Let'sGoZips94

They make it natural with their masked fans. It's creepy. Buffalo is definitely a rivalry, but I don't loathe them like I loathe OU & Can't. #BuffaloIsInCanada

Uncanny resemblance to our rival, Can't State. Both Iowa and Can't are located to the east of Iowa State/Akron, and both Iowa and Can't have pee-yellow in their color scheme. It's like you were meant to be a part-time Akron fan!

I'm surprised a school like Can't didn't offer him. They had interest in him, and Joey seems to be their prototypical QB - undersized, athletic, etc. At 6'1" 190 lbs, I'm not too surprised he didn't get much DI interest. It looks like he had walk-on offers from a few DI schools, but he's smart to at least get the full ride scholarship, regardless of where it's at. If his University of Virginia wrestling scholarship wasn't a full ride, I think he made the best life decision from a financial aspect.

Sounds like he just signed with Elon.

While he's had some joke calls go against him in the past, he puts himself in poor positions. If he's in positions to foul 80% of the time, he's not going to get the benefit of the doubt as much the other 20%, right or wrong. If you look at this last game, there were a few times he was straight up when contesting, but a majority of the time he would come over top of the defender or briefly leave his feet. It's frustrating because I think Mark can develop into a very solid player. He has the athleticism and physical ability to be a threat at this level, it's just getting him comfortable and up to speed. This EMU game could be HUGE for his development because he'll be going against Thompson. It'll be interesting to see if he can play up to Thompson's level, and if the energy and emotion that Kostelac brings to the floor can rattle Thompson, who is prone to get T'd up as previously mentioned. I still for the life of me can't figure out how Mark wasn't called for a foul on his put-back late in the BG game, but I'm not complaining.

You're new to being a Zips fan, so I wanted to give you a heads up: this happens a lot. MAC refs BLOW and are probably some of the most inconsistent referees in all of basketball. There used to be a lot of griping on this board when it came to the refereeing. Poor officiating has become so incredibly common, we've shut up for the most part. Whenever you hear about the refs on this board in a negative way, you KNOW it's bad.

My point is that the concussion protocol would probably including avoiding attending sporting events, including women's basketball, immediately following being diagnosed with a concussion. This would follow under the rest & recovery portion of the protocol. I am a bit surprised they haven't announced anything yet. That could be a very good sign.

It might. Typically with concussions, light and noise bothers you. I don't know if the protocol has changed, but I've always known it to include avoiding exposure to light and noise.

Not sure how many of you listened to Groce on the post-game show, but he talked about what he's trying to build here with the program. It was a great interview. He talked about the main focal points being hustle, toughness, etc., and those are non-negotiable. He said win or lose today, the answer would have been the same, that the guys fought really hard with a lot going against them and he would have been proud regardless of the result. The whole interview gave me incredible optimism for where the program is headed under Groce. Those are the qualities that teams who make runs in the tourney possess. The way the team reacted to the victory was awesome. The genuine smiles were a sight to see. This team is young and will grow closer with the adversity. Our future is bright.

By the way, with our win today, we are back to .500 on the season, leaving Can't State as the only team in the MAC with a sub-.500 record. Beautiful.

Hardly a recruiting tool if it's not going to be used in-game. I'm not a huge fan of the look of it, mostly because it looks off-center to me. Why can't it be used in-game?

