Captain Kangaroo

Looks like it is getting towards the end of the line for Konrad. This is his 3rd year of camp, and he’s getting cut pretty early. I wish him the best, but it doesn’t look good. Can you make a decent living in NFL Europe? Matt will be ok. Hope he latches on with someone else. If he gets a chance to develop in Europe for a season, I think he can make a roster next year…or this year if some NFL scout is paying attention!

I like our chances against these guys more and more each day!!! Sales, Brown to get playing time for PSUBy Rob Biertempfel TRIBUNE-REVIEW Saturday, August 28, 2004 Penn State's linebacker corps might soon have more of a western Pennsylvania flavor. Friday, coach Joe Paterno said two former WPIAL standouts -- true freshmen Dontey Brown (McKeesport) and Tyrell Sales (Butler) -- likely will play more than expected this season. BranDon Snow, who was in the mix for playing time at middle linebacker, broke his right foot during preseason camp and will be out six to eight weeks. While Snow recovers from surgery, Brown and Sales have a chance to show what they can do. Snow's injury made Tim Shaw, a former tailback, the de facto starter at middle 'backer. The two had been waging an even battle for the job until Snow broke his foot last week. Senior Derek Wake and sophomore Paul Posluszny (Hopewell) will start at the outside linebacker spots. Backing them up will be Dan Connor, a freshman who enrolled in January, and sophomore J.R. Zwierzynski. "We had a meeting this morning, and I was the only (upperclassman) in the room," said Wake, who this week was named one of the team's two co-captains. "Those other guys are young and they're making big plays. They haven't played much, but when we're out there in practice, you couldn't tell. I'm definitely looking forward to going out there on Saturday and playing with those guys." Penn State opens its season at 3:30 p.m. Sept. 4 at home against Akron. Cornerback Alan Zemaitis has been slowed during camp by a shoulder injury, but is expected to play against Akron. Safety Chris Harrell, who has been out since the spring with a neck injury, will not play this season. Paterno said Harrell will take a redshirt and should be ready to play in 2005.

Akron at Penn State (3:30 PM – TV: ESPN Regional) Highlights: Penn State is 0-3 against the spread versus the MAC and has not covered against this conference since 1999. PSU is 5-10 against the spread in their last 15 season openers. Akron averaged 36-points per game in 2003, including 311-yards per contest through the air behind returning All-American QB candidate Charlie Frye. Akron has lost their last six games against Big Ten competition by an average of 45-20 per game. Comment: Penn State has not been the same team since Toledo whacked them in the 2000 season. Akron has the best QB in the country and can certainly score points on just about any team. The problem is their defense, and even an anemic offense like Penn State should be able to score enough points to win by a respectable margin. Charlie Frye will definitely wow the home crowd though. Nick’s Pick: Penn State 37 – Akron 28 Line: Penn State by 16

That would all make sense...IF Penn Stae weren't coming off a 3-9 season where their only wins were against Temple, Can't State and Indiana. Penn State would be lucky to beat CW Post by 30 points this season, let alone the Zips. Zips 31-17...toothless Lions barely put up a fight. If/when the game gets out of hand, PLEASE, Zips fans...BE CLASSY. Remember how bad it felt when we used to get drubbed. You're representing the University of Akron. Show some respect!

