ZipsAlum92

I agree with the article. The experiment was a failure. Hiring a recruiting coordinator to be the head coach makes about as much sense as hiring a headhunter to be the CEO of a company. Recruiting and coaching are two totally different things, with a completely different set of core competencies. And let's be honest, recruiting for Notre Dame isn't all that hard. Notre Dame's admission standards alone eliminate a lot of the top prospects from even being considered. That said, I think the one that really has some explaining to do is Wistricill. His judgment in hiring Ianello has to be questioned. It is great that he was able to retain Porter and Dambrot, but retention is different than hiring. If I were Proenza and the Board of Trustees, I would want Wistricill completely out of the hiring process for the next head coach. I would expect him to rubber-stamp whatever recommendation the search committee makes. If he doesn't like that, I would remind him that the door still works.

These Tressel rumors did not just pop up over night. I started hearing all of this back in October. To me, it comes downs to this: 1. What is the NCAA going to do to Tressel? If Akron is interested in him, they are no doubt already talking to them regarding what penalties he will face and, if it is a pill they want to swallow, they will negotiate his contract accordingly. 2. I am not sure Jim Tressel and Tom Wistricill would be a good match. I heard stories of Tressel reaching out to him during the last coaching search and asking him to take a good look at Fickell. Of course, we all know what happened. Wistricill hired his buddy and two years and two wins later, we are right back where we were. I heard that Tressel was not happy when Fickell wasn't even seriously considered for the job, despite having more on-field coaching experience than Ianello. 3. I am sure if Tressel comes to Akron, he is going to bring some of his guys with him. Top of that list would likely be Fickell. I know Ohio State is going to pay him more than what Akron could and that he has a guaranteed contract with them through 2013, but come on, there is no way he can really be excited about Urban Meyer coming in. Meyer is going to want to bring in his own guys, and despite what is being portrayed in the media, you have to think Fickell isn't one of them. In all honesty, I can't imagine Fickell staying at Ohio State, as it would be incredibly difficult going from being the interim head coach, back to the assistant head coach. That said, I think Tressel could do a lot for Akron. He built a solid program at Youngstown State and comes from a coaching family. He has obvious ties to Akron and it would be the perfect place for him to finish his career and start down the road to redemption.

No. At best, I see us going 1-11 again.

I find it incredibly pathetic that we find ourselves arguing about the margin of victory over VMI. Is that really all we have left to hope for this season? The Zips haven't been able to cover a points spread all season. This season the Zips are 0-3 against the spread while VMI is 2-1 against the spread. That said, I would put my money on this game being closer than several of you suggest. My guess is that Akron wins by a touchdown, but loses against the spread.

The issue shouldn't be that Akron can't afford to fire Ianello. The real issue is that Akron can't afford not to fire Ianello. They are playing in the nicest stadium in the MAC and aren't even drawing the crowds they did when they played in the Rubber Bowl. There are enough alums out there that would be willing to put up the cash to get rid of Ianello and get someone else. At the end of the day, Ianello isn't even likable. He has alienated the alumni and that is where the money comes from. Say what you want about Faust and his coaching, but at least he was a good guy and was able to charm the alumni into giving money to the program.

There was nothing positive about the Cinci game. Ianello can try to spin it any way he wants, but bottom line is that they got thumped badly. Sure, they managed to put a few points on the board, but it wasn't until the third quarter when Cinci was putting in kids that probably won't see the field the rest of the season. Meanwhile, Akron was burning red shirts and doing nothing to improve themselves for the rest of the season.

The simple fact of the matter is that Ianello is not a coach. I am not even sure he is that good of a recruiter. After all, how hard is it really to recruit for Notre Dame?

If you want to know my source for the stats, then here it is: http://web1.ncaa.org/football/exec/ranking...=2010&org=5 Plenty to see there in terms of the complete ineptness of this program.

Nothing on this team is working and I blame the coaches. Not just Ianello, but all of his assistants as well. The Zips are currently ranked 118th in total offense and 112th in total defense. That means that Ianello's buddy from Notre Dame, offensive coordinator John Latina, isn't doing his job. Neither is Ron Powlus, who Ianello also brought here from Notre Dame to coach the QBs. Any ideas where our QBs rank in terms of efficiency? 119th.

