Captain Kangaroo

Simply based upon what I saw from the kid. Anyone can put together a 30 second highlight reel of big hits/runs over the course of a year. This kid made the AAAA State semi's and finals his highlight reel. He stood out amongst a lot of great HS players.Trust me - You will love him.

Penn Hills' Aaron Williams has verballed to the Zips. He'll likely play LB, but was a devastating RB too. I saw two Penn Hills games on Fox Sports Pittsburgh this fall. The "Big School" (like Ohio's Division 1) semi's and the finals. Williams was a man amongst boys in both games.Click for Rivals BioBTW - Same HS as David Harvey, Jake Schifino & Coach MoorheadGreat Pick up!!!!!!!

Speaking of that, is Kemme leaving early to enter the NFL draft?

I agree. CMU looked great. They deserve to be

I would say a valid comparison would then be the MAC Basketball Championship. IF we had beaten Toledo...there's at least 10k Zips fans at the finals vs. K.e.n.t. @ The Q. Buzz-kill. There would have been residuals from that game that would have helped attendance this season. That's one of several huge "opportunities lost" in recent Zips hoops history.UALR isn't all that great this season, and we lost to them on a neutral court, missing a chance for a nationally televised game vs. Texas Tech. Buzz-kill. We lost to UIC, who is sub-.500 this season. Buzz-kill. And, further cooling Joe Akron's interest...we lost to Nevada at home. Buzz-kill.If I'm KD I'm pointing three fingers at why the JAR isn't filled:One finger at himself for not winning the games he needed to win in order to force Joe Akron to pay attention. KD's the CEO that needs to take the Zips "From Good to Great." Joe Akron has proven he'll show up only in limited numbers for "Good." And we are only "Good" at this time.One at Akron Marketing, who hasn't done squat to spread the word regarding the program to the community, and who actually seems to create policies to miff the students. Hell, 1/3 of the way into the season they can't even get the scoreboard working.One at "Joe Akron" - Who doesn't want to take his son down to the JAR to see a really good basketball team against some great competition (Nevada game).I'm not one of the guys that says KD is whining. I'm glad he's not happy with the place 2/3 full. But by the same token I wish he would focus more on winning these key games and stop harping on the attendance. Those 3,300 fans that showed up were extremely vocal and did their best to support the team. My son was yelling most of the game and had tears streaming down his face after we lost. It is a disservice to those showing up if you grouse about those not showing up instead of appreciating those who did.In summation I say - Z-P is correct. "Keep chopping wood and they will come." However - Go 10-6 in the MAC with a second round tourney exit...and you'll be grousing about attendance again next season. 'Cuz that's how Joe Akron rolls....

We're #1! Alphabetically.FYI - I believe Dennis Kennedy was 37th overall in NCAA rushing this season. Of the top 80 NCAA D-1 rushers, he was dead last in yards/carry. That means no big gainers. I hope we get someone that can go the distance in our backfield next fall.

PD column on Travis' football side:Click for Travis ColumnAbout a decade ago a Zips basketball player named Anthony Stanford completed his 4 years of eligibility and played a 5th in a football uniform. It would be interesting to see if Travis would give it a shot.My guess is Travis can make a decent living somewhere in Europe playing hoops, so that would be his choice...but it would be fun to see him on the D-line @ the Rubber Bowl this fall.

