72 Roo

Thanks so much for the write-up Capt. I could not attend and you helped me capture some of the atmosphere of a great game. I appreciate all the time you took to do it right. If we start a fund to get Joe Dunn some new jacket gear count me in. i know Joe and he is a good guy.

I have heard from a former dept head at UA that Matt is a great relationship builder but has questionable strategic thinking skills. I don't know about that but I do believe that he is building a strong case for removing the interim title. Scar was devisive. Matt seems to have an ability to get the best out of everyone and get all of us pulling oars in the same direction. I'd be comfortable with him keeping the job. I place a lot of value in people who are passionate about what they do and believe in making the place better by working thru others.

The university will not solve the student attendance problem until they change the culture, the hardest thing to do in any organization. They keep trying stop-gap measures which don't get at the heart of the matter. There should be a coordinated and concerted effort to let students know from the moment they step on campus that they should be involved in sports and extracurriculars. That effort should continue throughout the year. Students will come to games if they feel they belong (I'm home) and they have a sense of ownership (this is my school/team). I agree that the games are horribly managed from an event point of view. But that can change. One simple goal should be held for all involved, make the games fun and students will show up. I agree that students need to be given more input on how to mange the game day experience. Some of my best memories of life at UA come from things the students created not one administration planned. We thought if we built a nice stadium they would come. They didn't. We thought if we built more dorms they would come. They didn't. We have the parts to solve this issue but no one is putting them all together. Matt Newhouse brings hope but he can't do it alone. The university needs to have a total commitment to engaging, educating and empowering the students to attend games. Sure we are still suffering from Ianello and the Scar, two total incompetents. But we have to move past them and say it's up to the university community to bring the students out. All on this board want that but we can't do it alone. See you in Detroit.

FWIW I want to offer my late post on the App State game. Shame on our students for not supporting this team. There's a lot of talk about attendance in that mainly we all want more fans there. Joe Akron won't show up until Akron games become an "event". The students have to make it so. This game was perfect weather, good opponent, and a lot on the line. Our 3,500 students in the dorms and an equal amount living within 1 mile of the Info ought to be ashamed for their support of their school's team. I can't wait until the culture changes and the students get off their ass. We can't do it w/o them. Our DE's are overrated. ASU repeatedly ran outside and we had no containment. Millwee is back to being predictable in play calling. His counterpart constantly had us guessing. Amato also needs to up his game. Our D, especially the DL, brings little to no pressure on the QB Our special teams are below MAC standards. This starts with coaching and Terry has to hold Jeff accountable. The sky is not falling, we just lost a golden opportunity to position ourselves for a take-notice season. We still have a bright season left and we will achieve it. ASU was as good as any MAC leader, except maybe WMU. Keep the faith. Terry got us this far. He can take us farther. I welcome any criticism of my thoughts.

I agree that coaching made a big difference in this game. Our personnel were about equal with maybe a slight edge to Marshall, but our coaches did a better job in utilizing what we had. I have criticized Milwee in the past. He deserves full credit for keeping our offense rolling and recognizing mismatches. Congratulations coach AJ! In like manner we've got to credit coach Amato for making good adjustments to what Marshall was doing. I especially liked the way he used so many players. What a testiment to a coach's confidence in the whole team. He kept the legs fresh and the pressure on. If you played for the Zips wouldn't you want to come to practice and work your ass off because the coaches recognize effort and commitment? This team will get better and it all goes back to Bowden. He has systematically rebuilt the progrum bringing in better talent and allowing it to be seen. I've said before that he is a better coach than we deserve but I am thrilled we have him and he wants to build his legacy here. Keep going coach! What a great win! More are coming. Let's put the butts in the stands for this team.

