Captain Kangaroo

To be fair, we are playing like MAC champs for 1or 2 quarters per game. That's what's most frustrating. You can see the talent is there.

Random, as usual:* Great day for football...FINALLY. No cold, wet rain to be seen...just sunny and in the 70's.* Nice tailgate party. Had 15 or so Zips fans in the schoolyard. It was an "urban" setting, amongst an older student housing area, but close to the stadium and paved, with a port-o-let. Several excellent local microbrews were unearthed. Helped to dull the pain of what was to come...* As usual, the 2006 hot/cold Zips were true to form. Unfortunately, the heat only lasted about 15 minutes. The frigid cold drug on for 45min.How about these stats:39 total combined offensive yards in the final 45 minutesSeven consecutive 3-and-outs beginning in the second quarterFive of the seven 3-and-outs went for negative yardage* In the history of college football, there can't be many teams that rolled up 180 yards in the first quarter, then ended up below 220 yards for the game. That was horrific to behold. Cinci has a good defense...but that is utterly ridiculous.* The defense only made Cinci punt three times, but did create 3 turnovers. At games-end, after being on the field almost the entire game, they needed to make one more stand and couldn't do it. I can't blame them too much.* Defensively, out least-imposing players again stood out. Someone told me last year, when I asked "Who'll replace Jay Rohr?" that "It will be someone stronger and faster." It doesn't appear to be the case. John Mackey has stepped one of Rohr's shoes. Groza stepped into the other. Both these guys "bring it" every down. Grant and Reed do too, with a nod to Jason Nedd and his 11 tackles Saturday (shows why he passed Chevin on the depth chart). BUT - Our D-line is really bad. And we're coming up with ZERO blitz packages to get any pressure on the QB. AND - We're missing a ton of tackles. In summation - We have a few guys on D that you can bank on play-in-play-out, and some guys that lost their fire somewhere along the line. Or, that simply aren't that good.* Offensively...holy hell. The collective O-line continues to struggle. Crouch is the easy scapegoat...and justifiably so...but he's not the only guy not pulling his weight. When Luke has time to throw, he is deadly. You can see it in his pin-point TD tosses to Jabari and his bombs to Harvey. But there is a cumulative bad effect when he's heavily pressured. Luke ain't the most elusive QB in the MAC. If there's a breakdown, he's usually going to get hit. And we have way too many breakdowns. When a breakdown occurs, Luke's only outlet has be a swing pass to an RB for no gain. No WR's or TE's seem to be in a position to help him out. Jabari, for all his progress, seems to quit on his routes with some regularity. Lindsay and Harvey are freshman still learning how to be a WR. That combination of "green" WR's...plus no protection...plus and immobile QB...plus some conservative playcalling...plus a TON of simple mistakes...is adding up to some terrible football.* The running game? How is a back as good as Kennedy getting 29 yards in a game? It is because our OL isn't getting any push up front and he's forced to swing it wide...often for negative yardage. It seems like we're way too predictable. The defense knows what's coming before we snap the ball. Maybe it takes them a quarter to figure it out, but after that, we're sunk. Our best offensive plays are when an opposing DB is called for interference. If it weren't for that, I seriously wonder if we'd ever move the ball?* Once again, the opposing QB leads the team in rushing. How old is THAT becoming?* At games-end you saw some new faces on D...Kabir...Pendleton...Balaam...at least we were subbing to try some fresh faces. * Tired of going for 4th-and-anything when we're in field goal range. Kick the ball.Is Luke too immobile...does he hold on to the ball too long...is our OL total swiss cheese...is our playcalling so vanilla it should be sold at Strickland's...is there an inter-team competition for "Most Missed Assignments" and "Most Crippling Penalties?" It really makes you wonder. Despite some nice individual efforts, we're playing terrible, Jeckel and Hyde football right now. I hope the off week is put to good use, because it couldn't come at a better time.We still have a very good shot at an 8-win season. That hasn't been seen in Akron for 2 decades. We still have a decent shot at a bowl game if we run the table. K.e.n.t is one QB hit away from losing every remaining game this season, so the MAC championship is still a feasible goal. We haven't beaten Miami in forever, so a win against them would be HUGE...there's a lot of season remaining for the Zips...a lot of football to be played. It will be interesting to see how the team responds. We could go 4-8...we could go 8-4. How we adjust over the next two weeks will dictate which is more probable. If we don't make some major changes in personnel, philosophies and mental preparation we're on a collision course for sub-.500.39 total yards over three quarters...after we took a 14-0 lead. Terrible.

Crouch quit the team earlier this week after being told be would be splitting time @ Cinci with Kemme. A couple days later he asked to re-join the team. He's suspended. Will he play again? It is probably up to him, but I'm guessing he's out at least one more game.Pace was suspended for a similar reason. He "reacted poorly" to an announcement that he lost his starting job. Return status is still unknown.

Not true. We win out and we have a solid chance at one of the MAC's bowl bids.Can we win out? Not if our offense doesn't get their act together...or the defense plays another game like K.e.n.t. But, it is very realistic that we get a bowl bid if we win-out. The 15K+ we brought to Detroit last season coupled with wins vs BCS schools makes (or will make) us very attractive to the bowls.

