Zip_ME87

And I couldn't say it any better, w00t. The most satisfying part of this weekend for me was seeing our players holding that trophy, smiling, and hugging each other, their coaches, their families, and their fans!

Headaviatorrowdie, you are awesome and you'll be missed. Thank you and all of the Rowdies who made the trip to Santa Barbara and made this event even more special. This Championship is something we should all savor and that should be celebrated on its own. I know the Can't game brings a big crowd, but the Men's Soccer Team deserves the complete focus of the celebration. I wish there was a way to personally thank the players who will be leaving (e.g., Ampai and Korb) for choosing to play for Akron. I didn't get a chance to thank them following their win. If any of them are reading this...THANK YOU!

+1 Zip_ME87 is happy and even more ecstatic that my team is so happy!

Another option is that Ian is so pro-Akron Zips that he is not going to air anything bad regarding them, not even iCoach. (Note that I have no inside information on what happened between the Rowdies and iCoach, but I'm confident in Ian's support of the Zips.)

I only attended 3 games (actually 2, when you count that I left the Syracuse & N. Illinois games at half-time), and I received a letter.

Awesome. Thanks for posting johnnyzip.

I e-mailed Andy Baskin at Channel 5 today asking for more coverage, specifically Akron Men's Soccer (among other things). He responded almost immediately and very positively. (Please note that I didn't get to watch news last night; so, I didn't see their coverage of the Send Off; I was disappointed that it was not on their website.) Here's Andy's response to my e-mail: "Never apologize for being a fan. I need you to keep pushing us. We need to know that we are heading in the right direction. If you are willing to spend the time to write, we owe it to you to give you an answer. Akron soccer really is great story. I love covering them because they are so easy to work with. Thanks again! Andy. I'll keep pushing our web guys. Sent from my iPhone" Please e-mail Andy at baskin@newsnet5.com if you want more coverage of our Zips, especially this weekend. ESPN and ABC are affiliated. So, Channel 5 should definitely have access to footage. EDIT: Please ask politely and in a positive way. I know how polite and positive we ZN.o members can be.

Thanks RootforRoo44...that's what they were referring to on their board when they stated they would give any Akron fans directions for the best route to chuck something in the ocean! I'm with you...awesome!

Buy those Gauchos' fans a beer! So far the Zips are leading in their poll of who they want to win.

Your focus is in the right place. I know I made more noise at the last game than any other (other than away at Wake Forest), as did numerous fans around me. The players actually pumped us up by their responses to our cheers and by signaling us to get up.

I agree...that's how we got where we are.

I agree the attendance was poor and "God bless the AK Rowdies!". However, as an 'old folk' who attended every home game and traveled to Wake Forest, Bowling Green, N. Illinois, tOSU, and Cleveland State, and have had my plane tickets for the College Cup since September 16th (faith in my team!), I take some exception with the original comment seemingly faulting all older folk for the poor attendance. As the Rowdie's say..."we love ya"^3 and "where ya go, we'll follow!"^3 Edit: I'll re-iterate that Meves came through in the "shootout" and deserves those kudos, but needs to get back to his game during regular run of play. Good post 72Roo

As you already know, Z.I.P., I will see you there. Looking forward to meeting you and others. I changed my plans a little and am actually flying into LAX on Thursday night, but won't be into Santa Barbara until Friday afternoon. Safe journey. GO ZIPS!

I don't know what $ amount you think UA should throw at the HC position, but throwing money doesn't ensure a winning coach and causes you to have to make adjustments in other UA coaches' salaries or suffer degradation in those other sports. And, as far as "Bring in a winning coach with a proven track record for building winning programs", any coach who is truly winning with a proven track record at the FBS level, would be filling one of the vacancies in one of the more established FBS programs. If you're talking about bringing in "a winning coach with a proven track record for building winning programs" from an FCS or lower division, there's no guarantee that winning at those levels translates to winning in FBS. Although, I personally would have preferred a head coach from an FCS or DII winning program. There was also a cost to staying in the Rubber Bowl. In order to sell tickets, UA had to ensure that is was reasonably safe for patrons and for the team. I don't believe upkeep ( ) was free.

Here's the link to the official release on NSCAA.com

If you look at the Championship website on NCAA.com, an autograph session is listed after semifinal #1.

