Captain Kangaroo

I'm going, but staying in Murfreesboro. Doesn't look like anyone else is? Hopefully in a year or two the "Zips that Travel" will dramatically increase in number. I appreciate the offer.

I was watching a CUSA game last weekend. The network showed a list of the 6 or 7 CUSA QB's in the NFL. Included were Culpepper, Pennington and Leftwitch, who obviously never played in CUSA. If we beat OSU in 1894, I'll take it. I'm glad they still count such an old win as one for Akron and the MAC. Lookinf forward the the next one in 2007.

I concur entirely Pouch. I think most agree that Frenchie does a nice job. If you don't...like Pouch said...try sitting through Can't's Bill Needle for more than 5 minutes. Frenchie does screw up names all the time. Does WNIR's health plan not pay for glasses?

I found a picture of the Kasparek's back yard. It explains a lot...

Can I bring my flask into the booth? If so, I’m in!

"Nice catch by Dominic Hixson" "Wait...Joe Dunn is telling me that was Jabari Arthur." "Great catch by Jason Montgomery." "Wait, Joe Dunn is telling me it was Johnny Long." etc. etc. etc. It went on all day long. I thought Stams did a nice job with the color commentary. He describes the sets and stratagies well. I saw him doing a game on ESPNU the other night. He may not be in the Zips booth for long?

#1: Toledo – Handled WMU with ease, getting up 35-0 before calling off the dogs. #2: NIU: Presently 0-2, but credible performances vs Michigan and Northwestern. Their RB Wolfe is f-ing tough. #3: BG – Scoring some points, but giving them up like crazy too. 31 points to Ball State is embarrassing for a team thought to be a title contender. #4: Central Michigan – The were step-for-step with Indiana, then beat Miami in Oxford. CMU looking good in the early going. #5: Akron – Is a 25 point loss to Purdue better than a 16-10 win over Pitt? Tough to say…OU and Akron appear pretty close at this time. I give the edge to Akron because OU can’t score an offensive touchdown. #6: OU – Bobcats score a nice home win vs. Pitt. At year’s end, Pitt may only have beaten YSU, which will take some of the luster off this BCS beating. #7: EMU: 31-10 over Lou. Laf. Not a bad non-conf win. They appear to be on the rise. #8: Miami: On reputation alone. They stunk up the Horseshoe in week #1, then lost to CMU at home. One more bad week and they’re dropping to my “Bottom 3.” #9: Can't: MAJOR beat down at the hands of Michigan State in week 1, but beat a 1-AA team at home by 21 last week. Their #1 MAC D appears to be all hype. #10: Western Michigan: Had a decent showing vs. Va Tech…but got their doors blown off by Toledo. #11: Ball State: Put up 31 points on BG. Not enough to overcome that opening day massacare @ Iowa, however. #12: Buffalo: Has yet to score a point in 8 quarters of football. That is pathetic. #13: Temple: 65-0 beat down at the hands of Wisconsin. Hey it was only 9 points more than BG surrendered…but 6TD’s fewer than BG scored. Buffalo is salivating at the thought of playing Temple every year.

That's impressive, considering his previous experience was either high school, or Pitt. Since Pitt lost to lowly OU...and could only muster 10 points in a game that went to overtime...I have a hard time classifying Pitt as "big time." They'd be lucky to win 6 games with a MAC schedule this year. I'm very happy we got Getsy instead of Palko.

I agree. Thanks!

I'm cautiously optimistic now too. Remember the game at the 'shoe in 2001? We lost 28-14. Played a whale of a game. We finished 4-7 that year. I will be very interesting to see how the Zips fare in Murfreesboro next week. I watched MTSU lose at home to Noth Texas last night (YES Network). MTSU isn't very good.