A little more regarding the decision... If I were him, I'd stay at Pitt. If Palko sucks, or gets hurt...he's the man. If he comes to Akron, Jabbari will be a Soph. who's pretty tough to beat out. There's no guarantee he's the #1 guy here either. By Joe Bendel TRIBUNE-REVIEW Saturday, August 28, 2004 Luke Getsy is uncertain about his future at Pitt after losing the starting quarterback job to fellow redshirt sophomore Tyler Palko. Getsy said Friday that he loves everything about Pitt, but also pointed out that he has "options." He also realizes that he faces the possibility of playing out his career as a back-up. "I'm just going to think about it," said Getsy, a Steel Valley High grad who played in six games last season while Palko took a redshirt. "I'll weigh it out and see what goes on. As long as I'm here, I'm going to bust my (behind) for this team because you never know what will happen." If Getsy opts to transfer to another Division I-A school, he must do so by the 12th day of that institution's semester to gain admission. He would then be eligible to play in 2005. If he waits longer than the 12 days, he won't gain admission until the winter semester, forcing him to sit out the 2004 and 2005 seasons. Players who transfer from one NCAA Division I-A institution to another must sit out two full semesters, which is why it is so important to enroll before the 12-day mark of the fall term. Three years ago, tailback Brandon Miree played three games for Alabama before transferring to Pitt on the 12th day of the semester, thereby saving his eligibility for the following season. Akron, which is coached by former Pitt offensive coordinator J.D. Brookhart, could be an option for Getsy. The first day of classes at Akron is Monday. That would allow Getsy to play two games for Pitt -- South Florida and Ohio -- before making a decision. "I'm not sure about all that; I don't know the rules," Getsy said. "I don't know how quickly I have to act." Palko came to Pitt with all the accolades after a stellar career at West Allegheny, while Getsy came in under the radar. But when their competition heated up, Getsy proved worthy of consideration for the starting job. Harris said breaking the news to Getsy was the most difficult thing he's done. He also said he hopes Getsy "hangs in there with it," leading one to believe that even Harris is concerned about a potential transfer. "It's been difficult, no doubt," Getsy said. "I wanted to get my chance on the field and the time's not right. I'm not going to live in regret and think that I didn't bust my (behind) for this team because I did. But things happen for a reason, and I just gotta find that reason."

Harris opts for Palko Friday, August 27, 2004 By Ray Fittipaldo, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Two and a half years ago, Tyler Palko headlined Walt Harris' 2002 recruiting class. He was considered the top prospect in the class, a gifted quarterback and athlete who was labeled the future of the Panthers' program. It took some time, but yesterday Palko took his first step toward fulfilling the lofty expectations heaped upon him. In a close competition, Palko beat out Luke Getsy for the starting quarterback duties. "This has been a long process, watching both of these kids for three years," Harris said after practice yesterday. "I don't think I've been around two young men that care more about football than they do. "They know as much about what we're doing than anyone else we've had at their age. It was tight. It was real tight. It was a very difficult decision. Both are real good football players. "I have confidence in Luke if the situation goes that way. But right now, Tyler Palko is our starting quarterback." There had been little separation between Palko and Getsy since they arrived on campus together in 2002. Palko, a 6-foot-2, 220-pounder from West Allegheny, earned the backup job behind Rod Rutherford in 2002 while Getsy redshirted. Last season, they switched roles with Getsy earning the backup job while Palko took a redshirt. Even in the first two weeks of practice, Pitt players were unable to determine who played better. Receiver Greg Lee genuinely was surprised when reporters informed him that Palko had been named the starter. Lee said Palko and Getsy had been so close in play that he expected the competition to go into next week. "I thought they were neck-and-neck all through camp," Lee said. But it was time to have some stability at the position, Harris said. The Panthers open the season Sept. 6 at South Florida, and he wanted the offense to have some continuity for the next 10 days of practice. "We have a starting quarterback and we're going to stick with him," Harris said. "We're going to give practice time to him so he has a chance to improve his game. It was time for us to pick a guy and get ready. It's hard to do when you split it up." Harris declined to specify what set Palko apart from Getsy, but Palko is a better scrambler and runner. That likely will be important this season with the offensive line's ability to block for him in question. Palko also has been a winner as a three-time WPIAL Class AAA champion at West Allegheny. Getsy is no slouch on the run, but he is known as more of a pocket passer. "Now that we have a quarterback who can run the ball, [the defense] will have to make a decision if they're going to play the run or play the pass first," Lee said. Harris praised Palko's approach to the game. He likened Palko's study habits and leadership skills to Boomer Esiason, who Harris coached with the New York Jets. "He's a coach on the field," Harris said. "He's into it like nobody's been probably since Pete Gonzalez. He's probably a little more into it than Pete was, and Pete was pretty into it. "Tyler reminds me of the way Boomer Esiason used to practice. Boomer would know what everyone was doing. I think with the football team it gives great confidence to those guys that the guy touching the ball every down is working harder than anyone out there to get himself ready to play. "He's a really good practice player. You can see it in the two-minute drill. He takes great pride in everything. He has very high lofty goals for us. It's one step in the stage of becoming a good quarterback." Harris said telling Getsy the news was difficult. Harris also said he didn't know whether Getsy, from Steel Valley High School, would remain with the Panthers. He said Getsy was going to discuss the situation with his parents, then make a decision. Getsy practiced with the second-team offense yesterday. "The hardest thing I had to do as a coach was talk to Luke Getsy," Harris said. "As competitive as he is, the talented player he is and the person he is. That was no fun here today." There has been speculation that Getsy could transfer to Akron, where former Pitt offensive coordinator J.D. Brookhart is the head coach. Harris said he hoped Getsy remained at Pitt. Neither Getsy nor Palko answered questions from reporters yesterday. Don Getsy, Luke's father, said last night that no decision has been made. "I just found out a little while ago, too," Don Getsy said. "We're going to have to figure it out."

