Captain Kangaroo

Word on the street is Ianello had the existing scoreboard torn down. New 2010 InfoCision endzone view is below:

The UA "Football Guy" vs. "Basketball Guy" has existed @ UA since Dennison was canned. That pretty much spans my era as a resident of Summit County. It just gets old... No ill intent towards my friend Zip_ME87. His post simply inspired a minor rant on my part. And that chain reaction is the backbone of this board...posts that generate intelligent, opinionated and passionate observations on all aspects of Zips athletics. ZW makes a lot of excellent points. The one I'll disagree with is using the blanket statement that (paraphrasing) "Zips football doesn't cover it's costs." That certainly was the case for every year up until 2009. But that should no longer be the case. I think all history of Zips football and profit/loss during the Rubber Bowl era needs to be locked away forever. The book keeping began last season, and I don't think the profitability (or loss-ability) can accurately be gauged until 2014. If it is an albatross in 2014, then someone isn't doing their job. And as a final point of clarification - No one denies that the basketball program is highly successful. It's having it's best sustained run in the history of the program. Winning 68% (24-11) of their games is equivalent to the football team winning 8 games, and Football Guy has never won 8 games in the Division 1 era, regardless of the ease of schedule. But...the JAR is 1/2 full. And have seen Z-E-R-O ideas on how to correct that. And it needs to be corrected. In my "Blame Rant," I listed numerous easily fixable problems within Zips basketball. Fixing them will put additional butts in the seats, improve the Program's image and visibility, and will not cost squat. We'll see how many problems are corrected in 2010-11. If past history is any indication...nothing will be done...people will toss up their hands and say "Why oh why can we not support the Zips basketball program"...and then the annual grousing about the football program will enter it's 26th consecutive season.

Yeah...that Waters guy can't coach for a lick, and that NCAA Tourney win in 2009 was a total fluke. CSU is a remora on Butler's belly. Are you for real? You can't possibly believe the stuff you write.

Walt Harris Nabs QB Coaching Job @ Cal!

Stick with football. 1.) One of D.I.G's all time best posts 2.) I think we have located the elusive "Joe Akron." Who knew he was right under our noses all these years?!

When I was at the basketball golf outing, during the Q & A session a guy asked KD (a set up, "softball" question of the year, with added $40million dollar exaggeration) -- "How do you feel about the football program getting a $100million dollar stadium, when you are playing in an old arena. And all you've done is win 20 games year-in-year-out, and you're coming off an NCAA Tourney berth?" Dambrot's reply is irrelevant. To me, what is relevant, is the basketball vs. football mentality that the guy exuded. The fact that he's baiting KD to bash the Zips football program was beyond shameful. Memo to "Basketball Guy": * The football team is the only program that can draw 30,000 people to a game. Basketball's best draw is 5,500. * The football team is the only program that can net $700,000 by playing an away game at Penn State * The football team sacrifices it's coach's record by playing a lot of essentially unwinnable BCS-level road games, to get cash for the Zips Athletic Department. * The Zips football program played in a total dump of a stadium for the past 25 years * Most importantly - Infocision Stadium is Zips Basketball Guy's only ticket out of this God-forsaken MAC Conference. Without it, you're watching home-home series with the Eastern Michigan's of the world for the rest of your life. This post isn't a rant against Zip_ME87, who is my buddy. But his post brought to the surface a complaint that's always bugged me. Basketball guy needs to quit directing his anger at Zips football, and find another scapegoat...villain...whatever you want to call it...for the basketball program's shortcomings. It is proven that a 20-win, MAC Champion Zips men's hoops team will draw, on-average, 3,000 fans. That ain't football's fault. Blame Dambrot, who considered this season a "rebuilding year" even though he only lost 1 player from an NCAA Tourney qualifier, and brought in a highly-touted 7-footer to replace him on the roster. Blame the soft schedule, that excited absolutely no one. Blame the lack of eye-catching wins over marquee teams (Florida State was long, long ago) Blame the team that won 24 games, yet got waxed by pretty much every decent team they competed against. Blame our lethargic approach to home games (remember when we NEVER lost at the JAR?) Blame the lack of a "star," must-see player. Blame the JAR team shop, who doesn't sell Zips Basketball replica jerseys (we wouldn't want little kids wearing such things to games, or around town, would we?) Blame the $3.00 hotdogs and understaffed concession lines (even with our weak crowds) Blame the lethargic blue hairs that seem to prefer staying home and watching "The Golden Girls" reruns to watching Zips hoops Blame the University for never successfully formulating, and following through with, a plan to get students to the games Blame the tragedy that is The Tommy Evans Lounge (what did poor Tommy ever do to get his name associated with it...whatever it was, it must have been really awful) Blame Marketing for lack of interesting promotions (boy, weren't halftimes a hoot this season?) Dambrot promised a brutal off-season for his returning players, in an attempt to toughen them up for 2010-11. It will be interesting to see if Winstrcill matches that change-of-approach with the other aspects of the basketball program such as Marketing and Promotions. There is a laundry list of basketball-related things proven to coma-tize Joe Akron. I don't want to see them again. If I do see them again, don't blame the football program. And as a final note of clarification - I attended 7 football games this year, and 20+ basketball games. And 7 soccer matches. Between season tickets and donations, UA is into my pocket for about $3,000 this past athletics season. I love Dambrot. I also love Zips football, and tailgating. If we want to fill seats, we needs to work together, not point fingers. Big changes are needed. No one should be happy with a 1/2 empty JAR.

