Z.I.P.

If Akron holds NC State to the same rushing yards they did PennState, there is no doubt in my mind, Akron wins. Bet the farm. Bet the duplex, kid!

Speaking of freshmen punters...does anyone out there remember, or have heard the story told by your Dad (!).. the story of the Stupidest Freshman Punter Story of Them All??? The name Kevin Kendall is burned into history for all those who saw him commit what must have been (one of?) the stupidest serious of blunders in the history of college football one fateful day versus -- I'm almost certain it was -- Morehead State in 1983.Here's the Readers Digest version: About :20 to play in the first half, Akron's ball, fourth and very long on MSU's 40 YL. Coach Dennison calls his freshman punter from Green (we Bulldog alums have an even bigger hole in our stomachs from this one) to his side -- and no doubt from the ensuing debacle -- tells the kid "Don't kick the ball. Just run around until the clock runs out." What Dennison forgot to note was the age and inexperience of his young special teamer, and that he may not know what to do AFTER the clock runs out. The ball is snapped and Kendall handles it perfectly. He stands there, so far, so good. The clock runs -- :15; :10; :05. But then, he remembers he's never been in this position before, and the coach didn't tell him what to do AFTER the clock runs out -- and he panics! The defense, till this point went along with Akron's plans perfectly -- no rush, just standing, waiting for the whistle and the run into the locker room. The clock runs to :00. Kendall continues to stand there with the ball, wondering what to do next. Finally, a couple Morehead linemen trot throught the line, expecting the punter to fall down, or at worst be tackled to end the half.But young Mr Kendall has something more interesting to offer the few thousand spectators at the bowl. He turns and runs away from the line of scrimmage, slowly at first, as no one is following him. Ten or fifteen seconds after the clock runs to zero, a couple Morehead State players run after him -- finally -- from his own 40, he's now being semi-furiously chased down as he continues running toward his own end zone! The rushers finally get near him as he passes his 20, then the 10. Hundreds in the stands are screaming, "Fall down! Fall down" (yes there must have been a few YOU IDIOTs thrown in, but exact words are lost in time). A Morehead defender comes oh so close to tackling Kendall inside the five yard line. Amazingly, this would have been the best possible scenario at this point! Kid gets a good talking to about poise in the locker room, and he doesn't quite have a story to tell his grandkids.I believe Kendall may have played QB at Green, or some other position besides punter, so he has SOME athletic ability -- too bad! He manages to just miss the shoestring tackle by one defender near his own goal line. But there's one more Morehead defender bearing down on him now, and just as Kendall runs into his end zone, he panics one more time -- the worst time for him -- and as he's about to go down in the end zone, he tosses the ball into the air -- ala Garo Yepremian in the Super Bowl!!!Well, at least the good thing is no Morehead State defender was there to pick the ball off and score a half-ending TD before the ball flutters to the Astro Turf. And so both teams trot off the field, and everyone gets a good laugh before the bands march onto the field. But -- after the halftime entertainment that couldn't match what preceded it -- just before the teams run back onto the field, the public address speaker announces: "Ladies and gentlemen, on the final play of the first half, the referee has determined that intentional grounding occured in the end zone, resulting in a safety for Morehead State." I think Akron still lead, maybe 17-16 or something like that, and went on to win by more than a touchdown I think. But imagine, if they had lost by two points or less! Kevin Kendall went on to be one of the better punters in UA history -- four letter-winning seasons. His story is one I haven't heard, or been able to tell for years now. It's part of Akron football lore. Are you out there Kevin?

Say what you may folks, but please realize Terry Pluto is proxy for 90% of football fans in NE Ohio. Another 5% just couldn't care less about Akron. That's the reality we are challenged to overcome. We have already reduced that 5% from about 50%.

Okay, folks. Who's interested in joining me at Eastside Grill on Varsity Avenue near the University of Hawaii? I'll be there for Breakfast with the Zips. Two years ago it was me and half-a-dozen Nittany Lion alums. Have you heard, Pam Ward is calling play-by-play for ESPN2. Goodie!