Leaving the MAC would be suicide. Football-wise, we couldn't schedule anyone (MAC schools would avoid us). There's no way we could get anyone to come to the Rubber Bowl. We'd lose our guaranteed bowl slots (if we finish #1 or #2). We lose the potential of a championship game. We incurr HUGE travel expenses (compared to the regional MAC). The only reasonable independents are ND, Navy and Army. Yes, Navy and Army are on Akron's level...but they can get decent schedules because they're nationally prominent and have a large following. I'm sure the Zips learned their lesson in the 80's...D1-A independent is suicide. Furthermore, our other sports would die. They get stuck back with the CSU's and Wright States of the world. That's worthless. Like Z-P said...don't be too down on the schools you mentioned. The MAC is cyclical. BG dominated in the early 90's. Then they sucked...now they're good again. BTW: Toledo is by no means in a "down year." EMU was the best program in the MAC about 10 years ago. Ball State was a Championship team in the 90's too. CMU has a couple wins over Michigan State about a decade ago...but they coming back to respectability. OU beat Minnesota and Maryland only about 5 years ago. Other than Buffalo and maybe Can't...the other schools will come around again. In addition, with Marshall leaving, our chance to get through the MAC East to a MAC championship game greatly improves. The MAC is the perfect fit for Akron. The conference's level of play is better than ever. The top 2 teams are guaranteed bowl bids. National TV games are becoming commonplace. Travel costs are minimal. The MAC championship hoops games are in our back yard. The list goes on... Leaving the MAC now would be like dumping your wife after she got a sweet boob-job. The MAC is looking better than ever...stick with it. Good topic.

Several Potential Zips

If we EVER do that with a Heisman candidate QB I'll kill myself...thank God Lee Owens is gone...

Make them yourself, like I did last year (glad to see someone caught onto the idea!). Adhesive-backed magnetic sheet + nice color pic...and you're done. This is where I got the sheet magnets: http://www1.ecxmall.com/stores/lyt/Page.bo...plate=milsguide An added benefit is you can make them as big as you'd like (the one that came with the tix is kind of small).

The only things I got out of the scrimmage are: It sucks that David Lee Anne Morgan and his boss have no clue how to cover the Zips. They should be there every day reporting on the team. I couldn't know less about this year's Zips team. The little info you get from GoZips.com is fine...but that's all I can say. It is hard to generate any banter on this board, because I have no idea what's going on with the Zips. Will we win at Penn State? Who the hell knows? I haven't seen the team compete since April, and won't see it until September. Weak local team coverage and closed practices flat-out suck.

DA ZIPMAN IZ DA BOMB! Hey ZIPMAN, what the hell is in the beer up in Put-in-Bay? Every newscast I see adds a few more hundred to the "mystery sickness" count. You're giving us brewers a bad name! Although I appreciate the offer, I have to pass on your invite to stop up on the 27th. I don't want to miss the game on Sept 4th due to

Faust.

