GoZips

I read the Beacon article. Now I'm wondering...He was given a new 5-year deal, but did anyone actually HEAR him say he was staying put -- is there a statement from our coach? You see, I have little faith in anything I read in the paper, especially when it comes to supposed good news for Akron area sports teams. Please let it be true. It will bring great holiday tidings.Hula Skirt Z.I.P., think man (whacks Rich along side head with large coconut), the reports are "Calebsigned a new five year contract." Even if he leaves its going to be very expensive to buy him out. Or,Wistrcill is a fool (not likely).

Good pick up. Only one problem. They are a Catholic school. You know those Catholic schools allcheat. They recruit everywhere. Some states force those powerhouse schools to play for a seperatechampionship.

HOT Damn ... !!!!

Steve French on Zips Live announces at the end of the show that Caleb has been given a new five year contract.And, next year's schedule will include a trip to North Carolina to play at least two ACC opponents.

I live in Wadsworth. This kid, Schrock is one tough kid. A great pick up for the Zips. I have seen himplay a number of times. He is more than a TE.

Ted Nugent being interviewed by a British journalist. The journalist asked, "What do you think the last thought is in the head of a deer before you shoot it? Is it, `Are you my friend?` or is it `Are you the one who killed my brother?'" Nugent replied, "They aren't capable of that kind of thinking. All they care about is, 'What am I going to eat next, who am I going to screw next, and can I run fast enough to get away. They are very much like Steve French in that way." ROFLMAOThanks Z.I.P. for the link to the Raiders fans where I found this gem. Ahem, a tiny, tiny bit ofpoetic license taken. Figure it out.

Huggy was ahead of his time. He is exactly what college sports are and what they have always been. He had the balls to say what everyone else was thinking. It's about winning today. It was about winning in the 1990s. It was about winning in the 1950s. It always has been and always will be. Coaches are brought to schools to win. Alumni give money because the school is winning. Coaches are fired because they don't win. Athletic Directors are fired because their teams don't win. Alumni stop giving money because the team is not winning and are willing to turn their backs to bad behavior if the team is winning.I'm not saying it's right or wrong, it just is what it is.You are so full if sh!t.Look at John Calipari. Or Rick Pitino. Those guys stand for all that is good in Division 1 athletics. With them, it is all about teaching kids. About education first, then athletics. About integrity and character.How long would Bobby Knight have lasted at Indiana if he won 15 games per season? FOREVER, I SAY!Winning has nothing to do with anything.ROFLMAO ... !!!!Cap'n, surely you say that tongue-in-cheek. You just named two of the biggest cheats on collegesports. Continuing to ROFLMAO. Nearly brought tears to my eyes. If only they could keep theirJohnsons home.

Think big market. Think huge market. Think existing territory. No Big Ten school is going to permit another program to horn in on their territory. Consider Ohio State. Neither Akron or Cincinnati would ever be allowed to compete heads up with the team from Cowlumbus.Remember huge market from above? Forget Marshall. No market. Need a big city base. Needstate wide fan base. Forget WVA. State wide fan base, but no big city market.Forget Temple. Once Al Golden leaves their FB program likely to revert to scrape heap. Heck,Temple isn't all that competitive in the MAC. Besides, Temple is in Pennsylvania which is PSU turf.Any addition to the Big Ten is likely to come from a state where the Big Ten has no current presence.And, for the record, Notre Dame is big city. Forget South Bend. Think Chicago. But, there is a problem. Indiana and Purdue are both in Indiana and neither is likely to welcome ND with openarms. Illinois probably considers Chicago its turf as does Wisconsin. Look west and south.Lastly, think big name. The Big Ten is pretty egotesticle (misspelling deliberate).

I watched the entire show. It was never aired.There was a bit on the soccer Zips, but not the Caleb interview.Totally glad I was an eye witness to the video taping.Perhaps channel five will air it soon.

