Captain Kangaroo

West Mifflin defensive end-linebacker Kevin Garner (6-2, 225), a member of the Post-Gazette Fabulous 22, committed to Akron. But Garner said he most likely won't be on the Zips' team next season because he hasn't scored high enough on his SAT to be eligible as a freshman. He hopes to play in 2006.

If, after watching the Senior Bowl this week, Carlton decides to attend Tennessee State, then he isn't what the Zips need at QB anyhow. I hope he comes to Akron. He seems like a great player.

Thanks for the notes, Zipboy! Also: I believe the guy from NJ is Al-Teric Balaam. He was very high on Maryland and Rutgers last time I looked. There is stuff about him all over the internet. It would be a HUGE catch to get him.

Awesome ending to an awesome college career! To steal a quote from Z-P: "Thanks for the memories, Charlie!" Also, it was great to see Charlie pimping the Akron program with his gear during the "Outside the Lines" segment. I recall when Jimal Ball was in the Nationally televised slam dunk contest on ESPN he gave "shouts out" to all his buds in Canton...while all the other participants were pimping the school on the front of their jerseys. Is it too much to ask if he could stop back at Akron for a day...maybe sign some autographs or pics for kids at a hoops game?

Hey "Goo Redhawks" I found some suntan lotion for you: Administer liberally.

That's flat out weak. How dare you infer that those against this guy's recruitment are racist.

If you are depending upon the Beacon for your Zips info, shame on you. Click Here To See Where The Beacon Gets it's Info

The second most popular guy at the JAR last night was....LeBron James. Must have been 50 kids along the rail trying to get a glimpse of him. The most popular at the JAR last night....Zippy. Bet he had a posse of 60 or 70 kids around him at one point!

Can't say I really buy into this thinking entirely. Pretty much any team in the MAC and several in more upstream conferences (Syracuse for example) were after Andy out of Hoban. Pre-Back injury, he'd have been an asset to any system, and his quickness & size would have helped this team tons. Put a healthy Andy on this club in exchange for McFadden & tell me we wouldn't be even stronger. Hey! I said Andy circa 2000 COULD do it!

Can someone print the column? Thanks. F The Beacon.

It appears he is considering Akron, so the post can stay.

I will summarily dismiss any grousing by BSU fans that they would have won had they had their big man been on the floor. We lost Wood...our leading rebounder...and put the big hurt on them tonight! It's like "Groundhog Day" at Zips home games anymore...relentless D...great ball movement...resounding victory. Over and over and over. I almost forget what it is like to be behind in a game...or what a close game feels like. This has to be one of the best 5-game stretches in the past 20 years? Coming back to earth for a second...the next two games will obviously be much tougher. I wish the Miami game were on TV! Travis is the MAN. It's scary to think how good he can be over the next 2 years. Futch played very well, aside from a few times getting lost in his defensive rotations in the 1st half. Bubba didn't get many 3 looks, but still logged a lot of minutes. How useless would Andy or Brian Hipsher be on this team? Andy circa 2000 probably would have been fine, but for the most part the only offenses those two could have played in were Hipsher's motion offenses. To the contrary, Ball and Bosley would have had a blast playing Dambrot's style of ball. Middleton is getting more comfortable. He can go end-to-end in a hurry! Collins is again solid off the bench. Preston seems to really excell off the bench too. Groundhog Day Part II: Preston gets the Sub of the Game. This time, I have to agree. Bench attire much more dapper tonight. Thumbs up to the Zips new fashion consultant, whomever it might be! Wow...is this team fun to watch. Man...do they play great D. Why...has it taken 16 years for me to say that! Goodnight Andre Simms...wherever you are!

The word on the street is Diontre has had numerous concussions over the past 3 seasons. Concerns regarding his long-term health played a big part in his decision to walk away from football. He was a good Zip...I wish him well. I got to know his mom and dad because they sat near us at games. Super people. If anyone thinks losing a 5th year senior linebacker won't impact next year's defense, they're mistaken. Earl wasn't a 1st Team All MAC, but he was solid, and could put a good lick on ball carriers coming up the middle. Our LB's next season will be VERY short on experience. Competing for championships is tough to do when your linebacking 2-deep is full of True and RS Fr's. It will be very interesting to see the LB's this spring.

