Blue & Gold

Great list! I think it's definitely do-able over the next 5-10 years! I would only change one point:"3. Finish the football and soccer stadiums and do serious renovation to the JAR. If we are averaging 5K in bball, I can see the JAR expanding to 8K. An 8K arena that gets more than 2/3 full will be fine. Do what Toledo is doing with their exisiting arena."I think we need a new arena. Now that the U owns Quaker Square, building an arena north of QS and adjacent to the John S. Knight Convention Center seems like a great move. Maybe it could be a joint facility that the Knight Center could use on ocassion? Around 10K seating capacity.

That looks great! The MAC needs more facilities of this caliber. OU's got a great arena and EMU also has a great facility. The JAR sucks.

Thanks eguins. In case anyone's curious, I looked at WKU's website and that's a $37.5 million renovation.

According to the current conceptual drawing, it appears that the north side of the stadium could be easily expanded to create a horse shoe, should demand exceed capacity. But as it stands now, it looks a lot like BGSU's Doyt Perry Stadium. That stadium was very under-whelming when I went to a Zips game there about 8 years ago. It really did feel like the old proverbial "glorified high school stadium." Firstly I hope our stadium is more overwhelming than any MAC stadium right off the bat. But secondly, if not, then I do have hope that the additional dorm and retail construction surrounding the new stadium gives the stadium a bigger feel, albeit somewhat artificially, than it would have being left on its own.

Why do you guys think the U is holding the plans back so long? Wouldn't you think they would want to get plans posted asap just to try and stir up as much excitement and publicity as possible, and then ride the stadium wave of enthusiasm as long as possible? Even if the plans are preliminary, with much tweeking to be done, I would still think they'd want to publicize this more than they have. Especially on GoZips.com.

Johnny Adams and Whitney Mercilus - the 6'3", 225 lb. DE from Garfield!

If our stadium design is something along these lines, at least I'd hope the additional dorm and retail development that is part of this project would hedge the stadium in a bit and give it some more character and dimension.

Hmm. Originally the plans were to be completed by June 15. Now they are revamping the plans and are due August 1st. Wonder what that amounts to? My initial reaction is that any revamping that would have to be done would be a good thing. It probably means they're being a little more ambitious then at first. At least that is my hope!

Most excellent. Just voted for JT.Of course I also voted LeBron for Best Male Athlete.And of course voted for the Gators over the Gator-bait Suckeyes!!! That was delicious!Though not voting for the Golden State Warriors upset of the Dallas Mavericks was tough.

I know we all got tired of Andy's dad, but do you think Andy would make a good addition to our coaching staff? We all liked Andy and appreciated his guts in playing through severe back pain (quite unimaginable to me!) and his basketball IQ. Though, it may be awkward between he and KD?

Yup. I've found myself not nearly as interested in fb recruiting as I have been for, oh say, the last 15 years! I remember getting into recruiting for the first time during Lee O's first season when we signed QB Willie Spencer from Mass, and almost signed LB Kinta Mitchell from McK. But this JD stuff is getting really old. Who cares who we technically sign on LOI day; not half of them see the field.And as far as Can't goes... I thought Heirbstreit(?) was smoking crack last year when he picked Can't to win the East, but he was almost right!Can't's coach seems to be building their program with student-athletes who go under the radar yet are quality people, and he's building them into a winner - something Lee O was unable to do and a strategy JD doesn't seem to buy into.

Here's an article on Dru and Rome from today's (6/27) Beacon.http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/sports/17393309.htm

I always thought he looked like not only a smooth athlete, but a skilled baller whenever he was out on the court. I always wished to see him get meaningful minutes. Athletically, he'll compete at Slippery Rock's level without any problem. I only hope he is able to pick up their system quickly enough to have a productive year for them!

I don't know if Rydell's game would translate very well into MAC-level play. When I saw him play, he scored a lot of his points by simply out-hustling his opponents and got a lot of junk down low. That won't happen in the MAC, where he'd be destroyed down low. Also, his outside shot was iffy at best, and I thought he looked down at the ball too much when he dribbled. But that's just my 2 cents worth. I'm no great talent evaluator. He is athletic, and I hear he is a good guy who works hard.

I agree. It's gonna revitalize the "Zips Strip" around the University Park area all along Exchange into downtown and tie right into the restaurants that have sprung up around Canal Park. The northside of downtown has the Knight Center, 2 hotels, the library, the art museum, the historic district and the new Northside development. The southside is now gonna have both Canal Park and the new Football Stadium. Man, both our downtown and University districts are advancing by leaps and bounds and are simply gorgeous! 15 years ago I remember not wanting to walk alone after dark around either the campus or downtown!!! Our city is actually becoming very "cool!"

I was thinking the same even before I read Hilltopper's reply. WAY TOO MUCH aluminum!!!

That reminds me once again how happy I am that we're wearing GOLD now instead of that hideous YELLOW!

I believe the architects are supposed to have their initial design completed by June 15, right? So we should be seeing some drawings in about a month! I do hope it's not a typical MAC stadium. A complete bowl would be cool, but if not, even if it's enclosed on one end that would be great. A Camden Yards-esque horseshoe.

If our corners can play man-to-man, then that would free up our safeties to come up and assist our pathetic DL!

I believe we recruited Da'Von as a cornerback, and with speed like that, I can see why! But with size like that, do you think JD should give him a shot at RB?

Boy that really sucks, it's quite appalling actually. At least when I wrote to Bobinski back in the day I got a courteous thank you letter in return. If he's too busy or uninterested to respond personally he should at least have a staffer do it. Sounds like we need to start directing some (tactful) correspondence to MR's bosses office and let them know this won't cut it. When I was in college I had some ideas for the athletic department I wanted to share with Bobinski. I was just an ignorant punk kid, but I meant well. I sent him a letter with some of my ideas. He actually gave me a call and invited me into his office one day. We talked UA sports for about 45 minutes. I'm certain I didn't enlighten him on anything, but the fact he took an hour out of his day to talk to a young punk Zips fan was pretty admirable. It's a shame to hear that our current athletic director won't even respond to a freakin' email.

Why would they red shirt Sweich? I thought he was ready to contribute immediately. Besides, he and Bardo will be our only centers on the roster next season.In my crystal ball I forsee Steve McNees eventually transfering out. In Ronnie Steward and Darryl Roberts we have 2 First-Team All-Ohio point guards, and with LJ coming on next season, we've got an athletic, muscular 6'3" combo guard who, before signing with Cincy, was given recruiting priority over McNees by KD last season. This is unless McNees can develop into a stud 2-guard. He scored alot in hs but I don't know if he'll get it done in the MAC.

Ha! Yeah, watching the intra-squad scrimmages next year would be worth at $15 ticket!

Thanks for the info! This is fantastic news! I was disappointed when Jeter chose football at Cincy a year ago. We're stacked for the next 4 years at guard! Good job KD!!!

I hope this gets at least a couple of responses. Does anyone have any news at all on either Darryl Roberts or Lance Jeter? Thanks.