GoZips

To build up the confidence of our even shorter Dbacks in practice.touche'

Thanks, GP1, worth the effort to scroll down.

An unofficial look at the 2008-09 non-conference schedule:Home Games:exhibition gameNorth Carolina A & TWinthropCanisiusSt. Francis of NYDayton (December 6th)Away Games:@Niagara@Virginia Commonwealth (December 17th)@Mississippi State@Youngstown State (late January, 2009)@UNC- Greensboro@Eastern Kentucky exempt tournament (3 games)@Rhode Island (January 3rd, 2009)@Bracket BusterThis is ALL that I know. Real schedule may be posted this week.

I watched most of the Crew's game. Only player that I knew that was coming to Akron is Schmitt.Surprised that he did not play in the first half. Like Z.I.P. stated, the game changed for the betterwith in a few seconds of his arrival on the pitch. I kept waiting for the announcers to mention where hewill be playing his college ball. But, alas, not a bloody peep.T'was most pleasing to see Schmitt get a goal less than ten minutes into his playing time. He really, reallyenjoys scoring. You folks will see in the Fall.

Dr Z, Ronnie Steward was not there because he is back home in Columbus for a few days. Heprobably is not in class this session.Cedric Middleton is now a part of the Zips coaching staff. Thus, he is not allowed to be at open gym. Nick Dials is probably tuning up for a shot in Europe. Nick is not restricted from playing or being in open gym.Probably ALL the Zips are taking classes in either or both Summer sessions. This is now a commonpractice in both football and basketball at most major universities.Most of the players that I did not see at open gym were probably in class. A couple left during open gym to attend class.

72 Roo, so far as I know Ronnie Steward is 100 percent.

My best guess is that there will be open gym every weekday the rest of the Summer. I would suggest checking with the coaching staff if you plan on showing up frequently. Once a week would be about right.I have heard that there are a lot of pick up games over in the Rec Center that Zips players often participate in.

GameChanger, (Zeke's mom) stole my thunder about Zeke's fine showing down in WVA. CoachBoals was there to enjoy Zeke's stellar performance. I heard about it Thursday afternoon. Outstandingplay on Zeke's part. Rest assured that Coach Boals was checking out potential wing men. The only missing piece of the puzzle.The two previously mentioned wing men (Casey Prather and J D Witherspoon) are definitely on the Zipsradar. Either one would be an excellent "get". I think the primary target is Prather. But, he is a Tennessian and Tennessee has offered him. Boals wont go down without a dog fight.Met Nikola Cvetinovic today. Huge. Positively HUGE... !!!! Nick is a full six-eight with arms like treetrunks. He has a deadly outside shot to go along with his inside play. Some of the players I chattedwith were very high on Nick's talent.Oh, I failed to mention that I watched open gym today. A number of the Zips were playing. Met Alex Sullivan today. Great smile. You will like this kid. Looked good on the floor, too.Humpy played. Quick. Heck, all those guards are quick.Brett McClanahan hits from every where. Needs some lasagna. Still, he looked good stroking the trey.Not every player was on the court. One player was there that you would all recognize. He put on ademo of his NBA threes that earned him the nickname "Overtime". I am speaking of Nick Dials.Nate Linhart is sporting a brush cut that us old timers use to call a bald-de-sauer. Nate is in playingcondition as are nearly all the others.Brett McKnight jammed home a number of power dunks that reminded me of Jeremiah Wood.C-Mac was there playing his solid game.Mike Bardo is holding at six-ten and now sporting a nifty short range jump hook. Sweet.Speaking of six; CMAC, Nate and Nik are all up to six-eight. With Bardo and Swiech the Zips areBIG up front.The guys say that the young freshmen guards are much, much quicker than Dails and Middleton.Sure looked like it to me.Steve McNees had the play of the day. On a break away off a steal the outlet pass was just off Steve'sfinger tips. He gave the barely touchable ball a little flick to aim it down the side line. He caught upto the ball and took it straight into a dribble. By this time two defenders were under the basket.Left handed, Steve went up on the glass and laid the ball in over the defenders. Missing were Steve Swiech, Ronnie Steward and Darryl Roberts.