A player to watch: Monessen's Williams creating a name for himself Friday, August 20, 2004 By Mike White, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Like many teenagers, Ernest "Mick" Williams spends a great deal of time playing video games. When he plays football games, he goes to the "create a player" section and creates himself. He makes his video version big, strong and dominating. Players to Watch Last in a series on top high school football players in the WPIAL and City League. So there you have it. Video games can imitate life. On the "real" football field at Monessen High School, Williams is every bit of big, strong and dominating. That's why he is expected to have a big senior season and why he has a handful of Division I scholarship offers. "There are times when he does things you can't teach," Monessen coach Andy Pacak said. "His natural strength and his natural nose for the ball is impressive, and he's a very aggressive kid. Then when you flip it around offensively, he is a very good running back." Williams is a 6-foot-2, 240-pound linebacker and running back who became a varsity starter near the end of his freshman season. He scored two touchdowns in his first varsity start. On offense, Williams will play fullback and team with halfback Quinton Martin to make one of the most formidable running combinations in Class A. Last season, Martin rushed for 923 yards on 105 carries (8.8 average) and Williams 866 on 101 attempts (8.6 average). But Williams is being recruited by colleges to play linebacker. He has offers from Pitt, West Virginia, (his sister, Latitia, played basketball at West Virginia), Iowa, Indiana and Akron. "I've always been a linebacker," Williams said. "Except when I was little and they tried to put my hand in the dirt and make me a lineman. I didn't like that." Williams wants to be known as a linebacker. What he doesn't want to be known as is "Ernest." "It's just a funny name," he said. He got the nickname "Mick" as a youngster because his father, Ernest, was known as "Mickey." "People said he had big ears," the younger Williams said. Like Mickey Mouse? "Yeah. But I don't have big ears," he said. "Mine are nice." As a football player, Williams has done a lot of nice things for Monessen. One thing he wants to do is prove he has his old quickness. He ballooned to 250 pounds in the spring. He attended Pitt's camp and ran the 40-yard dash in 4.9 seconds. He ran it again and dropped it to 4.7. "I almost cried when I ran it the first time," Williams said. "When I was smaller, the worst I had run it was 4.55 or 4.6. When I ran that 4.9, [Pitt coach] Walt Harris was there watching. But then I did better the second time." Williams said he has gotten into better shape with the help of Monessen assistant coach Jamie Reader, a former Greyhounds running back who had a brief stint a few years ago with the Philadelphia Eagles. Pacak would like Williams to keep his weight between 235 and 240 pounds. "We're really pushing these kids in practices," Pacak said. "We run them every morning with different distances and sprints. And we do it before we start practicing." Williams said, "We're running so much, I should gain 1,000 yards this season."

