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Well that changes the whole mid-major landscape... So is the MAC screwed? If it wants to form a superconference, what's that leave? The WAC,and the Sunbelt. That's a spread out mess. Not much chance of anyone getting poached from thpse two conferences, maybe Nevada by the C-USA/MW to replace whoever gets poached by a legacy conference. Here's who we're looking at, with Sagarin rankings: SUN BELT 71 Louisiana-Lafayette 80 Arkansas State 86 Fla. International 93 Troy 124 North Texas 146 Middle Tennessee 151 Louisiana-Monroe 167 Florida Atlantic 172 Western Kentucky WESTERN ATHLETIC 48 Nevada 70 Hawaii 84 Utah State 94 Fresno State 101 Louisiana Tech 110 San Jose State 135 Idaho 142 New Mexico State Then there's the MAC. Would those two even seek to include the midwestern MAC? MID-AMERICAN 49 Temple (to the Big Easy? ACC?) 50 Western Michigan 56 Toledo 77 Ohio University 85 Northern Illinois 107 Bowling Green 111 Central Michigan 112 Ball State 117 Buffalo 132 Eastern Michigan 138 Miami-Ohio 139 Can't State 182 Akron On the other hand, wasn't Middle Tennessee our rival in the OVC?

Why do you think I'm bitter? I simply made some observations. Just like I said, if you disagreed with an ICoach move, should I call you a football hater? And why do you have to get all personal? You know nothing about me. It is true not many 45 year old grandfathers earn athletic scholarships, so that has nothing to do with my opinions (I do receive several program-related scholies). And you think you can look down on me because I watch a club sport (along with a half dozen sanctioned sports)??? You think you're better than I am because you couldn't possibly lower yourself to watch it? Who the hell do you think you are? Look at him.

You guys are driving this completely off the cliff. This crap is like someone saying they don't think Icoach is doing a good job and everyone else jumping on their ass for hating football. Crimony... Let's all hold hands and sing the Barney theme, and burn anyone at the stake who says anything negative.

Apparently you guys missed te point of my first sentence. Just because I have comments about how something is funded, and how much is funded to it, doesn't mean I don't like sports. I think the U, like a lot of them, spends wayyyyyy too much money trying to play at a level they can't be competitive at. They wind up dumping a bunch of money trying to reach an attendance figure, to stay at a level your 1-5 in. Same with Can't. Same with OU (cept they're 1-4). 1-5 isn't going to inspire anybody to spend a Saturday afternoon there, no matter how much money they put into advertising. They're not inspiring students to go to games as part of their college experience while playing this kind of football. I'm not saying anything that hasn't been said on here before. Like I said, I have more fun at a hockey game, or a baseball game (a program that apparently makes up a spec on the athletic budget) than at the Info. I had fun at Wayne College games when I attended there.

To.......... ? Can't State? Cleveland State? Same situation. Heck at CSU I would be paying fees and not watching football or baseball or hockey. A two year school? I'm in the fourth year of a Bachelor program. The issue isn't with Akron, per se.

Temple seems to be doing a nice job. True. I was talking Ohio, but yeah Temple looks to be moving up on the food chain soon,

Personally, I get as much enjoyment out of watching the pay-to-play Zips hockey club as I do any other sport. Maybe more, it's an exciting sport. As someone who pays for their own tuition (with 20 hours of overtime a week), I could sure do without that annual athletic fee. I really see NO REASON to pay part of a scholarship for softball players. I don't go to the games, and from the looks of it neither does anybody else but family and friends. And they pay nothing to watch. That's because I already paid for them. The schools try to hide all these programs because of "student life". Well how many of these sports do students actually GO WATCH? They spend lots of money marketing these teams to the students, money we paid, and nobody goes. They spend more money to market to the general public in a desperate drive to keep the football team above the NCAA I-A requirements. It's not like students are chosing Akron (or Can't) because of the great legacy they have in football... What do I care if the football team is Division I-A? And by what definition are they? Because they beat a team from a BCS conference every few years? Because they're paid big money to be warm-up fodder to a REAL I-A program every year? None of these schools (besides maybe Toledo) have any business pretending to be I-A.

When are the Rowdies coming back to the hockey games and station behind the opponents goalie? These overtime games are making me old quick.

Video from Friday night's win over West Virginia. They started OT on the power play.

What? No Schaefers? No Red White and Blue? Sheafers is the one beer to have when you're having more than one. On the other end of the scale, I decided to celebrate hockey's come from behind OT win with a Blue Moon. Or 6.

The Zips hockey home opener weekend is this Friday and Saturday at 7:25pm at Center Ice. Admission is $5 (free for students) and includes the possibility of seeing me fall flat on my ass. Friday night we take on the West Virginia Mountaineers, and Saturday the IUP Crimson Hawks are in town. These are the only home games in October. For more info visit www.akronhockey.com

Isn't this the place where the Michigan dentist moved his pro team to play a few yrs ago, when he found out the Canton CC was booked? I think DiG does his figure skating practice there in the mornings. I don't remember. I remember there was a lot of talk about a rink in Massillon and a team moving there. But I don't know if they ever went to Center Ice or not.

Our enrollment is almost 30,000, and we pay a facility feee. And students get in football games. Does that count as 30,000 season tickets sold?