Mom, I had a nice chat with coach Boals Thursday afternoon. JB told me about Zeke excellingat the West Virginia Jamfest. JB said Zeke played much better at the Jamfest. How Zeke took Braswellto the woodshed and owned him. The Zips coaching staff is quite pleased with Zeke's progress.I think the A-10 coach's comments are echoing all over the place. Fortunately for the Zips they arehooking up with some big time opponents over the next three-four years. A-10 teams should be mereappetizers on the Zips menu.Lasagna power ... !!!!

Rowdy, try these links for tons and tons of fan based blogs.MAC Fan BlogsNational Fan Blogs

July. It is way, way too early to predict just who is likely to get tagged with a red shirt. Here's some thoughts.With two red shirt freshmen (Ronnie Steward and Steve Swiech) coming online and five incoming true freshmen it seems logical to "load" balance the team. Add in theone scholarship (Zeke) in 2009. That makes eight players. Let's split that group into two equal parts. That is, four players in each. Since there are two existing redshirt players that leaves room for just two of the current five incoming players. Red shirt three of the five for next year. That gives four players per year.Of the five incoming freshmen two are front court players (Cvetinovic and Parrish). Seems logical to red shirt one of these two. Then red shirt two of the three incoming guards (McClanahan, Sullivan, Hitchens).This balances the future recruiting four and five years in the future.Preseason injuries and grades will contribute to determining who sits out a year.

Just have to add my two cents worth in. Please keep in mind that a while back I predicted that Zeke would reach the top twenty-five tier (five star recruit). Zeke is closing that gap in a hurry. Earlier I reported that Rivals now ranks Zeke thirty-ninth (up from fifty-fifth). Keep up the great work Zeke.There is a huge side benefit to this. Zeke's improved ranking makes selling an Akron scholarship to wing men Casey Prather (ranked thirty-ninth in the 2010 class) andJ D Witherspoon out of Cowlumbus, a whole lot easier.Mom, keep that lasagna coming. Did I tell you that the coaches told me the secret to Beth McKnight's lasagna? She uses a double portion of meat.In KD we trust.

No one has forgotten Ronnie Steward. He is likely to be the lead point guard until such time as some one like Hitchens can sit Ronnie down. Hopefully that will be amajor task.As things stand today Ronnie Steward will be the point guard when the season begins. Ronnie was to be the starting point guard last season until the hip flexor took himdown. By the time Ronnie was healthy it was way late in the season and far too many missed practices. The original plan was Ronnie on the point backed up by theveraitile Steve McNees. Dials would have been the two guard. Middleton was comfortable with coming off the bench as the "sixth man". The later addition of DarrylRoberts was to be a plus. And, it indeed was.As for "needs development" ... bosh. Every kid I saw at LeBron's Skills academy "needs development". Few college players ever get beyond "needs development".For that matter, few NBA players get beyond "needs development".One incoming freshman has some maturity and grade issues. He likely will find himself "red shirted". I am speaking of Andrew Parrish a sweet six-seven bangerwho loves to rebound and block shots. While the Zips could use him this Fall his long range potential is worth investing a red shirt on.Due to the size (five true freshmen) of the incoming class along with the two freshmen who were red shirted last year (Steve Swiech and Ronnie Steward) we canexpect at leas two and possibly three of the freshmen to be red shirted. It is way too early to even guess who they might be. I have some thoughts on just whomwill be red shirted, but its not time to put my foot in my mouth.From what I have seen of the kids they are in great shape. A couple have added height (CMac and Nate for sure). Most have bulked up nicely. Bardo and Swiechlook like giant pro wrasslers. No one is going to move either of them off the blocks.I hope the high school coaches have a highly favorable opinion of the incoming kids. If they don't they are just plain wrong. I trust KD and his staff to find anddevelop talent. After four seasons I think it is safe to say the The Zips coaches are among the best in finding and in developing talent. They certainly have thehard earned respect of ALL the major-major college coaches I talked with during the LSA.Mid season last year I wrote that we would be pleased with Darryl Roberts and Brett McKnight when they came online. Was I wrong? Heck no. They were stellar.This season they both will be better. These guys came to play. They will earn their minutes.One player that intrigues me is Jimmy Conyers. I think Jimmy is about to have a coming out party. He can bang and defend. A pick up in his shooting game andhe can expect major minutes.In my opinion, the Zips are badly under rated. I wrote about this before. Watch the rags and media pick the Zips as a bottom feeder in the East. No one will pickthem higher than fourth. See where the Zips finish. My prediction is that the Zips will play well enough to get a first round bye and knock down over twenty wins.A trip to the NIT is with in range.

