Captain Kangaroo

Prior to the Penn State game, the MAC had a fairly inauspicious start. MAC East - Miami only scoring 3 in a 21-3 loss to Northwestern bodes well for the Zips championship run. Looks like we won't need a tie-breaker to beat them this year. BG played Wisconsin "ok." They're nothing to be scared of. Can't got absolutely drubbed. OU beat a weak 1-AA team. MAC West - Toledo played very well. Woulda coulda shoulda beat Iowa State. Versus OSU, NIU seemed to have the same issue as the Zips. Poor, mistake-prone first quarter, then a solid 3 quarters. CMU played BC very well, but their coach choked late in the game. WMU...EMU...Ball State...nothing special.Penn StateSeems like most everyone gave a good game day breakdown. I'll add the following:We (11 of us) set up camp at 11:15am. Tents and grills. It was brutal. TV didn't do justice to the constant, cold rain. By the time we walked into the stadium, we were all numb and soaked.The crappy weather didn't deter many Penn State fans. The place was pretty jam-packed. The first pass by Morelli was perfect. Not much we could do about it.Andre Jones and Brandon Anderson are our best DB tandem ever. Both are lightning fast, and hit hard. MAC QB's are going to toss a lot of picks to those guys.To me, the most apparent difference between this season's Zips and any of the previous, is team speed. Those plays that used to go for 80 yards against us only went for 8. We closed fast.Last season, when our first-string DL went to the bench, we got pushed around. In this game, when Reid, Gonzales and Cichetti sat, we lost nothing when Robinson, McPherson and Lively entered. We're 6-deep at DL? Whoda thunk!?Luke played a solid game. Lots of poise and good throws under tough conditions.I wish we'd have ran inside the tackles more, and outside less.I wish we'd have thrown downfield more, and sideways less.Great FG by Domonokos. It was huge to come off that drive with some points.David Harvey rules. Jabari needed more touches. He had a huge size advantage on the PSU CB and we never really exploited it.Kennedy had a nice day. But, why wasn't he spelled at game's end? No carries for McMillian, Reed or Walker...or anyone else for that matter.Ditto Jacqumaine or Jackson. It would have been nice for them to see the field and take a few snaps on our last possession.Kasparek and Poindexter are a tough 1/2 punch at TE. The 4th down catch by Kasparek was awesome. BTW - Speaking to someone at a bar prior to the game...apparently Northwestern is pushing hard for the younger Kasparek. PSU is also still high on him.Stec is pretty quick for a punter. He saved us twice with his coverage. His punts were ok considering the circumstances. Our kick off returns were solid, sans the Jones fumble. I think when the 2006 season is complete, the Anderson, Jones kick return tandem will have at least 5 TD's. Tuzze...I don't think he's a threat to take it to the house. (what was he thinking on his lone "return"?)Overall, a very solid effort. JD always seems to be at his best evaluating tape and making adjustments. I think we'll play even better vs NC State. If we can get off to a good start...and keep the turnovers low...and aggressively challenge NC State's defense...we can beat them. Over/under on ABJ reporters travelling to the game: 0

"Bitch Slap of the Year" goes to Glen MasonOn his LB, converted to RB: "I thought he had his best practice at running back tonight, if you want to call that (Can't game) a practice," Minnesota coach Glen Mason said.Ouch!

I think the CMU coach gave this one away. I agree totally the coach cost CMU this game...going for it deep in their own territory, swithcing QB's and that dumb ass formation at the end of the game. They were moving the ball just fine. Stick with what was working for you I understand they were out of timeouts but, they had plenty of time to score and send it into overtime. The CMU coaching reminded me of Lee Owens.

