Captain Kangaroo

I saw Jarvis play in a HS all star game last season. He is an excellent back, even if he's only 5' 6".If he had his way, whe would have been a Zip. His mom did not want to pay for 1 semester at Akron (Akron wanted to Grayshirt him and give him a scholarship in the spring) and she made him take Can't's scholarship offer. Since he wasn't 18 at the time of signing day, he needed his mom's signature on his letter of intent, and she wouldn't do it. Sucks to be him. Akron will win more games this season than he'll win in his entire career at Can't. Hope his mom like watching losing, bad football in an empty stadium.

Very Tragic

How'd you get my wife's picture!!

An actual game at Dix Stadium vs Can't Senior Camp:

The Football golf outing this past Monday was a blast. Very well run. If you missed it, you missed a lot. I would expect it will only grow next season, so be prepared to get your reservations in early in 2006. Highlights included:* The entire staff could not have been more friendly or accessible. Anyone in a blue coach's shirt went out of their way to ensure everyone in attendance had a good time. Hats off to them. This, in contrast to the last event run by the Varsity A where Keith Dambrot was wisked around the course in Mike Thomas' golf cart and gave everyone little more than a token wave.* Asked Mack Roades about the stadium timeline. He spoke for about 4-5 minutes...but avoided directly addressing the issue...so someone else basically asked the same question after he was done...and the dance began again. Essentially I'm left to read between the lines in what he said, and my guess is as follows: The stadium will happen, but it seems like this season's success will have a direct bearing on how soon it happens. If the Zips have another great season and the fans show up in large numbers, the stadium process will be expedited. If we were to have a bad season and draw flies, the stadium's fund raising efforts would be hurt considerably. Somehow, whether or not we can prove last season wasn't a fluke appears to have an effect on the stadium timeline. I wish we could have gotten a straight answer, but I'll have to assume there are valid reasons why he can't say anything. * After Mack was done speaking he asked "Are there any more questions?" JD quickly raised his hand and (jokingly) asked "CanIhavesomemoremoney?" There weren't too many people that heard him, but those who did got a good chuckle.* JD set the absolute minimum bar for a successful 2006 campaign at 8 wins and a Championship berth. He also said the staff expects to win at least 2 of the 3 vs. PSU, NC State and Cinci. It's good to hear the bar is set high. I met Lee Owens at an outing when we had 2 1-AA games and he was praying for 7 wins.* Finished 4 under, 11 strokes off the lead. Won a golf towel, a nice golf shirt, and everyone in attendance got a sweet Adidas mock-turtle neck w/the football logo. Played 18 at a nice country club...got lunch and a steak dinner...what more could you ask for? * Charlie Frye spoke for a few minutes. To be honest...he needs to take some public speaking courses. He's not all that comfortable behind the mike. That said, he wasn't doing any endo's though windshields either, and it was great to see such a marquee representative of the program in attendance. He mentioned how important it was to have successful events such as the golf outing, since a lot of the players count on the revenue generated to fund their 5th year at school so they can graduate. He also stated JD was the best coach he's ever had. I thought that was pretty high praise.* Met Mike Waddell's successor. Hunter is much more reserved than Mike. A pretty low-key guy from what I could tell.* I spoke to Mack Roades for a 5 minutes. That's 5 minutes more than I ever spoke to Mike Thomas in 5 years.* Season ticket applications are allegedly being sent out this week.* The assistant coaches were pounding their Blackberries all day long text messaging back and forth with recruits. I wonder if they ever get a minute's rest?* Saw old friends Brian Hilk and John Buddenberg, in addition to a host of other former Zips. There definitely is room for more ex-player involvement, however.If you get the chance to attend next season, I highly recommend it. If you're a fan of Zips football, you are cheating yourself if you don't attend. Ditto if you're an ex-player. It was a fantastic day and a great way to support the program.

Ohioelementary.com is reporting Can't has a verbal from #23, but as of yet there's no confirmation.

FYI: I saw Charlie Frye yesterday at the golf outing. He looked great. Might have a paper cut on his non-throwing pinky, but other than that he seemed fine. He drove away with his father afterwards in a car.

I spoke to someone at yesterday's golf outing.

Jerome Royal, a 6' 2" 175 lb WR from Cleveland is the first verbal of the Zips 2007 recruiting class. More details will follow.Hot off the press....the Zips also received a verbal from Vincent Hill, a very highly touted WR from Virginia.Click for Hill Info

See here:Click for Toledo / OSU Thread

That's pretty cool. Thanks.