Mike Rasor lists two potential future players for the 2010 recruiting class.Casey Prather a six-five wing man from Jackson, TN would be a major get on the order of Zeke Marshall. Rivals already ranks this kid as #39 best for 2010. A wholelong list of major majors have already offered him. Akron is not even listed. This kid is probably the missing piece the Zips need.J D Witherspoon (Weatherspoon?) is a highly regarded six-seven wing/power forward that a number of schools including Ohio State are interested in. Probably a muchmore realistic "get" for the Zips. Based on their potential either one would be a great compliment to the rest of the kids on board.KD and staff are not messing around. They are going after the best.

Looks like people side with one of two sides. Be a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in the big pond. As one poster noted, Zeke made the right decision for him.I once worked for a gentleman who played basketball for Kansas. You can look this up if so inclined. His name is Andy Bynum (might be misspelt). Andy was at Kansasfor all four years. He never got major minutes. As he related to me the high light of his career was facing off against thee Michael Jordan for all of two minutes.These days Andy is a successful mid level manager at Detroit Edison. Seems to me that he confessed that if he had it to do over again he would have chosen a differentschool where he would have gotten more playing time. Andy mentioned that by his junior year his focus changed from playing basketball to getting a degree. In thelong run he was successfulI strongly suspect that most of the kids who ride the pine figure that getting a degree becomes more important than playing basketball.As a side note Rivals.com has recently elevated their ranking of Zeke up to #45.

As posted else where on ZipsNation Zeke was interviewed about his commitment to Akron. While on the surface he took some ribbing from fellow high schoolers, thereality is that Zeke was the smartest of them all. Why? Because most of these very gifted kids will get far less playing time than Zeke will. Zeke will see considerable floor time almost from the beginning. Whether he plays two, three or four years he will be a starter and on the court. Most of these kids willspend most if not all of their college years riding the pine and getting smacked around at practice.How can I see this? Easy. There are two hundred minutes of playing time in the normal game. Split five ways (five players) means no one gets more than forty minutes.Sounds great, Except that these gifted, talented kids sign up like cord wood at the mega-schools like UCLA, Memphis, Kansas ... you get the picture. Since these coachesare usually three or four deep at every position with top one hundred players, where does "coach" get minutes for all these talents?College football players have long since learned to sign with "lesser" schools rather than ride the pines. College basketball players are not there just yet.For the incoming class of 2008 UCLA has FIVE top one hundred recruits. And UCLA has at least two and probably more kids that were at LeBron's Skills Academy thatare frothing at the mouth to go ride the pines in Los Angeles. The kids still don't get it. Neither do their parents.On Monday I spent some time chatting with a parent of a stud wing man. In fact, he had caught my eye and I would love to see him in a Zips uniform. A UNC assistanthad told me on Sunday that UNC was going to offer him. The Dad was proud of that even though he preferred his son attend Clemson. When I mentioned how good his son would look in a Zips uniform he acted as if I had insulted his son.Here's a clue "Dad" .. .your stud kid will spend most of his college career on the bench. Both UNC and Clemson already have wing men that he will never sit down.On the other hand, playing wing at Akron insures him three or four years as a starter, a huge look from the NBA scouts and a probable trip to the Final Four as astarter. Sure, the Final Four is likely for either Clemson or UNC ... with your kid's butt firmly planted on the bench.Zeke Marshall will be able to look over at his former LSA team mate and smile as Zeke gets ready to jump the opening tip.

