72 Roo

Akron fails miserably in making its games, no matter what the sport, as events that must be attended. The last great marketing effort Akron made was when Red Cochrane created the Acme Zip game decades ago. It became something everyone in Akron had to attend. I realize things are different now and that type of event can't be duplicated, but the creativity that went into it can be applied to our sports program now. I go to games for the quality of play, but I also appreciate when there is entertainment, pacing, unique experiences, exciting atmosphere, etc. Akron just doesn't have it and seems incompetent in doing anything about it.

This campaign is intended to insure that the Zip men's soccer program stays in the top 5 in the country, where it belongs. The top 5 programs are Akron, Indiana, Wake Forest, UCLA and Maryland. Stanford could be argued as one of the top 5 also. We are the only program that is not a Power 5 school. The stress on resources at Akron to keep up is extreme. And yet, as Zip_ME87 says, we are loaded like no other program for a great run next year. Players, that at other programs may leave early, stay at Akron because of the culture, the coaches, the style, the love the community has for soccer and a good chance to succeed in the pros if they stay as long as possible. The university has been under tremendous financial pressure due to the drop in enrollment. Until the enrollment is increased and stabilized athletic budgets will be affected. It will take 3-5 years to reach enrollment goals so until then this campaign is necessary to put soccer on a sound footing and keep the outstanding staff we have. Preliminary feedback from our pro soccer alums is very favorable. They are committed to keeping the program strong. But they can't do it alone that's why the university is reaching out to all fans, friends and alums to make this a success. Consider being part of this outstanding athletic tradition. Your support is needed.

I'm getting excited for signing day again. I pray we get some players capable of filling needs and not just taking scholies. There are so many of us on this board who are dying to be relevant in the MAC championship again.

My concern is that this team is fundamentally bad in many areas. They don't block out, they watch to see if the ball goes in or they fall back on D. After 15 minutes in the game they stop moving when on offense. They settle for the 3 too early in the shot clock and don't seem to want to work the ball for a better shot. They constantly shoot with no one under to rebound. Their decision making is poor. With all that being said I am wondering if Groce and staff are getting thru to them. I have always believed in the saying "You are either coaching it or allowing it" when it comes to flaws in your game. At some time the coaching staff needs to change the way this team plays. It's not too early to expect better play. The talent is there even if the centers are not.

The upswing is underway. The Crew will be one of the hottest tickets in central Ohio. I bought my season tickets today and I was surprised at how much of the stadium was sold out. Last season's attendance was a direct backlash against Precourt and MLS, which directed the relocation effort. No one wanted to give Precourt any more money. Plus the league only gave us two home games in July and August to try to fabricate the myth that Columbus isn't supported. That, like much of what Precourt and the league did, was a lie. Over 12,000 season ticket pledges were made if Precourt left and the team stayed. With the new owners, coach (Caleb), GM (Bez), downtown stadium and Mahfre repurposed into a soccer complex Columbus will be the envy of MLS.

Not obvious to me. Could it be two bangers were going at it and things escalated and one took it way too far?

These thoughts ought to be troubling for anyone who cares about our athletic programs and the athletes in them. If I was K-lac's dad I'd be demanding answers and/or an investigation. You can bet your sweet ass that if this happened to my kid a lawyer would be involved. How can a young man be beaten unconscious with all the coaches, GA's, trainers, managers, strength & conditioning coaches, and onlookers present? Why didn't his teammates intervene? Was it a mugging away from them? Perhaps, who knows. K-Lac's family deserves answers first and the public deserves them second. This is a huge black mark on U of A sports as it currently stands. Transparency is the best and only answer. Perhaps the incident was handled perfectly. If so reveal what was done and let the public judge for themselves. All reports can, and should, be made public. That will not jeopardize the pending court case.

I don't get the History/Tradition ranking. KD built winning program that always competed for MAC championships. The expectations, based on our performance were high.

There is a lot of truth in what you say. Danny's only hope is to get with a strong program and head coach who will mitigate Danny's father's disruptive influence. Unfortunately Danny has been allowed to develop an ego and that has not served him, nor the team he plays for, well. He has yet to learn that a strong dose of humility will actually make him a better QB and leader. One thing would be cool, though, is to watch the clown show of Danny's dad and Cato's dad going at it as they helicopter over their kids. That might be worth the price of admission alone. Of course it might wreck the program but they have never cared about anything other than themselves and enhancing their egos.

That comment is coming from the highest possible authority in your life Clark. All I can say is "Ouch!"

Sorry, I forgot. What was I thinking! I'll make it up to you next time you booger-eater. How's that for incivility?

Will respectfully disagree. I have been to too many Hoban games to see that he is anything but exceptional in his play calling. But I will admit that if you use Milwee as a baseline for performance Tyrell is way off the charts. Thank God there is a new play caller on the way whoever he is. Our suffering is about to end. Anything is better than what we have experienced.

