Captain Kangaroo

those are new orders per the ticket office girl today... she told me the same thing and i freaked! she then proceeded to tell me that those are in addition to the renewals that are out. still, that is not excuse, horrible! With no marketing campaign to-date, I'm actually surprised there were 50 order? Without a big marketing push, no one in Akron is thinking Zips football in early July. Everyone in the area is used to just showing up @ the bowl and getting freebies. It's been that way for decades. I was disappointed with the ticket application I received today. How does the typo regarding the kid's ticket prices make it to print? $16.00? That's a big screw up. No parking information? It's July and that's still not decided?What are ZAC members? Am I one? What are the donation levels? Yeah I know the info can be found somewhere on GoZips.CSTV.whatever.com but some information should have been included in the application. At least a web link should have been included. On an unrelated note: What is ZAC and acronym for anyhow? Can the new administration change the name to something better? Hell...Zips Boosters is better than ZAC.I saw a "Gold" and "Blue" ticket package. No where in the literature was it described what the difference was.Seats in sections 3 and 4. Hey, that's great...but where are sections 3 and 4? Is the average akron fan supposed to know this? Is it asking too much to include a small stadium seating chart graphic with the ticket application?I don't get it. I thought we had hired pepople to work on tickets full-time now. It seems to me to be the same debacle as usual. I hope someone has a plan to start pimping tickets better between now and September. What I received today isn't going to get us to 15k. 1.5k, maybe.Does the $6.00 kid's ticket price mean Zippy's kid's club is dead? I'm like Zipsrifle. I have season reserved tickets, but I sit in the endzone. I've never even seen my seats.On the positive side:FINALLY they included the media guide in the season ticket options. I like the option to order my NC State tix now.$65.00 for "gold" seats...whatever they are...is a good deal. I'll renew my two and get a $25.00 kids ticket too.I hereby offer my proofreading services to anyone at the University. Send a preview copy of any announcements to GP1 and me and all your problems will be solved.

I hope so. I've seen NASCAR bodies with less advertising and more easily-readable text.

I can't tell if it is a Zips site or a Serius Radio site? Jesus, are there enough advertisements??!!Here is NC State's. Same format, but much cleaner:Click Me

If the OSU AD took that stupid of a deal when he could have had a home game vs. ANYONE in his own 100,000 seat stadium, he should be fired on the spot.BTW: I was at the Can't / Toledo MAC Championship basketball game (Yes, as a Zips fan it sucked). One of the biggest cheers of the night came when the scoreboard first showed a guy in a Michigan Wolverine ball cap...then panned to a guy pointing to the OSU logo on his gay red OSU tee shirt. Toledo fans went cra-Zee!! As did the Can't fans. It made me sick. Point being: It will be the same when Toledo plays OSU in Cleveland. 85/15 split buckeye fans to Toledo fans. Even the Toledo fans will cheer when OSU scores. The Lemming factor will be proven (the ones that jump off cliffs, not Tom).

Ohio State isn't traveling to Cleveland and forfeiting a home date in a 100,000 seat stadium to take a 15k gate at $50.00 a pop. With no Columbus parking $$ or concessions. No F-ing way in hell. They need their football cash to fund their 20-something non-revenue sports. It would be suicide.At BEST, the gate will be split 50/50...and I doubt anyone at OSU would be stupid enough to do even that.

Kevin Verdugo: He left before last season began and we won the MAC championship without him...is that correct?Pry and Wallerstedt? I think SOMEHOW we'll survive. There some guy named Brookhart that's still running around somewhere on campus.SoccerKen LollaMario SanchezMichael HamiltonTime will tell regarding the soccer guys. Give the new coach some time to coach...say...maybe a game or two before the pieces of the sky begins falling? He was the top assistant at Indiana before coming to Akron. Indiana, not Indiana State.AdministrationMTUAMAgain, time will tell. MT was, no way in F-ing hell, going to stay in Akron. If it wasn't Cincinnati, it would have been somewhere else. He met JD when he was interviewing for the Pitt AD job. He'd only been at Akron for two years and he'd sent out God knows how many resumes. Mack seems to know what he's doing. The Kest hire seems like an excellent one.UAM ruled. I miss his dynamics, ideas, and about everything else. But...I'll give the new regime a shot. Let's see what Hunter and Mack can do. BTW: It is July 4th and I still have not have info in my mailbox regarding the tailgate section or football season tickets. That concerns me. Mack said at the golf outing it was immensely important to draw 15k+ this year, but as of July 4th....about 8 weeks from the Zips opener...the team hype is invisible.BasketballShaka SmartGood for Shaka. I really liked the guy. However, did you see the student athlete from WPa that recently verballed to the Zips? He seems like a hell of a player. He committed without Shaka anywhere near Ohio. Others of his caliber are sure to follow. I think the hoops staff will survive quite well without Shaka.SoftballJulie WrightShe didn't win squat. He loss is our gain. If her heart wasn't in coaching Akron, the it is best she's gone.Schools lose assistants and head coaches all the time. We're not immune. There's a good chance we'll replace them with someone better, and with more commitment.

