MDZip

In addition to NIU getting a BCS bid, Can't State, Ohio, BGSU, Toledo, Ball State and CMU got bowl bids. Wow. Famous Idaho Potato Toledo vs. Utah State Beef 'O' Brady's St. Petersburg UCF vs. Ball State Little Caesars Pizza Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan Military Bowl Presented By Northrop Grumman San Jose State vs. Bowling Green AdvoCare V100 Independence Ohio vs. Louisiana-Monroe Discover Orange Northern Illinois vs. Florida State GoDaddy.com Can't State vs. Arkansas State

The talking heads are whining left and right about it. Its all about poor Oklahoma being left out and no one is saying a word about NIU qualifying under the rules the BCS set up. Because Louisville and Wisconsin are so deserving. Would love to see them knock off Florida State.

The MAC is quite cyclical. One of the things that keeps the MAC mired in mediocrity is exactly what is being discussed in another thread - coaching tunrover. The MAC has had some fine coaches but as soon as they can show some modicum of sustained success in a place like the MAC, they get snapped up (as an aside this has never happened to any Akron coach unfortunately). Urban Meyer, Brady Hoke, Butch Jones, Brian Kelly, Dave Doeren - and probably Darrell Hazell soon. Its hard to keep sustained success when you turn your coaches over every few years. There have been a few failures, Turner Gill, Jerry Kill (maybe rhyming with ill is bad) but in general successful MAC coaches have done quite well when they move on. Its pretty rare for a BCS level coach to move to another school after experiencing success, in the MAC, its the norm.

That didn't take long - Dave Doeren hired as the new NC State coach.

The end of the link should be html, but for some reason keeps showing up as hml or just hl when its saved here. Make it .html and it works.

I would have liked to have posted this earlier, I spent a little longer down in the Carribbean after the tournament was over, but I thought since it will still be a little while until the next Zips basketball game, maybe this would be a good time to post it. First, I wanted to say if you have the opportunity to take a trip like this, you should try to do it. It matters a little how good the Zips are, but mostly its just fun to be around your favorite team and root for them in a very close setting. With the configuration of the JAR it isn't often you can sit right behind the Zips bench. I have to give Akron and George Van Horne and Anthony (I forgot his last name but a good guy) a lot of credit for setting it all up and making sure that everyone who came down felt appreciated for doing so. Really felt like a Zips family. There were about 30-40 that made the trip, which was at least as many that made the trip from every other fan base except maybe North Carolina State who seemed like they were everywhere. The games were terrific, it was a great deal of fun rooting on the Zips in every game (we even converted a few Tenneesee fans who were sitting with us) in the first game. Having the Abreu and Betancourt fans at the Penn State game was great too. Puerto Rico has a lot to do even when not at the games (was a little scary to hear that Hector Camacho was shot in the face in Bayamon right after we left but we had no problems anywhere at any time). Staying at the hotel with the teams in San Juan was fun too, I never felt so short in my life as when the UMass team got on the elevator with me, but at least I was taller than one of their point guards. ). The team dinner was outstanding, got to chat with Steve French and had dinner with Brian Walsh's parents (really nice people and told me that Akron still suffers in some circles from the old perception of the ugly urban campus and that Brian wasn't really interested until they got him on campus. We need to keep letting people know it is not the old "Hilltop High"), in addition to meeting a few Zips. It was a lot of fun talking to Zips fans that I had never met and getting to know some of them as well. Its worth making the trip - I know some other ZN.O posters have done some other trips (the Zips can't come back to this one for four years) and I'd highly encourage it, I knew almost no one at the beginning of the trip, now I have some more Zips friends. You also put some human faces on this stuff, the disappoinment and then triumph of Chauncey, the terrific play and joy of it from Zeke, the happiness from Nick and Tree getting to play again. And then something I didn't expect. I happened to ride up in the elevator alone with the Penn State coach after the game. I gave him my condolences for a tough game and asked how his point guard was. He said not good, it was his achilles and we are in deep, deep trouble now. Really felt bad for him, you could see he was worried about his team, his season and maybe his job. Happy as I was for the Zips, that never comes for free. As a final note, before the Penn State game, I did the only thing a true Akron fan should be doing before a big game on Puerto Rico, I went Zip-lining. Puerto Rico has the highest and second longest line in the world (called the Beast where you go strapped in by your back so it feels like you are flying). It's at a park called Toro Verde and I hightly recommend that should you be there any time soon. The trip was one I will remember a long time, it would have only been slightly better had the Zips won it all, but I am very enthusiastic for the rest of the season. I still think an at-large is not out of the question.