There has been beer available at the Rubber Bowl for many years. You just need to know where to get it.

Remember ... Dru and Rome are both paid professional players. This gig augments their income, gains them experience and gives NBA scouts a chance to check their progress.As I write this WHLO 640AM sports was bleating about Robert Traylor was the only experienced professional on the Cavs Summer team. Ignorance abounds.

I managed to get a reply from coach Dambrot regarding what coach Huggins told me. KD thought it was not really necessary to ask him. I felt that I needed to be on thesafe side. So .... here is what coach Huggins told coach Dambrot and later told me. According to Bob Huggins Zeke Marshall is a real get and is a future pro player.Understand that when Huggins says "future pro" he is referring to the NBA, not Europe. This is high praise to KD from a man who has guided a number of players intothe NBA. While LeBron was literally dropped in KD's lap, the Zips coaching staff had to do the leg work to garner Zeke Marshall's services.A major-major coach told me today that he fully expects to see more prime time players coming to Akron. According to him the Zips are on a fast rise.I was hoping for an on the court match up between highly regarded Kyle Orton and Zeke. It never took place. They were in opposite rotations and were never on thecourt at the same time. I came away today with an understanding that the Zips are quite close to being the "Gonzaga of the East" that coach Dambrot speaks of.It is all coming together. The Zips are literally a solid wing man from being one of the most dangerous mid-majors.

Thanks for the invite Zip2Go, and the excellent time at the afternoon session.Zeke has made great strides and I over heard a number of excellent comments regarding his future. The best one coming from my long time friend coach Bob Huggins.Here's the rub. Bob's comment is so good and a repeat of what he told coach Dambrot that I can not repeat it here until I get a clearance from coach Dambrot.Hugs sat with KD during Zeke's second game Monday evening.I had the grand good fortune to be asked to help an older (well into his 70's) gentleman find the student union so he could get some lunch. The older gentleman turned outto be former long time Cleveland State head coach Ray Derringer. We talked for half an hour. I had never met coach Ray before. He is currently a scout for theDallas Mavericks. While he paid little attention to the high schoolers he had been asked to observe Zeke. Thus, he was able to make several positive commentsregarding Zeke. Coach Ray was quite upbeat regarding Zeke. He sees high potential in Zeke. I humbly concur.I had supper with another NBA scout (Charolette Hornets). Again, his focus was on the college players in attendance. He spoke highly of the facilities and the people.LeBron, Dwayne Wade and probably O.J. Mayo played a pick up game over in the rec center in the early evening. I did not attend that.A professional writer (from on of the posted links) was drooling all over John Henson. He saw something I never saw. I watched Henson play against Zeke's team on Sunday. My opinion of Henson is that he is one of several players that rely on intimidation (rabbit punches and shoves). He caused a reaction in Zeke that led to Zeke being called for a foul. A few minutes later Zeke took Henson off his pins. No call. Payback. This took place on Sunday.As for the HS player, Patrick Beverly, no mention of him in the program guide.Tuesday is the final session. Games will be played at 2:40 PM (JAR and REC center) and again at 6:45PM (JAR Arena). Last chance.

Spent most of the afternoon and evening knocking around LeBron's skills camp. Of course my primary interest being watching Zeke.Zeke is getting better by the day. Still tall and lean. More effective at holding his own on the blocks. Short range shooting much improved, but not there just yet.Fun to watch "Zee" competing against the truly best high school kids in the country.One kid in Z's team caught my fancy. A kid soon to be a junior in HS. Talked to an UNC as in North Carolina assistant coach who expressed an interest in the same kid.Guess our chances would be smoked.Had the pleasure of shaking Mike Krzyzewski's hand. Better still I had a nice conversation with Florida's Billy Donavan and Shaka Smart. Honestly, I think Donavantalked to me at length because Shaka introduced me to coach Donavan by my name. I use to chat with Shaka often when he was a Zips coach. Best of everythingto Shaka.Chatted a bit with Oliver Purcel of Clemson. A fine man and coach. There were mainline college coaches all over the place. I did talk to several other coaches. Fun for me.Other than the kids mostly playing selfish ball it was a treat to watch these future college stars in action.The skills camp runs four more days. You can drop by and watch from the rafters like I did. Player's parents are awesome to talk to. They are common every day folkwho just happen to have a potential NBA star living in their house. One father talked to me at length about his son who has verbaled to Clemson. A mother who hadas much humor and wit as Zee's mother stated that her son has verbaled to North Carolina. This is how I got to talk with the UNC coach. I was talking to her whenhe stopped by to update her on a meeting later in the week. He was kind enough to talk to me.All in all, the coaches and kids were in high spirits.I am deliberately NOT mentioning any of the players names or commenting on their individual performances. So, don't ask.

