Captain Kangaroo

Awesome job, Dr. Z!

Gimme the OU mascot over Wil any day of the week.

21 points, 29 boards...could he be The Next Neerim Gembolai?

Can't wait for the Terry Bowden show tonight. Joe Dunn is sure to grill him with some tough questions regarding the Marshall game. Hope Coach is up to the task!

Looking back on Saturday, I'll say the following - As good as I thought our defense was/is, looking at Marshall's 11 defenders, we aren't in their league. Size, speed, athleticism, scheme...they looked like a BCS defense to me.In defense of the Zips defense...man, it gets old running back on to the field time-after-time-after-time as the offense goes 3-and-outI think I'm the only one that was PO'd when the waved the white flag and punted on 4th and 12 at the Marshall 40? There's 1:05 on the clock, and you're down 28 points. Can you at least try to score...show me you're trying to get back in the game? Punting the ball into the endzone when you are in that situation makes absolutely no sense to me.Where will the offense come from in 2014? Pohl is a decent QB. D'Orazio is a solid WR. After that, where does it come from? It's disappointing that, in Year #3 of TB's tenure, we have no offensive threats whatsoever.Watching the replays of the old Marshall games, which of our 2014 WR's would see time over Sparks, Irvin, Cherry or Montgomery? Probably only D'Orazio. Maybe LT Smith gets a few snaps.After watching #47 churn out the yards for the Herd Saturday, I'm starting to like the idea of Newman Williams in the backfield next year. If he plays LB, great...we sill need a running back that is capable of moving forward and getting 3-4 yards when we need it. And one that's a legit threat to take it to the house every so often. Brandon Payne, Jimmy Gray, Brett Biggs, Dennis Kennedy, Bobby Hendry, Culler, McCray these were all guys you could bank on to move the chains. They were "money" inside the 10. Why can't we find guys like that?We need Brumbaugh back. Of all our recent injury losses, his is causing the biggest concern. March is a close second.I would like to see the Marshall bandwagon if the Herd had 5 winning football records over the past 27 seasons. A big "F U" to any Marshall fan talking attendance smack.People who want to dumb-down the schedule to get some cheap cupcake wins need to take a step back to 5-10 years ago. This Marshall team we saw today...10 years ago we could have played with them. Now we get waxed. But we are capable of being as good as Marshall.If the Zips played to their capabilities Saturday, they'd have lost 48-24.In defense of Hakeem Lawrence - the guy hasn't carried a football in a real game in almost 3 years. He barely played in year #1, and redshirted last year. Give him some ball-security, rip drills and get him back on the field. We need his speed. If it turns-out he's just another track star who can't take the football contact, then bench him. But I would give him another shot sooner than later. He was in a tough position Saturday.We punt the ball into the endzone to much.Good to see Rossi in the backfield to start the game, if for no other reason than he's a fun guy to support. If you've ever coached a sport, event at the lowest level, you always love a kid that just wants to get on the field and will do anything you need.Our pass offense seems to be "toss it up and hope." Which I hate. When Brumbaugh returns, does Pohl have some time to get through his progressions? I hope so. Lobbing it up to your #1 option and hoping for a catch or flag ain't where it's at.Two weeks to prepare for Marshall, and we bungled and fumbled our way through the game. Marshall had 200 yards in penalties, and still clowned us at home. Part of me worries about how we're going to stop Pitt on Saturday. But overall, I still like our D. More of me worries if we are capable of putting the ball in the endszone against anyone this season. TONS of work to do on the offensive side of the ball.

The brutal truth That's an ass-whuppin'.

To make people think.

Really? I didn't say they were. I asked the question: "When was the last time the Zips were favored by 9 points vs. a Division 1A opponent?"

Back in the Rubber Bowl Days, Marshall would bring 8k fans to a game. The whole "We Are...Marshall" chant going left-to-right in the stands was always pretty impressive. Will Marshall still get 8k to travel to Akron? 4k? I have no clue regarding Marshall fans since they left the MAC. Just curious if TV and Internet availability of games has eroded their road fan base.

When was the last time the Zips were favored by 9 points vs. a Division 1A opponent?

Marshall Preparation

They want everything in Columbus. I like how they stole the state HS football playoffs from Canton/Massillon. Who needs the money more...Columbus or Canton? MF'ers.

Who knew?

"Those who don't learn history are condemned to repeat it." Zip_ME87 wins this debate. Logic, facts, research, avoidance of hyperbole, specifics...the total package.

If Brown does move to Guard, what does it mean? Our existing interior OL is underperforming?Brown is too slow for tackle?We are going to run more Saturday and want a bigger, stronger body on the interior?I would go with #3. I saw Brown in scrimmages, and he absolutely engulfed the opposing DE (Dorvalis, I believe) when he played right tackle. I think Brown at Guard shows that Bowden would want to run the ball more-frequently than we've seen in games #1 and 2. I'm all for it.

If you read my post, there was nothing cocky about it. In fact it contains a very realistic qualifier: "Assuming that we won the prerequisite games." You are taking a fun thread completely out of context, and telling everyone what they obviously already know. The question is: "If Akron won the prerequisite football games, wouldn't it be fun to see an add like NIU's run in a local paper?" Would any local alumni have the balls to run it, in Akron -- "The Heart of Buckeye Country"? Was anyone else at the JAR when that "Zippy - Thriller" video ran, and Zippy introduced everyone to "Brutus Blackeye"? Everyone was clapping along to the video until... Zippy nailed Brutus in the face with the basketball. Then half the crowd sat in stunned silence, while the other half cheered. That 3-second snapshot spoke volumes about "Zips Fans."

I'm in for $51. I will await BigZip's go-ahead. Can GT tell us what a full-page Beacon ad costs? BTW - The "run" that the ad gets over the web and news outlets is infinitely more valuable than the print ad itself.

Could you ever see anyone in Akron having the balls to do an "equivalent" to this? Assuming, of course that we won the prerequisite games... Reminds me of the old Cincinnati ads of a few years ago.

Gunnar Holcombe, meet your son.

Where will Zips Central Tailgating Be?

Next Marshall Victim? With Bowden being from West Virginia and Marshall (good following) being the opponent, I'm expecting some good out-of-town newspaper articles this week . As ZN.o members find them, please post 'em.

If he went blonde this week, that would be the coolest!

Marshall of 10 years ago is still Marshall now. Fast, game-breaker wide receivers. Big-play offense. Their RB's AVERAGE 6.7 yards/carry. Their WR's AVERAGE 17.3 yards/catch. By contrast the Zips average 3.4 yards/carry, and 11.7 yards/completion. Lee Owens beat Marshall a couple times with defenses FAR less talented than the 2014 Zips. But Paul Winters' offense could keep up with a lot of teams. Marshall's undisciplined play and swagger has historically cost them against the Zips. It will be interesting to see what Bowden has in-store for the Herd. A conservative "Penn State" game plan, where the Zips try to control the clock and let the defense harass Cato, who's only completing 57% of his passes. Or a shoot-out, "Michigan" game plan where LT Smith gets some deep balls, and Pratt actually makes a showing in the box score. How much Hakeem Lawrence do we see this week? I'll guess 5X more than we saw last week. I don't see how a Penn State game plan works against the Herd. We won't be able to keep up, unless we get a ton of turnovers. Whatever color Coach Bowden's hair is this week, I hope he let's it down and slings the ball like it's 2012!

How many beers deep was he?