How dare you berate someone who doesn't spend 10 minutes to learn basic information regarding the Zips. Sincerely, David Lee Morgan

Northern Illinois is getting beat up pretty good by Nortwestern...Miami loses to a weak CMU team, giving up 38 pionts in the process. BG gave up 56 points to Wisconsin. Can't gave up 700 yards to Michigan State. Buffalo may not score in September. Ball State appears to be absolutely horrible. OU's offense is atrocious, and we have them at the Rubber Bowl. Army was down 30-0 to Boston College today, I believe? If the Zips can play like they did today for the remainder of the season...man...this fall could be a lot of fun!

I don't recall being too optimistic about beating Penn State...but then again I drank a TON of these things while I was there...so I probably was.

U of L will face haves, have-nots And the former are all in the Big East The Courier-Journal The University of Louisville released its men's basketball schedule yesterday, but it looked more like two schedules. The non-conference portion is watered down by design, with the exception of road games against Kentucky and Miami. But the Big East portion has all the kick that coach Rick Pitino wants -- and then some. With a young team whose starting front line all could be first-year starters early in the season and a pair of big men (Juan Palacios and Brian Johnson) coming back from injuries, Pitino said building confidence early will be a premium. That's why the Cardinals' first six non-conference games will be against Tennessee-Martin, Prairie View A&M, Arkansas State, Richmond, Akron and Chicago State, all at home. "The most important thing for this team, because of its lack of experience and returning minutes from last year's team, is that we get off to a good start," Pitino said in a statement released by U of L. "We're hoping our non-conference home schedule will allow us to be competitive right away before we go into a tough stretch that includes road games at Kentucky and Miami. We'll then enter a new era of Big East basketball that will probably be the hardest conference schedule in the history of Louisville basketball." He added jokingly, "My tenure will last probably a year or two after this, and I'll wish everyone well." The Cards' Big East schedule is no joke. They'll open it at home against Villanova, expected to be a top-10 team and perhaps top-five. Then comes Pitino's much-anticipated return to Providence, where he coached the Friars to a Final Four in 1987. All that's needed to gauge the difficulty of the Big East schedule is a look at the final five road games: Villanova, Cincinnati, Syracuse, West Virginia and, winding up the regular season, Connecticut. Interspersed among those will be home games against Notre Dame, South Florida, DePaul and Marquette.

TCU went from unknown to nationally ranked after its shocking upset of Oklahoma. How amazing was it? The Horned Frogs were just 5-6 last year and ranked dead last — 119th out of 119 teams — in Division I-A in pass defense. Sports Illustrated had them rated No. 62 in the nation — surrounded by the likes of North Texas, New Mexico and Middle Tennesse — in their preseason preview.

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Hey DL...Brion Stokes is an F-ing LINEBACKER! Would the OSU beat writer list AJ Hawk as a defensive back? No. If the guy was that stupid, he'd be fired. DL: I just hope to God we're competing with Marshall for the MAC East Championship at year's end with Brion Stokes' brilliant cornerback skills leading the way. Keep up the shoddy work, DL. Attention to detail...like who's in the conference of the team you're covering...or the position played by a team starter...that stuff is overrated...as long as you can cut-n-paste stuff from GoZips.com to supplement it.