Man, I am soooo transparent! Can someone give me mt $550.00 back that I gave to the basketball program for season tickets this year? I never said what Dambrot is doing, or has accomplished is simple. My post (you should read it sometime) was strictly about attendance. While what Dambrot's teams have accomplished is phenomenal, it is not enough to fill the JAR. He has not yet taken a team to the MAC finals, let alone win a Championship and play in the Big Dance. Winning Championships and Dancing in March is what sells the JAR out. That is when the bandwagon starts. One-and-done in the NIT is groundbreaking for the Zips program, but it isn't going to get "Joe Akron" off his butt to check out the team. It is that simple. That is what I said in my post. I'm not getting on him at all. I am speaking the facts. I look at what K.e.n.t basketball has accomplished over the past 8 years, and I look at what the Zips have accomplished. If the Zips had done what K.e.n.t has, the JAR would be jammed every freaking night. But...we haven't. And I'm incredulous at comments that wonder "Why isn't the JAR full in 2006-7?" It is simple. Do something to make "Joe Akron" take notice and he'll show up. If you don't, Joe Akron is buying his son a Greg Oden jersey and staying home to watch the Buckeyes. It ain't rocket science. My comments are regarding attendance. The Lord gave them eyes, but they cannot see. If you choose to fabricate things I have written in your own mind, I can't help you. If you want to read my posts regarding the football team this year you will find them 100% objective. Likewise my basketball posts are 100% objective. You OBVIOUSLY believe that KD can do no wrong. And you know, you are correct 90% of the time. But when it comes to the results that count....championships and BIG wins...KD has work to do. If hew does that work, the JAR will be full on a regular basis. That's EXACTLY what I wrote in my post above, and it remains 100% true. Being on the verge of greatness doesn't fill the JAR. Greatness fills the JAR. Until KD achieves greatness, the JAR will not be filled on a regular basis. Unless you give 1,000's of tickets away for free. Then you have a full JAR...but at what cost? Read my posts. They are always objective, regardless of sport. You can agree with me or disagree, but is is pathetic to twist or spin my words to suit your agenda.JD won "something." That "something" brought over 15,000 Zips fans to Detroit to follow the program. You saw the residual effect of that this season, where the Rubber Bowl, despite a horrible schedule, an underperforming team and bad weather drew a few thousand fans per game than it ever should. That is because the Championship got a few thousand people on the bandwagon. It would be the same for basketball.You can also pack this one away for future reference: The Zips, if they play to their potential, will have a marquee Bracket Buster game in February. It will be an ESPN game. It will be held while school is in session, and it will be a sellout. I hope the above post is clear. But I can only do so much.

In my opinion, Travis' legacy is up in the air. He has about 20-or-so games left to make or break it. I loved his effort at UIC. I loved his effort in the 2nd half yesterday. In between, I could not have been more disappointed in him. "Enigmatic" comes to mind.

Keith Dambrot:``I've run out of excuses,'' he said. ``It used to be that we didn't win. We didn't have local kids. We didn't have good opponents. We had all that tonight.''Keith - It is this simple. Trust me. The Zips still haven't won anything. No NCAA appearances. No MAC Championship appearances..let alone titles. The Zips have won no "marquee" games in the Dambrot era. None. Temple and Mississippi State were nice wins. But those schools were NIT material, or worse.Win a big game, KD. Win a MAC Championship. Beat a Nevada-level opponent. That's when you will pack the JAR. Lose to Illinois Chicago and UALR and play a bunch of cupcakes and you will not pack Rhodes Arena for any game other than K.e.n.t.Ke.n.t drew flies to their basketball games until they began winning. Then they packed the house. The Zips are on the cusp of greatness. But the cusp only takes you so far. Once the Zips make their breakthrough, then the crowds will come. Marketing, schmarketing....win something and people will get "hooked." Win 20 games, play a weak schedule and go to the NIT...and you'll draw 3,300.It isn't rocket science.

I thought we played very well.Linhart played his best game of the year. Conyers finally showed flushe.s of his potential. Dru was off the hook. Milum battled hard. Wood was great. We played a very good basketball game against a great team. Too bad Dru's last shot didn't fall.Middleton was off tonight. But he played hard 100% of the time. Dials wasn't on either, but didn't hurt us. Overall he played well.Travis needs to get his act together. That first half performance was embarassing. No effort. I'm astonished to see a senior MAC POTY candidate missing team meetings and pouting on the floor. He can be like Anthony Stacey or Brandon Hunter and carry us on his back...or he can sleepwalk and pout. I hope the fire he showed in the second half last night means he's decided he wants to play. His attitude is the difference between us being "good" and being "great."Sucks to lose...but as the immortal Dan Hipsher once said: "Sometimes you gotta remember - The other team wants to win too." Nevada has a ton of talent and played very hard. Teams like that are tough to beat.