1987, I agree that there is always something the D gives you. We all know our O had trouble with execution but what they were being asked to do was boring, predictable play calling. There is no creativity to Milwee's play calling. For instance, have we forgotten the TE? What about slants or quick hitters? For as good as T. Bowden manages a game, it seems little has rubbed off on Milwee. The world will not collapse and our problems will get solved. Bowden is too good of a coach. We just have to accept that we got pounded by a superior opponent, that is was nothing more than a fun dream to think of upsetting. There is much more ahead of us to create a great season. Keep the faith. It's a long road back from the depths we were in.

I agree with the Captain on his post. To me this game boils down to the fact that we are the underdogs and to have a chance against a better team we need pressure from our DT's, time from our O-line and improvement from our LB's. Those things come about and we have a chance to beat Wisky. We are not as talent poor as our uninformed Badger visitors think. Most of them are ignorant as to what we have. If we can play to our potential we have a chance, but we are by no means their equal. An unfortunate by-product of this forum is that posters can hide behind the impenetrable cover of the internet. They can be immature, personal, ignorant and off-topic. To me that was running rampant on this board 4 years ago and I stop posting. The excitement that I have for this football team and the rise in Zip athletics has brought me back. I've gotten a thicker skin and a better attitude. I encourage others to "keep it classy Akron". I hope Balsy and others keep posting. I enjoy their comments.

Amato is a good coach and we are lucky to have him. But he did not have the D ready to stop VMI. Perhaps he didn't want to show Wisconsin anything or perhaps he just had a bad day. Regardless, there is talent on the defensive side and I look forward to them getting better. It's a long season and this is a good team. They will be heard from before it's all over.

In an effort to excise the demons of last night's game I'm offering these opinions on the VMI Game: 1) We are not as prepared or as disciplined as we need to be. Our enthusiasm for this year's team needs to be tempered with the time needed to correct mistakes. Too many of the penalties were caused by mental lapses. 2) Amato got out-coached. His defense did not stop VMI when needed. It was VMI mistakes and the offense who turned the game around. 3) Our offense was predictable, VMI just could not stop us. Wisconsin can and will if we don't become more creative. All Milwee called for was going deep and running Ball. That's not going to cut it. BTW, we do have a TE. Is AJ trying not to show too much to Wisconsin? Don't know. 4) The uni's look good, but they can be great if we go with the chrome gold helmets. Now that's a great look. 5) The field looked faded, almost washed out. there has got to be money to repaint the grass, numbers and lines. 6) I disagree with others in that I feel our DT's did not do their job. That middle has got to be clogged up. They were knocked back repeatedly for 3-4 yards on runs. 7) The people of Akron missed a good evening. True the game was not well played, but we had a chance to get to see a wealth of talent that bodes well for the future. The weather was great and the post game fireworks were a joy. We have to grow our attendence. I for one believe it will grow but until it does people are missing a good event. 8) Bowden will fix things. He is too smart not to. He is better than we deserve. All we need to do is get out of his way and let him do the job. he will and we will win.

Thanks K92. Looking forward to it. Go Zips.

Have beer, will travel. Can a few of us visit a tailgate or two? We don't know any of you, I think, but we would love to talk Zips as we are all grads and long time followers. Where can we visit if you are open to it? Can't wait for this game and this team. I believe they are underrated and Bowden will have them ready for the better opponents.

The Columbus Dispatch reports that Dunn has been dismissed for domestic violence against his girlfriend. There have been no charges filed but Urban Meyer has zero tolerance for abuse of women and he probably felt certain that abuse took place. Hence, he's gone. If true I hope we don't even talk to him if he wants to transfer.

In an effort to one up Hustle Belt for inaccuracy, Time Warner ran a recruiting special after the disappointing Zip loss tonight. In reviewing Akron's class the idiot commentator had lockett and Riggins both signed. In fact he went out of his way to list Riggins as the key recruit to make a quick impact. So much for pride in professional reporting. I think he was a Can't grad. Had to be!

He probably was, but the refs look the other way on that infraction nowadays. The game has changed and the OU fans need to find something else to complain about.