RooDude, you seem like a "glass-half-empty" kind of guy. I will offer a reply that lies somewhere between "middle-to-half-full glass." Where is all of the talent at running back? I have watched about 5 practices so far and here are my observations. Dan Basch is out for a month. He has also been hurt in 2001, missed all of 2002, and limped around for most of 2003. He cannot be counted on. REPLY: True. Luckily, this isn't his knee (like before)...it is his ankle. When he's healthy he's a punishing runner/blocker. Hope he gets healthy...we need him. Jerrell Ringer has never had a good game except against 1-AA opponents and the dregs of the MAC. REPLY: That's only because Owens never played him! Jerrell can tote the ball. He looked great in the few opportunities he got against Wisconsin. He cannot pick up any blitzes from the opposition and as a result is a major safety risk. REPLY: Hendry was needed to pick off all those defenders last season because everyone in the stadium knew what the Zips were running! If JD mixes thing up an keep the opposing DL's guessing, Ringer's blocking deficincies will not be a problem. The Zips gave up 32+ sacks last season, due in large part to no depth on the OL which has not gotten any better in the off-season. REPLY: Too early to say this. But at least 10 of those sacks belonged to Ringer and the running backs (other than Hendry) who could not block to save their lives. REPLY: Not true. The sacks were primarily due to the obscene predictability of Owens/Winters play-calling. It makes the DL and LB's jobs a hell of a lot easier when they know exactly what's coming. Mark Tetzel was little more than a special teams guy last year. He is slow and is a 50/50 blocker. REPLY: You're probably right. We'll see. All others are brand new to the program. Biggs is a JUCO transfer and Kennedy is a true feshman. If you see Kennedy on the field as a true freshman the Zips are in MAJOR TROUBLE. REPLY: If we see Kennedy on the field that means he's better than Biggs and Ringer, and I'm happy as hell if that's the case. The offense will be mostly a one back set because there a no runningbacks on the roster who are proven reliable. REPLY: Yes, the one-back set is going to be the majority, but that's what the "west coast offense" calls for. It doesn't bug me if we run a lot of 1-back sets. There are no receivers of note who are proven reliable. REPLY: Somewhat true. Hixson can do the job. He was by far our best athlete in the secondary last season and he looked great in the spring. Goodwin is fast, can jump, and has great hands. He's a solid #2 guy. Montgomery had 4 TD's last season if I recall correctly? He's fine. Between Ellington and the new guys, someone will step up as the #4...or maybe even the #3 guy. Jabari will be awesome. Mark my words. I like our WR's. The offensive line is pourous and terribly thin. If one guy goes down it's a CODE ORANGE alert. If two starters go down in any combination Frye's parents should take out extra insurance. REPLY: I can't speak for "pourous" until I see them play. But, you are correct in saying we're really thin at OL. I couldn't imagine what would happen if 2 of the seniors went down. 5 games in the win column this season would be a success. To be honest I cannot see Akron winning any of its first 5 games against Penn State, Middle Tennessee, Virginia, Can't, or NIU. REPLY: If you "can't see Akron winning against Can't or Middle Tennesse" you've lost some major credibility. The other games will obviously be much tougher. Maybe the team will be better the second half of the year, if Frye is not in a body cast by then. The worst part of this team is the OL - they may be veteran but they are overweight and are getting whipped by a bunch of mites on the defensive side of the ball on almost every drill in practice. REPLY: Everything I've heard is that the OL's are in great shape? Body fat #'s are much improved from 2003? Akron's DL is tiny compared to the Penn States, Virginias, and Marshalls of the world. REPLY: True. But if we run some better schemes we'll be able to stop people. The talent of the defense is no worse than in Owens' tenure. We'll see what JD can do with it. It's amazing that there is no depth at all on this team. REPLY: Not if you've tracked Owens recruiting classes. The retention rate under Owens was very high the first 5 years of his tenure...then it began to drop. Seems like he felt the need to take a lot of risks to "take the program to the next level" and many of those backfired. We have depth at LB. Other than that, we're pretty top-heavy. This is not a very good team, Akron is a mediocre team with a great quarterback and a series of awful recruiting classes the last three years. If this program can string together 12 wins over the next 3 combined seasons I would be surprised. REPLY: A mediocre team with a great QB can fare pretty well in the MAC. I don't expect any miracles, but I expect better schemes on both sides of the ball. I expect a minimum 6 wins too. I'll bet Brookhart is wishing he would have stayed at Pitt. The folks who sold him on Akron being a sleeping giant as a football program hoodwinked him something wicked. REPLY: I bet you're wrong. This guy is 100% dedicated to making the Zips a contender. He inherited a "good" team. He's assembled a GREAT staff. The kids love the staff. The new facilities will reap HUGE benefits...but probably 3 or 4 years down the road. He's smack-dab in one of the best HS recruiting areas in the nation. Hell...he's got 2 nationally televised games this season, a monster Marketing machine that actually got a budget to work with in 2004...Marshall and Miami @ home this season, and he's got a Heisman trophy candidate QB! Compare that to what Owens had....a 1-10 Faust team and crap facilities. I think JD is thinking he's pretty damn lucky to have the Zips' HC job.

That sucks. Hope Tetzel or the kid from Woodland Hills can pick up the slack.