Like others I'm curious to see what coach Arth does with his staff and recruiting. I was, and still am, hoping Arth will reach out to Tim Tyrell at Hoban to join his staff. Tyrell is a brilliant play caller. You can never predict what he will do. He has the ability to use what his talent will give him and not force on the players a system that they are incapable of executing. With four state championships Tyrell has great credibility. I also hope coach Arth keeps Nemec. His knowledge of the program and the area can help make the transition to a new staff smoother. All this being said I understand that coach Arth may want as many ties to Cleveland as he can get in his new staff so the recruiting is enhanced by coaches who intimately know the area.

Steve's suggestion would never work. It makes too much sense. But I applaud him for thinking creatively and coming up with a novel solution. Wish I was smart enough to think of it.

Buf, I agree with you wholeheartedly, but Williams may be under pressure from the MAC not to pull out. an exit from the MAC may negatively affect our other programs. But all things being equal I would love to see us in the Big 10.

Danny Clark would be a cancer if added to the Zip football program. He is immature and gets bad guidance from his father. Although it would be fun to see who is the most obnoxious dad on the team, Clark's or Cato's . Danny is a hell of a football player, but he needs to go to someplace where he can learn humility and ego control. Art should not take that on in his first year as he seeks to set his own culture/values.

If the MAC was untenable for the Zips, which is a real possibility, I prefer the AAC. It is better than the MAC and it could open doors for the rest of our athletic programs. My second choice would be CUSA. It's not bad in soccer, especially with UK, and I think they would welcome us. To me, those are the only real options.

I too appreciate you being on this board. Your posts are very insightful. FWIW, I liked your Illini avatar. I think it is classy and by no means disrespectful to the Zip faithful. A diversity of perspective is valuable and welcome. Happy New Year!

I haven't noticed anyone posting a greeting for this Christmas so I thought I'd send ya'll these best wishes for a blessed and joyful Christmas, even though I'm late. My first, and maybe best, present came when Zip_ME87 confirmed Jared was staying put. Other presents scattered around our Zip tree are the growth of Men's basketball, the turnaround of women's basketball, the high hopes we have with a new football staff, the excitement of baseball returning under coach Sabo, the fire Christy Mitchell seems to be bringing to our fledging LaCrosse team and the continued excellence of Track and Swimming & Diving. That's a lot to be grateful for. But I'm also grateful for the informative news and discussions that are presented on this board. I can even say I appreciate the occasional idiot because he/she makes me value the vast majority of posters who actually make sense with their opinions. To the mods who make ZNO possible.... Thanks!

I like Keith. I think he is a good guy who did his best at Akron before he knew he had to leave. It was time for him and us, but that's another story for those of you who want to continue to fight it out ad nauseum. His outburst against Penn State was a different matter. The AD or President of Duquesne should have suspended him. He embarrassed the university, the team and himself. No athlete would ever, ever be permitted to act that way. The same applies to a coach. I lost all respect for Duquesne University.

That sucks, but it's not surprising considering the timing of the hire. Bowden should have been fired during the season so we could have had a better jump on the coaching search, building a staff and recruiting. We may have waited until the end of the season out of respect for what TB accomplished in saving the progrum from Ianello. Just speculation on my part. Coach Arth knew this signing day would be poor. Let's give him time to get his staff and vision out to recruits. I'm hoping February signing is better, but even if it isn't Arth deserves time to build the program his way.

I wholeheartedly agree with hiring coach Tyrell as an assistant. His teams are very well prepared. No discipline issues and when they arise the player is sent packing. He knows NE Ohio and is widely respected. I love his play calling and officially endorse him as an OC candidate. I'm sure coach Arth was waiting for my endorsement before he moved on the hire. Now he's got it.

OK, I do buy that he is better than Bowden, but that doesn't mean we couldn't have done better. I'd like to see Williams explain this hire. Did he speak with Kehres? Was Kehres even interested? Was Getsy contacted and was he interested? I realize Luke had a higher salary than we might offer, but he had the chance to run his own program at his alma mater which is very alluring. When the university asks us to donate our money but they don't answer these probing questions I find my confidence in their leadership dropping. Help me understand what is so great about a guy who took over a program that averaged over 9 wins per season and he subsequently averages 4 wins per season and we want him. Why? In any matter in life past success is the best predictor of future success.

Well that makes me feel so much more confident in this hire. Now I can sleep at night.

This hire does nothing for me. I don't get the excitement to hire him. He took over a program that had 10, 9 & 9 wins the three years prior to him and turned that into 3 and 5 wins in his two years. In his second year at the helm he never beat any of the top four teams in his league. Is that the success we want? I would love to know what LW saw in him that was better than Getsy or Kehres. He's our coach now and I'll do all I can to help him be successful, but pardon me if I'm not excited.