Loved the win. It showed the team has the heart we all love at Akron. I may be in the minority but I did not like Q's decisions in overtime. He repeatedly tried to drive and make something happen when it wasn't there. I would rather he run the offense to free up an outside shot or cut to the basket. Our lack of a true point guard may be our achilles heal. Regardless, I'm going to savor the anguish that the OU board is wreaking for a short while then it's back to work. This game may herald the emergence of a nice conference run that is the trademark of Zip teams lately. Congrats boys!

My limited contact with him was positive. I came away thinking he cared. I had horrible experiences with his assistants. "Arrogance" was a term that support staff at U of A uniformly used in describing all coaches in the i-era. I don't wish any of them ill, but i am glad they are a distant memory. Love the Bowden era.

I hope we use this as motivation and come out with a gigantic chip on our shoulders. Sure we have been disrespected, screwed, what have you so let's use it for motivation and adopt an attitude we play well with…. and that is us against the world. Zips come out with a vengeance and destroy Indiana. Then pound Marquette and any other team that stands in our way. This is a good team and if the NCAA selection committee thinks we have something to prove let's do just that. And give them the finger as we pull away the winner in each contest. I've got my tickets and I am psyched. Let's create an impossible place for IU to play in!

My biggest disappointment was Harney. I was hoping his game would grow with maturity and he would think team first rather than himself first. That was not the case. His shot selection was reflective of a guy who is selfish. He forced things off the dribble to the basket, many times losing the ball as he jumped in the air and had no one to dish off to. He dribbles too much under pressure and doesn't seem to realize that if he is double or triple teamed some teammate is wide open. Find him. Harney can make the big shot but he looses much in defense, rebounding, and turnovers. Besides that I love the guy Most of all, though, we need a point guard.

Zips - 24 Golden Felons - 21 Crowd - 12,000 Me - Happy Beat the damn Flashes! This can make our season (it's that bad)

ZIP… Stuart is the best GK coach Akron has ever had and possibly the best in the country. I will be surprised if he stays very long because he belongs in MLS. He was responsible for Meves having such an outstanding senior year when he was well below his potential as a junior and soph. To illustrate that point, I attended a coaching course that evaluated an Akron game. The overwhelming conclusion of the 15 coaches in the class was that Meves was the weak link in a potentially strong defensive line. He was physically up for the job but lacking the mental confidence a GK on a great team needs. Stu came in the next year and changed that all around. David was prepared for the pros once Stu was done. I hope all is well for you and you still have a cold one waiting at the beach bar at Hickam. Mahalo.

Now I'd be swayed by that ratio any day.

Zesty, are you having a bad day today? Or perhaps I hit too close to home in calling the band dull? When you attack back please be accurate. I never said our band had to dance. I said stop being dull, have fun, show some life and connect with the crowd. What's wrong with that? You shame yourself by attacking rather than listening. The fact of the matter is that there is not one rival MAC school that has shown any respect for our band. They don't have to dance if you don't want that. Ohio State's band doesn't dance but they connect with the crowd thru their musicianship and lively performance. They have fun and it shows. Have you ever been to a skull session? After they come into St. John's they are so fired up they can't sit still. That energy is pretty cool. Don't think that because someone disagrees with you the only response is to attack them. Save that for the K.E.N.T. board. We deserve a better halftime. Hope your day improves.

No way BG's campus is nicer than NIU's or Akron's. Have you ever walked that place? The architecture is horrible and the landscaping is early 1960's state mental institution-esque. We need to stand up for what we have. It is better than most and getting improved all the time.

Props to OU's band once again. They seem to be the opposite of our band..... they have fun, play interesting music and do more than stiff, geometric marching. Our band has been pretty dull for a long time. They have no traditions that connect with the crowd, OK, the 100 people in the stadium. Get some life guys! Find something that engages the crowd and keep giving it to them. You are on a college campus for God's sake! Find a director that allows you to have fun!

Would love to see EKU replace Akron as we move to something better. Now back to reality. Until football wins regularly we are not going to any better conferences. For now we need to be a football winner in the MAC.