72 Roo

Crew8 ... Thanks for posting this interview with Caleb. I just finished listening to both halves of it. What a compelling discussion. I'm really charged up! Caleb is a great ambassador for the university and the future of soccer. After listening to his interview is there any doubt he will be the US men's team coach one day. When he does get it he will put the US at the top. Until then let's enjoy him while we've got him.

Hilltopper .... Are you sure your kid is not a closet K.E.N.T. fan and he/she wanted to destroy the evidence? This erasure of your DVD could be a warning sign. Sounds like it's time for an intervention and not let him/her go to the dark side. We are all with you during this possible time of family crisis. My uncle is a priest and I'm sure he could do an exorcism of any K.S.U. demons. He says they're wimps anyways. Figures. It's 9:43 and ....

Jake ... Thanks for what you do for us. It is getting better all the time. I enjoy all you do to help us follow the Zips.

His tweets aren't any worse than some of our current athletes. I will say that eventually he and all the Zips using social networks will hopefully realize that everything they say is public and will be read by prospective employers and if they make it big young people looking for role models. Some are smart enough to keep their profiles private so they don't say something that their coaches (yes, of course they monitor that stuff) might not like. The University needs to monitor some of our guys twitter accounts more. There are some pretty terrible things posted on some guys accounts. Not the way you want the University to be represented. I understand the freedom of speech issues that go into this, but some of these guys need some lessons in accountability. Quick... Isn't it paradoxical that the world today seems to abhore accountability, but the teams that accept and embrace it are winners. Ask the Socceroos. Just my observation: today's ballyhooed high school kid wants more attention to himself than desires to pay the price to win championships.

I have not been impressed with the maturity or class of many athletes coming out of Glenville. The tweets of this athlete seem more of the same. At any program, athletes who come off as doing you a favor by signing with your college team fail to impress me. Act like you want to be a Zip and I'll be glad to welcome any player the coaches recruit.

MAX ... I don't agree that iCoach will be gone next year if he doesn't win 5. His back is covered by TW for at least 3 years. I am hoping iCoach can learn and grow into being a good coach. This year he was pathetic. Here I'm not talking about his team, I'm talking about him as a coach. In almost all areas of performance evaluation as a coach I would rate him as unacceptable. Publicly he never threw in the towel so I will give him credit for that. But in two years a lot of growth can take place. Since he will be our coach I hope he seizes the opportunity. In the final analysis, if he loses the team and school we love loses more. BTW, I think we will win only 3 next year. While that is better than 1, it still makes me sick. Our standards must be set higher. Porter, Dambrot, Mitchell and Engle would never try to convince someone that that level of performance is doing things right.

Root ... Too funny! The humor on this board is sometimes world class. Great graphic!

Thanks for your good work. i enjoyed this very much and look forward to more positive discussions of Zip sports. Your greatest moments was a fun way to close last year and begin 2011 with all its high hopes and expectations.

Expanding the grandstand while providing permanent restrooms, team shop and concessions are the next steps for our program. The coaches believe if we have those facilities we can average 5,000 per game (this year we averaged 3,300 per game good for 2nd in the country behind UC Santa Barbara). I have heard, with no confirmation, that development is working with some entity interested in naming the stadium. The naming rights, if secured, will bring more cash but not enoughto pay for all the above. Momentum is on our side, though, and we many supporters determined to keep us at the top. You better believe that Caleb would not have stayed if further investment in our soccer stadium was not assured. I've got to believe that completing the stadium is a top project for TW.

When we point to the 1-11 record we can boast about how "bad" this team was. When we look at the team play the last two games of the season we find a different scenario. The Zips nearly pulled off the upset of the season (for MAC play) by barely losing to a good Miami team that went on to win the MAC championship game over a favored NIU. The win over Buffalo was expected. Still, the team showed marked progress toward the end of the season. Are the Zips really all that bad? In retrospect? I see potential and growth on the part of the players and the coaching staff. The learning curve is steep. Yet, manageable. Go American football Zips. GO Zips ... Gotta call you on this one. I don't see ANY area on the gridiron Zips where the team progressed and the coaches got better, with the POSSIBLE exception of running back. Coincidentally I don't see any coach or group of coaches who showed growth in their profession. This staff came in highly heralded, primarily by the iCoach, but with the benefit of hindsight we can see that they have questionable ability. The fact that most of them were fired or out of a job when they joined us at Akron should have been an indication of what was to come. Not one of them took mariginal talent and had it over-achieving at the end of the season. Isn't that what a coach is supposed to do? That's what my management team is expected to do in business i.e. take the talent you are given and help it to achive the goals for our business this year. 1-11 is not achieving anything. BTW, glad to see Latina go after witnessing his performance as an OC. On the plus side I do feel iCoach is bringing in better talent. I remain a skeptic regarding he and his staff having the ability to get the most out of them and create a true team of brothers willing to do anything for each other. He is our coach for the next two years so I wish him success. I just want to be realistic as his ability to deliver it. As you have said, I hope he is learning and ready to use it to create W's. Happy New Year!