From the Pittsburgh Post Gazette: From his seat inside Detroit's Comerica Park this past July during the Major League Baseball All-Star game, Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis bided his time by sending text messages to prospective football recruits. Never mind that it occurred during the NCAA "quiet" period, when coaches are not allowed to talk to high school prospects unless they are on campus. Under the definition of NCAA rules, electronically transmitted correspondences such as text messaging, e-mail, Instant Messenger and facsimiles do not constitute a telephone call and are permissible. As a result, college football recruiting has gone high-tech. And coaches are now keeping their Blackberries and Sidekicks next to their whistles and clipboards. "We text every single day, and it is a very, very integral part of recruiting now," Weis said, "because it counts as an electronic message rather than a phone call and I would say that we talk to several recruits every single day by text." One of those text messages is designated for Woodland Hills senior Darrin Walls, the nation's top cornerback. Although Walls doesn't have his own cellular phone, he finds the Electronic Age of Recruiting a convenience for recruiters and recruits alike. "My top schools - Pitt, Notre Dame, Michigan and Florida - they text message my dad and I receive them," Walls said. "And they all e-mail me little quotes, ask how things are going. If they want me to call them, they'll e-mail me. "I think it's better because they don't call as much. They can get in contact with me without having to talk to me on the phone. I think it's a better way to recruit." Several WPIAL recruits experienced the difference firsthand last Thursday, when they were besieged by phone calls during the start of the NCAA "contact" period. "I just kept getting calls and calls and calls," Walls said. "It was crazy. I would be talking to one coach and another would call. I'd tell him to call back in 10 minutes. Then another would call, and I'd tell him to call back in 15 minutes." Franklin Regional senior Brad Phillips actually informed Northwestern's coaching staff by text message in July that he was ready to make a verbal commitment. He contacted assistant James Patton, who text messaged back a time when head coach Randy Walker would be in his office. "It opens up the communication a lot more," Phillips said. "Calling them, you don't know if they're going to be in the office or not. And they can't call you until after Sept. 1. "From hearing what my dad (Duane) went through when he was getting recruited in high school, it's a lot different." Penn-Trafford's computer-savvy quarterback Tyler Huether receives e-mails on a regular basis from Akron, Louisville, North Carolina State and Toledo. Huether said he sometimes prefers the electronic communication. "They send e-mail or text message on a cell phone," Huether said. "The messages say, 'We want to keep in touch.' Or 'keep working hard.' You get it right away and can call right back." Kiski Area senior Mychal Skinner receives interest in a variety of ways. He keeps a Scout.com recruiting analyst updated by IMs. Skinner receives e-mails from Akron, Connecticut, Eastern Michigan and Pitt. And he also gets text messages from schools on his cell phone. "It is an easier way, truthfully," Skinner said. "You don't have to deal with it. You just get on the e-mail. If they send you something, you just send it back." Even the simplest forms of communication can open new doors for some prospects. Perry Traditional Academy quarterback Desmond Brentley has a cell phone and is proficient with text messaging, but he had never used e-mail before until a college recruiter mentioned it. "I got e-mail just for that purpose," said Brentley, who receives them regularly from Buffalo and Illinois. "They sent a schedule, a few comments here and there." Akron assistant coach Joe Moorhead, a Central Catholic graduate, appears to be one of the more aggressive recruiters when it comes to e-mail and text messages. He has contacted Brentley, Huether, Baldwin cornerback Cart Kelly and Woodland Hills receiver Wes Lyons that way. "I like the text messaging," Brentley said. "It's easier and quicker. It's a convenient way when they can't talk to you. Mail takes a couple days. You can send a text and let them know they're thinking of you. "They say something like, 'Think Akron.' It does work, like they're really thinking about you. If he took time out to text message me, it lets you know how they feel." Lyons, in fact, said he received a text message from Moorhead following the top-ranked Wolverines' 48-28 victory over No. 2 Gateway last Friday night. Instead of calling back, Lyons simply text messaged the score. Electronic contact also is used to set up phone conversations, which are permissible year-round if initiated by the prospect. Coaches can skirt the rules by sending a message for a recruit to call them at a certain time. "It is kind of easier because you can talk any time you want," Kelly said. "There are regulations with talking on the phone. If you want to say something, you just text and it's done. It doesn't turn into a half-hour conversation." And Weis, who is new to the college game, is among the coaches already mastering the art of keeping conversations to a minimum while keeping contact at a maximum. "Any time you have an opportunity to let the kids know you're thinking of them when they would not think you were thinking of them," Weis said. "You either text them before a game, and then you text them after a game to follow up on what happened. I'm not doing anything that everyone else isn't doing. I just think that it's become just part of what you have to do."