That's because the OSU fan base can't control themselves. Win a football game and burn the town down. Nice.OSU fans are the reason YSU no longer has open tailgating. The inability of OSU fans to control themselves on gameday will trickle down to the Zips one day. Mark my words. The State (Ohio Govt.) will never let OSU be the only school to outlaw tailgating, so the State will pass laws barring tailgating at any Ohio college game.Check back with me in 5 years. I guarantee it happens.F OSU in the skull. (for lack of a better icon)

For the record - I appreciated the heads-up. Very neighborly of you!

Last game played during hurricane remnants:9/7 1996 Virginia Tech 21 - 18 AkronI like our chances in the rain. It negates speed.I'll have 2 tents and rain gear, so BRING IT ON!!!

My buddy told be the Rathskellar no longer serves Rolling Rock cases?? Say it ain't so!! If true, I:a.) Need a new bar to hang out at on Fridayb.) Will not have nearly the hangover I typically have on Game Day.

I also here the "Our information regarding the Zips is great, you guys are just a bunch of 'hardcores' and nothing will ever satisfy you." The caters to the "hardcore" OSU fan all day long. They love 'em. But Zips fans should be happy with their table scraps. F*ck that.

He'll say the same stuff when they play YSU in 2 weeks. That's just how JoePa rolls.

From the Rasor Blog:"Some good news for Morgan (David Lee): He doesn't appear to be one of the ABJ's job casualties. That's good news for Zips fans, who can be sure the team has a beat writer this season."You're KILLIN' me, Mike!

Word is he'll be brought along gradually. They don't want to put too much pressure on him Game 1. Look for his PT to increase quickly as the season progresses.

Hey, give him some credit for passing two semesters worth of classes and being eligible. That's more than we can say for a lot of our recent DL prospects.I can see the attitude rap on him having some merit. During the Meet the Team event, he sat against the back wall while most of the players were signing at the tables. Even Alex Allen, his knee shredded just 26 hours prior, was up at the table and signing for the kids. If you haven't seen Nate, he isn't fat. He is a VERY big, muscular kid.

If you ordered Penn State tickets and have yet to receive them, I would advise you to call the University ticket office to verify your order. They lost my order for PSU and NC State tickets. Luckily there were still tickets remaining. The more things change the more they stay the same...

"Parking Genius to Leave." For whatever reason, that post title cracks me up. Sometimes the simple one-liners are the best.

