a-zip

Somebody just made a jump on my peckerhead list

The fact that it is so hard of a decision and they are all great (to include players not even on this list) is a testament to what KD means to our program.

yup

I realize this is an open forum and anyone can say whatever they want but it would be nice if people put things in perspective and looked at the big picture before reacting and calling for people’s jobs. In the past year there have been posts calling for the heads of the AD, TB, JE and now KD (oh, and some people even call Tressel incompetent). I personally think the school and athletic program are in as good a shape as they have ever been. The campus looks beautiful, the facilities are great and we have tremendous coaches and administrators that most schools in the country would die to have (I am not just talking about MAC schools). Here are my thoughts; FOOTBALL – we got off to a rough start but played an incredibly tough schedule. TB talked about how good UCF was (and they are), their QB is projected to be drafted 3rd in the NFL Draft and are playing in a big bowl game. Michigan, never been more proud of our team, would have loved to have seen a W the team deserved . Lousiana, beat Tulane in their bowl game. BG – bowl game, Ohio – bowl game, N Ill – bowl game, Ball St – bowl game, Toledo (we knocked them out of a bowl game). The team improved dramatically, attendance sucked, BUT people were complaining about TB, play calling, etc. FUTBALL – People were saying JE was a mistake, we should have gone for a high profile guy with our soccer stature. We struggled early, couldn’t hit the back of the net but eventually started scoring goal towards in the end (which I attribute to a great coach making adjustments and coaching his players). Our soccer team had 12 freshman because our guys get DRAFTED. That means tough rebuilding every year and likely slow starts to get everyone to gel. We were 17-4-1, undefeated against the Big 10, ACC and made it to the second round of the NCAAs (after getting hosed by the NCAA on seeding). Pretty damn good I say. BASKETBALL – Here we go again, people are questioning KD now (the best BBall coach we have EVER had). We have played 7 games in 14 days, traveling from Akron, to Hawaii to South Carolina (brutal schedule!!!). Two of these early losses came to Iowa State (12 rank) and S. Carolina (who I bet we will see in postseason this year). Folks, the team has got to be tired and rightfully so. You want to talk about a young team…..we have ; 1 senior, 4 juniors (Harney/Tree included here), 4 sophomores and 4 freshman. In addition to that we lost arguably the most dominant center the MAC has ever had and a very good point guard who, if he wasn’t such an idiot, would be a senior right now (needless to say a glaring weakness on this team). Is that KD’s fault? THE ATHLETIC DEPT – We have some of the best coaches in the NCAA (I include women and men’s sports in that statement) and gorgeous facilities. To my knowledge, contracts are in good shape with all of them. Folks, the caliber of our coaches vs the salaries some of them could be making are way out of whack. We should be happy to have them all and it would be nice if they were given support from the fans for their hard work. I guarantee you most of them could do better. As mentioned by someone else earlier, most successful MAC coaches are gone after a year or two of success, we have been able to keep ours. BTW - Caleb did not leave for another NCAA team (and I guarantee you he was courted by many to include his alma mater). One of my first posts on this board I stated keeping good coaches is the key to success in the MAC so hats off to TW. So, in my opinion things are just fine, not perfect, but just fine. The only disappointment I have is with the fan base that seems to look for excuses to not support the teams……not enough wins, bleacher seats, bad bathrooms, etc. etc. The campus is a fun place to be, the teams deserve more support………if they get the support the coaches will be more inclined to stay, top recruits will want to come here, the teams will get even better and maybe there would be justification to build a new arena to match the Info. So put your OSU jerseys in the bottom of the drawer and go support YOUR team Akron!!

Wow! Best basketball coach we have ever had is locked up for 10 years and the AD is an idiot???? i guess he is an idiot for extending a football coach with a losing record too

Heeeeree we go. Likely the same people wanting Embick's head early in the year and who thought Bowden was fumbling now want Dambrot's head....unreal!!! Do what you usually do Akron, stop coming to the games ;-)

We looked tired in the second half, plain and simple. A rough part of the schedule for the guys and a lot of travel. Things will be fine.

An early Christmas present would be to end Barack Obama's win streak while attending Oregon St. basketball games. We look good so far. This may be premature but…….is Tree the best basketball player we have ever had? He is amazing, not sure what is going on in his head after his disappearing act earlier this year but my god if he is able to come back next year he will have an incredible body of work

I did my share, many times. It does matter because they WERE they best team of all time. When you calculate the talent level of the players and the coaching staff, there is no argument. I only wish that team was playing for a back to back title.

It is a "live or die" situation right now. I think UoA made a play to become a player and it does not appear the community is supporting it. Until the community does, we should not build arenas, cut our losses and move on. Say bye bye to Dambrot, Bowden eventually. If you are not a part of the new super conferences, you are going to be f&cked from a sport standpoint. So somebody tell me how UoA is going to flourish after that?

This is what i have been trying to say with regards to my disappointment in attendance at our sports teams game. I initially thought is was a great idea to make a play to gain recognition through success on the playing field. It can pay off if there is support. Lets face it OSU is a fine school but they are a preferred choice because of sports programs and the recognition they get from that…..I promise you their buildings, labs, teachers, research are funded through the sports programs (alumni), it is great way to become self-sufficient. Ask young kids what they think is a better college - OSU or Northwestern…..they would likely say OSU. I said it before and I will say it again…if UoA does not prosper, the city will stagnate. How are we going to attract the top professors, student…..by waiting for the state to give us money?

