Dr Z

This one by David Dermer is my favorite. I can read a lot into this one, and feel the emotion. Thirteen more photos by Keith Srakocic can be found in this gallery. I like a lot of the reflections in the helmets.

As I sat down after the half, the Pitt fans around me informed me that Akron would wear down because they didn't have the same depth that Pitt had. I just love that sports cliché. That 42-yard run set the tone for the half, as Akron ran the ball 22 times for 112 yards in the third and fourth quarters. "The thing that was disheartening is that's, to me, the first time that somebody was able to consistently run the football on us," Pitt defensive coordinator Matt House said Tuesday. "The most demoralizing thing for a defense is when they run the football on you."

No one is immune to increased competition on the University of Akron football team under coach Bowden. That includes quarterbacks. by George Thomas “We played our second quarterback a little bit,” Bowden said in his weekly news conference Tuesday. “Will it change the game? No. But it’s something we’re looking to see if it can spark us in any way. We’ve got to continue to develop our football team and try to look at areas where we can get better, and that’s what we’re trying to do.” Pohl, who confessed to not playing well, did what any teammate would do after he was pulled out. “He’s a great player. It’s that simple,” Pohl said. “I was excited for him. I helped him out as much as I could. He did great. We’re here to win as a team.” I'm very impressed how the staff has handled this situation thus far. A lot of times this situation creates chaos, but I don't see that right now. I see a team trying to win with what they have.

I know nothing about EMU. They are so bad, I'm in denial they are even in the MAC. When I know very little in sports, I turn to stats. The very first thing I look at with an opponent is the QB, then I game plan from there. When you look up the MAC QB leaders, they don't even have one that qualifies. It would seem pretty hard to "fear" their passing game. EMU seems to play two QB's. When you have two, you obviously don't have a good one. The senior (Rob Bolden) has 0, 5, 7, and 29 attempts in four games. The sophomore (Brogan Roback) has 14, 10 17 and 0 attempts. So he either got pulled or hurt. I almost cared to look it up, but discovered the below rankings and decided to stop, because it doesn't matter. EMU should get POUNDED Saturday. Coach Amato should have his boyz in attack mode. Should be a nice stat padding day. I stated early that I was surprised by the 21 point spread. I am no longer surprised after reading the rankings.

Same answer, 22 months ago against UMass the Zips were 14 point favorites.

One of the most entertaining, and athletic Zips players I have seen. Wost quality ever, but best I could find: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqO8rIDqe4A&list=UUzcFQg9cpiUg-Qwqv8NMRhg

Zach lost to a kicker that kicked two field goals of 21 and 33. Holy F-o!?! Who picks these things? I hate individual awards in a team sport, but Zach deserved it. Even though his own conference can't figure it out, he was named Honorable Mention Punter of the Week by the College Football Performance Awards. Congrats Jatavis! He is the Zips' top defender with 30 tackles, including 19 solo stops, 4 tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble, and a break-up.

Me either, but I know it's incorrect. The Zips are favored to win. I'm a little surprised the line is that high. Without looking at the numbers, I would have guessed 16. I would be more interested in the over/under on this one.

Cool patch, but I'm not sure it has to be on black. I like the handling of the uniforms this year. The helmets looked nice with all the reflections from the sun on Saturday. BTW, not that we don't rotate a lot of players in and out, but can we get something to keep the helmets on the players head? I lost track of how many Akron players had to come out of the game because they lost there lid on Saturday.

I have to apologize to Keener and Co. who tried my recommendation. Even though I linked to the Sharp Edge on Penn, I should have made it very clear that there are multiple Sharp Edges. Sorry guys. I had lunch there before the game. Thanks Zippy5 for both recommendations. My group attended both on Saturday. We got to Sienna Mercato around 7 pm. Big mistake. 2 hour wait for a table. Place was shoulder to shoulder. We went to the rooftop and had a few and got appetizers. We are going back in January after a Pens game. Beer Market had AWESOME beer selection.

Thanks for all the kind words from everyone. I'm glad to read the images are appreciated, makes the effort worth it. I wish every ZN member could have been in the end zone celebrating with the team after the game. I didn't capture the excitement as well as one could have, but I hope fans get the idea. I think the Akron media department was on the field filming it, so maybe fans will get to see it. PS You can watch the replay here, with the proper id.

Not bad, but not the angle I would have taken. “Offensively, we were stagnant,” Chryst said. More important were the seven penalties, for a combined 55 yards. “I thought we’d play cleaner,” Chryst said. Part of playing cleaner is avoiding penalties. Pitt didn’t do that. They could have had an easy nine penalties. The holding call that took the touchdown away, was no different than most of the holds that were not getting called before that one. I like how they also reviewed all of Akron's big plays just to make sure they didn't miss anything.