The first time the Zips played Penn State was 1999. Butchie Washington was in his prime, Brandon Payne was looking All-MAC, Schfino and Baily were the top two WR’s in team history, Rache Culler was absolutely flattening anyone that got in his way…Dwight Smith was at the top of his game…yes, us Zips fans went into that game feeling pretty good about ourselves. The game began 14-3 Penn State, but the Zips played tough. On a subsequent Penn State offensive possession the Zips recovered a fumble, drove down the field and scored on a Brandon Payne TD. The crowd was silent. Payne put his finger up to his lips as he strutted through the endzone, “shhhhhhhhhh.”The Zips held again, forcing a Penn State punt. The 100,000 Nittany Lions fans were mortified. Sensing the moment, Coach Lee Owens figured it would be a swell time to switch QBs. In came Greg Gromek…back came two INT’s for touchdowns in what seemed like a 23 second span. Just like that the rout was on, and a 70-24 beatdown ensued.Moving ahead to 2004, the Zips faced an improved Penn State squad. But the Zips had a new coach, Charlie Frye and hope. Unfortunately we still had a Lee Owens-schooled defense and an offense running an entirely new scheme. The cutback run killed the Zips that day…every time a Penn State running back cut back, the over pursuing Zips got smoked for 20+ yards. The 49-14 score was in no way indicative of the beating. Jabari had a nice game…that’s about the only positive I took out of that one.What will happen in 2006? Will history repeat itself, or can the Zips make history?I think a lot will depend upon how the Zips staff approaches the game offensively. And, how well the defense competes. Will the staff pace itself for the long, twelve game season and limit Kennedy and Getsy’s reps whenever possible? My gut feeling is “no.” Barring injury I have to believe these guys stay on the field as long as the Zips have a reasonable shot at winning. Getsy took 98% of the snaps in 2006 and Biggs took 85% of the carries, so why would the breakdown be any different in 2006?We start senior Luke Getsy against a defense that’s breaking in four new players in the secondary. We also have the best OL depth we’ve had in some time, which bodes well for Luke’s health. Penn State’s Morelli has completed three passes in his college career, and will be facing a Zips secondary that as seasoned as it has ever been. He’ll be facing the best LB corp the Zips have had since Clark, Hilk and Motten. And the starting Zips DL will be as big as many of the Big10 teams Penn State will face this season…just not as deep.I see the game being highly competitive in the 1st half. Luke will use his TE’s to burn the blitzing PSU linebackers. Kennedy will be money in the red zone. Jabari will be double-teamed all day long. Look for Johnny Long to have a big day.The second half is perennially where Big 10 teams pull away from upper-tier MAC teams. If the Zips second stringers can fill in adequately for the starters, the Zips have an excellent chance to keep things close into the 4th quarter. The special teamers MUST come through. If the FG kicker blows extra points or FG’s…or the punter shanks a few…we can’t overcome it. We need these guys to be rock solid. I don’t see us hurting ourselves with penalties. We have too much experience. I do worry a bit about turnovers. We can live with one…maybe two turnovers. That’s it. It will be on our young RB’s, WR’s and special teamers to take care of the ball. The need to step up.We also need help from Penn State. And I think we’ll get it. I’m banking on good pressure from the Zips DL and LB’s to cause two Morelli INT’s. My guess: Penn State 42 Akron 34. I think our defense will get its share of stops, but the DL will tire in the 4th. I think our offense will sustain its share of drives to keep the D fresh…but only for so long. If the Zips are to have a chance to win, we need Morelli to run for his life. Some player…some scheme…something needs to emerge from out of the blue on September 2nd that of which Paterno has no answer. We need a Jason Taylor-esque performance vs. Va Tech in 1996 from someone. We need a Bobby Hendry-like performance vs. Wisconsin in 2002 from a RB that nets 100+ yards. We need a Lavel Bailey-esque WR emergence like Lavel’s freshman breakout game vs. Nebraska in 1997. We need an unsung guy like a Ricky Coble 2001 vs Ohio State who returned an INT 90 yards for a TD. We need Luke to play with the late-game calm of Charlie Frye vs. Marshall in 2003. We need a Dwight Smith-level performance in the secondary, like his game vs. Michael Vick and Va Tech in 2000.Over the last 10 years I have seem a lot of great individual performances by Zips players in games against Top 25 teams. In the end, we’ve always lost by a couple TD’s. If we’re going to pull off a win, we need a total team effort, with some unknown new stars to emerge, coupled with some outstanding performances on both sides of the ball, and a little luck. If some youngsters step up big time, I reserve the right to change my prediction. AKRON 42 Penn State 34.

David Lee Morgan: "Hey, Charlie Frye. I was thinking of doing a feature column on you for the Sunday Beacon Journal. When can we get together?"Frye: "Who are you?"DL: "You know me, man, DL Morgan! Zips beat writer while you were at Akron."Frye: "I'm sorry, the name doesn't ring a bell."DL: "Well...I was the beat writer...but I really never attended too many games. I did cut-n-paste some football stories off the wire and GoZips.com. You seem like you were a pretty good football player. That's why I want to do the story."Frye: *click*DL: "Hello? Is anyone there? Chuckie? You there? Chuckie?"

