Captain Kangaroo

Lingard, in the wildcat.🤘

NIU Message Board

The lack of wins thus far in 2023 is profoundly disappointing. And, I'm as beaten down and any remaining fan over the abject futility I've witnessed during my support of the program for the past 5 years. But I have zero doubt Joe Moorhead will turn this around. He has been incredibly successful at every stop along his college coaching career. Akron will be no different. He inherited the worst program in Division 1. If we were #130, we were lightyears behind #129, let alone #78. Joe needs to figure out an offense that can be effective with the talent he's got. And he needs to figure it out soon. It doesn't help that his QB room is now missing Irons, and stocked completely with unprovens and underwhelmers. But that's the cards he's dealt. We have very good WR's and RB's. That should be enough to win our share of MAC games. I love our defense. People forget that is was an achievement when Arth's teams could force a punt over 4 quarters. We've come such a long way on that side of the ball. I remember when MLB pitching coach Roger Craig was once asked, when his pitchers were getting shelled over an extended stretch, "As a 'pitching guru', how are you going to get your arms back on track?" Craig replied "Guru? Right now I ain't gooruin' worth a damn!" I have to believe Joe feels the same way about himself, and the Zips offense right now. He has higher standards than the results produced by that side of the ball so far. I'd hoped it was possible for Joe to completely pull us out of the Arth Abyss in 17 games, but apparently it may take a few more. It sucks, but I 100% believe he'll get it done.

Over the past 5 or 6 years I can't tell you how many times I've been in Lot 9 and had people in suits and dresses come up to me asking "Is this Hummel Funeral Home"? I always reply - "First, I'm sorry for your loss. And, no, this is actually an Akron Zips football game. Hummel is across the street."

Alex Adams was I full uniform but I don’t think he ever saw the field. He’s the guy I really felt would dominate this season and he’s been almost invisible.

Behm was in a walking boot on the sideline.

Zips not looking like “they’ve arrived “ today.

We’ll find out in roughly 28 hours if the Zips have truly “arrived”, or if Lucy yanks the ball away yet again. I think the win over Buffalo on Saturday will be looked back on as the day Zips football turned the corner. Now that we have our sea legs under us, and the cadre of portal mercenaries is settling in, I expect us to go on a nice run. I thought the same thing where went to Huntington and smoked Marshall. And when we beat Northwestern. And when we beat Pitt. Famous last words…but it feels different this time. I think we’re constructed more for the long haul, and not just a flash-in-the-pan. See you in lot 9 at 10am! 🥓🍳 🍺 🥃 🦘 🏈

Does the student athlete lose their scholarship once they hit the portal, or have to re-pay 75% of it's value? Or do they get a free semester even though they quit before the end of September?

Please, no! Keep it on the DL 😀

A final thought on Kentucky - I dunno how many fans they had at the game...maybe 55,000? Their stadium seats 61,000 and routinely sells out. Our parking space sold for $200 on Stub Hub. I can't imagine what a space goes for when Tennessee or Alabama rolls into town. The lots were full of RV's, trailers, HD TV's...all their fans wore either white, or blue. There were literally thousands of incredibly attractive women in form-fitting dresses, tank tops, white cowboy boots...it was something to behold (ditto for Tennessee last year, NC State in the past...southern schools game days can be quite the fashion show). So in a nut shell, game days in Lexington are a big time party. Millions upon millions of dollars generated by the school. In Akron we get a few thousand fans on a given Saturday. Our average ticket price is at least $100 less than a UK ducat. Our game day parking, directly behind the goal post, is included with our $100 season tickets. Yet we were down only 14-3 midway through the 4th quarter? If resources controlled the outcome, we should have lost by 60. Kudos to what Joe and Co. are building at UA with a ham and cheese budget. Speaking to a UA official in the lot, apparently Kentucky is trying to get out of the return game in Akron next year. Akron is receptive to the buy-out, because "We don't want them filling our stadium with blue and beating us by 30." That comment saddened me, as it is small-time thinking. Joe will have the program competitive next year. We'd have a good chance of hanging with them. The Infocision lots would be full of RV's, music, fans...it would be an awesome game day in Akron for maybe the 3rd time since it opened. But it probably won't happen. I told the official as much..."So what are you going to do...replace Kentucky with Bethune Cookman? That sucks." He said "Oh no, we'll get someone good." No chance. If we play Kentucky in Lexington in the future, make the 5 hour trip down 71. Lexington is a really fun city. The Kentucky fans are very nice. Distilleries abound. It's a great weekend.

Without getting into any debates over the logo, I will say, in my opinion, it is way too basic, simple and unsexy. I'll never buy a piece of Zips gear with that logo. Why anyone would create something so basic, focusing on an "A" which is common to about 100 universities (Alabama, Auburn, Albany, Arkansas, etc), is beyond me. When athletic directors build their resume they usually want to tout stats saying they "created a new branding that increased gear sales by XXX%". It won't happen with this "A". It's is a whiff. If you like the new logo, great. I have no desire to debate it's merits. I just think it is lame... unimaginative... and boring. I'll wait for the next AD in a few years and see what he/she has to offer. In the interim I'll just wash my "Z" and "Roo-A" logo stuff on the gentle cycle.

An acceptable answer would also have been - vs. Cincinnati at the Rubber Bowl. The Zips had a chance to take the lead very late in the game and ran an end-around with Jeremy Bruce at the 2 yard line. UC blew it up...Bruce fumbled...and we lost shortly thereafter. Jacquemain was the QB. I'm still pissed they called Jacq for an intentional grounding as we were moving the ball downfield in the final seconds. It essentially hit Biggs in the feet, yet the refs insisted no receiver was in the area. 😡 Lots of "close-but-no-cigars" over the years, for sure.

I think your details have lost some accuracy over time, but I’ll go with “Who is Charlie Frye against Wisconsin?” for $500, Alex. Lee Evans pulled in the 99 yard TD pass after Dan Basch was stopped on 4th and goal at the 1. I thought about that play when Alex Adams dropped the sure-fire 99 yard TD Saturday night.

Unless you're thinking of Kermit Dafrog, I disagree.

There is no God.

No RPO!!

No penalties!!

Northwestern was way less beatable than this Indiana team. We’ll never have a better chance to beat a big 10 team than tonight .

Is Steele on the travel squad?

Undercuffler with a pick six. Who knew?

Going strictly off memory, I think we’ve made one fg over 40 yards since the day Arth began his tenure, through today?

FIFY?

It’s never a good thing when your football team’s offensive output matches that of the soccer team.

Every single time we’ve had the opportunity to make a big play we’ve completely botched it with penalties, blown assignments and mistakes. We just don’t want to win.