically nothing. The football team slips and falls every year. One year they slipped and fell into a bowl game. I think about the last team to leave the MAC -- a team that thumped the MAC regularly -- Marshall. Look at what they have done -- they finishd 6-6 in their final MAC season and have gone 4-7, 5-7, 3-9 and 4-8. Why would we expect to make a bigger jump and perform better? For all intents and purposes Marshall should have made the move and been able to compete yet they haven't. We on the other hand have two BCS school wins in our history and people on this board want to play a full schedule of BCS schools? I applaud the excitement, but Akron has to get their shit together in the MAC first. I do think one team deserves to leave this conference and I only hope Mack can make that happen. If he can get the soccer team into a new conference he'll make me a believer -- to this point I'm not sure what to think of him.

How much do you think you're food bill has gone up in the last year, Bob? On top of that I'm shocked they have charged the 2.9% processing fee for credit cards earlier -- think about -- the school pays that fee to Visa or Master Card so those students paying with credit card have essentially been playing less in previous years. They could have just stopped taking credit cards! If I recall the $25 fee was for a parent who didn't RSVP -- not for all parents. And finally I've talked to some students who live by me who originally complained about the parking fee, but have found the buses quite useful in getting around campus. What a stupid article! Kudos to Akron for finding alternative ways to allow them to freeze the cost of tuition will still providing top notch services to their students.

Chase Blackburn was named an alternate to the NFC Pro Bowl team today. What a great accomplishment for a kid the Browns didn't have room on their roster for. It amazes me how a team like the Browns misses players like Harrison from Can't, Hixon and Blackburn from Akron. Especially when Blackburn was in their camp and essentially free sans probably a $10,000 signing bonus. I couldn't be happier for Chase -- he's worker hard for this and I hope someone stays home to give him the chance to go!

Cap'n -- by your definition a jittery QB and a porous defense it sounds like Lee Owens one upped JD this year. He had a porous defense, but most always a decent QB. We lost the close ones there too.

I do not think we'll see the end of the JD Brookhart era at Akron after this year. I do believe we will be feed a line of BS how this team overachieved this year after being picked to finish last in the MAC and how they had one BCS win (against a team that beat Notre Dame at home). I will say (as the Cap'n has been found of saying) this team found ways of ripping defeat from the arms of victory. Unfortunately this time I'm commenting about JD and not LO. The Cap'n usually is referencing LO in that regard. In the same sense we witnessed another very LO thing this year -- a team that found a way of putting lots of points on the board and then gave up just a few more to lose. That is what I remember about the LO era and what I'm starting to think about the JD era.I had a dream last night that many of JD's coaches got the axe, but JD reamind in tact. Although I didn't dream last year this is what I thought would happen last year and it didn't. I'm hopeful Mack sits down with JD this week and they both come to this conclusion. I hope they also come to the conclusion that the 3-3-5 needs to go. I would like to ask the question to those of you who don't want to fire JD. Money aside -- if this is not the type of performance that deserves firing what type of performance does? What is it going to take for you to say he isn't the guy? Personally, I have seen enough in five years and if I had my choice he would be gone. I haven't seen enough progress. This team this year (as I said above) reminded me of the worst of the LO era with perhaps less fire power and if I'm to believe Akron Athletics and this board more talent than LO ever had.Finally, I by no means am a LO apologist -- I thought he stayed way to long and wanted him gone for a few years (and took heat from others on this board for it) prior to his actual departure. We are beginning of new era in Akron football starting next year with the new stadium and if we are going to build our fan base it is going to take a different approach -- an approach I haven't seem take hold from JD.

Does that mean we get to dress in the Northwestrn dressing room and they get the away dressing room?

You miss the point -- it is a perception thing. It could be the most demanding sport in the world, but if the perception is such that it is not a man's sport than things like this will continue that steroype. I've got mad respect for the physicality of the sport and the shape you need to be in, but cancelling the game because the field isn't perfect will cause others to wonder about the sport. People don't ask why or listen to reason they simply make their mind up quickly.My bigger disappoint is with the University -- it is not as if we don't know where UA is and what the weather is like in November and December. This should have been addressed already and definitely needs to be addressed in the offseason to prevent this kind of debacle going forward.That being said moving it to Northwestern is a travesty. The decision also continues the stereotype of the NCAA that they could care less about the "lesser" conferences.Go Zips --- win the who team and tell them to "f" off!

I agree with the travesty of moving this game, but c'mon nobody even commented on my last post. Maybe this is a slap in the face to UA for deciding they needed a football stadium for a consistently underwhelming football team over a consistenly nationally ranked soccer team. I don't agree with the decision, but we could have prevented this with some changes on th UA side.On the flip side -- what the hell kind of sport is soccer anyhow. Oh the field is too muddy we can't play on it. That is freaking ridiculous. Both teams play on the same pitch -- they both have to deal with the field. You wonder why people in the US can't get behind soccer -- they think it isn't very manly and this keeps that stereotype alive and well.

Listen how about someone put this at the feet of those responsible -- the UA athletics department for not keeping the field in good shape. We've got an indoor field for football, an out door practice field for football and a stadium all with turf -- for a piss poor football team that disappoints us very year. We don't even have a tarp for the soccer field.

How about we buy a freakin tarp and cover the field?

I get it -- you have to play who you play, but this Akron team wouldn't have finished better than third in the west any of the years under JD.I am tired of settling for mediocrity and we had this argument years ago about extensions for the MAC Coaches -- there is no point. When you extend them the only thing it does is hurt you in the future. If they are good they still leave if they are bad -- you're stuck with them. No more extensive contract extensions!!!