I stood just behind the TV camera at Infocision as coach Porter was being interviewed for tonight's Sports Time Sunday program to be shown on channel 5 (WEWS) at 11:30 PM.Judging by the emotion in his voice and the look in coach Porter's eyes I will be sadly surprised if heopted to leave the university. There was an overwhelming sense of unfinished business.Coach told me that we may lose a couple of games next year during the season. But, the goal willremain the same ... to win the national championship.

The soccer team bus arrived at 9:45 PM. The players and coaches left the area shortly there after.The mood was to say the least, somber.The kids know that they are the best team in America. The lost is a bitter pill.

The soccer team arrived back at Infocision at 9:45 PM.Channel 5 (WEWS) interviewed coach Porter for its Sports Time Sunday Show to be shown at 11:30 PM tonight.

Mike Rasor states "The team will return around 10:30 p.m. tonight to the street between the field house and InfoCision Stadium. If you're in the area, I'm sure the team would be happy to be greeted."That is the old Vine Street if memory serves me. Come early and get rowdy. These kids deserve our support. This old man WILL be there. I'll be wearing an orange jacket and jeans. Come over and say "HI".Go Zips ... !!!!

Getting a chuckle out of this statement. As coach Peters can verify; in the old Bob Huggins era, weasked a potential recruit if his goal was to win or get an education. If the kid responded, "get aneducation", we stopped recruiting him.Second chuckle for all you pious folks. Bob Huggins is a successful coach because he still puts winningfirst. The education is a benefit the player gets for his hard work. As the great coach Lombardi oncequipped, "winning isn't everything; its the only thing". Win or fail. There is no other option.

Watching the replay (sic: recap, crunched version) I was pleased that literally all the backgroundsounds were the AK-Rowdies chanting Zips cheers. Warmed the cockles of my demented heart.

As a former "rugger" I find this reference to futbol offensive. Rugby, not wussy "soccer" is the man'strue sport. A rugger can out drink you pencil necked geeks any day. Rugby, the true he man's sport. And I have the twisted knee and gnarled fingers to prove it.

Z.I.P. thank you for the excellent technical analysis.First, I expect that Akpan of Harvard will get the Hermann. That is based on two factors. One, thisis his third time being a finalist (a rather unusual event). Second, the NCAA has no love for the Zips.Add in a third reason; Akpan is a senior where Bunbury is a sophomore.It is pleasing to see on the UNC boards that their knowledgeable posters predict an Akron win. Their reasoning based on the quality of the Zips play against UNC and the fact that UNC is actually the best ACC team. I concur.My big disappointment being that the UA Athletic Dept. did not scramble up a bus trip for Sunday'sfinal. I would love to bus down to Cary, ala the Evanston trip last season. I am confident that hundred's of Zips fans would jump at the opportunity for the mind numbing 10 hour bus ride.That magnificent trophy will be a proud addition to the University's trophy case. Go get it.author's note: I know that the NCAA does not determine the winner of the Hermann. Their evilinfluence is, however, pervasive.

Heard ESPN commentator, Robert Smith, formerly of thee Ohio State Suckeyes, repeatedly knocking,downplaying, trashing, dissing, etc. Ron Ianello's work as a recruiter. Smith, or is that snooty nosed,Smythe, insinuated repeatedly that the first thing new ND head coach, Brian "I dumped UC after I gavemy kids my word that I was staying" Kelly, has to do is improve ND's poor recruiting. Any comments?

Elated ...!!!!More than that, I think I survived my heart attack.Question for all: Do the Zips get some love from the predominately North Carolina (the state of) fans.now that there is no North Carolina ACC team left in the tournament? Wake Forest, like UNC is a favored son North Carolina (the state of) team where as Virginia is an out of state ACC rival.