We were without Kennedy for most of the CMU game. Injuries happen. Sucks to be NC State.

Two words: Vandelay sports.Has as much credibility as Elton Alexander, circa 2005, speculating JD would become Colorado's next coach because...well....JD is from Colorado.

OK...you have to pull the hair back...

Any old MTV fans in the house?

The lot where the ZipsNation will meet is the Shields School Lot, located on the corner of Vine & Daniels streets across from the Sigma Sigma House. It has 120 spaces. It typically fills up by 2pm. Tents and charcoal grills are cool. It is one block from the stadium.We will set of shop a little before noon. ANY Zips fan is welcome...in fact, encouraged...to stop over and have a beer, cook some brats and rap about the upcoming game. TAILGATING RULES• Tailgating lots open four hours prior to kickoff and will close one hour after the conclusion of the game.• There are no designated parking spaces, cars will be parked on a first come, first serve basis.• Alcoholic beverages must be kept in a cup at all times.• Grills are allowed in tailgating lots but a fire extinguisher must be present with your grills at all times.

This is pretty much as far as I can let this one go. This board is not a site to bash Mike Waddell. His contributions to the image of U of A athletics are undeniable. If you have a problem with Mike, you likely have some agenda. This site is not a forum where such agendas are welcome.Mike was, and continues to be, a friend to many participants on this board. He treated every fan...be they $10,000 donors, or Joe Schmoe that buys a general admission ticket...with equal respect and gratitude for their support. As time goes on I appreciate that attribute as much as any other Mike embraced during his tenure. It is more rare that I ever thought.Topic closed. Please move on.

Which is the best lot to raise a tent and fire up a grille?

For anyone heading down to the Queen City this weekend...and I will be there...here is the parking and tailgate information:Click me for Tailgate Info, etc.

The Columbus Dispatch reported that 17 OU football players have been arrested in the past NINE MONTHS!!!Kinda' casts doubt on Frank Solich's claim that he was given a date rape drug, huh?Well...unless one of his renegade players slipped something in his Grey Goose that fateful night...

Our offense has struggled for consistency all season. Penn State was sporadic...We couldn't score more than 7 points vs. NC state in the 1st half despite moving the ball at-will...we had negative yardage in the 3rd quarter of the NC State game...we were down 21-0 at CMU in the second half...we couldn't muster a point vs North Texas in the 2nd half...and then there was Ke.n.t.If David Harvey wasn't a drop-in replacement for Hixson, I really wonder where we'd be offensively?Until Saturday, our D had really done an unbelievable job of covering for our offensive lapses. I wonder if the staff will do anything different personnel-wise this week? Something needs to be shaken up.

I remember Astron Whatley running wild in a game the Zips had easily in-hand with about 6 minutes remaining. We blew something like a 17 point lead in the 4th quarter. That was the game Jason Taylor ripped a banner off the Dix stadium wall to get the F.l.a.s.h.e.s all fired up.I also remember the Dwight Smith final game in 2002? In our win we scored about 34 points, and 28 of them were directly attributed to Dwight. K.S.U grossly outplayed us otherwise. It might have been the single-most unbelieveable game by a college CB in NCAA history. Me and about 78 others saw it @ Dix.The only positive coming off this loss is that so many people are crushed by it. The University wants people to care about the program...now you have it. 5 years ago, you wouldn't have had 10 posts after this type of loss. Now there's 100's.The Miami game can still be a decent draw on the 21st, but we need to win this week. You feelin' me, JD? ARE YOU FEELIN' DA ZIPMAN??!! (speaking of old timers, whatever happened to that nutcase...in an odd way, I miss him?)One final note: This must have worked for the K.e.n.t guys, huh?:An "Akron Effort" is characterized by extreme individual effort during a workout. This type of effort signifies the qualities needed to be a Champion.

