Z.I.P.

Back home in Oldham he's better known by his middle name. Welcome to Wembley.

Well, now I know it's not just a girl's school. You learn something new every day.

Caleb: "We have the NAIA National Player of the Year coming in". Also said that the team will not receive the recruiting rewards of the championship until the 2012 class. We will depend on foreign players to fill the holes.

He's on the NSCAA Convention show on Fox Soccer Channel

None of this will happen when Akron gets an on-campus arena downtown!

I was talking to some of Crew's season ticket sales people there and they were all hoping for a Zip to help generate some interest. Ampai and Korb are both really good players but probably would have been seen as a reach at #12 and #18 apparently. That's a shame for Columbus. I'm sure they would love to get more fans from the Soccer Center of Ohio (SCO). On the other hand, there is now an outside chance DC United could make the 2011 playoffs. That's a lot higher than ninguno. I suspect there's more turnover this season than any in MLS history. It's going to be impossible to predict the league this season. Many of the top players -- no I think you can make that MOST -- are no longer with their old clubs.

All due respect, but I don't think Caleb Porter needs to "save college soccer". The number of MLS players (or for that matter, USMNT players) going the college route, rather than turning pro before 18 is, I'm willing to bet (does Dave in Green have time to research this?) the same as it was a decade ago (MLS began in 1995). As long as university education continues to be a major institution in the US, American footballers are going to continue attending colleges and universities, and playing soccer there. And the college game will continue to -- rightly -- earn a large share of criticism for holding back the US' game at the international level. College soccer's contrast from the pro game -- substitution rules, limited playing time, lack of international-level competition does hold back many players, who in Europe, S. America, etc would be playing versus older players with lots of national and international playing experience. But, kids who have both out-of-the-box athleticism and soccer skills will continue having opportunities to play abroad (or in MLS) at age 18 or sometimes well below. Will Akron's exper(iment)ience change the historic trend of US soccer over the long run? I would love to imagine Caleb's coaching tactics becoming the default for major college soccer programs. But there is still a limit of 9.9 scholarships per DI program. Maybe the best thing Caleb Porter can do is bring attention to the game as a major college sport, deserving of attention from Dave and SkipZip. But can we get those two to a Crew match in 2011?

Please don't mention his name to Sunil Gulati!

Plainly beautiful! The link is to the Gozips.com page, I assume. Are these available thru the UA Bookstore.com?

So I guess it comes down to whether we would be able to gather 25 orders... Ummmmm, Hello...GoZips.com? Akron Athletics Department? If they're not interested in taking advantage of this -- I'd assume the NCAA would be willing to sell at a wholesale rate. You'd think they could sell at least a couple hundred. I know Skip-Zip is interested in something with such mass appeal.

If Perry lands in PDX he could well find himself lining up with another former Akron Zip in the backfield. Cameron Knowles is making a comeback in Portland, after rehabbing his injured broken leg suffered in the 2009 season with the Timbers in USL. Cameron was a USL all-star caliber (not sure if they actually named a League XI) player during his three seasons at PG&E Park. I understand Timbers MLS jerseys are already available. Not sure if you can customize yet, but I'd look at putting AKRON on the back. I'd also look at getting in line for tickets to the first game between Timbers and Sounders. THAT one will be a legendary brawl.

"I will play defensive end at Akron because that's my better position," said Williams, who plans on majoring in architecture. Who's he think he is -- George Costanza? When did Akron start an architecture program -- undergrad yet??

And now they have the excellent opportunity of becoming the first team to go from DD losses to DD wins to DD losses again! Can you say, "Ball State"?

From what I understand, you are mostly correct. Had the student athlete taken a full course load (12 credits), regardless of any practice or association with the team, he would not be eligible after a transfer without losing a year's eligibility. I'll guess this kid did not take a full course load at Ball State in Fall 2010. Thus his 5-year clock has not yet begun. And he can play this fall, and three seasons thereafter. Actually, he could redshirt in 2011, and start his Freshman season @ Akron in 2012, with three years to play thereafter. I'm sure he expects to play this fall, however. The extra year's eligibility does give him the availability of a medical redshirt, should he get injured in 2011, 2012 or 2013. Well, I hope that covers everything.

Top Drawer Soccer's latest update on recruiting commitments shows Cincinnati United FB Janese Atkinson of Mason, OH commiting to play in Akron next season. She's the #16 recruit in Great Lakes region. I think this is the first recruiting class in which Coach Pfau has been able to recruit players a step above what he or his predecessor put on the field. Let's hope 2011 means a turning-point season.

I told the folks in Santa Barbara we need to establish a Firestone Cup competition between our schools -- if we win we get a case of Santa Barbara County's finest wine, if they win they get a set of four Bridgestone steel-belted radials. They didn't seem that enthused... Maybe Drew can throw in "A new car"!

A&M bought Dickerson the car thinking it would be enough to get him to sign with A&M. It wasn't. He signed with SMU and took the car A&M bough him to Dallas. First prize for disambiguation goes to GP1. However, EDick still claims that Tex A&M had nothing to do with the car -- "My grandma bought that car". Don't argue w/granma.

Is that a misprint? It's a conference basketball game, not an exhibition or a tune-up game against a D-III team. I'd expect something similar to the little presentation when Zippy won mascot of the year. Doing this during a conference basketball game is a good idea since there will already be a crowd of maybe 4,000 people, and the soccer fans should make that larger. It will increase the basketball game attendance, and the two crowds combined will create a great atmosphere for the recognition. A separate celebration wouldn't draw like this, and a good enough draw for a parade is just wishful thinking. Skip, the reason for holding a parade is not to attract a downtown crowd. It's because an accomplishment on the level of a national collegiate championship deserves a celebration that serves the entire city of Akron, not just the university community. My city of Honolulu held a parade for Brian Clay, the Olympic decathlon champion and the Little League team that won the LLWS. Not more than a couple hundred people besides the downtown workers showed, but that was not the point. This team, and the City of Akron deserve to celebrate their NCAA Champs.

Here is another fantastic interview from former Akron standout Teal Bunbury Shooting it With Teal Bunbury..... Son of Kristi Bunbury That link did not work. Hopefully, this one will do the trick. BTW -- how about that name: The Shin Guardian. Outstanding! One of the trends that needs to be seen by soccer skeptics is the explosion in soccer/football websites over just the past three or four years. It would not surprise me if there are now more websites devoted to the Beautiful Game than there are devoted to the American version of the world's favorite sport.

Ummmmm, have you seen Akron's quarterbacks?

I think that the sound of two retirees talking to themselves amid one-thousand-nine-hundred "fans" sitting quietly at the lecture, I mean basketball game, might have sounded louder than it actually was. Give the poor punk a break! (I'm just glad Gozips wasn't in the area, or the father-son might have gotten their hair singed)

Tom W. sends thanks for pointing that out.

+++ Where's that Mayor Pasquatelli guy? Doesn't he wanna be associated with a national champion? Might get him another 4 or 6 years in office!

That's kind of the attitude Modell took to the whole city of Cleveland. (Not that Mr Cox Esquire didn't deserve it)

It’s going to be neat when we play Can't State next week.” Dig it!