Click Me

Can't State, Akron Boost Marketing to Keep Top Football Status Aug. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Can't State University football players plan to help classmates move into their dormitory rooms this September as part of an effort to encourage attendance at their games. The school is among 11 that stand to lose almost $1 million each in payments from playing football powerhouses if average attendance falls below 15,000 and the National Collegiate Athletic Association kicks them out of its premier division, said University of Idaho Athletic Director Rob Speer. ``We need more support from our student body, and the problem is that they don't know who we are,'' Can't State coach Doug Martin said from his office in Can't, Ohio. ``So we're going to have our players standing outside the dorm rooms in uniform, offering to help carry the heavy stuff when the students move onto campus. That should make an impact.'' Akron, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan, Idaho, Ball State and Utah State are running promotions including a tuition give-away, postgame rock concerts and autograph sessions with celebrities to boost attendance. Buffalo, which averaged a Division I-A-low attendance of 9,414 last season, will have former 1976 Olympic decathlon winner Bruce Jenner sign autographs and country singer Lee Ann Womack perform the national anthem at its Sept. 11 game against Syracuse University. The other four schools that averaged fewer than 15,000 fans last season were Central Michigan, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, University of Louisiana at Monroe and Middle Tennessee State. Three Requirements The NCAA's executive committee will meet Thursday to decide on penalties for schools that don't meet the governing body's requirements to remain in football's top level. In addition to the 15,000 attendance average, schools are also required to offer 200 athletic scholarships and participate in 16 sports. Some fans and alumni say the NCAA went too far when it set the attendance requirement. John Loffredo, managing director of the municipal product group at Merrill Lynch & Co., and a Utah State graduate, said the attendance requirement is an unfair way to measure a Division I-A school -- especially one in rural Logan, Utah. ``It's a silly reason to drop a team,'' Loffredo said in an e- mail message from his office in Plainsboro, New Jersey. ``Utah State is a large school in a very small town. I would hate to see them dropped.'' Bowl Game Draw The NCAA set the minimum because Division I-A schools are eligible to play in postseason bowl games and need to be able to draw fans to those games. NCAA members thought a 15,000 average was a reasonable expectation for college football's premier division, said NCAA Division I Vice President David Berst, who is based in Indianapolis. Especially when schools like Michigan, Penn State, Tennessee and Ohio State each averaged more than 100,000 fans for home games last season. While Buffalo tries to woo fans with celebrities such as Womack and Jenner, Can't State will give away free tuition valued at $12,000 to one student who regularly attends home games. Akron, which averaged 13,812 fans for Zips games in 2003, hired the Leffler Agency in Baltimore to create an advertising campaign. The result includes the slogan, ``It's Akron's big- league team.'' Nascar Night Eastern Michigan in Ypsilanti, averaged 11,260 fans last season. The school, which hired the San Diego Chicken mascot to appear at one game, is bringing in Christian music group ``Out of Eden'' for a concert and will have a Nascar Night with racecar driver Bobby Allison signing autographs. The school also planned a rare doubleheader at Detroit's Ford Field on Nov. 6. Local Division II rivals Wayne State University and Hillsdale College kick off at noon, followed by Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan at 4:30 p.m. One ticket gets admission to both games. ``That's our gem this year,'' said Doug Kose, assistant athletic director for marketing and promotion. ``We could get 25,000 combined.'' Getting knocked back to the second tier would hurt more than school pride. The universities would lose the opportunity for payouts worth hundreds of thousands of dollars for scheduling games against nationally ranked teams. Cannon Fodder Traditional football powerhouses such as Penn State routinely schedule smaller opponents early in the season to help them prepare for tougher games later in the year. By remaining in Division I-A, the borderline schools are more appealing to top football schools. Penn State will pay Akron $350,000 for a non-conference game to start the season, said Mike Rodriguez, Akron associate athletic director for business. That money helps the smaller schools keep their intercollegiate sports programs afloat. ``These guarantees balance our budget,'' Speer said from his office in Moscow, Idaho. ``If we dropped (down a level), it would cut our budget by about $600,000 to $800,000 a year, and we suspect that corporate sponsorship and alumni donations would suffer, too.'' Speer said guarantees will account for about $850,000 of his $9.5 million budget this season. Can't State President Carol Cartwright, the chairwoman of the NCAA's executive committee, said she is pushing to have the attendance requirement reconsidered. ``While it's good to have fans in the stands, it's not the only measure of a successful program,'' Cartwright said. Can't State's football team continues to gear up for the school's move-in weekend Aug. 28 and 29. ``I want the students of this university to take ownership of this team,'' Can't State coach Martin said. ``Ideally, someone will say to her friend, I know the guy who just made that tackle. He carried my TV to my dorm room this summer.'' To contact the reporter of this story: Curtis Eichelberger in Princeton at ceichelberge@bloomberg.net

