Class of 82

What a huge win. Alas, I didn't even get to hear it. I had to turn off my radio after we turned the ball over on 4th and goal to avoid a psychological meltdown. Stupid move on my part! Hey, Capn. You were at the game, right? What's up with our D? Was Western just that good? Are we just wearing down? Is the loss of Mackey's ability and leadership really showing up? What gives?

Exactly!

For all the bad today (and there was plenty), I think it's one of those days when we have to keep our eyes on the prize, which is a MAC title and a bowl-game opportunity.Here's the lemonade I'm trying to make out of the lemon the Zips laid today.1) This was a non-conference game for a 2-2 Zips squad.2) The third-string NT hung in and played well for two solid quarters before getting gassed and gunned down. Over the long haul of the season, we're the better for it. (But boy do we need Nate back fast.)3) Without a stud NT, our 3-5-3 defense is basically a sham against a quality opponent, in my un-educated opinion. And I think that's just a fact of life we have to deal with as fans. We have one stud NT (Nate), and he didn't play today.4) Other than taking some really crucial and needless sacks, Jacquemain played a darned good game. The fade to Arthur in the end zone was a thing of beauty. The step-up to (I think?) Poindexter was also clutch on a third down early. I won't minimize the bone-headed sacks, but C-Jacq grew as a QB today, and I think that will serve Akron well in the games and years ahead.5) I think this coaching staff finally realizes Bryan Williams and Alex Allen are the best two running backs on the team. (But wow, what a one-handed catch DK made today!) In particular, I think I saw some glimpses today of the kind of plays I think BW can make for the Zips in the weeks ahead. He WILL win a game for us this year, and you can take that to the bank.Anyway, it was hard to watch. It pissed me off. It upset me. But it's over. It's MAC time now.I want a title. I think we have a chance for one. It's time to go out and get it done. Later,Class of 82P.S. Wouldn't it be cool if we got another crack at UConn in a bowl game?

I think facing Kellen Lewis was great preparation for Edelman, even though Lewis shredded Akron pretty bad. Even missing Nate Robinson and maybe Kevin Grant, I think our D responds with its A-game against Can't.Zips 24flush-in-the-pans 13

Looked like he got dinged up toward the end of the game (shoulder?). Does anyone have any info on him? Sure hate to see him miss time, especially next week.

Hey Zipsrifle,With a few glaring exceptions (i.e. USC and LSU), I think this is shaping up as one of the wierder years across the board in college football, not just the MAC. You look at the top 20 or so teams, and how many of them can anybody be very sure about?Heck, who's gonna win the Big 10 this year. Frankly, I don't care, but so far the picture has gotten fuzzier, not clearer.Strange, strange year.

The problem, IMO, yesterday was not the defensive scheme. In fact, it looked to me like the scheme worked pretty well... until the best athlete on the field made huge play after huge play, several times on key third and longs.Sometimes, I think you just have to tip your cap to the guy on the other team, and I think this is one of those times. We had no answer for Kellen Lewis. My guess is quite a few teams won't either.Hey, at least we now have a quarterback controversy.

Interesting. It seems to me, though, that maybe all we're seeing is another transition like we've seen in the NFL at least half a dozen times. Heck I remember a time when seeing an NFL team throw on first down was called a "surprise" play and the play-action pass was considered the ultimate in sophistication.I don't know. I think right now the league is adjusting to the freaks of nature coming out of college football. My God. You've got 300-pound O-linemen running 5.0 40 times. You have 260-pound linebackers who are faster than most of the wide receivers from just 10 or 15 years ago. You also have some very smart coaches who have found ways to use these freaks to confound other very smart coaches.Maybe the NFL is just ready for "the next big thing," aka Paul Brown (messenger guards, power sweeps, play-action pass) in the 1950s and Bill Walsh (so-called "West Coast" offense) in the 1980s. Here's betting that will come.

There's a very good reason YSU moans constantly about games against Akron... it is good for their program.There's a very good reason Akron has not scheduled YSU for so long... games against YSU offer nothing to Akron's program.I understand the Captain's point about a sell-out, and the cash that would generate. But balanced against the downsides of playing YSU, I don't think the benefit outweighs the numerous downsides.For the first few seasons anyway, the new stadium is going to draw well no matter the schedule. This town has been dying for a real college football environment, even if most of the people dying don't know that they're dying for it. (Did I really write that? Never mind.)I have nothing against Youngstown. In fact, I wish them well, but we owe them nothing. And nothing is what they ought to get from us.GO ZIPS!