UCSB is just two years removed from being the top team in the nation, but losing the national championship match in multiple OTs to IU in coach Yeagley's finale. They're a notoriously physical team, some would say dirty, and they knocked two of our guys out of the match with hits. That must have contributed to Caleb getting the red boot.I remember watching Lolla's squad taking it in the chops in a 4-0 defeat against Washington a few years ago, and being down 2-0 against a very good Portland team at the half the next day. They dominated the final half to gain a draw @ UP. I'd be very worried if I were Davidson.

You might be able to pull this off half-way classy -- or even sensibly -- if it came on CBS following a drive by an Aussie. Unfortunately, Adam Scott and Robert Allenby are the only ones who appear near the lead, and too far back to get on TV. Too bad -- I do like the idea, I'm sure it would get noticed by the announcers.And give the Stow kid a break. He's such a nice guy, I can hardly believe he went to

They have television there?? I thought they still used Indian smoke signals to communicate.

Bobby, I understand that the only thing you have to go on is how the teams did last year, but please understand this is NOT last year!! Our team is significantly better than a year ago -- just from increased maturity of the youngsters. On the other hand, NCSU may experience the biggest drop-off in the NCAA from last season. Witness Sports Illustrated's calling them the #67 team in the nation and predicting they will go 3-9 overall with a home loss to #56 AKRON. Central Michigan? #83. I think they'll be better than that, and a road win in Mount Pleasant will be no easier than one in NC. IMHO. Call your bookie right away.

Rich Miano, former NFL DB with Jets, Philly, Atlanta has been DB coach for June Jones at Hawai'i since 99, and holds "Speed and Agility Clinics"/camps in the summer, which draw HS players from the mainland (and kids as young as 6!) to Hawai'i. The camps attract not just FB players, but soccer, basketball, even baseball and softball players. I think this is a trend that is catching on across the nation -- you can be taught to be faster, more flexible, more agile. It's not just an inbred trait.

Jamie Dixon, whom I know from his several years on Riley Wallace's staff at Hawaii, is is one of the classiest acts in all of college basketball. He's taking his team to West Point to start this season and honor his late sister Maggie, who took the Black Knights to the Big Dance last year. I'm SOOOO glad to see he and Keith on the same wavelength. Of course KD is not an unclass act himself. Way to go guys! A Pitt-Akron rivalry would be a great thing -- although Pitt fans wouldn't take to it very well. Tough on them!

Hey brah -- it's an exhibition game(s). If the games mattered I would want to hear it. Or more to the point -- fly 4000 miles to watch, as I hope to do next year when it is supposed to become a regular season event. Know what would be nice? How about adding the Columbus Buckettes for next year's tournament -- a few days before the teams play in American football. I really want to see both of those events next season.Aloha from HonoluluZip in Paradise

What was the name of that character Alex Karas played in Blazing Saddles? Mongo!!!

Got to see former Zip back-liner Cameron Knowles in sub action last Saturday night on Fox Soccer Channel in the Xango Cup match before 45,000 at Rice-Echols stadium vs Bex, Raul & Co (Real Madrid Baby! -- but where was Ms Posh Spice?). Anybody else see the match? Coach John Ellinger cleared the bench for Salt Lake with 18 mins left -- RSL was already down to 10 men for most of the second half. For Real Zip fans -- get it Real Zip... ahhh, OK not a great one-liner... anyway, Cameron's squad will be in Columbus on Wednesday evening to take on the Crew. Unlikely that he will see any action, but Cam will be dressed with the varsity. I wonder if there's a Reserve match scheduled? I think the two teams reserves played in C'Town last season.

I think if you grew up in Akron or Summit County, "Akron U," is the way locals say it. I tell people I meet who aren't from Akron I am a University of Akron (or "Akron") alumnus, but when talking to my family or friends from the area, "Akron U." is the preferred term. It's all in where you're from.And I still say "Green High", not the High School of Green.

Lenoire Rhyne is no junior college. It's a four-year NAIA institution. Not quite Mount Union, but they (NAIA) don't have any real academic standards, so maybe Andre will fit in there. Best of luck to him.

I just want to know why the term "FULL" in regard to the Rubber Bowl now means something like thirty or thirty-two thousand people in the stands, while when I was a student and an Akronite, a "Full" Rubber Bowl meant at least forty thousand people. I was at the Cleveland Browns game vs the NY Giants about 1972 when they fit about 44k in the bowl. Where have all the seats gone?

