Captain Kangaroo

Was anyone else surprised that not one MAC team received a single vote in either the Associated Press or USA Today preseason men's polls?Why would any MAC school receive a vote?

That's really not a fair stat. If you give a guy the bunt sign every time he's at bat, you have to expect his home run total is going to be low.

When Steve Parker was ousted...we rolled on...when Ken Lolla left...we rolled on...if Caleb leaves...we'll roll on...Tradition never graduates.That said - Porter merits more than a token raise this season, and the soccer stadium needs to get off the blocks. Here is where the new AD begins building his resume'.

Get ready to be ecstatic. The kid is a HS All-American. At a minimum, he should produce those numbers next year.It's not enough to just count on an extra year of maturity to move the team forward. I also don't understand why winning an NCAA game is the definition of moving forward. IMHO, what a team does during the regular season better defines how a team is progressing than one week at the end of the year. BB is a strange game where a really good team can have one bad day and lose a conference tournament game....that doesn't really define a team. I'd take going undefeated in the MAC as a strong step forward. Going undefeated or only 1 or 2 MAC loses would be a sign of a consistently good team. That's the step forward I'm looking for.Going beyond the 1st round in the NCAA tourney is absolutely HUGE. I don't get how anyone can blow that off as no big deal?Say the Zips make it to Round #2. The Zips are plastered all over the local and national media. They play on CBS, not ESPNU. The local bars are packed with Akron fans getting excited about their team. Dambrot no longer needs to talk about the potential his team has when he recruits against upper-echelon programs...he can point to himself actually cutting down a net after beating a Wake Forest.Keith Dambrot's Zips have been to the NCAA tourney. Now it is time to win a game (or two).Regarding going undefeated in the MAC -- Sure, that would be HUGE. However, if the Zips were to run the table in the MAC, then bow out in round #1 of the NCAA tourney, it would then be a HUGE letdown. Running the table in the MAC probably equates to no worse than a #11 tourney seed. That's a game an undefeated MAC team should win.Why are Zips fans so afraid of success? Everyone wants to pitter-patter around having high expectations for Zeke...of winning an NCAA tourney game? I don't get it. People SHOULD have high expectations for this team. The SHOULD have high expectations for the highest rated HS recruit ever to play for a MAC school. Side note: It absolutely amazes me how just about every Zips fans has gone from giddy over Zeke, to "I don't expect anything from him the first season." A couple Elton Alexander "buzz kill" quotes and everyone busts out their best let-down coping mechanisms? That's the power of the media.Great MAC teams win NCAA tourney games. Miami has won. Western Michigan has won. K.e.n.t. has won. Central Michigan has won. Throw in Cleveland State too.Zips fans need to appreciate winning the MAC. It's damn difficult to do. But the top mid-majors don't stop at winning their conference. They want more. I want more. Keith Dambrot and the Zips are capable of more. Thus I expect more in 2010.

Since he has a soccer background, it must be true.

I didn't see that theory, but I'm serious in saying that. I remember the early Jawanza years. I hate to pick on him now, but how many open two hand under the hoop shots did he miss? Then in his senior season, it was like a light went on and all of a sudden and he was not only making shots, he was helping us win games. I really hope Jimmy becomes that guy. I hope that light comes on.I think the Zips with Zeke will have to learn how to win in a different way than they did last year. I think we will be better for it come Q time.If we create a similar theory for football, can we call it "The Mark Groza Effect?"