Excellent post, skipzip. I still like our chances, though. The old saying, "Defense wins championships," is old for a reason. IF our offense can grow and develop over the next few weeks, and if the defense continues to perform like we all believe it can, we have an excellent shot at a MAC title.As for the tough road games, that is a concern,, but there's another old saying about a good defense traveling better than a good offense.GO ZIPS

What a shame. Yet one more reminder of the fragility of life, the inconsequence of money and the clear and present danger that is always lurking on a football field.God, I love this game, but these kinds of incidents always make me wonder if it's worth it.

I really, really, really wish I could pick the Zips to win this one, but I just don't think we have the horses on offense from what I've seen the first two games. I also think we're gonna have some trouble containing Lewis and covering a 6-7 beast like Hardy when they've got other receivers we'll have to be wary of, too. We'll need a pass rush we haven't seen yet and some offense of our own that we haven't seen yet to win this game.Hoosiers 28Zips 12P.S. Dang, I hope I'm wrong... again ! P.P.S. Of course, on the mascot front, Zippy will dominate utterly... as per usual.

I don't think we got beat up in Columbus, either. I think the real physical poundings like that fiasco at Florida under Faust and the hideous mauling in Baton Rouge a few years back are things of the past. Thank God.We can hope Indiana underestimates us, but I'm doubtful. I think they are a team on a mission (a bowl game) playing in front of fans who haven't had so much to cheer for since the early 1960s. I also believe they can watch film and realize what they're up against. Fortunately, our offense didn't really give much away last Saturday.

Hee HEEEEEEEEE!Oops. Above stats are from their wins over Ind. St. and WMU, not just Saturday.Still, pretty good numbers.

Understandable. They haven't had a team that would have contended in the MAC for the past few decades. Now they have a team that has a real shot to finish in the top five in the Big11.Be great if they blew that shot this Saturday, wouldn't it?

You have to start with QB phenom Kellen Lewis (6-1/170 So.). Here's his line from Saturday at WMU.32 of 61 (52.5%) for 506 yards and 5 TDsHe also ran 24 times for 118 yards and a touchdown.This was no fluke. He lit up Michigan State last year in the same kind of manner.Lewis' big weapon (and I mean BIG at 6-7/220) is James Hardy who caught 6 passes for 180 yards and four TDs. 6-7? Yeah. 6-7. He runs pretty well, too. Bottom line? Major handful. The other receivers to watch are 6-2/205 senior James Bailey (5 for 48 at Western), Ray Fisher, a 5-9 sophomore speedster out of Cleveland Glenville (11 for 101 at Western) and 6-2/200 junior Andrew Means (3 for 51).At RB, they bring 5-9/190 Marcus Thigpen, a junior from Detroit with decent speed. Very similar to the Biggs we knew and loved a few years back. Not a superstar, but a legitimate Big11 tailback.Their line is well, about what you'd expect from a Big11 school, plenty of beef and plenty of experience. They are led by three 5th-year seniors-- 6-1/295 C Ben Wyss, 6-2/295 RG John Sandberg, and 6-5 295 RT Charlie Emerson. On the left side are sophomores 6-6/315 Pete Saxon at guard and 6-5/290 Roger Saffold. At TE is yet another 5th-year senior, 6-5/258 Nick Sexton.By any measure, the Hoosiers look like a big-time offensive football team that should pose a challenge to everyone they play.

We need the O-line to establish itself and get a running game going. And that needs to happen on a consistent basis. We have the backs who can get it done if the O-line gets its job done.Besides, if we can run the ball, I think it makes life a lot easier for whoever winds up getting the most snaps at QB. I also think you open things up for Arthur and Fuqua if opposing safeties have to worry about a running threat.Anyway, my 2 cents.

The difference in lines can probably be explained by the fact that Indiana BEAT Western on the road last week, and pretty convincingly. (I know WMU made it closer at the end.) So Indiana raised its profile by winning and by beating the spread on the road. Akron, on the other hand, whille a stellar defense allowed them to cover, got three first downs and was shut out offensively at Ohio State.So I guess the line seems perfectly reasonable to me. Now it's up to the Zips to beat the odds, and I think they have a reasonably good shot to do so.