I'm not buying that Dambrot wanted to stay here, and I'm certainly not buying that Williams forced him out. The locker rooms, weight room, etc., were all upgraded. The JAR was/is going through a transition with the painted bleachers, new video board, etc. He can cry about the Info all he wants, but football is where the money/revenue is at in the NCAA. A new football stadium to replace a crumbling one was a necessity. Did the University maybe error on the budgeting for it? Possibly, but that's life. Dambrot was one of the higher if not the highest paid coach in the MAC, and was well compensated for the level of success he had achieved in his time here. Nothing he had done in the final years of his time here warranted any sorted of extra compensation. I think Dambrot saw some writing on the wall that caused him to jump ship to Duquesne. I think he knew this year was going to be a transition year regardless of if he had stayed or not, and that his value as a coach as at a high point. I think he saw that the A10 could be down, and now was his time to get into Duquesne, especially at the $1M price point. I also think he could hear the whispers about a stagnant program at Akron, feeling the pressure to either win in the NCAA tournament or leave. There were a lot of excuses used during his time here to create an illusion that outside factors were holding him and the program back. The MAC being a one-bid league, the JAR, and the fact that bigger schools wouldn't come play us in the JAR. They grew old and empty with the mounting pile of letdown losses. I also don't like the complaints about the JAR, and the supposed complaints about the offices/basketball dorms. I struggle with a college coaching making six figures - it's an academic institution first and foremost - let alone one that makes nearly $1M a year and complains about the financial backing of the program. The JAR isn't perfect, and we've all wanted either a major renovation or new arena, but in the end it doesn't make sense unless the finances are there. I've said it in other threads that Dambrot could have made a huge statement by saying he would donate a portion of his salary as the foundation for a new arena/JAR renovation. That is my explanation of my critical dialogue directed at Dambrot. Call me a "basher" or whatever you want, but I'm an Akron fan first an foremost. I'm grateful for growth of the program under Dambrot, and always have been. Two things. - The Can't/Akron Championship Game last year was brought up. Just in case anyone forgot, we lost that one with a flat performance. - I would still like to know what major offers Dambrot had that he turned down. I would additionally like to know what Dambrot's reputation around the college basketball landscape truly was, if anyone has any inside info on that topic.

Officials are trained to do this, as long as the play that is being continued occurs at the other end. Whether or not that should be changed is a different discussion, but as bad as the officials were today, they got that right, at least by the book. I knew it was more serious than just a fall when, once play stopped, the police officers at the other end of the floor sprinted down to Sayles.

Eastern plays the Syracuse zone with Thompson being the key leader on their team. They are a three-headed monster between 6'10" junior forward James Thompson IV (15.8 ppg; can't believe he's only a junior), 6'9" junior forward Elijah Minnie (17.5 ppg), and 6'2" junior guard Paul Jackson (15.4 ppg). Very up and down season for the Eagles thus far, with a blow out win at South Florida and a 3 point loss to North Florida. Hopefully Sayles is healthy and able to play for this game, but I'm not confident with how he was walking around towards the end of the BG game. We would miss him tremendously. We're going to need to make our shots because we'll be undersized and they play a zone. Let's get the road monkey off our back, and improve to 2-3 in the MAC. Go Zips!

BALL GAME! WE WON A GAME IN THE MAC! Heck of a win. Everything went against us - officiating, injuries, size, etc. - and we still pulled out the W. That was impressive. Very fun to watch and the team seemed to enjoy it.

COTTON! LUCAS SMITH WITH THE BIG BOARD!

What a rebound and put back by Kostelac!

This is one of the worst officiated games I've ever seen.

A recent situation with my fiancee losing consciousness and seizing made me learn that it can be a bodily response to the loss of consciousness. Very glad he was able to walk off under his own power.

What's the medical attention like for those at the game? They aren't showing it on the stream. Is he conscious?

In reference to the baton, it looks like a rolled up t-shirt that's taped. @NWAkron Did you donate the T-shirt? Is it one of the bruisers you got from the T-shirt cannon with the thinner crowds?

Kostelac is pressing to much. He needs to relax, focus on the fundamentals, and let the game come to him more. Way too many fouls in this game.

Yes, do you know of anyone looking for an offensive coordinator? I know a stellar one. He loves delayed draws. Just having a little fun.

Not to change the subject, and congrats to Hickson on taking a job with his alma mater, but what does the list of schools look like that are trying to steal away Milwee? How can I help them become successful in doing so?

- Dambrot left on his own. As @Valpo Zip stated, his contract was still good through 2023. There was no "removal". - Nothing I've seen suggests that Williams has a major ego. He seems like a very good person. - The people "bashing" Dambrot want the program to hit that next level. - He supposedly never wanted to leave, especially for another mid-major, yet did. - What environment was created in the Athletic Department that left Dambrot with no choice but to jump ship? Asking honestly and seriously, what other offers did Dambrot have during his time with Akron? I only remember Duquesne on several occasions.