I remember a nondescript Zips squad with a Fr. QB in his first start vs. OSU lost 28-14. Fuller's tip to Gamble on the sure INT and Brandon Paynes muff on the 1 yard line...take away those two plays and...damn. Anything can happen. F Purdue

Purdue's returning 20 starters. All 11 on defense. You have a roster full of youngsters due to Lee Owens' inept recruiting over the last two+ years of his tenure. Do you run the ball and keep the clock rolling? Yeah, that works...if you want your defense on the field all day. I can only imagine the struggle our young OL is going to have against Purdue's 11 returning starters. If run, run, run is the way we're going to spend the day... Billy Sullivan better begin looking into treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome. Do you go "balls to the wall" and try and win the thing? Try gimmick plays...bombs...gamble a bit on D? Do you rotate Getsy and Ferguson a la Washington and Gromek in the Penn State game circa 1999? *shudder* I hope we mix it up and try to win the thing. If we just try to run out the clock and keep from getting injured, it sets a bad tone. Is there any difference in losing 48-14 (ball control) or 65-14 (try to air it out a few times at the risk of stopping the clock)? No. However, the style of play we'd need to play to win the game is much more conducive to a 65-14 loss than a 48-14 loss. If the guys are in shape, there won't be any major injury issues (*knock* on wood). We've played big games like this every year for the past decade and never been too beat up. I say "F it...try to win the thing" and see what happens. F Purdue.

New chapter: Former Pitt QB makes first start for Akron Wednesday, September 07, 2005 By Ray Fittipaldo, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette AKRON, Ohio -- Luke Getsy celebrated a couple of anniversaries over Labor Day weekend. One good, one he would rather forget. Two years ago yesterday, Getsy experienced one of the biggest thrills of his football career. As a 19-year old redshirt freshman quarterback, he started the season opener against Can't State because starter Rod Rutherford was suspended and directed the Pitt Panthers for the first quarter of a 43-3 victory. One year later, he was down and out. Getsy lost the quarterback competition with Tyler Palko and sought a transfer to the University of Akron. Coach Walt Harris and the Pitt athletic department refused to release Getsy from his scholarship, meaning Getsy would be responsible for paying tuition at his new school. "That was a real difficult time," he said after a practice last week in Akron. "Everything happened so fast. I had like a five-day period to decide where I wanted to go, had to figure out if I had the money to do it. As soon as I got here I was filling out loan forms like crazy. I was fortunate to get a couple of loans. Out-of-state tuition was kind of rough. My parents aren't in the best situation with money. But they made sure everything was taken care of." If Getsy harbors ill feelings toward Pitt, he's not saying. Going back to his high school years, his relationship with Harris had a history. When he was the quarterback at Steel Valley, Getsy was offered and accepted a scholarship offer. But when Pitt signed the highly rated Palko out of West Allegheny, Harris rescinded the offer. After a wave of criticism, Harris offered again, and Getsy accepted again. The refusal to release Getsy from his scholarship means he will have a $7,500 loan to pay off after he finishes school. "I guess they felt they had to do what they had to do," Getsy said. "We plead our case to a committee, and they sided with them. There was nothing I could do but go forward." Getsy landed on his feet. Saturday, he will be the starting quarterback for the Zips when they travel to No. 13 Purdue for their season opener. Though he has only 13 career pass attempts, Getsy has a wealth of experience in Akron coach J.D. Brookhart's system. Brookhart, in his second season with the Zips, spent seven seasons as Pitt's offensive coordinator under Harris, including Getsy's two seasons there. Getsy had to sit out last season under NCAA transfer rules, but he helped former Zips quarterback Charlie Frye, now the backup with the Cleveland Browns, with the intricacies of Brookhart's system. Frye took Getsy under his wing, and the two became close friends. Getsy spent most of his free time around Frye and sped up his learning curve within the offense. In turn, Frye became a mentor to Getsy and helped him through his transition year. "It was an interesting relationship," Brookhart said. "I think Charlie helped him in so many ways with the experience and intangibles that he had at the position. But Luke helped him, too, because Luke had been in the system. He had a knowledge base that Charlie wasn't able to have. It really was a great relationship. It was an ideal situation last year." Frye was a four-year starter and owns every major Zips passing record. Getsy, a 6-foot-2, 220-pound junior, has big shoes to fill. Akron, 6-5 last season, is rebuilding after competing for the Mid-American East Division title on the final day of last season. Only five starters return on offense, including just one lineman. "Following Charlie is going to be hard," Brookhart said. "People have been spoiled around here with Charlie making plays for so many years. What Luke is going to bring is he has a knowledge base in this system. "It's going to be a process, especially with a young offensive line. Luke has always been a poised individual. In a short amount of time, he'll develop a leadership role on this team. He handles himself well. He understands the system and what we're trying to do. He's going to be a very efficient player." And now, two years removed from his first college start, Getsy will lineup under center again Saturday. A second beginning. One that Getsy hopes will be the start to a productive career at his new college football home. "I enjoyed my time at Pitt, still have a lot of great friends there," Getsy said. "It was time to move on. Things happen for a reason. I'm happy in the situation I'm in right now."