Dang, isn't fun ... trashing Terry Pluto ...!!!!The reality is that Pluto (love him or hate him) wrote the best and most comprehensive article onthe hiring of Ron Ianello of any journalist. Pluto raised the issues all of us are pondering.I found that Pluto actually presented a positive future for coach Ianello. I thank him for his insight.Sure, the Zips coaches have mined NE Ohio and Western PA for generations for talent. To me,the more important question is whether Ianello will recruit and GET a different and better talentthan previous Akron coaches have managed to recruit.As Pluto stated, many have been lost to academics and character issues. This pre-dates Brookhart.And continued under Brookhart. Far too often bad apples were allowed to fester their poison inthe locker room (figure of speech) before being sent packing. There needs to be a zero toleranceattitude that the incoming kids know exists. Not the turn the other cheek philosophy long prosperedin Zippyland.Like most of you, I believe there is a wealth of football talent currently on the Akron team. Stupiddefenses, trick plays and playing favorites, failure to use the depth, doomed this year's team.Along with allowing a known problem child to poison the team and ruin the efforts of many.Its not enough to stay late and even sleep in your office. Many coaches do that and more. To me,the best part I have observed about Ianello is that he presented an optimistic plan that morefavorably impressed Wistrcill than the other candidates did. Vision is important. Just pray thatit is not "pie in the sky" vision, ala obama and his twits.

I'm confused.Here's Cap'n telling us to not pre-judge a person because he has never been a head coach and waschosen over a proven winner (Chuck Martin, 63-5, on the verge of winning his third national championship).When the real issue is that said Ianello has been a recruiter for the past twenty years at several institutions.That speaks volumes about his personal skills and recruiting abilities. Here, here. On the flip side, twentyyears in the same position. Pretty stagnant as far as developing other coaching skills.Paul ("Bear") Bryant was one of Alabama's greatest football coaches, if not the outright greatest. Bryantcouldn't coach his way to the men's room. He relied on the best talented assistants he could hire. HopefullyIanello has similar skills, because I see a resume as blank as Brookhart's was. That makes me uncomfortable.Ron Ianello = JD Brookhart II

I feel InTheZone's pain.This is NOT the time to give up on our Zips. It is, however, to become the loyal, vocal, oppositionto the knuckleheads running the athletics.I was strongly considering not renewing my football season tickets and refusing to contribute to theZ-Fund, etc. if Brookhart had not been sacked this year. Twenty-five years of terribly bad footballis all I can stomach. I am way to damned old to tolerate six more years of blundering. At thisrate, most of us will not live long enough to enjoy a winning tradition at Akron.First up. I want to see Ronnie Boy hit the ground running. That means, he assumes the head coachingposition today. Specifically that means he starts his new job now, not after the bowl games,tidying up loose ends at Notre Dame, etc. The job starts now. Not tomorrow, not next week, notnext month, not in some nebulous future. NOW.Ron Ianello = JD Brookhart II

my two cents .... a really dumb, bad hire.Racking my brain trying to remember Mike ??????? former head men's basketball coach at ClevelandState. He was hired because he was a "great" recruiter at Michigan. Frankly, whether its Michiganor Notre Dame, the sell is a whole lot easier than at most schools.If Akron just had to have a new head coach with no HC experience there is a great one in Cowlumbus.His name is Luke Fickel. And, I'll bet my last dime Luke will succeed where ever he hooks up.As it has been pointed out numerous times over the years, a three star kid will get a four star ratingif he signs with a mega-school and a two star rating if he signs with a MAC or WAC school. That'sjust how it is.

Sorry, guys, but it is a solid thumbs down on Mangino.I am a regular in a chat room on PalTalk that is dominated by SEC fans. There is a sprinklingof Big 12 fans as well. None of them would trade a dead horsefly for Mangino.I still most favor Chuck Martin of Grand Valley State (63-5) or untested, but UA loved Luke Fickel.

The ABJ article reads like nothing has been done toward upgrading the soccer stadium.Is this fact? What are these drawings on ZN of the "plan"? Are we being bamboozled?Wistrcill and Porenza need to make a definitive statement of fact NOW.