This is a HUGE problem for us.... i know its been said before. Although its just one of many, of the THIS is one of the HUGE reasons students (future Alumni) aren't supporting the program iCoach could take lessons and maybe start with pizza's iCoach needs to understand that respect is a 2-way street that begins with him. He needs to start the process by giving alumni, students, and fans reason to respect him/his program. He could have used yesterday's win as a start by commenting that he hoped it was a start of more to come next season and that he would be dedicating the off-season to hard work on the recruiting trail and evaluation of things that went right and wrong. But, no, his immediate post-game comments were lame, telling the STO sideline reporter that she wasn't a good omen for the Zips and other sorry comments. I'm sorry, but I can't remember any coach being more aloof than iCoach.

+1

I believe that everything you have seen concerning Coach Porter's locale next season is all conjecture. He has stated before that the "grass isn't always greener elsewhere"; The U of A/donors have provided the upgrades to the soccer pitch that he requested. He's able to recruit with and above the other top teams in the country. He has commitments from Ohio and other parts of the country, including a player from the Sounders developmental system. He has two former players who have gotten looks from the USMNT and the DR of Congo National Team. He has coached for US Men's developmental teams. All the indications to me show that he likes working with/developing young talent. He, personally, has the respect of NSCAA, and his/our Akron Zips have respect throughout the country. He likes Akron, and he makes a good living here, doing what he loves. Why would he want to uproot his family for Chivas USA or DC United? Yeah, maybe the money is more, but I can't see how he could be happier at either location than he is/can be at Akron. This is MY OPINION (no inside information on my part). However, I will say, that the one thing that I'm sure will keep Coach Porter happy at Akron beyond all others is for a huge crowd to show up for the NCAA 3rd round tomorrow. No matter what adversity OUR team has had this season, they are the 3rd seed (out of 48 teams who made the NCAA Tourney out of >200 D1 teams) . They need and deserve OUR support. We all need to let go of our NEO "woe is me" mentality and support OUR team in full force tomorrow. THIS IS AKRON! GO ZIPS!

I know there's already an Akron vs IU thread, but I think this deserves it's own. Coach Porter continues to show how AWESOME he is. In this message to fans, Caleb says that he has bought 500 tickets to Sunday's game vs IU that he is giving out on campus to students. Whether you are a student, an alumnus, or just a fan, please show up to this game. Indiana is a strong opponent, and this team and coach deserve our support. They have so much pride in themselves and The University of Akron, it's the least that we can do to pack Lee Jackson Field for 2 hours on Sunday and show them how thankful and proud we are of their hard work and to help them reach their ultimate goal. Thank you Coach Porter for completely embracing my Alma Mater and its history and for wanting to make it even better! Thanks so much to this team for all of their hard work on and off the field, during the season and off-season (which I've discovered they don't get much time off given developmental leagues and US developmental team play).

You're awesome Zach. When I attended UA in the early to mid-80's, Apathy was the way. It's awesome that you care enough to post, on average, 4 comments per day. However, you need to pick up the pace...I wouldn't want to see the NewsCollector get too far out in front of you.

“I plan to spend a few days in London visiting old friends and family before going up to Liverpool to train with Everton for a few days.” I wonder if this is just a courtesy from Everton. i.e., is it an actual trial or just a "meet and greet"? Not sure how that works with EPL clubs -- anyone? Z.I.P., I don't know how that works either, but great find Zach...thanks. I particularly liked... "Zakuani was brought up in London and joined the Arsenal academy at the age of nine but was released when he was 14. In 2007 he was spotted by the University of Akron whilst at the Independent Football Academy in north London and went to the US to play for the university’s football side, the Akron Zips. He also turned out for USL Premier Development League side the Cleveland Internationals before being drafted in to MLS side Seattle Sounders in 2009."

I also thought Teal looked good. Comments about Teal's performance on Big Soccer Picture of Teams with Nelson Mandela

+1 The next five games are all that matter, ONE at a time. As far as starters leaving, we know Korb and Ampai are gone. We shouldn't worry about the others until the season is over. Since we can't play for them, the best thing to do now is not worry, but to show up, get others to show up, pack Lee Jackson Field and make it miserable for our opponent(s).