He was Ohio Division IV Player of the Year in 2004. 25ppg at the HS level. He would be eligible next season as a So., I believe? AP's Division III, IV All-Ohio teams The Associated Press COLUMBUS - A freshman and a senior are the top honorees on the 2003-2004 Associated Press Division III and IV boys All-Ohio high school basketball teams announced Tuesday. O.J. Mayo of Cincinnati North College Hill - already being touted as "The Next LeBron" - was the player of the year in Division III. Mansfield St. Peter's Marcus Butler grabbed the same honor in Division IV, based on the recommendations of a state panel of sports writers and broadcasters. Mayo transferred to North College Hill after starring on the varsity of his Kentucky high school team during seventh and eighth grade. He had an immediate impact at North College Hill, which went from 2-18 a year ago to 20-0 this season and a No. 1 ranking the final regular-season AP poll. The 6-foot-6 Mayo averaged 30.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 5.2 steals a game for North College Hill while shooting 60 percent from the field, 38 percent on 3-pointers and 80 percent at the line. The Division III coaches of the year are Joe Bline of Johnstown Monroe, who in his first year guided his team to a 20-0 record, its first league championship since 1981 and its first district win since 1985, along with veteran Norm Persin. Persin drew up the Xs and Os as Chesapeake made a long run in the tournament after yet another successful regular season. Joining Mayo on the Division III first team are Bellaire's Nate Davis (6-2, soph., 19.0); Ryan Gerber of Sugarcreek Garaway (6-1, sr., 19.5); Josh Smith of Johnstown Monroe (5-11, sr., 17.7); Piketon's Kyle Vulgamore (6-3, sr., 16.3); Shawn Shriver of Collins Western Reserve (6-0, sr., 19.8); Ricky Jackson of Louisville St. Thomas Aquinas (6-6, soph., 20.1); Lisbon David Anderson's Lucian Smith (6-0, sr., 21.9); Richard Semrau of Rocky River Lutheran West (6-9, soph., 23.2); David Lighty of Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph (6-5, soph., 19.4); and Kyle Gehle of Versailles (6-1, sr., 20.9). Gehle's Versailles team (26-0) takes on Davis' Bellaire squad (22-4) in the second Division III state semifinal on Thursday afternoon. Loudonville (23-2) plays St. Henry (20-5) in the tournament's first game, with the winners deciding the title Saturday. Butler, Division IV's top player, averaged 25.6 points, 10 rebounds and 6.8 assists for a team that climbed all the way to the regional finals. The 6-3 senior, who has signed to play at Evansville next season, was a co-player of the year a year ago in the small-school division. The coaches of the year are South Webster's Marc Kreischer, Steve Parquhar of Cincinnati Lockland and Arlington's Jason Vermillion. Kreischer guided the Jeeps (22-3) to the state semifinals against Holgate (18-7) on Friday afternoon. In the first semifinal of the day, Maria Stein Marion Local (17-9) plays Sebring McKinley (24-1). The title game is Saturday. Parquhar led Lockland to an 18-2 record - its first winning season in 14 years. Vermillion was at the helm as Arlington went 20-0 and won the AP poll crown. Butler is joined on the first team by Sebring McKinley's David Scarpitti (6-1, sr., 13.0); Dusty Smith of Centerburg (6-3, sr., 16.2); Fort Loramie's Jordan Pleiman (6-8, sr., 22.1); Shawn Hacker of Ironton St. Joseph (6-7, sr., 27.2); Samuel Rutherford of New Matamoras Frontier (5-11, sr., 22.8); Lorain Catholic's Brandon Neal (6-3, sr., 21.3); and Matt Hackenberg of Canton Heritage Christian (5-10, sr., 16.3).

The Butler Did It

All great points. I'll comment a little on the above: Doug Penno is Jeff Penno's (former Zip walk on) brother, I believe. Doug was pretty highly touted out of HS, so it doesn't surprise me that he's putting up good #'s. I believe Jeff Penno is at Wright State now? Futch flat out clubbed that CMU player towards the end of the game. He should have gotten a technical. Then again, maybe it was payback for that BS "intentional foul" call against Joyce earlier? Speaking of street clothes...several people around me were wondering if Dambrot has ANY dress code for the guys on the end of the bench? I kind of agree. BTW: I have to assume the guy you saw is some mid-season transfer. I'm curious as to who he is? It appears Rob Preston has taken the spot in Joe Dunn's heart formerly occupied by Andy Hipsher? I would have given the Sub of the Game to Collins. We CMU tried to make a run at the beginning of the second half, it was Collins' aggressive D that snuffed their run out. How do we win by 39 without Wood? Just amazing.... How do you lead at the half by 23 when Travis has 2 points? Just amazing... Bubba just kills the opponent's "will." It seems like he gets his 3's in spurts. Boom, boom, boom...three 3's and the Zips get on a 9-0 run. And he hits the back-breaker 22 footers to boot. Dru had a great game. I like the fact that no Zip...aside from "Mr. 3-Pointer" Futch...catches flack for taking the 3-point shot. Peterson might miss 4 in a row, but he'll take the 5th on in a heart beat if he's open. Ditto Dru, Mc Fadden, Bubba, Preston, Collins, Middleton...I think the reason we're shooting so well from 3-point range is there's no pressure (of getting benched). That, plus our ball movement is so good we seem to get a lot of open looks. Goddard's play was phenomenal, a treat to behold. I would love to see him get more PT, but who's time does he take? I'm really looking forward to the Ball State game. It should be a war. By the way, I hear Can't is a "patsie?"