Well...I'm overwhelmed by the enthusiastic response to the new coach! Actually, I'm concerned that getting a coach with such a long background in NEO -- and an overall losing record in eight years at CSU -- may be an indicator that there were few (at least good) national or regional candidates. That could be the outcome of the Julie Wright fiasco. It appears to me that Wright's departure was due to the AD's refusal to raise the pay standards for the coach and her assistants, and I fear that softball may be one of the places that is still seen as a place to cut corners. The new WBB coach must have gotten raises for her assistants, as the new crew (especially the #2, who's an ex-D-2 HC) appears to have more experience than the last, which was made up largely of ex-HS coaches. Scimping on assistant coaches and recruiting for non-revenue sports may seem the right thing in the short term, but its no way to build an athletic program that will place us in a position to move up when or if the eventuality comes and we have a shot at a BCS conference. IMHO.

I guess their vaccinations can be considered a success then!

Great recognition for recently departed Akron assistant coach Mario Sanchez, who took over for long-time (24 year) HC Barry Barto at UNLV. Mario's listed by Soccer America magazine as one of the nine "Rising Stars" in American Soccer coaching and administration, along with people like UCLA head coach Jorge Salcedo and US national youth coach Brian Maisonneuve, the former Columbus Crewman.Here's what Mario said to Soccer America: "I think everyone needs a break to get their first coaching job of significance. One break for me, believe it or not, was when Fresno State dropped its soccer program. I was fortunate to land a job as assistant at Akron. That's when my coaching career took off."Akron: The cradle of coaches.

Walker is the only field player from Ohio to be invited to Adidas ESP (Elite Soccer Players) Camp, the top camp for incoming HS seniors. Yes -- its a big pickup for UL. Looks like Ken's going to have the Cards ready to play in the Big East before very long. But they need more than a couple players. Why not give 'em a game sometime? Oops! That's a Rooney, isn't it?

Catch this article in the Beacon. The way this reads, its as if the university doesn't yet have a single dollar to pay for the stadium! What the heck's going on -- attitudes sure have changed with the new admin. In any case, don't make any plans before 2011.www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/14875239.htm

Yes -- as the Can't State PR machine tells it, Phil Steele's publication is "the most accurate of the pre-season college football guides"! Can we assume therefore he knows something we don't, when he refers to the K-ent State "Eagles"?

His college football preseason prognostication rag hit the stands today, and I almost fell on my ass! The Clevelander has K Ent State and OHIO (!!) tieing for first in the MAC Eastern division. He predicts the Flushes playing Rutgers in the International Bowl in Toronto. I think he had NIU winning the West, with Toledo getting a bowl game.I think the world has turned upside down or something.

Apparently it came as a surprise to some that the new owner of the Akron daily newspaper is the Black Group of Western Canada. I had a suspicion they might be interested in adding the Beacon to their growing stable of papers, the largest of which HAD been the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, O'ahu's #2 daily paper.The Black Group bought the Star-Bulletin several years ago when it was on the brink of bankruptcy. Actually the paper was part of a joint-ownership agreement with the other daily on O'ahu, the Honolulu Advertiser, so when the owners decided to throw the Star Bulletin overboard and concentrate on the Advertiser there was concern (particularly among SB employees!) that Honolulu would join the list of one-paper towns. A group of "concerned citizens" organized to find a suitor for the Bulletin and eventually, just before the deadline, the small Canadian syndicate stepped forward.As you may have seen, the daily and Sunday runs of the Beacon are more than twice as large as the Bulletin, which had been its largest subscription paper PBJ (pre-Beacon Journal). This hasn't however stopped the SB from blanketing our one-university state with more college athletics coverage than BJ readers (are there any still out there?) could dream of. Does the BJ still have one guy, Whatsisname to cover all UA sports? The Star Bulletin, in attempting (rarely successfully) to compete with the larger Advertiser rarely lets a day go by without multiple articles about college sports at the University of Hawaii-Manoa. The college football season coverage generally begins the day the previous season ends. Check out www.starbulletin.com and see how many articles you can find on June Jones' pass-happy footballers. And they don't hesitate to cover the other sports, with separate reporters assigned to men's hoops, baseball, and women's sports. They also regularly report on sports like water polo, track and field (I swear there have been daily reports in our media on the UH Wahine track athlete going to the NCAA championships in the heptathlon -- despite the fact she's rated something like #17 nationally); etcetera.One article I read at Ohio.com, or maybe it was at Starbulletin.com (where the story lead on the Business page) today mentioned the possibility of a Midwest-MidPacific alliance with the papers sharing resources somehow. Let's see, you have Brian Windhorst and Terry Pluto (or is it the next closer planet?). We have a bunch of mangoes falling on the ground. Naaahhh -- that's not an even trade. Some kids walk by and pick up the mangoes to throw at each other. So they have a better use. Hey -- jus' kiddin' Whatsurename, ol' buddy! Here's hopin' for more coverage of the Zips in your news -- and a new alliance for the UA Aloha Section Alumni. Gotta get back to my job at the pineapple factory now. Bumbye!