Can't State football signs H-U-G-E deal with Nike!!! :blink: (one more time)

The Zips played Pitt in the late 80's under Huggins. This was when Jerome Lane, Demetrius Gore, Sean Miller and Charles Smith constituted Pitt's top four players. In the first game, @ Pitt, the Zips had a 15 point first half lead, but lost it @ game's end.The following year they played at the Coluseium in Richfield. It drew about 11k. The game was pretty much a carbon copy of the first one. Zips got a big lead, then wore down at the end.The Zips are pretty-much equivalent to Pitt next season. You can wax poetic anout Pitt and the Big East...blah blah blah...but the simple fact it they're no threat to the final four. Can't beat Pitt the year they went to the Elite 8. Can't was manhandled by Pitt last year, but last year's Can't team, although MAC champs, wasn't very good.Pitt should get some credit for taking this series home/home. But it is a good test for them. They should play games like this. If they lose to the 2006-7 Zips, there's no shame in it. When all is said and done, we'll have 24-or-so wins. It won't be a "bad loss" for Pitt should it happen.Is it true parking for the Pitt game at the JAR will be $500.00 per space? Just a rumor I heard.

I saw the Giants' game Thursday night. Chase was EVERYWHERE. If his neck is ok, he will play a LOT this season. He's a solid NFL middle linebacker.

OK, I'll ask...who's "Walker?"

Yet another "Instant Classic."

Someone from the University was nice enough to give me a call and expain some things regarding the golf outing. As Charlie stated, it is more an "reunion" event for former basketball players than for the general public, although the general public is encouraged to attend. The event is set up for 144 golfers and it is hoped to sell out. It would take an increase of about 50% from last season to do that, but even at 100 players it is a pretty fair-sized event. Because the golfers are primarily basketball guys, the confict with the football game isn't too severe...some cagers will attend, while others don't give a hoot about football. To say the least, it is a transitional period for the University athletic marketing department right now. Hunter began in June, Mack has had 5 or 6 coaches to hire since he began only 8 months ago, in addition to all his other responsibilities. The "act" these guys have had to follow is a LOT tougher to follow than the one Waddell and Thomas followed...and it is now summer, when there's no University sports to debate. The only thing to debate is the quality and timing of University literature and parking programs. Once September 2nd rolls around, all will be well and the fans can shift their focus to the games, etc. A lot of the recent clamor will settle.Personally, I scratch my head at some of the stuff that's come through the mail lately...but EVERYTHING I've heard regarding Hunter and Mack is not only positive, but stellar. These guys need a full athletic year to get their plan in place. I'm betting a lot of stuff will make sense in August 2007 that seems pretty puzzling at this time.

Buying Cleveland Browns tickets, and not using them, is a waste of money. Some may say that is is also a waste of money if you DO use them...but I digress. The Browns hardly miss any season ticket holder who doesn't renew. There are hundreds of fans waiting in line to buy your Browns ducats regardless of how horrid their product is. And, there are no critical attendance criteria of any concern to an NFL team.The University of Akron football team needs income. It needs 15,000 attendance every other year. It is NOT a waste of money to pay for Zips tickets you may/may not use because supporting the team in this manor is critical to it's success. If you care about Zips football, you shell out the $50.00 and buy a ticket. Otherwise, don't bitch when we get out-recruited by another team with bigger resources. You want to continue beating Big East schools for talent, it ain't free. You want to keep JD? It ain't free. You want to keep 1-A status? It ain't free. Buy a ticket for Zips football, whether you might miss a game or two, or attend all of them.

Dude...the Zips home opener is like Christmas for me. We will have at least 20 people at our tailgate party. It will begin at noon. 8 of them would have been excellent candidates to play in that outing. I stand by the statement: It is stupid to have two such events on the same day. There are 365 days in the year. To hold this thing on football's opening day will cost the U some $$. It isn't crying, it is a fact. I'm glad some can make it. I'm sure it will be marginally successful. But it could have been better.BTW: The golf thing is minor. A lot of the recent crying on the board is in response to some folks doing some really stupid, major stuff (season ticket mailing mess, $500 parking debacle, etc.). From what I hear, the stupidity hasn't gone unnoticed.

I took a bunch of Zips posters to my son's day care and handed them out to all the kids. Seemed to go over well.