So the real question is -- why the hell aren't we playing a home game on our campus?!?!WTF is going on here that we can't ready a soccer field for a game in time?!?! What is the point of home field advantage if you don't get to play on your home field? This is a disaster!!!!!!

I'm not sure how I feel about this game other than I'm glad it is over with. If the price to pay to get Pittsburgh on the schedule was to play Urbana then fine I'll take it, but who the hell runs the Legends Classic and why the hell would you ask Urbana to be involved?

The sad part of this whole question is there is no reason they don't both play for the Browns -- Hixon was available for the taking when he was cut and the Browns past. On top of that Blackburn was talked about last week as being the heart and soul of their special teams -- now that he is starting they were very concerned about his play on special teams being impacted -- thus they were going to watch him closely. Blackburn was in the Browns camp as a local tryout guy and then cut.Not too hard to tell why the Browns are where they are given these types of decisions.

What a freaking waste of a season!!!JD spent all week building up his excuse for losing instead of instilling the right attitude in his team. "They are better than their record, blah, blah, blah" And guess what JD your team is worse than its record. Why does nobody interviewing him ask him the tough question:Why do we still play the 3-3-5 when it stops nothing?Why do your defenses suck every single year?Give the fans one reason why they should look forward to a JD Brookhart coached team next year?Should Mac keep you as the coach of the Zips?What a pathetic year. All we are going to hear about is look at the record -- they were supposed to finish last in the division. Excuses, excuses I didn't listen to the post game did anyone hear the excuses?

Could it be the distance change on the three point line that is impacting our three point shooting or McNeese? I know it wouldn't account for the end of last year, but this year?

I got a chance to watch Pike play this year and he reminded me of Chase Blackburn -- solid player who could wreak havoc on the field when turned loose or cover for others mistakes by staying home. The article below is from the PD. It says nothing about Akron which is very disappointing to me. Funny thing is coach Triv points out that is why EMU loses -- what the hell does he think Can't does?Mentor football player loses scholarship offer from Eastern Michiganby Tim Warsinskey, Plain Dealer Reporter Monday November 17, 2008, 6:30 PMMentor senior defensive end Ben Pike thought the recruiting process ended last month when he made an oral commitment to Eastern Michigan. Instead, he is tucking away his frustration and heading to Can't State today in the hopes of procuring another offer. Eastern Michigan coaches rescinded their football scholarship offer to Pike last week because they wanted to offer another player, Pike and Mentor coach Steve Trivisonno said. Pike initially received the offer during the summer and accepted, making a non-binding oral commitment to EMU last month. "I'm still upset about it," Pike said Monday. "I've been taught you give your word and it's your bond, and to have adults like that go against their word definitely hurts. "It's been a real tough thing for me and my family, but we think something good will come out of it." Having been absent from the recruiting loop for more than a month, Pike does not have another offer. He recently was contacted by Bowling Green, Northern Illinois and Can't State, which invited him to its home game tonight. Eastern Michigan plans to give Pike's scholarship to a junior college player who would be ready to play next fall, Trivisonno said. Pike (6-3, 225) likely would be a redshirt freshman and sit out his first year. "It's unbelievable, but that's why they don't win," Trivisonno said. Eastern Michigan is 2-8 this season and 15-41 in four-plus years under coach Jeff Geynk. NCAA rules prohibit college coaches from commenting publicly on recruits until they have signed letters of intent. Football signing day is in February. Messages left with EMU athletics officials were not returned.

Don't count on it -- they haven't been able to put the Taylor Direct Marketing Institute to work and its been in place since like 2004.

So the Zips managed 18,000 fans at the last game in the Rubber Bowl when tickets were $1!?!?Who is going to be at the Info that didn't go to the final game? The tickets are going to the most expensive (still very reasonable) for Akron football. I'm set up for my season tickets, but are we really going to sell out the stadium? I tend to think the first season MAY sell own, but beyond that what? Is football in Akron destined to be a below 20,000 fans average adventure?Somebody convince me we're going to see sell outs in the stadium for years to come.

I completely forgot about the Howard game -- wasn't that supposed to be the beginning of annual games against HBCU schools with money going to diversity scholarships? Whatever happened to that?

Has anyone looked at the Rubber Bowl records on GoZips? The story on the front page talking up the last game in the Rubber Bowl. They list a game in 1968 as the most points scored beating BW 59-19 (most in the modern era). BUT I was at a game on 11-24-2001 where we beat EMU 65-62. I find things like this fascinating -- either they failed to qualify the game as non-OT or simply got it wrong. It never ceases to amaze me when items are wrong on our own web site. Doesn't Akron have a media guide to check these facts on? Maybe it was the highest scoring non-Div 1 game at the Rubber Bowl or perhaps (although I don't recall) we changd the stadium name to the Polymer Bowl that year. I hate to be nit picky, but I think this is the kind of stuff that permeates throughout the athletic program. Freaking amazing!

As good as Ball State is this year is is looking more and more like they have no shot at a BCS game given that Utah and Boise State are both ahead of them in the polls.

So I'm not saying this is the answer, but if the $1 tickets are being offset by Ritzman Pharmacy -- why not. For instance a ticket is $10 -- if Ritzman Pharmacy is ponying up $9 for every coupon redeemed why do they care how the money was paid for. Bye the way -- I'm 100% positive the Alumni Association did not make this deal! The Alumni Association I'm sure is promoting it, but to say they struck the deal you are out of your damn mind. They don't have that power -- this deal would have been made throught the marketing department.

The sad part about the rankings in soccer is it becomes a beauty contest for other schools when it comes to the tournament and we then get shafted as usual. These year long rankings me nothing if we don't draw a top seed.