Glad to see Terry Pluto reading my posts!! Thanks for checking in, Ter'! Two peas in a pod.... And the guy with the Tom Gaffney-diagnosed "Persecution Complex" chimes in with --

Not eligible to participate until summer camp. Apparently monster hands are no good for picking up pencils, operating calculators, and/or turning pages? If you were not eligible for the fall of 2009, you cannot participate in spring ball. I hear his fall UA classwork was fine. He should be good to go this summer. People forget kids like Jimmy Conyers, Darryl Roberts and Andre Jones were non-qualifiers too. It doesn't preclude them being a successful student athlete.

Not eligible to participate until summer camp.

Point 1 - Mike posted his opinion on Butler's winning formula, not Butler's winning formula. His opinion has some holes (like everyone's). Point 2 - How fast did Butler push the ball up the court? They walked it up every time. And let the defense set up every time. The speed at which a team gets from inbounding the ball, to half court is a worthless number. Butler is patient, and gets a quality look on virtually every offensive possession. They dribble-penetrate. They kick the ball out for open 3's. They crash the boards. They run an offensive clinic on virtually every possession. Does the ball go in every time? No. But they give themselves the best chance to score on every possession.

The purpose of this thread is to open the discussion of how close, or far away we are to becoming a "Butler." What did Butler do in the tourney that the Zips can go to school on? What magic/advantage does Butler have that the Zips will simply never have? Joe Dunn says Steve McNees is one of the premier point guards in the mid-west. Would he start for Butler? How would Brett McKnight's shot selection work in Coach Brad Stevens offense? When Butler comes to the Wollstein Center this winter, are you thinking about taking the family up the Cleveland to check them out? I am. Which, I guess, makes me "Joe Butler?" Does that example hit home as a microcosm of what UA needs to do to to fill those remaining 2,500 empty seats @ the JAR? Do something that captures Joe Akron's imagination? Idiot alert - Please don't be stupid and take this as "The Zips need to make the NCAA Finals to get the JAR attendance up??!" If you are that stupid, please spare us the insight to your thoughts. I think there is a lot of Zips-related hope to be garnered from Butler's run. And OU's win over Georgetown. And George Mason's Final Four. And K.e.n.t.'s Elite 8. I also think that intelligent Zips basketball fans got a harsh dose of reality watching the game last night and seeing what great mid-major basketball looks like. What did you learn from watching Butler that you can relate to the Zips hoops program?

Remi Abell

Short Column, But Good Quotes and Insight

Expenditure-wise, we're probably already pretty close to Butler? On an unrelated side note - I wonder if mid-major coaches are happy that Butler has proven a mid-major can make it to the Finals...or pissed because all mid-major fans are going to hold them to a higher standard?

I don't buy the "No hard feelings towards Walt Harris" quote

ShelDon Miller - Monessen Lions Club's Student of the Month for March

I recall that too. It was a Wallaby, not a Kangaroo. I think it died. You can find it in the biology lab now.

We can't win a home CBI game against Wisconsin Green Bay. We have a long way to go.

If all it takes is shooting 31% for the game, and 24% in the second half, the Zips are well on their way to national basketball prominence. We just need to get Brett McKnight a few more touches.

Sound theory.

I hope and pray the dorms are complete. That would mean Lot #9 will remain Tailgate Central! And Nerds are welcome to join us!!

If he wanted to transfer, I'd take him. X vs. Kansas State: One of the best college basketball games I've ever watched.

I hope the 4th guard is a JUCO. I can't see a Freshman guard, who hasn't signed with anyone even though Signing Day is long since passed, coming in and making the impact we need. It can't be a transfer, because he wouldn't be eligible until 2011-12.

Or, the talent was overestimated.

Now what am I going to watch on January 8th!?