In a typical year, I'd be there. However, I'm heading down to Murfreesboro in 2 weeks and I just can't swing back-to-back roadies. Maybe we'll hook up at the BG game.

By that, I would infer he has running talents, but no blocking talent? We need a FB that can block first...run second. What D-1 school gives a FB more than 5-6 carries now-a-days? As a final note: If he bust a few 15 yarders on his carry opportunities, I'm sure his carries/game will increase rapidly.

Brentwood's Taylor picks Eastern Kentucky By Kevin Gorman <mailto:kgorman@tribweb.com> TRIBUNE-REVIEW Tuesday, September 6, 2005 It was only fitting that Josh Taylor was standing in line for The Racer at Kennywood Park on Monday when he made official his college choice. The Brentwood basketball star ended a rollercoaster recruiting process by calling Eastern Kentucky University coaches and making a verbal commitment to the Colonels. The 6-foot-7, 215-pound wing-forward is the first Division I men's basketball recruit from the WPIAL in the Class of 2006. "I went down on an official visit, met the players and fell in love with it," said Taylor, who spent the weekend on the Richmond, Ky., campus and met president Joanne Glasser. Taylor is one of the first recruits for new EKU coach Jeff Neubauer, an assistant on West Virginia's Elite Eight team last season. Neubauer replaced Travis Ford, who left for Massachusetts after leading the Colonels (22-9) to the Ohio Valley Conference championship and the NCAA Tournament. "They're pretty young, so I can go in and play," Taylor said. "After watching them playing in the tournament last year, that's a big dream I have." After averaging 19.4 points, 12 rebounds and two blocked shots a game as a junior, Taylor saw his stock skyrocket after an impressive summer with the Pittsburgh J.O.T.S. traveling team. He started the summer ranked No. 699 in the Class of 2006 by the HoopScoop recruiting service and ended it with eight scholarship offers. Taylor chose the Colonels over Akron, Northern Arizona, Quinnipiac, Rider, Robert Morris, St. Francis (Pa.) and Youngstown State. "It says a lot about Josh and his commitment to basketball that he's going to have this phenomenal opportunity presented to him," said Mike O'Brien, Brentwood's coach the past two seasons. "He was focused and really determined this summer to prove a lot of people wrong and say, 'I can play at this level.' " Taylor, a four-year starter, has transformed himself into a solid 3-point shooter who runs the floor fluidly and can pound inside the paint. He showed his strength by breaking the rim off the backboard on a dunk at the adidas Hoop Challenge this past May in Cleveland. "The backboard didn't break," Taylor said, "but the rim hit my head and it hurt." Taylor, a two-time all-section pick, enters his fourth season as a starter eight points shy of 1,000 for his career. He is Brentwood's first Division I basketball recruit since Will Griffin went to Towson in 1989. "I think it's tremendous for him and his family, and for Brentwood basketball," O'Brien said. "These guys saw him play almost every AAU game this summer. They're committed to Josh being Josh. They don't want to change him. They think he can play the 3 (small forward) spot and contribute immediately."