Not mentioned in the PD article are the major gains in "Z's" performance, especially on offense. Zeke has been working hard on his mid range jumper. He is getting excellent coaching over the Summer. The up coming LeBron Skills Camp (July 5-9) should be an excellent opportunity to see Z's skill growth.According yo Elton Alexander Z's national ranking has climbed to thirty-seventh overall. Expect that to improve. Z just might reach the status of five star.

I was introduced to Anthony "Humpty" Hitchens yesterday.I gaffed as I mistook him for Ronnie Steward whom I have previously met. Both are short people. Or should I say talented, short people.Humpty has a disarming smile. He was polite and possessed a nice self confidence. He is currently in Summer session class as is Alex Sullivan.More good news for Zips fans. Andrew Parrish will be in class for the second Summer session. He has cleared entrance requirements.

Hoop Scoop final evaluation presenting the top 1,000 players (in their opinion). List dated June 26, 2008 MAC players:168. Anthony Hitchens 5'10" PG Akron196. Flenard Whitfield 6'7" PF Western Michigan201. Maurice Hubbard 6'6" PF Ball State229. Justin Greene 6'6" PF Can't State308. Stacy Waters 6'3" 2G Ohio U318. Jarrod Jones 6'8" PF Ball State397. Larry Bastfield 6'0" PG Toledo404. Scott THomas 6'6" WF Bowling Green424. Bryon hall 6'1" 2G Northern Illinois446. Julian Mavunga 6'8" PF Miami456. Lawrence Bridges 6'5" WF Central Michigan465. Pierre Sneed 6'4" 2G Ball State466. Austi Calhoun 6'7" PF Bowling Green472. Mike Dinunno 6'1" PG Northern Illinois478. Brett McClanahan 6'5" WF Akron495. Alex Sullivan 5'10" PG Akron524. Demetrius Ward 6'2" 2G Western Michigan527. Tyler Storm 6'6" WF Northern Illinois532. Darnell Brown 6'2" 2G Bowling Green 538. Zac Taylor 6'8" PF Toledo552. Steve Coleman 6'4" 2G Ohio U583. Zach Fields 6'10" C Ball State587. Alex Grimsley 6'5" WF Can't State594. Vince Legarza 6'9" C Miami598. Zach Saylor 6'8" PF Central Michigan653. Mike Douglas 6'0" PG Western Michigan694. Andrew Parrish 6'7" PF Akron714. Brandon Harrison 6'8" PF Eastern Michigan736. Adrian Hunter 5'11" PG Central Michigan769. Ian Salter 6'10" C Toledo780. Randy Davis 5'11" PG Ball State841. Frankie Dobbs 6'1" PG Ohio U857. Stephen Albrecht 6'3" 2G Toledo866. Kramer Soderberg 6'0" PG Miami888. Daniel Barnes 6'2" 2G Eastern Michigan948. Titus Robinson 6'7" WF Buffalo Probably 100 or more of the top 1,000 have not signed with any team.Nicola Cvetinovic is not listed mainly because he did not participate in the various Summercamps or play AAU ball according to an Akron coach.

According to coach McFadden the 2008-09 non-conference schedule will be released soon. All games are set except for the two opponents we will face in the EKU exempt tournament.Replacing UIC with UNC-Greensboro slightly improved the Zips OOC strength of schedule.