I felt terrible after the Marshall loss, I was really down. I got to talk to one of the players after the game. His attitude was unreal. As he was disappointed with the loss, he was already speaking of the Pitt game, and how excited he was to get back on the field and avenge the "day that nothing went right"...his description. I walked away feeling better, and thinking, is his attitude just an individual thing, or does the staff have that effect on the team? What a great effort they put in Pittsburgh after the messy Marshall game. Is was great to see the players celebrating on Heinz field after the game. Well deserved.

Getting back from Pittsburgh late last night, I haven't had time to read the entire thread, so I apologize if this has been written already. Saturday was my first time watching James Conner in live action. I came away very unimpressed. Half of the day, and most of my photos show this, he had pretty big holes to run through. The Zips linebackers were quick to fill. I'm not trying to take anything away from the Akron defense, because they played great, but I thought Conner looked slow to me. He left a lot of yards on the ground IMO. I didn't fear him carrying the ball at all. I can't remember what point and time it was in the game, they handed the ball to #29, he hit the same hole and run to the outside making the linebackers chase him down for a nice gain. I thought in my mind, ut oh, put Conner back in. They did. On the other side, I thought Hundley looked quick. I would think the staff is going to have a hard time going away from that. He needs the ball twenty times a game. Nice job by AJ mixing the run and pass Saturday. PS Boyd was as advertised. The combination between the guy throwing the ball, and the guy calling the plays has to be frustrating for him.

There are a few ways. Here is one. Click on the 'Gallery' tab at the top. There is an Upload button. Create an album, and upload your images. Once uploaded, you can right click on the image and get a direct link. Copy that link and paste it into the image button (button with the tree) when replying. It reads more complicated than it actually is. Option 2, pm me, I'll give you an email address to send me the images, and I can do it for you.

Pitt offensive coordinator was Boyd's worst enemy on Saturday.

Zach was awesome Saturday. On top of the length of his punts, more importantly was the height. I think Boyd had four fair catches. The coverage was excellent as well, the two that Boyd did catch, I think he ended up with negative yardage. Zach gave us excellent field position all day long.

Cody Grice takes it into the end zone. —©Photo by Dr Z Cody Grice pulls down Isaac Bennet from behind. —©Photo by Dr Z Jatavis Brown celebrates after taking down Chad Voytik. —©Photo by Dr Z Kyle Pohl starts the celebration after kneeling on the ball. —©Photo by Dr Z The team runs over to celebrate with their fans. —©Photo by Dr Z CJ didn't miss any fan that wanted a high five. —©Photo by Dr Z I believe that we have won. —©Photo by Dr Z It was good to be an Akron Zip Saturday. —©Photo by Dr Z

Here are a few images from Saturday The Zips spread out the defense with an empty backfield. —©Photo by Dr Z LT Smith watches as the ball deflects into the defenders hands. —©Photo by Dr Z A Panther interception stops Akron's early momentum. —©Photo by Dr Z Zips defenders surrounded the Panthers run attack most of the day. —©Photo by Dr Z The Panthers offensive line had their hands full Saturday. —©Photo by Dr Z Tyler Boyd rushes around the end. —©Photo by Dr Z The offensive line gives a push at the goal line. —©Photo by Dr Z

It's octoberfest at sharp edge!!!!!!

77 and sunny at game time. Sun will be beating off those gold domes. I'm off to the Burg!!!

George Thomas interviews Kyle.

Good question. Here are some phone numbers that might get you the answer. I can't find anything on the web other than the new 49'ers stadium encourages fans to bring their iPads because they have an interactive app. I think I'm going to try bringing in a camera with a 4 inch lens. It says 6" lens or more is not permitted, but I'm still nervous that they make me carry it back to the car, which would be a hike for me. I actually printed the security sheet out and put it in my wallet to show the worker. Edit: I called guest services. Tablets permitted, no big cases on the tablets. You can bring a dslr as long as the lens doesn't EXTEND past 6 inches. Glad I called, because mine does. Phooey.

CJ Mizell: Growing into a MAN Originally signing with Florida State in 2009, Mizell hit some bumps in the road.... Video of pretty much what is listed below. Heinz Field Security Guidelines The following items ARE PERMITTED: Clear plastic, vinyl or PVC bags smaller than 12" x 12" x 6"One-gallon clear plastic freezer bagsClutch purses no larger than 4.5" x 6.5"Medically necessary items, after inspectionThe following items ARE NOT PERMITTED: All prohibited items must be disposed of or returned to vehicles Bags (Camera, binocular, computer, cinch, diaper, backpack, fanny pack, etc.)Purses larger than 4.5" x 6.5"LuggageSeat cushionsTermoses/coolersCans/bottles/flasks/containersAlcoholic beveragesBanners/signs on polesLaser PointersStrollersVideo/movie cameras/tripodsProfessional cameras/lenses (6 in. or longer)Audio recording equipmentNoisemakersWeaponsApparel or signage displaying profane or abusive languageAny other item deemed dangerous and/or inappropriate

For anybody that is going to the game, and then staying in town for Sundays game, be aware that traffic is going to be even worse because of the great race. Plan accordingly. Perfect weather weekend!