It appears to be an ESPN+ game. It should be available on cable, satellite or your local sports bar.

or Cupcake or cream puff? What a joke of a non-conference schedule. Yeah we won't be "loaded" next season, but do you have to pad the schedule like that? It is the equivalent of the 2003 football schedule. BTW: Where the Howard and Cal Poly games considered "exhibitions?" They should have been... Can't wait for our "bracket buster ESPN game"...probably against Robert Morris...and I guarantee it won't be on ESPN.

Hmmmm....perusing the AP Pre-season Top 25 I see: Toledo with 33 votes Northern Illinois with 7 votes Marshall with 6 votes Miami OH with 4 votes Bowling Green with 2 votes ...and last but not least...Penn State did manage to scrounge-up 1 vote!! I guess Penn State would be picked to finish 6th in the MAC, huh? I think we're capable of running with the 6th place team in the MAC!! Guess it's tough to get any "love" when you're following up a campaign where your only wins were against Can't State, Temple and Indiana. Countdown until someone cut-n-pastes this on the PSU Playbook site....10....9...8...7...6...oooop...there it went!

My kid was more than a handfull for the 90 minutes I attended, so I got to do about 15% of what I'd have liked. That said: The complex is awesome. Weight room is awesome. Locker rooms are awesome. First class joint all the way. Jackson Field complex seems to be shaping up very nice too, but there is a fair amout of construction remaining. Whole campus is looking great...even the areas around the renovated route 8 ramps are great. Talked to Anthony Showers for a bit. He's a quiet kid. He found out Saturday morning that he's being moved from FS to TE? Spoke to JD briefly. He seems pretty personable. He posed for my beer bottle label, so I gotta love the guy! I spoke to Bobby Gardner. He was going to get a doctor's opinion this week regarding his playing status (he had that nasty injury in the spring game). I thought he was done for the season, but there's a chance he might be cleared to play. I'd never met him before. He's a super-nice kid. Too bad he's a senior! Dan Basch said he's healthy and feeling good. His brother Dennis is a big dude too...I look for him to fill Brake's shoes pretty admirably. I asked one senior if he liked the new staff. He said: "Oh man, they're GREAT. I love them. The change was really needed and was for the best. All the guys are psyched for a championship run this year." Best answer I could have asked for! John Ferguson was as puzzled as anyone regarding why he's listed as a punter on the gozips.com roster. Jabari will be a major contributor on offense this year. Holding a clip board and wearing a ball cap is not in the offing for this back up QB. Great event. Very well attended. Keeps getting better every year. Nice job by the Marketing crew!

Click for "Big Rig"