This is what i have been trying to say with regards to my disappointment in attendance at our sports teams game. I initially thought is was a great idea to make a play to gain recognition through success on the playing field. It can pay off if there is support. Lets face it OSU is a fine school but they are a preferred choice because of sports programs and the recognition they get from that…..I promise you their buildings, labs, teachers, research are funded through the sports programs (alumni), it is great way to become self-sufficient. Ask young kids what they think is a better college - OSU or Northwestern…..they would likely say OSU. I said it before and I will say it again…if UoA does not prosper, the city will stagnate. How are we going to attract the top professors, student…..by waiting for the state to give us money?

This is what i have been trying to say with regards to my disappointment in attendance at our sports teams game. I initially thought is was a great idea to make a play to gain recognition through success on the playing field. It can pay off if there is support. Lets face it OSU is a fine school but they are a preferred choice because of sports programs and the recognition they get from that…..I promise you their buildings, labs, teachers, research are funded through the sports programs (alumni), it is great way to become self-sufficient. Ask young kids what they think is a better college - OSU or Northwestern…..they would likely say OSU. I said it before and I will say it again…if UoA does not prosper, the city will stagnate. How are we going to attract the top professors, student…..by waiting for the state to give us money?

Wow, you really got me. The reason I was not there is because I live 8 hours away. I still go to as many games as possible. BTW - just because I pointed it out on gozips does not mean anything, way to miss the point dude

Butts in seats, how many high schools in the area have higher attendance? Canton Mckinley? Does the athletic department have to schedule around them too?. Watching the recap of the Toledo game on GOZIPS.com, in the highlights of the game there are a couple of plays where you cannot see a single person in the stands.

If my recruiting trip was during one of our home games (empty stands) I would not be impressed……I know, I know…I have beaten this comment to a pulp but couldn't help it.

If I had a solution, I would dial it in so I guess that means I am venting. I think OUR University has done everything I would have thought of to get people to support our teams and I think it is sad the 5th largest city in the state of Ohio can't get even 10K to a game. They have committed to what I think is most important; 1- Bringing in and keeping top coaches - seriously we currently have Terry Bowden, Bobby Bowden, Chuck Amato, Terrell Buckley, Jim Tressel, Jim Dennison, Keith Dambrot on our campus……..unreal!! - our other coaches are pretty impressive too, but these are BIG names I just mentioned…….lets not forget Lebron and unfortunately we lost Caleb (not any fault of the administration) . One of my original posts years ago on Zipsnation talked about the key to success being keeping top coaches - they have done that. Seriously folks, these are some impressive people dedicating their lives to UoA. 2- The facilities are top notch - The excuse used to be the Rubber Bowl was off campus and falling apart - problem solved. The Info is beautiful and on campus, Stiles Field House is gorgeous. Cub Cadet is one of the best. These are fun/top notch facilities. 3- Is it money?? season tickets are a steal!! You can get a season ticket for less than a single OSU game it think. 4 - School pride - Dr. Proenza has built a beautiful campus and it keeps getting better. Something to be proud of. I like being there. 5 - Winning - most of our teams do very well, in fact we were at the top of the Sears Cup challenge a couple years ago. Yes the football team has been terrible but if anyone doubted they would get better under TB, they are crazy. The Toledo game was exciting, JMU game exciting, Can't game exciting - ALL WINS, nobody was there. The mayor and the community should be kissing Proenza's ass. If these investments fail and UoA does not prosper the city will rot. All I hear are excuses and bitching - bad weather, not winning, black fridays, uncomfortable seats, the AD sucks, Lebron is a traitor, etc etc. I just don't want to hear it anymore. These people have done more than enough - time to look in the mirror Mr and Mrs Akron. What else is there to do? I am at a loss….. People want a new basketball arena? Why bother. Am I expecting 100K to our games….no. Am I expecting the Info to sell out……would be nice but not getting over 10K is pathetic.

Yes, in a way I am. 110,000 + people can go root OSU no matter what the weather or what color the day is - our school built a beautiful new stadium and we can't get 10K…….pathetic. Weather and lack of wins was the excuse for our rivalry game against Cant State Game (on Jim Dennison day).

Yea, looks like Ohio State is having the same issues When do the excuses run out?

I just hit the "like" buttonj

We lost and we were outplayed. The better team won. The only thing I will say about our 2013 post season is once again we were screwed by the NCAA. If we were properly seeded, we would not have been playing on the "frozen tundra" of Marquette. That is a tremendous home field advantage for them and it showed...... our players did not seem to have their feet under them as well as the Marquette team. Seriously, the way the NCAA handles the seedings almost makes the regular season and conference tournaments moot. They can use the fact that we play in the MAC against us but our SOS is still high. Hell, they say we play in the MAC but if you include post season; 2013 - we played 6 MAC teams, 5 Big 10 teams, 3 Big East teams 2012 - we played 8 MAC teams, and 7 Big 10 teams, with additional games against St. Louis, Creighton, St. Johns, South Florida Do we really play in the MAC? No disrespect to Marquette...........Congratulations, well deserved result

I think the NCAA knows exactly what they are doing……and they are corrupt. It will continue until someone calls them out. I think our seedings in the last 2 years warrant some sort of an appeal. It will not help us this year (our team will take care of that) but hopefully someone, like us, will call these morons out.

LZip - you are very diplomatic, I appreciate your comments..

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