Captain Kangaroo

The erosion of "northern" (not just Pittsburgh) talent is due to a lot of things. * The population has shifted south...there simply aren't as many kids * Kids don't play football in the north like they used to...when's the last time you saw a group of kids playing a pick up sandlot football game? * Kids specialize in sports today. It used to be that every kid played football. Now, a lot of the better athletes play basketball or baseball year-round and skip football. * Kids are "softer" today. Three decades of cable TV with 24/7 cartoons and cool video games has witnessed kids gravitating to the couch instead of the gridiron. Stick today's kids with 3 TV channels, no video games and cartoons only on Saturday mornings, and I guarantee youth sports would begin to rise again. * The steel mills and rubber factories have closed, and the toughness inherent to kids from these hardscrabble backgrounds is lost. * In Florida, you can play outdoor sports 24/7. Except in a hurricane. That's a huge training advantage. There are lots of other reasons too. Feel free to add a couple, or poke holes in mine. Obviously there is still a lot of good football talent in the north. But the above-listed reasons are why it's markedly less than it used to be.

Unless Worstell plays a position other than QB, or unless Bowden was pulling the wool over our eyes at the golf outing, Worstell should be making plans to attend a school other than Akron. 1 scholarship QB per class. That's all she wrote.

I would LOVE to tailgate in the Rubber Bowl grass lot again!

One of my favorite ZN.o quotes of 2012.

At the golf outing, Coach said the Zips will only scholarship 1 QB per season. If we sign another HS QB, look for him to move to another position when he joins the Zips.

"Stockett amassed a pair of offers" How does one amass a pair of anything?

The McKeesport Pipeline continues...

I don't know if I'll ever get the time to write a proper summary of our conversation with the coach, so I'll add short notes here as they come to mind -- Bowden said he has 5 "solid" offensive linemen, and two others that he feels will be at a serviceable level come Fall 2012. Bowden was as clueless as any of us regarding what he could or could not do regarding an association with Jim Tressel. As time has progressed, he's learned that he can do quite a bit... much more than he originally anticipated. Tressel can't play AD. That's clear. Tressel can't coach football, period. But he can meet with recruits. He can meet with the coaches. And Bowden has no ego...he wants to win, and if he can use Jim Tressel, legally, to help the Zips win, he's going to do it. He views Tressel as a great resource. One that other coaches in Ohio would kill to have. He said Jamel Turner is academically eligible, and his fingers are crossed that he is as-advertised. We probably won't know much more on Turner until August. Regarding the kicker (Fox) - Bowden, politely-as-he-could, simply stated kickers are a different breed than "position players", and he was as surprised as anyone that Fox departed. Perhaps Fox was miffed that Bowden put the kicking job up for grabs this summer. He is confident the kid from Cincinnati will be a solid replacement.

I think that should be on the back of your game day jersey...like "He Hate Me". Definitely needs to be your new ZN.o tag-line.

Full Column Personally, I thought it was a bigger shock/story that 2/3rds of Zips fans are pulling for K.e.n.t. (rather than focusing on 1/3 being anti-K.e.n.t.), but I appreciate the mention regardless.

His dad's alma mater... big fat pay raise... still a relatively "local" job... 4-bid conference... he's always felt slighted that football is dumping a ton of money into facilities and coaches that net a paltry one or two wins per season, while he's winning 20+ game/year and playing in a HS gym.... he's at that at the point in his life where he's probably got time for one last shot at the big-time... of course he thought about it seriously.

It would be read on the Internet, so who cares?

Channel 5 sent a crew to Omaha.

Lots of people don't believe things until they read them in the newspaper. Really old people...but lots of them. Feel free to check back and review this thread in August. If only picking winning Lotto numbers was as easy as picking Ole Miss to be 3rd string.

If the Coach didn't wait, why should we?

As quick as Pohl is ready is as quick as he will start. Smart money is on Williams to begin the season, and Pohl to end it.

About Ralph

Odd that you ignore UA's Law School, but tout K.e.n.t.'s Journalism program. What can you do with a Journalism degree in 2012? Blog?

They are playing at a very high level. Great players and fun to watch. For the second time in my life, I am rooting for the Flashes (the other time being their Elite 8 hoops run). Lots of respect for their baseball team. If they were to win it all, how would it compare to our soccer national title? Equivalent? Better? Lesser? I guess that is another poll for another day. I saw that Josh Cribbs chartered a 53-person bus "to make sure K.e.n.t. was well-represented in Omaha." Nice gesture.

I hope Harney is adding some moves to his half-court offensive game other than "plow into the lane." If not, there will simply be a 2" taller kid sitting on the Zips' bench for 28min/game. Fr. to Soph. is usually a big jump. My expectations are high for Harney in 2012-13.

I'm at the point in my life where my kid is playing fall sports on Saturdays. Here's hoping his games are early...

I missed the interview. At any point did Bowden say "It's a process..."?

Back-in-the-day, my son's favorite player. It also beget him following #99 Carl Edwards in NASCAR.

I agree that with Gilliam and Diggs being seniors, and maybe Walsh being a senior too, that there won't be a ton of minutes available at shooting guard. But there will be some. As a redshirt Fr,., 8-or-so mpg wouldn't be too bad? I really wonder where Ibitayo will fit in. Not a great shooter. Not a great ball handler. Great upside. Great length. Is he still a year away from meaningful minutes? Seems like it.

I think this is the first legit, 36-team sell-out? We've doubled-up on holes in the past, but never on all 18. Hope the dinner isn't over before our group completes the round.