A couple years ago the Zips (hoops) rolled the dice on Hollingworth and Tarver...two guys with checkered backgrounds...and the results were terrible. Yes, they didn't do anything that landed them in the police blotter during their 2-year stay in Akron (at least that I know of). But the team chemistry with those guys was horrific. Look at this year's hoops squad. A bunch of "team" players who get along well. And we're rolling along great. Skip the Ray Williams' et al. It is possible to win with guys of character. And, it is very possible to lose with guys of suspect character but great stats (see analogy above).

ELLIOTT BATES, CHARTIERS-HOUSTON Bates was a standout lineman in football and has a scholarship to the University of Akron. He also is the Post-Gazette's No. 1-ranked 275-pound wrestler in WPIAL Class AA and has a 30-2 record this season with 19 pins. His career record is 102-33. When Bates graduates, he will have 12 varsity letters -- four each in football, wrestling and track and field. Q: Do you like wrestling or do you simply use it to stay in shape for football? A: I really just use it to keep in shape. I just started wrestling years ago kind of as a hobby. But I started developing and once I got to the varsity level, I started to get good at it. Q: What's the worst part about wrestling? A: It has to be just the training. In wrestling, you usually have only one match all week. But you get a lot of forfeits in wrestling. So you train all week and then get a forfeit because other teams don't have enough people to fill all the weights. Q: Do you like the WWE and all that kind of wrestling? A: I used to when I was little, but I kind of outgrew it. Now I'm just a [ESPN] SportsCenter guy. Q: Steelers or Patriots? A: Oooooh. That's a tough one. If Big Ben comes to play, I'd have to pick the Steelers. Q: Should Big Ben get rid of the gloves? A: I don't know, maybe on his throwing hand. Q: If you could be anyone in the world for a day, who would it be? A: Shaquille O'Neal. He's a character. Some people say I'm kind of like him. He just seems funny, but he's very truthful about things. Q: How many chicken wings can you eat? A: I've never tried real hard, but I could eat 50 easy. Q: Your father's name is Norman Bates. Do you hear much stuff about the movie "Psycho?" A: When football recruiting started, recruiters would ask the name of my dad. I'd tell them Norman. Some of them didn't believe it. But I have a brother named Norman and my grandfather also is Norman. Q: You don't own a motel, do you? A: Ahhhh, no (laugh). Q: You ever see the movie "Psyhco?" A: Yeah. I'd say the old one, the black and white one, is pretty corny. The newer one is dumb. The old one is better than the new. Q: Where do you see yourself in 10 years? A: In the NFL. Q: Is that realistic? A: It's realistic for me. Everyone who is going to play Division I football should be thinking about the NFL. I've got goals. That's one of them. Every goal I've ever set, I've achieved.

81% of the "crowd" was in the upper deck. Lower PSL section was 50% empty, as usual. Tough to be "boisterous" when you're up by 20-30 most of the game. Zips KILLED CMU tonght. And CMU isn't too bad a team. More later. I'm tired.

I say we can win without him. Let him go to Marshall.

Any balls remaining? I'll trade you a blue ticket for one. I didn't hear either announcement (hard to believe, since the JAR acoustics are so good)...maybe I just wasn't expecting it since it was specified to be at game's end. I don't check out the team shop every game and don't have much use for the info desk. Oh well...the event was very nice and my son had a good time.

I still have my blue raffle ticket from last Saturday's game. Got it at the Coach's Clinic held before the game (great event, BTW). They were supposed to raffle off some Giant Eagle stuff after the EMU game? Must have missed it?

Stats Thru Jan 15th 3.7 ppg. He wouldn't have fit to well with this year's group, that's for sure. There is an seemingly large article regarding his transfer in the Pueblo newpaper...but you have to register to read it...and I didn't feel like doing it. You'll find it if you do a simple "Brian Wood Pueblo" google search. For free, you get: "He claims he's no savior. And he may not be. But Brian Wood is expected to fill a big void when the Colorado State University-Pueblo men's basketball takes to the hardwood for the 2004-2005 season. Wood comes to Pueblo via Akron University where "It wasn't going the way I wanted it to go," he said. The former Buena Vista High School all-stater enters the ThunderWolves' program with lofty credentials, namely as the top scorer in Colorado high school ba ..."

Click for a litle Cruz info

I guess I shouldn't write Fife off already, but I haven't heard much about him so I just took that to mean he isn't what they expected. Maybe he is going to contribute. Also, add another TE to the mix....Eric Lively is enrolled in Akron for the spring semester and will be in Spring ball. I read (on this board) that Lively was on the squad through summer practices, then disappeared? What's the story?