72 Roo

Thanks my friend. I'm looking forward Bowden coaching our boys up and getting after your 'Clones. It will be a great game.

The timing was deliberate. I want to win against NW and all future opponents. We won't do that w/o discipline. Coaches should demand it, especially after a huge win that we nearly lost because of lack of discipline.

I couldn't agree more.Lack of discipline is a trademark of Bowden teams. He does not demand it. He seems to let them play thru it and learn from the experience. The only thing they learn is there is no accountability for stupid, willful mistakes on Bowden coached teams. I think TB is a good coach for Akron and I want him as our coach, but I hate his tolerance for penalties, selfishness and being punks at times. I'd bench 'em all and play the next man up.

Just joining in on the conversation. Kato scares the hell out of me when considering his maturity and disposition. He thinks of himself and his desire to react before he thinks of the team. I see that coming from his Lavar Ball type dad, not a good mentor. I think he can be far better than Woody, but his teammates will pick up the realization that he can't lead under pressure if that is truly there. If that happens bring on Ramart, because Kato is worthless in the long run.

Hated our uni's today. If the blues were truly in Nebraska then I'll temper my dislike. One thing I hate is our white helmets have the Z and the number outlined. The inside of which is not filled in. If both were actually navy blue you could clearly see them from the stands. As they are now you can't make out either number or Z. They just look like marks on the side of the helmut. Would have much rather seen our gold helmets. Call me old fashion, but i wish we have a standard uni that was recognized by all as the Akron look.

Does anyone know where we can go to see/hear TB's pre-game speech? I did not catch it and I've heard so many good things about it. I appreciate any help you can offer.

No panic here with this team. Of the 11 starters who played in the national semi-final only two started last night. Cohesion, chemistry, anticipation and comfort were not what they will be by mid-season. Jared has a great team to work with and is building it the right way. The Zips will be where we want them by the end of the season. Remember Butler returned 8 of last season's sweet sixteen starters plus one 2017 starter who was injured at mi-season. We played well against them and at times dominated. Nice job boys. kick NCSU's ass.

Marcel is a great guy who will help when he returns. He has a broken right toe and is slated to return to practice in two weeks. Keep rooting for him.

This writer's tongue was firmly planted in his cheek. It was very funny, but also it pissed me off. We will continue to get this arrogance from P5 schools until we beat a few. Then the narrative will change. Until then let's expect it and keep focused on continual improvement. One final thought: I'd love to see the author write this way about Ohio State. Say what you want about the Buckeyes, but you do this kind of crap and Urban will beat you 50-0. Will SB Nebraska be laughing then?

Dr. Z, did you see if Burkhart is in the mix at WR? I thought he was touted as a local talent that was going to find a way to get on the field, but I have heard nothing of him so far.

Some good points Here. I see Brady fitting in a rotation. He will make Davis and Reinke up their games, of which they are capable. We will be able to keep our DE's fresh and have their motors running the whole game. I see them bringing big time pressure. Any opponent who thinks this edition of D is like last year's is in for a rude awakening.

Wow, if he comes to play he will help us no doubt. I just hope TB has a clear understanding with him and he does not become a cancer in the locker room. We need guys with team first attitudes.

It's OK to be concerned about three freshmen, if they do start. Yet this team has tremendous talent and may be super explosive. We may be a team that outscores our opponents while we learn to shut them down and prepare for the playoffs. My congratulations on your lineup. I'll ask Jared if he cares to comment, which he won't, of course.

I think Deltran Sands will be our leading rusher. I can't see him getting more than 1,000 yards, but I'd love to be wrong.

Ok my friend. Since I said it may be a tough year I'll try to explain why I think it might be. First, of our first four games we play more talented teams in Nebraska, Northwestern and Iowa State. We could be 1-3 at the end of four. Then we move into the regular season against MAC foes. Our OL will have 4 new faces. Keep in mind that our OL has never been in the upper echelon of the MAC so that's a question mark. Our QB is unproven but talented. Kato carries our hopes but he has yet to prove anything. Our RB's are also unproven altho' we hope Deltran can realize the promise he showed before injury and the rest show potential. Our WR's have only one proven one returning in Kwad and no incumbent TE. On D we have been pathetic on the DL altho' there is much hope here too. But keep in mind the only proven pass rushers we have are Boxen and Davis. Do you detect a theme here again? Our LB's will be good, maybe even great. The DB's have talent but have to show they can shut down opponent's passing game. We sure as hell didn't do that in our last two games against Toledo and FAU. When you look at our special teams you see that we have consistently been at the bottom of the MAC. A coaching change should upgrade that standing. Yet we have no reliable FG kicker. Our KO's are horrible, rarely reaching the end zone. Punting may be a plus. A respected football coach once told me that when you are a coach looking at the season you identify all the question marks you have. Then you realize, at best, only 50% of them will pan out. As you can see above we have lots of question marks. They all won't pan out. That may be what ultimately holds us back. We are getting better, no doubt, but we have big problem areas to solve. There is potential to solve each area but nothing that is proven in them. Just potential.

Thanks for posting. I know this is going to be a tough year, but I am getting more and more fired up. Go Zips!

B & G and LZ, I couldn't agree with you more that we need to do all we can to keep coach Mounds, but, unfortunately, we will lose him. We may grow to be a good place to be, yet we will not be able to offer the money nor the prestige of a P5 program. It sucks and I hate it, but that is reality. Let's enjoy him while we have him. On another note I love our recruiting. The talent pool is getting deeper and wider. Your announcement that Jonah will be available this season is a game breaker. Defenses will not be able to focus on Kwad and/or MTB. Kato will have more time in the pocket. The running game will be harder to shut down as D's will have to spread out. All credit to TB for continuing to rebuild our program. Things look much better!

It was made public in the spring although there was no big announcement as to the special teams coordinator change. TB may have done that so as to not embarrass his brother, but it was long overdue. Unfortunately TB forgot to make the change at OC. Damn it! Makes you want to drink, but I enjoy any chance to have a cold one.

I think the check is still in the mail, but I'd rather have a beer at pre-game and get to meet ZNO members.

OK LZip I'm bored and I'll bite. I don't care for many of these predictions. I don't think we are a fifth place team in the East. I agree we have many question marks, especially on offense, but I don't think Buffalo, BGSU or Miami are better than us. All were picked ahead of us. I do think OU is probably better. That being said we can beat all of them. To my way of thinking this predictor does not know what we have ready to put out on the field. They are unproven in many spots, but they are quality now, not like the Akron teams of old. This will be a challenging year for us. Yet we have weapons, depth and a growing sense of confidence. We are not fifth.

Z.I.P., it was indeed a long time ago. Our pool was at the south end of Memorial Hall and rumor was that records set there didn't count because the length wasn't officially 25 yards. But that was only a rumor. Can't help on the last year of men's swimming.

That man was Andy Maluke, a former Zip lineman who went on to coach several sports including men's swimming as you have noted. He got his Phd in physical education. He was direct but fair, a good man. He loved Akron always wanting the best for the school regardless that we were small potatoes then. Hope that helps from an old guy

Oh....... wow..... I am so excited . No doubt this will save the athletics budget, solve our enrollment problems and electrify college fans across the country

For our sake and his I hope he gets a medical hardship waiver. He is a difference maker who we can sorely use. It is a fact we are rebuilding at the OL and WR positions. But we may emerge stronger and better than last season thus catching a few teams by surprise with our explosiveness. That may be just the ticket we need to win several of our toss-up games, which we have many.

B & G, please interpret I think it's good