Hello football fans. Have you got your brackets filled out for the little tournament in Deutschland yet? Here's a hint -- Green and yellow will be on the field at the end, that's for sure!In the week preceding my Hawaiian compatriot, Brian Ching's likely 270 minutes of benchwarming duty for coach Arena, I thought I'd alert Zip sports fans to the finish of the futbol 2006 recruiting season -- ended quite a while ago, but as usual there is no overall recruiting announcement on GoZips.com.We have two new limey's coming Akron's way this season. Elliot Bradbrook is the latest in a string of transfers to UA from Ashland -- kind of the opposite of what happened in American football I think, eh? Well, anyhow, Bradbrook should get some playing time off the bench this season for Caleb's troops. Not sure just how big a contributor he'll be in terms of what US audiences consider the bottom line -- putting the ball in the net -- but he should give the starters a run for their PT.Also coming onto the roster from England is freshman Oscar Odoch, who's been playing for Wigan Athletic and I think some other clubs in the EPL junior ensemble. Rumors of his being "The next coming of Wayne Rooney" don't appear to hold up to my research, as he doesn't appear to have been on any international travelling squads for Sven Goren and Company at England Inc. Nonetheless however, it is quite a coup for Akron to secure the services of a top player from the ranks of England's top junior ranks, and Oscar should contribute from Day One. Who knows, he may be a net-ripper from the outset.From the nation's top-ranked youth club, the Chicago Magic comes Rockford Illinois (Guilford HS) scoring machine Vedran Ilic, who put the ball in the net 34 times and assisted on 23 goals in his senior season of high school play. Not sure if his Magic 16s or 17s team was a qualifier for the nationals last year, but he has extensive experience in Super Y League.The fourth recruit is Ben Zemanski of Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy. You probably know a lot more about this kid than I do. He was the star of the state HS champions last year, I think?Now for the ones who got away.The Midfielder with the leg of molybdenum, Y'town Cardinal Mooney's Zack Hernan chose to follow his recruiter, our old Chief Ken Lolla to the Louisville Cardinals. A nice get for Ken, and the youngster should see plenty of playing time in Kentucky, while he would have seen a lot of pine early on in a Zip uniform, I suspect.The top two senior fullbacks in NE Ohio, according to many, are headed to Evanston, IL to wear the purple of Northwestern. Lakewood's Mark Blades, an All-Star at Adidas ESP Camp last summer chose the Big Ten's up-and coming squad, along with Chagrin Falls' and Cleveland Force Junior standout Pat Coleman. Blades' Cleveland Soccer Academy teammate Justin Morrow is headed to South Bend to be a Golden Irishman. I think all of these guys could have gotten grants in aid to Akron, and would have eventually been strong players -- especially Blades, a fine student as well as defender. Another who fits under the title is Chris Korb another Force Junior who's headed to Xavier. Interestingly, his freshman teammate with the Muskies will be a player with the closest of ties to the Zips -- forward Slava Ubiparipovic, out of Mentor HS, the brother of Akron's top offensive threat, Ubie Senior.Would anyone please let me know when Westfield Cup shirts are available? I want to keep my collection going.Aloha and mahalo and for reading braddahs and sistas,Go Zips! #1 till the end this year.