I think your recollection is bad! CSU was never ranked that high. Yes, they did return a bunch of players from the Sweet 16 squad. They eerily parallelled the Zips, who also returned the majority of their players from their NCAA qualifying team. Neither saw "The Big Dance" again, despite all the returning talent.The game was huge in NE Ohio because both teams were excellent, coming off NCAA appearances. That's what still kills me about last season's loss to Toledo. Win that game and there's 18,000 for our game vs. K.e.n.t in the finals. Win the Final game and...you get the picture...The Zips need to validate their program with a championship and an NCAA appearance. History shows people come out of the woodwork once that happens. NIT's don't cut it.The bandwagon starts tonight!!!!!!!BEAT NEVADA!!!

I remember that game. Felton hit 3 consecutive 3's. After each one, Hipsher slammed his hand on the court in disgust. Felton apparently took the shots too soon in the vaunted Dan Hipsher motion offense.Shocking that Felton transferred after his Fr. season.

The Rasor site has a little.Little Info on a Big KidSomething else I found:Jarvis Givins DL/OL 6'4 295 4.90 Miami Columbus Florida Givens is one of the premier linemen in Dade County, possessing excellent athleticism and quickness for a lineman. He is a ferocious pass rusher, posting 14 sacks as a junior. He has a great body and is very quick off the ball. One of Florida's best. He transferred from Gulliver Prep to Columbus for his senior year.

Click for Butts-Pirates Info

A friend of mine went to Myrtle Beach last September. He was at a tackle shop in Akron gear and the guy behind the counter said: "Akron, huh? I never even heard of Akron until last week."The week prior was when we beat NC State.

I was at that game too. You physically couldn't shoe-horn another human being in the JAR. I think fire marshalls now limit the capacity to 5,500, but that night it was over 7k.I agree, that was awesome.

It is difficult to tell the crowd size for this game. Like a lot of you, I see the lack of promotion and grow concerned. Although I could go deeper into that one, that's not why I posted.Regardless of the crowd size friday, the JAR has to rock like a Zips/K.e.n.t game. The hair on the back of all the Zips player's necks has to be on-end. This can be done with 3,000 people, or it can be done with 5,500. Those of us showing up need to walk that fine line between being absolutely obnoxious and overly exuberant.I have followed Zips basketball for over 20 years. This is the biggest game at the JAR since the 1986 Middle Tennessee OVC championship game. Yes, Xavier came into here 12 years ago and was also ranked. Thanks to 44 points by Jimal Ball, we gave them a great run. However, we had no business being in that game. No reason to expect to win.We have every reason to expect to win this game. This is probably the best Zips team we've fielded in 20 years. But the JAR has to rock tomorrow for us to have a chance. And...if we win the game...I will be profoundly disappointed if the students don't rush the floor. Screw the announcer telling you otherwise...get your ass out on the floor and dance. I'm in for $50.00 towards anyone's disorderly conduct citation. Proof of AK-Rowdy membership and arrest paperwork are required.

While Miami FL has defeated Georgia Tech this season, they also have losses to Buffalo and Cleveland State to go along with their latest "mid-minor" defeat - Binghamton.If I'm Binghamton, I'm pretty happy. But Miami FL isn't very good.

Click for Some Old Re-hash, and also Some Interesting Quotes

Now if only I can get Mrs. Kangaroo to agree!

Nevada Message BoardInfo on Recent Nevada Games

Note:Hot dogs were regular price. Couldn't afford to take the $1.75 per dog loss, I guess? Must be saving "Dollar Dogs" for the Super Duper Mondo Retro Night Extravaganza?Also - The popcorn was $1.00. It was super-salted. And it was in a box 1/3rd the size of the usual popcorn. That cracked me up. They also ran out of pizza during halftime when the lines were about 15-deep.

I heard he is an animal. Is he eligible? We won't know until after next session.

Your chances of getting such a win increase dramatically if you play these teams more frequently. KD talks about wanting to be the next Creighton...Gonzaga...Butler, etc. You don't get there by playing the schedule we have this season.Trust me...I realize the beatdowns we've administered to the D-III creampuffs and D-1 dregs has enabled guys like McKnight, Conyers, etc. to get some valuable PT prior to the MAC season. But our pre-MAC schedule is what it is...too heavy on the cream puffs.