As a old Zips fans, I guess this is where I should chime in:* Yet another crappy day for football. Tailgating in the rain is getting old.* K.e.n.t's QB was awesome. I would never have guesses a 5' 10" K.e.n.t QB in his 4th career game would throw for over 300 yards vs this Akron defense. Yeah, his long jump balls the the WR's looked like "anybody's ball" but they always seemed to be placed in a position where we had no chance at the INT and the WR had the best chance to get the ball.* Kudos to the K.e.n.t offensive coordinator for keeping his foot on our throat the entire game. After every big play, there was the K.e.n.t offense winging the ball down the field while our D was on its heels.* Edelmann also made numerous mid-range completions to wide open WR's and TE's. At NC State, Stone threw a lot of those at people's feet. Stone made us look a little better than we really were.* Speaking of feet...is the book out on the Zips that running the QB out of the shotgun is a "money" 7 yards+? Edelmann did the same thing to us that the CMU QB did a couple weeks ago. Run at will.* What a stupid play by our DL to hit the K.en.t QB late in the 1st qtr. 3rd and 17 and we give them a first down.* The OL isn't playing as well as they did last season. And...for the life of me...I can't figure out why some of the heralded Fr. reserve OL's aren't seeing any playing time. We play essentially the same 5 guys every down whether or not they're holding every play...getting beat every play...whether we're up by 30 or down by 22. At some point we need to start getting our youner players some time on the field. Especially if some of the vets are struggling.* Luke is great when he has time. But, he's slow. This exaccerbates our OL's struggles. Luke really can't buy too much time with his feet. Conversely, the few times we got pressure on Edelmann, it was no big deal for him to sidestep our guy and buy another 5 seconds.* Our LB's couldn't cover the short pass, and never could spy the QB. We were always guessing, and guessing wrong.* The season-long lack of a pass rush finally bit us today. * Going back to mistakes...what was Kennedy thinking when he sat on his butt on 3rd and 1?! He had the 1st down...no whistle blew...and he just sits on his butt and loses 3 yards. K.e.n.t was converting 3rd downs left and right, and we were waving white flags.* Kennedy also had a brain fart when he let Luke's fumble roll instead of falling on it. Another K.e.n.t TD soon followed. * Yet another puzzling decision was JD, after a K.e.n.t running-into-the-punter penalty, deciding not to go for the 4th and 2??!! We were down by three scores and our defense hadn't stopped K.e.n.t all day?? Did we have something to lose?* Kasparek's head wasn't in the game. Couple of uncharacteristic drops.* How bad would our offense be without David Harvey's emergence? He pretty much IS our offense now-a-days. In fairness to Jabari - he did have another nice TD grab in the endzone. * The K.e.n.t punter looked like he totally sucked. Too bad we could never make them punt.* Eugene Jarvis was not impressive.* Wow...we got drubbed by K.e.n.t in football. Pretty much knocked us out of the MACC game. Does it get any worse?* We beat Cincinnati and we'll have two wins vs BCS schools on our 2006 resume. That should get us on of the three available bowl bids even if we stumble once more down the stretch. The game this week will tell us alot about the Zips' moxie and the staff's preparation skills. Cinci isn't better than us. We should win. After what I saw yesterday, we could also lose by 25.* Hats off to K.e.n.t. Great crowd and a solid ass whuppin'. I finally saw what it was like for a team in a Zips game to put together 4 consecutive quarters of playing to their capabilities. Unfortunately, it was K.S.U that did it, not the Zips.* I'll figure out where the tailgate lot is in Cinci and let everyone know. My guess - Gameday will be cold and rainy. Just a hunch....

It is F-K.e.n.t Friday...are you wearing your Zips gear??If not, get you butt home and put on the Blue and Gold!!My secretary got into the spirit of things...so should you!

Kennedy is money inside the 10. With him, we're solid in the red zone. We missed him at CMU. I'm not worried as long as Kennedy is ok. And, allegedly he's good to go tomorrow.

Bought my "On the Hunt" duck calls at Gander Mountain the other night. Game day can't get here soon enough...for my wife. I hope my kid doesn't wear his out before kick off.

Too f-ing busy with work this week. Killing my hobby! Quick notes:Grant played one hell of a game last week. Amongst several great performances, he really stood out.In the first half I counted 4 absolutely bone-crushing, "Holy Crap" hits by our defense. They hurt me just watching them from the stands.The first half offense was outstanding. The second half was pretty brutal to behold. The second half defense, sans one NTSU drive where we missed a bunch of tackles, was outstanding. How they only gave up 7 second half points with the situations our offense and special teams put them in is unreal.How good can we be if we play a solid 4 quarters of football?How bad could we be if our special teams doesn't improve...and our offense doesn't disappear for quarters at a time?Ever notice how no one is within 15 yards of Harvey when he catches a ball?Tomorrow is "F-K.e.n.t Friday." Wear your Zips gear to work. Greet your fellow alumni with a hearty "F K.E.N.T" in the hallways!See you Saturday for the annual Wagon Wheel Beatdown.

I hear he's actually "Bobbyake?"

If we EVER call off the dogs vs. K.e.n.t I'm forfeiting my season tix.Take out the starters once it is a laugher, but keep the pedal to the floor. 63-6 with Aaris Reed and Carlton Jackson's monster mop up duty numbers netting them MAC Co-offensive Players of the Week. That's what I want to see!

K.e.n.t.'s kicker is as bad as ours, so the special team's play this week is a wash.You don't go on the road and beat NC State, then go to K.e.n.t. and lose.K.e.n.t.'s QB is terrible. He'll throw 5 INT's this week. Jarvis will get nowhere.Dennis Kennedy has 150 yards and 3 TD's by halftime.Somehow we'll have a punt snapped over someone's head and lose a couple points, but this game is a big wake up call for K.e.n.t.. They won't have 100 yards of total offense in the first 3 quarters combined.Zips 42Can't 6

He's a punter. And if you saw him punt in the spring game...holy moley.We're screwed at PK unless Igor heals.

He was at the Rubber Bowl for the Akron NTSU game, so I think it is safe to assume he is a football recruit.FYI: Place your informational faith regarding Zips recruiting in this priority:1.) ZipsNation2.) Pittsburgh Trib/Post Gazzette & Ohio Varsity3.) Scout/Rivals4.) OthersDo this and you can't go wrong.