True...if your goal is to lose in the 1st round of the NCAA tourney.If the Zips are to continue their progression, they need Zeke to contribute meaningful minutes.If Jimmy Conyers contributes anything this season, it is gravy. If Zeke contributes it is not "gravy," it is HUGE.I absolutely disagree with the implication that the Zips can't make it out of the first round of the tourney w/out a major contribution from Zeke. Last years team was an incredibly young team. I don't have the numbers available, but they were probably one of the youngest teams in the NCAA's. Yet they went toe to toe with a very good Gonzaga team for 30 minutes. Experience alone says we should be improved this year. I don't think it is at all out of the question that we could make it out of the first round without a major contribution from Zeke. You look at the mid-majors that make runs in the tournament and you will rarely find one that has a true C making a big contribution, particularly a true C who is a freshman. It isn't a necessity at all. Don't get me wrong, if Zeke can come in here and give us 20 minutes a game with 8-12 points and 6-8 rebounds and 2-4 blocks, or even 15 minutes with around 6 points and 5 rebounds and a couple blocks I'm going to be ecstatic. I just don't think it is an absolute necessity for our program to progress. Its gravy.I also disagree on the comment about Conyers. With Nate out of the picture I really think we DO need Conyers to step up. Nate was our best wing defender on the team the last few years. Losing him creates a major void. B.McKnight is likely to take over a lot of Nate's minutes, but the worst part of Brett's game has always been and will always be his defense. Now you can say that McClanahan is being groomed to take over that role, but I never looked at him last year and said, "this kid can be an elite defender." Maybe I'm wrong on that, but I just don't see it. The fact is that we are going to need contributions from Conyers, who at this moment IS our best wing defender. A lot more teams in the MAC and across the country have good wing scorers that can put pressure on your defense than teams that have great big men. We will need Conyers to step up and guard those guys more than we need Zeke to match up with the couple of 7 footers we might see this year.+1-1

True...if your goal is to lose in the 1st round of the NCAA tourney.If the Zips are to continue their progression, they need Zeke to contribute meaningful minutes.If Jimmy Conyers contributes anything this season, it is gravy. If Zeke contributes it is not "gravy," it is HUGE.

That was actual footage of the K.e.n.t. fans approaching the Rubber Bowl for the 1989 Zips vs. F.l.a.s.h.e.s. contest, I believe?If you look closely, you can see a 5 year old Mike Rasor tailgating next to the airport fence.

Can't argue with Alexander if he's actually taken the time to check out the practices.Like it or not, he offered more insight in that small column than David Lee Morgan did in 5 years.

1.) Over the summer we all saw an interview with Hunter Yuracheck. In it, he stated (paraphrasing) - "The stakes have been raised for Akron Football. .500 won't cut it anymore." Seems pretty clear to me.2.) I am still awaiting the results of the UA investigation that forced Coach Ferri to resign. It should be scrutinized heavily by fans. 3.) I am glad to see JD has cut down on our missed PAT's dramatically. I'm disappointed that he's elected to use the strategy of scoring dramatically fewer touchdowns to achieve it.4.) Our offensive line is really, really bad. Our running backs are really, really bad. The team should be able to overcome the loss of a player like Joe Tuzze...but it can't. 5.) JD played Bowser despite his penchant for dropped passes. But, he won't play Devoe Torrence despite his penchant for fumbling. What gives? Torrence is our ONLY chance to move the ball on the ground. The only chance of keeping defenses from teeing off on Nicely. Allen is a shell of his former self. Dale Martin and Ronnie Steward are crowding up the Athletics Department whirlpool. Tuzze is hurt. Nate Burney apparently will never see the field, and Broderick Alexander is obviously going to be redshirted. Adrian Peterson fumbles way too much. But he's a gamebreaker, so he plays. Torrence needs to play.6.) Andre Jones may end up the most under-appreciated Zip ever. Some NFL team is going to get lucky with him in the late rounds, or in the undrafted FA market. He's like Hixson...special teams...WR...defensive secondary...and he has played all those positions at a very high level.7.) Stec's crappy rugby punts at Buffalo still bother me. 8.) Like a lot of other fans, I wonder how a coaching change would affect the minds of a lot of the recruits presently verbaled to UA. I'm guessing we'll lose a few. In a perfect world they would look at the coaching change as a sign of commitment from the University to winning. Time will tell.9.) I'm guessing we'll be a 6-...maybe 7-point underdog to K.e.n.t. in two weeks? 10.) I wonder about Nicely in 2010. Since he played as a true freshman, he could transfer and use 2010 as a "redshirt" season. He could go anywhere he preferred. He seems like a team kid and a good leader. I have to believe he'd stay. But him playing as a true Freshman could be the worst thing that could have happened to the Zips. It opens the door for him to transfer to a D1-A school without losing a year's eligibility. Just something for Skip-Zip and the other rabid "sky-is-falling" posters to ponder....Watching the Zips ain't no fun right now. Can we petition to have this week's game removed from TV? Or moved to ESPNU where no one will see it?

