UAZipster0305

I think we were positioned to be the next Cincinnati; however, the 2008 financial crisis, Covid, and consistent defunding could not have been predicted, and all have had disastrous consequences for UA. AND who would have thought that having been competitive during the Owens era with the worst facilities in the country that we'd have some of the best then hire a series of duds for coaches and choose to get rid of the only two who were successful (Brookheart and Bowden) and become consistently the worst in the MAC?

Is there a single coach in the country that has "adapted to the changing landscapes of college athletics" post-NIL? I mean seriously, what mid-major has raised its profile to compete with the big boys since then?! NONE. It's not possible when any decent player that might be discovered or developed by a school like Akron can be bought by the OSU's of the world the very next season? Jason Taylor's and Dwight Smith's are a thing of the past for schools like Akron. I am not a fan of Moorhead, but I think he just recognizes the reality of the situation. Also, the gap between the haves and have-nots is so large that OSU's financial success is allowing the Buckeyes to buy players in other sports like men's soccer. Never in its history has OSU men's soccer been so strong and never enough to arguably be consistently better than the Zips. That's what money can do. As another example, consider this past NCAA men's basketball tournament. There were no Cinderellas, and the SEC and the "Big Ten" dominated because their football money allows them to buy basketball players. NIL has killed everything that was romantic about college sports, and schools like Akron are less likely to be successful than ever. It amazes me that our men's basketball and soccer programs remain as good as they are given the circumstances. Good coaches and strong traditions are carrying the momentum, but I do not know how long that can last in the face of a paycheck for many athletes who grew up with little resources at home. You can't sell good coaching and tradition to athletes whose families need financial stability to thrive.

Yes, you are correct. Thanks for the reminder. I was a big fan of Bowden and still oppose his firing. It's been so long that I cannot keep straight the chain of failures and, relatively speaking, when our last successful season was.

Agreed 100%. All I am saying is that there was another major factor at play, which is commonly ignored in similar discussions and that is not relevant to the current circumstances.

The iCoach years were way worse than this, but that was 15 years ago now, and I don't believe we've had a winning season since.

While well intentioned, this comment has aged like milk left out on the counter. Bring on the economics and soccer discussions.

I am all for taxing the plutocrats into oblivion to support a healthier society; however, another reason the 1950s were so prosperous is that most of the rest of the industrial world was destroyed during WWII.

It's similar to Dambrot's, "All that matters is winning the MAC attitude." It's precisely why he never won an NCAAT game here. The standards were too low. If you are consistently competing for the MACC and half the time winning it, the standards have to be higher, and that entails winning a game or two in the NCAAT.

And just like that, most things about the NCAAT that appealed to the casual fan are gone. If this continues into the future, there will be viewer apathy, and ratings and advertising will suffer. The suits are always so short-sighted. I was only planning to watch games featuring Cinderellas. Since there are none, I've lost substantial interest. There are other things I can spend my spring weekend days enjoying.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NCAA_Division_I_men's_basketball_tournament_all-time_team_records Interestingly, of all the teams to play in the men's NCAAT and not win a game only Boise State (10) and Eastern Kentucky (8) are more than our total of 7 without winning, and we are tied with Long Island University, Nebraska, and South Dakota State So, we are due to win a NCAAT game! 😁😆

And circle it on the calendar and get up for it like it is an NCAAT game. No more KD excuses like, the non-conference schedule doesn't matter, only winning the MAC does. Been there, done that.

How many Zips fans made the trip to Seattle?

Of course. All I am saying is that, politics aside, business logic dictates that the more fan bases engaged, the more theoretical viewers (customers), thus maximizing profit. But then again, I saw a NCAAT style playoff being great for college football, yet it still took decades to evolve beyond the traditional bowl model into a limited playoff system that expanded slowly. Adding all D-1A conference champions is the only sensible next step.

All an advertiser should care about is total number of viewers, which is theoretically higher if more alumni bases have vested interest. Also, the average person gets tired of seeing the same teams featured and winning; I sure do.

Wouldn't the NCAA finances overall benefit by more alumni bases having access though?

I will take that as a consolation to be positive about their not getting beat. If it's Can't, I'd still prefer the latter.

100%! (I am out of likes for the day.)

And the NBA is a terrible product. It's unwatchable to me, and I've always enjoyed watching basketball.

I'd love to expand the CFB playoff to include all FBS/D-1A conference champions. As it is, the non-major conferences start the season with no access to earning a national championship. That's not competition, it's bullying from the P5. The other conferences should negotiate an expansion that guarantees their conference champions a place or form their own lower division but that is above I-AA. I have no doubt there are enough schools to make a compelling division that is way more fair and not dominated by the same 10 teams every year.

It is, afterall, the National INVITATIONAL Tournament. However, just like with the NCAAT, their choices are illogical and likely full of conflicts of interest.

I usually root for MAC teams in post-season bowl games and tournaments; however, given that it's Can't and how they were unjustly chosen over the Sweaters, I hope they get blown out.

Huge conflict of interest but not surprising for the NCAA or the general direction of the country as a whole.

What day and time? I cannot watch right now.

Is that specific to a city or an arena? Just curious...I realize that with regard to Cleveland, the city and arena would be the same.

And that is exactly how we won the game!