Captain Kangaroo

True. He played a little on the d line in the last scrimmage and did well. Looks bigger than 225?

Does TJ Go the Zips Way?

Eight In The Boxen

Keith Dambrot thanks you for the heads up on Tougaloo College and Rust College. Look for them on future Duquesne schedules.

Had Warren stayed at OSU, there were roughly ten P5 games on the schedule that he'd have needed to endure. At Akron, there's two. Of all the players on the Zips roster, he's the one most built to withstand 4 quarters of P5 football. Run, Warren run!

It will be fun to watch Duquesne's "strength" of schedule evolve over the next few seasons, as they turn into an unstoppable A-10 force that wins NCAA tourney games. I'm betting heavy-hitters Bethune Cookman and perhaps Coppin State are on the horizon.

I would ask Warren Ball if he felt playing against Penn State was something he wanted to do. If Warren said "Hell yeah. You think I came back for a 6th year to play against Arkansas Pine Bluff? I plan on being an NFL back next season. If I can't steamroll a sophomore Penn State linebacker what chance do I have against Dont’a Hightower?' Warren's earned the right to do whatever he wants to do.

What better time to beat Penn State than immediately after their HC gets a big fat contract extension?

Please read. All Acme Fresh Market State Liquor available: Monday – Saturday: All State Liquor Locations • 9 am – 10 pm Sunday Hours: Acme Ellet, Hudson, Kent, Norton, and Bailey Rd • 11 am – 10 pm Sunday Hours: Acme Tallmadge, Montrose, Canton and North Canton • 10 am – 10 pm

The Acme in my town sells liquor anytime after noon on Sunday. Many stores do.

Big Dog's "1-pack" wouldn't have fit in with this year's crew. Hope some of those 6-packers in the photos can make up for his lost production...

No crazy liquor laws. Ohio grocery stores and gas stations sell beer. In addition to State stores, many larger grocery stores (Giant Eagle, Acme, etc.) sell liquor all day long. There are bars and restaurants across the street from the stadium (Exchange St.) that sell food and beer, but they are usually woefully understaffed for a big game (like Pitt a couple years ago). So to be safe, I would bring your own tailgate food rather than bank on getting something near the stadium. As far as Akron tailgates go, Lot 9 is a small, but pretty active and fun area. I can't speak for any of the other lots.

That would be cool. A nice tip-of-the-hat to Jayson, and the Zips of that era who bought in to UA football when there was a decrepit 50 year old WPA stadium and no indoor training facility. I remember a nice Beacon column 20 years ago that had JT and a couple other Zips walking past a corn field somewhere in central Ohio to the fields where they held summer camp. You couldn't imagine that today, but you couldn't hold a decent camp in Akron at the time. JT's head must spin when he sees what amenities today's student athletes enjoy. The only thing that's stayed consistent oner the years is the crowd size.☹️ The "Moving A" rules! Long overdue to make a return! Do it, UA! Do do we let Ulysses Gilbert don the "33" for the game? That would be cool.

He didn't. Hence the reaction you see above (I wouldn't call it "shock").

He's a strange dude...

Looks like a drop-in replacement for Coney/Chapman in the slot next season. His HS coach sure found a lot of ways to utilize him. Fun highlight film to watch.

Look Out for the Cyclone Running Game

"Don't be surprised to see the Wagon Wheel back at MAC Media Day in 2018." Strong words from the Record-Courier scribe.

Memphis Football 2017 27 wins in the past 3 seasons. As of today, favored in 10 of their 12 games in 2017. Less than 4 point underdogs in the other two. Beat BG 77-3 last year. etc.

The same Will Barto that people thought was a D-2 talent? We're mad about "losing" this kid? Memphis is a step down from Akron? They went 10-2, 9-4 and 8-5 in their last 3 seasons, against better competition than the MAC. Paxton Lynch was a 1st round NFL draft pick. Bizarre....

So let me get this straight...the Zips received a commitment from a kid with the following accolades: The Stark County Defensive PotY First team All-Ohio Division 1 Father that played 4 years for the Zips, and also played multiple years in the NFL. And this is the straw that broke the camel's back and necessitated the soap box rant huh? We don't want this kid coming to Akron? Bizarre.

Corner still has some academics to address before he can play. The coaches I spoke to are confident he'll get the work done in the classroom and the Zips will have an elite level football player in 2018.

Great job, AJ! Nice touch that it was set in front of the Jayson Taylor backdrop!

Here is the last installation of my MAC Media Day interviews. I was able to speak to Coach Bowden for 10-or-so minutes. The event was much more well-attended than I anticipated. With so many different radio, TV, print and blog reporters vying for everyone's time, it was pretty difficult for a reporter to get an uninterrupted audience. I'd have prepared, and handled it differently if I did it again. This interview started in the hallway...then went into the TV studio...then we went back out in the hallway...and then back in the main ballroom. 10 "interview minutes" took roughly an hour and 15 minutes "real time" to complete. Coach Bowden Also - a few people said they had difficulty with the Warren Ball interview. Here is an embedded link that should be easy for anyone to open (same interview as before, just in a more user-friendly format). Warren Ball

I was able to speak to Warren Ball for a short bit. Another super representative of UA! During my interview with Zack, a very loud, incredibly talkative Munch Bishop was interviewing Coach Bowden immediately to my right. The audio recording was a complete wreck with those two in the background, so I had to transcribe it. Things settled down when I spoke to Warren, so here's the audio. I realize I have a long way to go as an interviewer. But Warren is awesome. I think you'll like what he had to say...it's way better to hear his voice that it would be to read it in print. Note - The Wagon Wheel did make an appearance at the Hall of Fame. Audio Interview with Warren Ball