By Kevin Gorman <mailto:kgorman@tribweb.com>TRIBUNE-REVIEWSunday, July 2, 2006 Every time a Western Pennsylvania football prospect picks a school other than Pitt, the sky-is-falling-mentality returns for those who follow local recruiting. Should it be considered cause for alarm that only three of the 14 WPIAL players who have made verbal commitments have chosen the Panthers? Not necessarily. Truth is, there is no figurative fence or, for that matter, brick wall around the WPIAL for any one school. Not every local prospect wants to play at Pitt, Penn State or West Virginia. Yet, so far, half have decided to stay relatively close to home. Score recruiting victories for Penn State in securing receivers Jon Ditto of Gateway and Nick Sukay of Greensburg Central Catholic and for West Virginia in landing offensive linemen Donnie Barclay of Seneca Valley and Gino Gradkowski of Seton-La Salle. Pitt has commitments from Keystone Oaks linemen Myles Caragein and Chris Jacobson and Thomas Jefferson safety Dom DeCicco, and is among the finalists for Valley receiver Toney Clemons, Mt. Lebanon tight end Andrew Devlin, TJ tight end Chris Drager, Perry lineman Cameron Holland and Aliquippa linebacker Brandon Lindsey. That wouldn't be a bad class. • Devlin told Scout that he is down to Pitt, Boston College, Iowa, Stanford, Virginia and Wisconsin and hopes to decide by Aug. 13. High school training camp opens the next day. • Rochester receiver Derek Moye has narrowed his choices to Pitt, Penn State, Boston College and Maryland. Central Catholic offensive linemen Stefen Wisniewski is down to Penn State, Boston College, North Carolina and Notre Dame. If Penn State lands those two, in addition to Ditto and Sukay, the Nittany Lions will have done well in the WPIAL. • Woodland Hills offensive lineman Mike Dykes (6-4, 275) has scholarship offers from Akron, Duke, Kentucky, Miami (Ohio), North Carolina and Temple. Right now, Dykes is leaning toward the Tar Heels. • Penn-Trafford linebacker Paul Stefanik (6-2, 218) has been impressive at passing camps and combines. He has a written offer from Towson State, verbal offers from Marshall and Temple and is receiving interest from Akron, Pitt, Syracuse and West Virginia. • Hempfield defensive end Greg Meisner added an offer from Cincinnati after attending the Bearcats' camp. He also has offers from Kentucky and Vanderbilt. A big senior season could net Meisner even more offers. • Penn Hills outside linebacker Aaron Williams has received scholarship offers from Akron and Toledo, which has signed Big Red stars Brandon Hefflin, Mike Hill, Barry Church and Archie Donald in the recent past. • Here's a name to remember: Blake Williamson. The Chartiers-Houston receiver had 34 catches for 537 yards and eight touchdowns last season. As a sophomore. At 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, he has a sculpted physique that catches college coaches' eyes. • Central Catholic quarterback Tino Sunseri, who showed nice athleticism and a live arm at Pitt's 7-on-7 camp, has been invited to the Elite 11 Quarterback Camp in California. Sunseri is the only junior invited and will likely serve as a ball boy. He is the third WPIAL QB to pick up an invite to the Elite 11, following Tyler Palko of West Allegheny (2001) and Anthony Morelli of Penn Hills (2003).

How...OH HOW are we ever going to recover from the losses of Geoff Lanier and Susan Blauser??!!! Dark ages here we come!!!

I hope the guy is good. It hurts the MAC when members suck as bad as CMU recently has (Chris Kaman years not withstanding).I wonder if Eric McLaughlin's kid will still have his scholarship...or if the new coach will clean house?

If he's truly a third-year soph, I can't see him transferring to a 1-A. However I do see him fitting in at UCLA (University at the Corner of Lincoln Avenue): YSU

If he's a Junior this season, he can't be more than 16? I have to believe he's got the potential to add on another couple inches growth? Not that a solid 6' 9" center can't already do some serious damage in the MAC... He seems like a great pick up. I can't wait to see him in the Blue and Gold!