The campus bar scene the night before a Penn State game is one of the best I've seen...and I've been to a TON of "major" college Friday nights. It is worth the hotel cost for the experience of walking around in your Zips gear and talking some smack and have some nice people buy you beer all night.If you go to Penn State on Friday night....beware the cases of Rolling Rock. That's the best advice I can give.

If the story was centered around the Zips recruitment of this kid, then I stand corrected. If it was centered around the high school student himself, and as a tangent he just happens to be a Zips recruiting target, then I stand by my statement. The story is gone, so we'll never know....

If CUSA lost all those schools, there's no way any of the MAC schools would join it. What a piece-of-crap conference that would be. The remaining CUSA table scraps would likely disband and join other conferences.Navy join a conference like a dilapidated CUSA? No chance. The writer loses any credibility he had after writing that one.

FTPCAFPSOI Tee shirts are already on their way.

Click for Raleigh Hotels

One of these hotels:Click Me for Penn State Hotel ListingThere are a million. I don't have a clue where we'll stay. With rare exception, they mandate a 2-nite stay.

I know the previous administration was approched about playing games in Cleveland and declined. They didn't want to give up the home field advantage in any game. Wrong or right, that was their point of view. I would rather play a few "marquee" games in Canton @ Fawcett. That would make more sense than Cleveland. It is true that the Rubber Bowl is such a dump it gives us a nice home field advantage. Opposing teams HATE playing there.

Okay, I'll bite, what's a jambulance?My guess is, those gas station attendants painted some old ambulance blue and yellow??? I found those Toledo clowns that wear the gas station attendant uniforms. There must never be enough time to change clothes from the time Sunoco closes until game time? I give them credit for supporting their team.

If Bowling Green getting waxed 65-13 in Cleveland in front of 17,000 people is "exposure" I'd rather not have it. Most of those tickets will be give-aways. The only revenue generated by a team in this game will be what Wisconsin takes home as their guarantee cash. Probably around $400,000?Toledo will be playing OSU in front of 80,000 OSU fans. Good for them. I'd rather play Syracuse on our home field.

This was mentioned in Rasor's blog. It merit some additional press. Makes you realize how much the Beacon sucks...as if you needed a reminder:Click For Zips Assistant Recruiting Story

Just bringing this one to the top for some added visibility. Apparently there was a good response to seeing it on our site.

Looks like we'll have 10-14 making the trip.

I'm glad to see something is being done regarding the MAC and hoops. It is no illusion that we've been leapfrogged by some of the other mid-major conferences over the past 5 years. I hope the increase in referee's pay makes a difference. I'm tired of being pissed-off after a Zips game...even after a Zips win...because the ref's were so horrible. I swear I don't go to Zips games to watch a free throw shooting contest, but it seems like all-to-often that's what the vast majority of games degrade to.

I've got 15 minutes...he're my quickie take:QB: A-I think Getsy had too much to overcome in the beginning of last season. Three years of rust was too much to shake off in a couple games. And, replacing Frye's leadership and #'s was probably a pretty daunting task. Players, and teams for that matter, don't typically stay the same for a season. They either progress or regress. Luke and the offense began clicking on all cylinders last season when the money was on the line. I fully expect to see the "Zips/Luke of late-2005" more frequently than the "Zips/Luke of early/mid-2005" when this fall rolls around. I think the staff will be more comfortable with Jacquemain and Jackson getting some snaps this season too. Moreso than they were in giving Fergueson any game reps last year. Luke also has more "big game" experience than any MAC QB.RB: B-I still need to see something special from Kennedy. I like how he looked in the MCB, but I can't give him an "A" until I see him roll up decent yards againt the MAC's upper echelon, or against a BCS school. In general, out entire backfield is VERY unproven. If Berchie is our #2 back, that's a bit scary. Especially if Kennedy gets injured. McMillon and Allen really need to step things up if that's the case. FB is a big question mark too.WR/TE: B-I think Jabari will break out this season. Like Luke, Jabari went into "Man Amongst Boys" mode in late season. He forgot about QB and really began to focus on being a dominant WR. If he can stay healthy he could set a Zips single season yardage record this year. Luke will use him early and often. To do so, he'll need to have another threat emerge. Schifino had Bailey. Cherry had Sparks/Irvin. Hixson would have had a better senior season if he had a stronger #2 WR to free him up. I believe either Long, Harvey, Williams or Linsay will step up and contribute big #'s right away. If two or more of them step up, Luke can really tear up the MAC this year. Lots of "ifs" however...We're probably more solid than 80% of the nation's D-1A football teams at TE.15 minutes is up.