Both the human and computer polls started to "notice" Can't when they upset previously undefeated and ranked Rutgers. Probably accounts for the disparity. NIU has knocked off no one of note. As far as the MACC, I'm betting NIU wins it all (but I don't think they'll have enough of a bump to make it into a BCS game).

Tulane is now heading to the Big East. No history of success or tradition or much of anything, so this appears to be about nothing but market. I would be surprised if neither Akron or Can't had been contacted as well.

Certainly deserving of that #1 seed. Glad to see it.

And with all those teams losing today and NIU and Can't both winning this weekend, the BCS standings are going to be shuffled this week so Can't likely moves up and I'll bet NIU makes an appearance so either one of those beating the other as a ranked team will significantly increase their odds. Much as I'd hate it to be Can't, would be pretty cool to see a MAC team in a BCS game.

Now that both Can't and NIU have completed 11-1 seasons and are both ranked and the two Big East leaders (Rutgers and Louisville) both had bad losses today, it is conceivable that the winner of the MACC (first time ever it will be two ranked teams playing each other) could possibly get access to a BCS game. It is more likely for Can't (unbelievable) than NIU since Can't is currently in the BCS rankings (at #23) but a win over a ranked team could elevate either one high enough. Then one of these two things have to occur - they have to be ranked in the top 12 of the final BCS poll or ranked in the top 16 and higher than a champion of an AQ conference. Can't or NIU will be higher than the Big East Champ now, it's just a question if either can jump up to #16 (not likely but not impossible especially with other teams ahead of them losing). The only non-AQ that could still have a chance too is Boise State but they do not play any more ranked teams. How incredible would it be for a MAC team to play in a BCS game and it be Can't? I think they'd get killed (their loss this season was to Kentucky) so I'd far rather see NIU get there. I think they'd have a better shot. Its a long shot but it could happen.

Scott's lead is down to 0.1%

My favorite moment during the game was when Chauncey hit a three and was on fire and ran down the court and gave the crowd a "cat who swallowed the canary" grin. We loved it. What a great little redemptive moment for him.

I found out that we should apparently expect the exact opposite ratio for this year only. Got to get the ship righted first before the long term plan pays dividends.

Probably wouldn't have been good either, he was a heavyweight.

I talked to Tom about this tonight. He said he did contact the selection committee and was told that Connecticut and Georgetown both had 3 top 30 wins where Akron only had one and both had beaten St. Johns when Akron only tied them. When he pointed out that they both also had a loss outside of the top 30 and Akron lost only the the top RPI team, he was told perhaps they should have looked a little deeper into it. He did attempt to get an explanation but that was a pretty poor one. Water under the bridge now. Go Zips!!! Beat Michigan (yet again)! Maybe we're in their heads now.

Fortunately, they did not televise my free throw shooting debacle. I volunteered to shoot free throws against an Oklahoma State fan for 30 seconds. I made all of one. He made two.

Here are the field goal numbers from four different players from today's game. 5-14 4-14 2-9 1-10 No one player lost this one. Maddeningly, tantalizingly close to a big win (sigh).

Since the game is so early tomorrow morning, guess we have to start this one tonight. I'm not at all confident of a Zips win without some of our key players but I always have hope. Besides, the Zips logo looks nice out on the hotel marquee.

Nice job George, I think that should be the Zips mantra - "Just win the whole f***ing thing"

How do we know they're weak? They had a good year last year and The Big South has sent some pretty good teams to the NCAA tournament before. Lets wait a bit before we decide how good or bad they are (and consequently how good or bad that loss was).

And that goal was on a rainy night against WVU where Meves slipped and fell, otherwise he stops it. Once again Zips, go out and show the NCAA what idiots they are.

Apparently the committee must take more than just RPI into account. And Notre Dame played nine teams that made the tournament (but played some twice because of the Big East tournament), so strength of schedule is roughly comparable. Akron played eight, but ND lost THREE times and tied once. Don't see how that is the top seed with other worthy candidates with better resumes.

I think Notre Dame is overseeded as well. Maryland and Akron should have been above them. Notre Dame is going to have a tough time with UNC, same with Georgetown and UCLA and of course UConn with Akron. Time to go bust some brackets.

Everyone but the Big East took it in the shorts. Nice of the NCAA to make sure that none of their big four coul meet until the final, yet it was perfectly OK to send #2 Maryland up against the same ACC foe in the third round, Wake, that just beat them. Rooting against every Big East team now.