Versatile Harvey might have to do it all for Penn Hills Friday, August 13, 2004 By Mike White, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette David Harvey is slated to be Penn Hills' best punter. But in practice earlier this week, coaches looked at players for the long snapper job. Harvey tried it, and the coaches agreed he was the best by far. This presents a problem for Penn Hills because Harvey obviously can't play two positions at the same time. Or can he? Harvey is so fast, maybe he could snap the ball and be the punter. Go ahead and laugh. But Harvey's speed and quickness is no joke. A 6-foot-1, 180-pound senior, Harvey runs the 40-yard dash in 4.35 seconds. "The kid is a gifted athlete," coach Neil Gordon said. "He does so many things. [Assistant coach John] Fischetti was wondering if he knows how to bake, too." The best thing Harvey does is play receiver. Some scouting services rank him among the best in the country. He is ranked No. 18 by theinsiders.com and rivals100.com has him at No. 23. "He's a great holder, for extra points, too," Gordon said. "I have no problem with him being a long snapper for us this year except that I'd like to get him off the field every once in a while in a game." Harvey also returns punts and kickoffs and plays cornerback on defense. "He has a great up-the-field burst of speed," said Joe Butler of Metro Index Scouting. "Plus, he can play so many places in the future -- receiver, cornerback, even safety." Gordon said, "He can play anywhere, but he sure looks like a receiver in the future to me." Harvey moved from Homewood to Penn Hills as a freshman and was a starting receiver as a sophomore. He was the favorite receiver of quarterback Anthony Morelli -- and the two were big-play masters. Last season, Harvey caught 35 passes and averaged 18.7 yards per reception. As a sophomore, he had 25 receptions and averaged 34.7 yards. But Morelli graduated and is at Penn State. The main question now is will Harvey see the ball? Even with Morelli, Penn Hills didn't throw much. This season, the Indians aren't sure of a starting quarterback -- and the first game is only two weeks away. Chad Parker, a 6-4 junior, and Brian Moore, a 5-10 senior, are vying for the quarterback job. Parker virtually has no experience. Moore played some at Central Catholic before transferring to Penn Hills after his sophomore season. "Neither one is a centimeter ahead of the other one," Gordon said. "I hope we can get Harvey the ball. I'm sure we have to have somebody who can at least throw it up in the air and let him go get it." Harvey seems to understand why a plethora of passes might not come his way this season. Besides the inexperience at quarterback, Penn Hills has two excellent running backs in Ed Collington and Ken Lewis, although Collington is out indefinitely with a dislocated shoulder and Lewis has been slowed with a hamstring injury. "I guess people think I should get the ball more, but coach knows what he's doing. We made the semifinals the last two years," said Harvey, who also was a starting guard on Penn Hills' PIAA championship basketball team. Harvey apparently doesn't have to prove himself to college football recruiters. He has scholarship offers from Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Iowa, Georgia Tech, Wisconsin and Akron. Harvey was expecting a scholarship offer from Michigan, but two other receivers made verbal commitments to the Wolverines and they are no longer recruiting him. "Michigan was my favorite team. I liked them since I was little," Harvey said. "Probably Penn State and West Virginia are my top two schools now." Gordon said, "There can still be great receivers on teams that don't throw the ball that much." Count David Harvey among them.

I ain't an authority on BG football, but I'll offer the following overview: BG was the "flagship" MAC program in the early 90's. Played OSU 17-6 in the era before it was fashionable for MAC teams to do so. Participated in the Las Vegas/California Bowls in an era when only MAC champs got a bowl bid. I have no clue why Blackney went into the crapper...but...he (& BG) did. The second-to-the-last-time we met Blackney's BG team we killed them something like 56-21. The following year we needed 3 straight stops by Rich Reliford on late in the 4th quarter to eek out a narrow victory. In that season BG played everyone a lot tougher than they did the previous season, even if their record wasn't all that great. The ship seemed to be on it's way to being "righted" when Blackney was dismissed. I don't think there's a "parallel" to our situation here. I'm in Big Zips camp as far as expectations go for the 2004 Zips. I look forward to watching Frye light it up. I look forward to watching the OL "roll" opponents because the offensive shemes will be more complex than "Frye in the shotgun" for passes and "Draw play out of the shotgun" for our runs. I look forward to watching Hixson blossom at WR...I watched him track down some phenomenal athletes that had Zipped through our pourous defense the oast 2 seasons while he played safety...Hixson will be awesome. Goodwin, Montgomery and Arthur are fine, as is Ellington. If a Fr. like Johnny Long steps up, people will soon cease bemoaning the Big 4 we lost last year. I look forward to Ringer getting 15+ carries every game...not 15 one game...then we don't see him for a month. And don't give me any hooey about Ringer not being able to block...if the blocking schemes are better his blocking won't be relied upon so heavily (like Hendry last season). Our DB's will be improved. Vital and Elie are solid safeties, and Agyeman, Corner and Henry are, combined, the best/deepest 3 CB's we've ever had. I look forward to watching our LB's...seriously deep with Rohr, Yeow, Smith, Earl, Fuller + all the newcomers. The DL scares me...Chase is solid...LeFall is allegedly motivated...after that, who knows. I expect a winning season...whether that's 6 wins or 8 wins...I have no clue. But, with the talent we have...if JD is a solid coach...and we stay injury-free...6 is very reasonable to expect.