Believe it or not, I think this game is in some ways going to be tougher than Saturday's.1) Indiana has lost a few games to MAC schools over the years. Hoosier players know they can't just show up and win.2) For the first time in a long time, Indiana has a legitimate shot at bowl eligibility. The Akron game is a must win if they are to keep that hope alive. You look at their schedule, and the potential for 7 or 8 wins is entirely feasible. (LOL... now they're probably kicking themselves that they don't get a crack at Michigan!)3) Their QB is one of the most explosive offensive players in the country, and he has help.4) Terry Hoeppner was not sitting on his hands the last couple of years. They have recruited pretty well by historical Hoosier standards.5) Finallly, they have the extra motivation of Hopepner's untimely death. I'm no Miami fan, but he was a fine coach and a fine man. I have no doubt the Indiana kids have extra motivation to do something special this year for a man they respected and loved. In a game so tied into emotions, an X-factor like this can't be underestimated.Can Akron overcome and win anyway? Sure. I think our defense can keep Indiana from scoring a ton. But I think we need a huge turnaround by the offensive line that will allow us to have some kind of ground attack. If those guys don't win their share of battles in the trenches, we will lose this game, and maybe lose badly.

You're right, zen. It is about Brady Quinn.I don't think there is any reason to doubt that Charlie understood what that trade down to #22 meant for him... namely that his days as a Brown were numbered. What he needed to do was show in camp, in preseason and today's game that he belongs at this level and that he can lead a professionall team. He didn't show it in camp, which was bad for him. He didn't show it with any consistency in the pre-season, which was a whole lot worse for him. So, today's game was pretty much a formality as far as Charlie is concerned. He needed to look darned good, and look darned good immediately. He did not look even pretty good.Is it all his fault that the Browns are bad? Of course not. As a team, they have more issues than Sybil (LOL... oldies like me might remember Sybil, played by Sally Field, I think. ). But I don't think there's any question the Browns aren't going to start Quinn much sooner than later and dump Charlie at the end of this season... maybe sooner.This is not to bash Charlie. To the contrary, I hope he proves me hopelessly wrong.

It's been hard to watch. Unfortunately, it's questionable whether Charlie can play at that level. I've been pulling for him and hoping for him, but in the end he just hasn't been able to get it done.Anyway, he's made some nice cash, had experiences most kids only dream of, and will come out of it without being crippled. Not bad for a skinny kid out of Willard.

FWIW, here's the bio on Hoosiers quarterback Kellen Lewis, who is a redshirt sophomore from Jacksonville, FL."Completed one of the best freshman seasons in Indiana football history, racking up 2,221 yards passing and 19 total touchdowns ... named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and was named a Freshman All-American by both the Sporting News and Rivals.com ... became the first Hoosier since Levron Williams in 2001 to win Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors twice in one season ... voted the team MVP at the end of the season ... against Michigan State, Lewis had a day for the ages, as he became just the fourth player in IU history to account for six touchdowns in a game ... threw for five touchdown passes against the Spartans, the second-highest single-game total in Hoosier history, and racked up a career-high 261 yards on 15-of-26 passing ... added 75 yards on the ground, including a 27-yard touchdown ... that followed an impressive performance against No. 15/13 Iowa, when Lewis posted 255 yards and three TDs, earning Big Ten co-Offensive Player of the Week, USA Today Player of the Week and Rivals.com National Freshman of the Week honors ... recorded his first career 300-yard game with 321 yards at Minnesota and finished the game with three scoring strikes ... added 75 rushing yards to set a new career best of 396 total yards of offense - the fifth-best total in IU history ... made his collegiate debut at Ball State, hitting James Hardy for his first career touchdown ... made his first career start against Southern Illinois the following week ."This kid can play, and he has some weapons to throw to. Defensively, Indiana is perhaps not as impressive, but it looks to me like a strength-against-strength, weakness-against-weakness type of game. It will be interesting to see what kind of spread their will be.

When it comes to college football, objectivity is an entirely subjective concept.

I think we've got a shot against the Hoosiers. But their QB is a major handful.Terry Hoeppner was really starting to put his stamp on that program before he so tragically died. I think you can bet those kids are playing this season for him, and will give Akron everything it wants and more. I think we'll have to play at our best to beat them in their house.

That's really nice to hear. I also had a good (really good, actually) experience with OSU fans where I watched the game. I was referring to the self-righteous blowhards over at buckeye planet.Our day will come.