Zip_ME87

It was an awesome event. Very well done. Thanks to the Athletics Department for ensuring that all of the 8 players who are leaving were there. It was great to be able to thank and congratulate everyone and to wish them well. For anyone who is interested (and can't wait until the Fall, like me)... when I asked, Caleb told me that the Spring (exhibition) schedule is set, and there will be 3 home games this year...Xavier, Cleveland State, and Maryland. [i don't know who the Zips are playing away.]

Awesome! Here's another good article...MLS Draft Recap (SBNation) DC United: Again, this is really about the one big name they had just fall in their lap, but they did get the player that many people have been calling the best all-around-player in the draft. Perry Kitchen is going to start, probably in the midfield, almost right away. He's going to make DC better. Chris Korb, his Akron teammate, came later in the second round, but adding two players from arguably the greatest men's college team in history can't be bad can it? The answer is "no," in case you were wondering.

What really matters, and all that I really want out of any "celebration is To tell the players who are leaving... THANKS for bringing us a National Championship. THANKS for coming to Akron. BEST WISHES for your future. I wish you MUCH SUCCESS. and those who are staying... See you in the Spring , at least for a few games, no matter where they are played, and I look forward to and will be there next season! Go Zips!

I have a friend in San Jose whom I try to visit at least once a year. I'll have to arrange my visit when the Earthquakes are home!

Korb to DC United...nice!

Wow. Thanks for posting that Zach.

Good luck getting those tickets at a reasonable price, if at all.

+1

I'd be in for 2 copies...1 for me and 1 as a gift.

Very nice... From Darlington Nagbe on twitter won the Hermann like my big bro @TealBunB. 3 years straight an Akron player has been there starting with @stevezakuani11. thanks Akron Thank you Darlington

It's so satisfying to beat K.e.n.t. Great game by Zeke. Love watching Abreu's progress as well. Nice touch, too, to advertise the upcoming National Championship celebrations by having Zippy show off the trophy with K.e.n.t. fans in the house.

At the end of their 10 o'clock broadcast tonight, Fox 8 gave a nice mention, including numerous pictures from the season, of Darlington winning of the Hermann Trophy.

That is great and well deserved.

Darlington wins according to FollowTheRoo Edit: just a bit later than you, Yaznasty. But, I agree... Edit: Soccer America Article Edit: Missouri Athletic Club's Hermann Trophy (Awesome to see Darlington and Teal on that same page)

I thought I'd try to bring this topic back to the forefront given that the announcement is at 5:45 pm (central ?) today in St. Louis. Best wishes, Darlington...GO ZIPS! M.A.C. Hermann Trophy Caleb knows the way to St. Louis (3rd visit in 3 years)

Whitecaps still interested in Nagbe

Top 30 MLS SuperDraft Prospects

This may be because the team needs to get to Baltimore for the MLS Superdraft (which I got word that Porter and many of the team members will be there). Would seem another night would have been better but you wouldn't want to wait too long for it. I wondered about that because Coach Porter and the players were at the draft last year.

Thanks for another great article Crew8. Caleb Porter is awesome, and I really appreciate reading a player's (Perry Kitchen's) perspective: This year Kitchen is not alone as four other players will also leave Akron early to turn professional and all are expected to be drafted within the top ten picks. When Kitchen and his teammates announced their intention to leave, they found encouragement from Porter who met with each of the players. "Look, he is in it for the players. He's not in it for himself," Kitchen stated frankly. "He's encouraged five underclassmen to go pro. He wants us to do what is best for us. He'll look at our options at the end of the season like he did for me and all the other guys. He told me this was a really good opportunity for my future. He said I did some great things for the school but that it was time to move on. "He's never going to hold any player back if they are ready," he added. "But if they're not ready, he'll say that they may need to come back another year. He wants what's best for the players and that's really important."

Thanks for posting this mes102. I really like this... Zakuani added, “From what I’ve seen since I’ve been here, there’s no team like these guys. It’s going to be fun to see so many guys in the league now and at the same time we hope that they don’t suffer as a team for losing so many guys. They lost me and they got better. They lost Teal Bunbury, Blair Gavin and Ben Zemanski and they got even better. If they get better after losing seven guys, I don’t know what we can do.” I can't get enough of reading quotes from former Zips who are so (vocally) proud of being Zips and who still follow and care about the Zips. Thanks Steve Zakuani.

I like this idea and the dates. It will be after the Hermann presentation, the MLS draft, and other post-season awards. So, all of the accomplishments can be celebrated! GoZips!

Thanks nbs95. I'm also happy to hear Steve is doing well.

Zarek Valentin Interview (January 4, 2011) EDIT: Ampaipitakwong Focused on Next Step

I just hope that they do this at half time and not at a 2 minute timeout. If this is being done at a basketball game, then it should be the entire halftime show so they can show highlights on the video board. They should show highlights from throughout the season as well as the NCAA Tournament games, and the "This is Akron" video or any update they may have produced. Winning the Zips' first team national championship is SIGNIFICANT and deserves more than a 2-minute timeout for celebration.

Perhaps the Athletic Dept. could invest in one of those hand-held credit card machines like all the airlines have to charge you for their boxed lunches.