I disagree. When we win, we draw. 15k people drove to Detroit to see the Zips play a mediocre Memphis team in a non-BCS bowl game. They will drive to the corner of Brown and Exchange if we can ever put a winning team on the field. The do care, when the Zips are good. They do not care when the Zips are bad. It is that simple.Seriously - If you are "Joe Akron," why the hell would you want to endure a Zips game right now. Why would you want to buy a ticket or a ball cap? If the Zips are 6-2, it is an entirely different story than 1-7. No it doesn't. The Zips can easily draw 20,000 fans per home game if they have a winning product. When YSU was winning, they would draw 20,000. When YSU is losing, they draw 12,000. The people of Youngstown and Akron are no different. Winning draws fans, and losing repels them.I attended the Viking/Steelers game yesterday. Vikings fans were everywhere.I attended a Vikings/Steelers game 3-4 years ago, when Minnesota wasn't so hot, and I was one of two Vikings fans in the entire city of Pittsburgh.How many tribe fans are there when they win games? How many empty seats are there when they suck? Yes it will. The examples are everywhere. Locally, and across the nation. Compete for championships at any level, and you will capture the public's fancy. Rack up losing record after losing record and you will draw flies.

No debate here. We all would take that kind of suck right about now.20 - 11 home loss to K.e.n.t.Like I said -- OU sucks. I asked people from Tennessee and BG...they agreed.Just because the Zips suck more doesn't change the fact that OU is a crappy football program in an insanely crappy conference.

Which means he'll be 20 when he graduates high school!? How are his academics? I don't know if it applies to Dylan or not, but Canadian kids are always a year older than kids from the states when coming out of HS. If he transfered to a US school from Canada he may have lost a year.I think Jabai Arthur was 20 as a Zips freshman?

I saw Nicely sitting on the slope of the endzone grass this morning. The slope was not too steep, and his ankle looked fine.

Interesting quote from Elton:"Speaking of recruits, a peak into a recent Akron practice showed all the talents most have heard of for 7-0, 215-pound freshman center Zeke Marshall. Yet based on the first weekend of his Division I basketball education, Marshall is not even close to being a starter."

BTW - Nicely's ankle looked fine? When did they tape that video?

By the sound of it, I'm guessing about 1/2 our team will be there.

Most likely. A majority of kids will still have an inch or two left to grow when they are Juniors. Either way, if only remains 6'0" he's already taller than all of the true PG's currently on our roster. It would be nice to have a PG in the 6'2"-6'4" range, but we've been playing for years without one. I don't think it is entirely necessary to the success of this team.Dylan was born in 1991, so he's probably done growing. He's a pure point guard.I want to check his birth certificate! He looks like he has PLENTY of height upside?

Since the source is the same one who said the grass endzone was too steep for seating, I'll hold out hope that this is bogus.

Ah yes ... Amerika the Beautiful. Reminds me of an instance behind a hoop at the JAR. UA handed out those long balloons to wave and distract the opposing free-throw shooters. The guy next to me starting making squeaking noises with his balloon, squeezing it. The ref walked over and said "You do that one more time and I'll kick you out."

If he's 6' 0" as a HS Junior, you'd have to think he's got some upside to his size too?

Hey...it's a giant casserole for 12+ hungry Zips fans...you gotta go B-I-G!

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Big deal...I was one of the top 2011 prospects in the state of Ohio back in 1984. I think I #2004?