Click me to hear many Crying Wolf(pack fans)

I highly doubt the University will offer anything but a 1-day bus trip to State College. No hotels will be had via the University.The last PSU/Akron game I checked ahead of time exhaustively for single-night stays. There were none to be found. However, when we rolled into town, there were some vacancy signs in a few hotel windows.I may bite the bullet and pay for the 2-night stay somewhere. Tough call....

In case some missed the ABJ stadium column reference in the other thread, I'll re-post my response here.I think in the column is it pretty apparent Mack did not show all his cards to the reporter. Too bad the reporter never dug any deeper.In general, I'm kind of down after reading the column:I don't like the fact we're "inching" towards a new stadium. I wish we were "full steam ahead" towards building a new stadium.I don't like the fact that it's "less than 5 years away." That means it is all of 5 years away, and that means no groundbreaking for 3 years, at best.I do like the location.I don't see a problem with parking...it is a 30,000 student University, so there should be quite a few spaces to be had on a Saturday. On a Thursday night? THAT could be a problem.I hope Plusquellic doesn't do anything stupid like try and get limited parking on-campus so people have to walk from/through downtown to get to the stadium.How will the Rubber Bowl last another 5 years? Can you imagine how trashed the seats will be in 5 years? They're trashed as we speak.I don't like that "Informally we've talked to people to gauge the interest (in building a new stadium)." We need to be balls to the walls in pimping this thing to everyone and their brother in Summit County!! I was really hoping we had passed the point of informally bouncing ideas off the wall.What's the deal with acquiring land to build more soccer fields and football fields? Intramurals? I don't get it?This is the first time I've heard the soccer team possibly playing in the new stadium. I wonder how the team would feel about playing on field turf?25,000 seats, expandable to 30,000? Jesus...just make it 30,000!! The expandability should be to something like 45,000. The article pretty much jibes with what Mack inferred at the golf outing. The funding is not where it needs to be at this time. The Zips need another highly successful football campaign to get a clamor for the stadium going in the community. If the Zips went 4-8 this year (and "no" I don't see that happening) I can't see many new, wealthy sponsors busting down the doors to be associated with the program. If we build off of the success we had in 2005 and show that 20,000 fans will show up for games, the solicitation of donations will be a lot simpler. Should this be the case? Hell no. We flat-out need a new stadium, and we need it NOW. It doesn't matter what the team's 2006 record is...this is a decision that will affect the next 50 years of Akron football. Unfortunately, the team was out-of-sight-out-of-mind for two full decades and people have trouble believing we're not a f.lash in the pan. It doesn't help when the local paper won't send a reporter to freaking Athens Ohio to cover your away games either.

In general, I'm kind of down after reading the column:I don't like the fact we're "inching" towards a new stadium. I wish we were "full steam ahead" towards building a new stadium.I don't like the fact that it's "less than 5 years away." That means it is all of 5 years away, and that means no groundbreaking for 3 years, at best.I do like the location.I don't see a problem with parking...it is a 30,000 student University, so there should be quite a few spaces to be had on a Saturday. On a Thursday night? THAT could be a problem.I hope Plusquellic doesn't do anything stupid like try and get limited parking on-campus so people have to walk from/through downtown to get to the stadium.How will the Rubber Bowl last another 5 years? Can you imagine how trashed the seats will be in 5 years? They're trashed as we speak.I don't like that "Informally we've talked to people to gauge the interest (in building a new stadium)." We need to be balls to the walls in pimping this thing to everyone and their brother in Summit County!! I was really hoping we had passed the point of informally bouncing ideas off the wall.What's the deal with acquiring land to build more soccer fields and football fields? Intramurals? I don't get it?This is the first time I've heard the soccer team possibly playing in the new stadium. I wonder how the team would feel about playing on field turf?25,000 seats, expandable to 30,000? Jesus...just make it 30,000!! The expandability should be to something like 45,000. The article pretty much jibes with what Mack inferred at the golf outing. The funding is not where it needs to be at this time. The Zips need another highly successful football campaign to get a clamor for the stadium going in the community. If the Zips went 4-8 this year (and "no" I don't see that happening) I can't see many new, wealthy sponsors busting down the doors to be associated with the program. If we build off of the success we had in 2005 and show that 20,000 fans will show up for games, the solicitation of donations will be a lot simpler. Should this be the case? Hell no. We flat-out need a new stadium, and we need it NOW. It doesn't matter what the team's 2006 record is...this is a decision that will affect the next 50 years of Akron football. Unfortunately, the team was out-of-sight-out-of-mind for two full decades and people have trouble believing we're not a f.lash in the pan. It doesn't help when the local paper won't send a reporter to freaking Athens Ohio to cover your away games either.

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