Seventy seats for baseball? That may be excessive. LOL I wonder if they'll be oen for students for baseball. Thinking about it, you wouldn't need an elaborate mechanical system to do the rotating, as the seasons are several months apart. In theory you would only be turning it twice a year. How does spring soccer draw?

The primary reason for the UA/CSU combo was that Cleveland is well served by private universities. Combining the two schools would have increased research dollars for UA (which is what would have become of the whole thing UA-Cleveland) and lessened the student burden. It also would have stopped the current CSU developments for resident housing, turning it into a branch campus. This is why Cleveland would have nothing to do with it. They spent to much money up there making it a campus. USF is a successful multi-campus university. The problem is it is only 50 some years old. You have 140 years of tradition at UA, 100 years at Can't and almost 90 at CSU. You will be hard pressed convincing the region and cities, let alone the alumni and voting public that it would be a benefit. Especially considering our region is so entrenched and the current motivator is anti poaching. Mergers will look like poaching to a city, especially one like Akron or Can't that its University is so key to its city identity. That is why Fingerhut was promoting synergistic relationsips, that is why they have the "center of excellence" designations, and why they are promoting "non duplication of programs". If you are going to have 100 thousand students on 4 campuses (Can't State, UA, CSU, YSU) then you are going to have to make each unique. Oh hell no. Not CSU. I dealt with them when looking for a school and again when I considerd transferring. It is 100% urban and I do not want to deal with them again. They are fine being Tri C's 4 year option. At least Akron and Can't have a lot in common. And are close enough to make it work. I am no fan of CSU.

OK, try Toledo and Bowling Green.

Here is the home schedule

I think it would be great to have a rink on campus. Not just for the hockey team, but also for the students. The games I have been to (Akron Zips and Wooster Oilers JrA) the public skates before and after the games are PACKED. I wonder how many students would use it, looks like a fun hobby, and a good fitness exercise. You could convert it to indoor soccer and have intramural and recreational soccer games certain days of the week. And you could rent it out to other organizations (like youth leagues and high school teams). Maybe even a Jr league or low level minor league team. Just my thoughts. It's not my money they're spending. On second thought, yes it is!!!

I've been thinking more about this C-USA MW merger. Why not include the MAC and the WAC, and just create a superconference that is itself a midmajor sublevel of football?Have an 4 team playoff with the three games each a contracted bowl game?You still get the bowl money, FWIW. You still get on TV. You still get to go to your annual beat-down-for-cash with the BCS schools.Each conference can maintain independance in basketball and other sports, and keep their automatic bids. But football is tied together.And everyone who wants a true playoff system in college football has a higher level of national championship game to watch.And those teams playing at a high level can spotlight for a chance at a BCS conference slot, or a bigger $$ bowl game.Then, you sell out to an up-and-coming network like "NBC Sports" (formerly Versus). Get in now while the gettin's good.Might be the best choice for those left behind...

You may not be going to games after the next five years and it won't be anything the University has done right or wrong. In fact, when you go to MAC games, you aren't seeing the highest level of competition as that level is reserved for BCS teams. Nobody likes to hear it, but that is the truth.That's how I feel. What were our biggest wins? Syracuse? NC State? Are those the top tier teams you want to see? What leads you to think Akron will move beyond that (or even get back to that) in the next 10-15 years?I like watching the best ball players in the world, and they're right there on my TV every night. But I have a lot more fun, spend a lot less money, and eat a lot better food at Canal Park than I do at Progressive Park. The first couple months of this season is an exception.

Just announced UPitt and Syracuse are joining the ACC. UConn and Rutgers may be next.With Texas, Oklahoma, and OSU headed for the Pac Whatever, the Big East and Big 12 are rumored to be talking merger. Notre Dame headed for the ACC if they have to give up their football independance?Mountain West merging with C-USA in football only?

I've said this before, but it's been awhile.I'd much rather be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a big pond. The Zips in the FCS would be exciting, competitive. But would they draw in fans? Would the big beautiful stadium go to waste? Let's go a couple blocks west to the Akron Aeros. Let's go up north a few miles to Richfield and look at the Cleveland Force. And further north to Cleveland and take a peak at the original Cleveland Gladiators. None were ever considered the top level of their sport. All set attendance records. Have you ever been to a wrestling match at Heidelberg? Does the whole community get behind Mt. Union football? That's Division 3, we're talking Division One in a much more densely populated area."If you win it, they will come".After taking a good look at the sport, if Akron or anyone else wanted to be a part of the conference realignment and get into a BCS eligible conference, it's about 10 years too late. None of the MAC schools are being recruited by the Big Ten. That horse left the barn long ago, and now those conferences with their cable networks have an even bigger leg up on recruiting. TCU and BS being pushed aside by the BCS and given their own bowl game against each other was the writing on the wall. "You are not us".I'd rather be contending in the FCS than waddling around with the rest of the taints.

Where do you have Notre Dame?

Heck plant sod and convert it to soccer. We've already outgrown the soccer stadium.And the soccer stadium is plenty big enough for the people who still want to watch this bad idea of a football team.

Like Duke and NC? USC and UCLA? Cincinnati and Xavier? Then there's Temple, Penn, Villanova, St Josephs, and LaSalle (all playing in the same arena)