Great news about the downtown! The more dynamic our community becomes the better time we will have attracting quality people to go to college here and stay for a career. FWIW, I had my in-laws in from Ann Arbor for a football and soccer game one weekend this fall. They were amazed at the vibrancy of the campus and our downtown. They went away becoming ambassadors for the town of their high school years (they moved away for college and never returned). I think it is well beyond a dream, by the ardent Zip supporters on this board, that Akron can, and will, become a great place to live with an attractive university culture/life. I'm proud of the town and our university! There growth is blossuming hand in hand

Temple, Miami, CMU, WMU, BGSU, UBuff. All trending downward. It could be a new era for teams like EMU, and possibly Akron. The relatively incompetent may have the advantage over the absolute incompetents. Let's see which category we filter into. Z.I.P. you crack me up. I've never heard our hopes described quite like you have done. Now I find myself cheering for us to gain the status of 'relatively incompetent" so we can win against the "absolute incompetents". The worst part of it is that it all makes perfect sense to anyone who has seen us play this year. Oh, and BTW, thanks for bringing home the championship in Santa Barbara. You did your job well. Mihalo

Thanks Dr. Z. It was a nice Christmas present to get some positive news on Zip football. Vinnie you seem like a great guy. Welcome to the Zip family. Everyone on this board has high aspirations for our athletic teams and football is in need of the talent infusion you can provide. Good luck in earning your degree. One major thing you will learn very soon is that and we will be ,hopefully soon

Our women's soccer program will benefit from the success of the men. We fund the ladies at a respectable level. Enough that we should dominate the MAC. Having watched the ladies many, many times I'm not sure we are playing the type of game that best utilizes our ladies' talent. It is a direct, through-ball dominant attach that is frustrating and boring. The girls are questioning the philosphy. They want to win as badly as any team on campus. Before we sink more dogh into the ladies the administration needs to see greater productivity = wins. That's not an unreasonable expectation. If it doesn't change next year expect to see a change at the top. This team has the talent to win.

Well let's see. It's nearly Christmas. The player in question is a starter and second leading scorer. Secondary charges are pending. Everything about this wreaks of no accountability, no responsibility and abuse of others i.e. I'm a D1 athlete so I'm entitled to do whatever I can get away with. Yep. Welcome to K.E.N.T. State University and reformatory. They disgust me. P.S. You are damn right he'll be back in time for league play.

Please take him. I saw nothing out of him last season that showed any glimmer of creativity. Good luck at Pitt. Bye Bye.

Moore looks like a good find. Is there any concern that all his video shows him playing out of the shotgun. I'm sure coach I has discussed being under center with him, but i am curious. While not being a fan of coach I, he deserves credit for the recruiting class he's building. We may be better than 3 wins next year. Five would be fantastic, that's how low our standard is now.

Akronnnnnnn ... Thanks for posting the link so we could all listen to the interview. It was great.

He also has a hot girlfriend who is an expert auto mechanic. She traveled with him down to Mississippi. I believe her name was Miss Vito.

Do they archive these shows? I'd like to listen to the program you liked so much. Any ideas?

Let's hope he grows 4 inches and adds 35 lbs.

Like many of you who attended the Akron-Cal soccer match, I couldn't understand why the AR (Assistant Referee) was escorted out of the game. I checked with a few people and here's what I got. After Akron scored to knot the game at 1-1 the AR called the referee over and said Caleb had been riding him constantly after Cal scored its first goal, which Caleb contended the Cal player was offsides. The AT said either He (Caleb) goes or I go. The referee said he was not going to throw out a head caoch in the quarterfinals of the NCAA championships. The AR then said "I quit". The fourth official took his place and Akron found a sufficiently certified referee in the stands to be the fourth ref. I've never seen this in decades of watching soccer. Caleb was asked about the incident in his press conference and he wisely pleaded ignorance. My bet is this AR will spend years getting back to having any highly respected game assignments. Other thoughts: 1) Meves was below par during the game and way above in the shootout. He came up big when needed. 2) The Cal goalie was the best to play on L.J. Field in years. He will be in MLS or Europe. 3) Cal was the best team to visit us in the last two years. They were flat out good and better that Michigan. They were very well coached. 4) Cal was a class act. After the game their captain came back out onto the field to congratulate Akron and wish them well. 5) 6 scouts were there from MLS. I saw Jeff Agoos, former USMNT captain scouting again. The first time I saw him was at the OSU game but he may have been to many more games. 6) Ampai was ineffective this game. He played predictably and never was a threat. He never penetrated and Cal was content to let him play laterally. They funneled him into the central D where he lost space and opportunity to shoot. 7) the weather slowed Akron's possession game and gave Cal's bigger and more physical forwards a chance to bang around in the box. 8) In my opinion the crowd was a disappointment. I know the weather was bad but how often do you have a chance to see the last game before the final four on our campus. Thank God the Rowdies didn't fail us. They have been loyal and steady all year. They are worth a goal a game. The rest of the Akron following let us down. We should have set a record for attendence. 9) We present matchup problems for Michigan that haven't been solved since we last played (7-1) despite their vast improvement. We also are in their heads and Caleb will masterfully exploit that. We will go on to the finals. 10) A final between us and Louisville is a toss-up. They are that good. But I believe we will find a way to win. Go Zips!

Well done Zip Watcher! Thanks.

Z.I.P. I won't be going out. My wife is very sick and this is not the time to leave. Wish I could join you and I'm holding you responsible for bringing home the Cup to Akron. You can do it pal! Put a Hawaian war chant on our opponents and the Zips will take care of the rest.

I would court UMass as hard and strong as possible, but only with the stipulation that they join in all sports. Bringing UCF in for Football only was a mistake. Bringing Temple in for football only was a mistake. Umass in for football only is also a mistake. The football only schools are basically saying wei'll play until we can go somewhere else. I can't believe some of the comments on this thread that rip K.e.n.t. and other schools while seemingly believing we bring so much more to the Mid "Atlantic" Conference. Geez folks, get real. we are 1-11. We suck and outside of Summit county the rest of Ohio thinks we are a joke. Let's actually accomplish something on a sustained basis before we go placing ourselves above the rest of the conference. Unfortunately, that includes K.e.n.t.