This rumor is false. No, it is not.

Actually, other than being ranked 120 out of 120, Gaffney's article didn't mention any of those statistics.

Not only do the Zips have the worst record in the Football Bowl Subdivision, but they also rank among the worst in several other categories. The NCAA tracks 17 major team statistics. The Zips rank 100 or below in 12 of those 17 statistical categories. The category they rank the best in is punting, where they are ranked 67th. If this isn't the fault of poor coaching, then I don't know what is. Ianello, along with his fellow South Bend flunkies -- John Latina and Ron Powlus, have set this program back at least five years in their first 8 games at the helm. I am not one to make snap judgments, but the numbers speak for themselves here. These guys need to be shown the door before they do much further damage.

Luke Fickell.

TW screwed up royally when he hired Ianello over Luke Fickell, whom Jim Tressel personally recommended for the job.

shut up you ankle-biter....go back and root for the youngstown high school penguins. Many YSU fans hate to admit it, but Akron will always be better than YSU. Deal with it losers. The Zips would be lucky to have a program as solid as YSU. They had 18,000 fans at their game yesterday.

"small" might be an understatement. This might turn into something huge.I will go on record as saying it will NOT turn into anything huge. Because it is not. Take that to the bank.If you want to sell papers or generate "hits" you create yourself a nice headline that infers a kid was given money, a hooker, etc. ZipsNation doesn't need to sell newspapers, and we get no income from the number of "hits" our site generates, so we have the ability to keep the hyperbole to a minimum...zero if we so choose. The violation of which Coach Ferri was accused is, based upon my research, considered a "secondary violation" by the NCAA. Penalties range from absolutely nothing, to loss of a car trip or two for recruiting this fall. That's it. And those allegations remain unproven/under investigation at this time.If Ferri stepped down, he did what he felt was best for himself and his family. It is as simple as that. He busted his ass for The University of Akron for 6 years. It bothers me tremendously that this is the way it closes for him. He deserved better.If that is truly the case, then I really don't see why he would resign. Something tells me there is more to the story than your "research" has brought to light.

My prediction -- 10,000 topsA few factors are at work here: Ohio State plays Wisconsin at 3:30pmIt is going to be a chilly, and possibly wet, night gameOU is favored by 5 pointsZips are 1-3

From the ABJ site --Ferri steps down from UA coaching staffBy Tom GaffneyBeacon Journal sports writerPOSTED: 12:50 p.m. EDT, Oct 07, 2009Reno Ferri is no longer a member of the football coaching staff at the University of Akron.This morning, the UA board of trustees accepted his resignation as recruiting coordinator and running backs coach, effective Nov. 1.On Sept 23, Ferri had been placed on paid administrative leave, pending a school review of whether he violated compliance requirements related to NCAA rules.That review has not been completed.Reno Ferri is no longer a member of the football coaching staff at the University of Akron.This morning, the UA board of trustees accepted his resignation as recruiting coordinator and running backs coach, effective Nov. 1.On Sept 23, Ferri had been placed on paid administrative leave, pending a school review of whether he violated compliance requirements related to NCAA rules.That review has not been completed.http://www.ohio.com/news/break_news/63680792.html

Head over to Pints. It is right across the street from the stadium and the owners are both alums. The bar has a nice Zips theme and the get a good crowd on game day.

This season is OVER. So, it really doesn't make a whole lot of difference if you fire JD now or do it in December. Heck, at least if you kick him to the curb now, you can use an interim head coach for the rest of the season while you are out looking for the best head coach you can get.

Wow.First Jacquemain, then Reno Ferri and now Cowles Stewart. Wistrcill has had a really busy first two weeks on the job. Wonder if he is regretting coming here yet?

Ever heard of capitalization or spacing after periods?Of course not. Like most of the rest of us, he graduated from the University of Akron.

The problem wasn't with local law enforcement (APD, UAPD, SCSO), but rather with the state liquor control agents. They were the ones busting people for open containers. That said, three of them walked right past me in Lot 9 and never said a word about the beer-filled cup in my hand.

Let's be realistic. This is not going to be a great season. We are probably going to be 1-3 after this week. I think we all need to accept the fact that this year's team is a .500 ball club. That isn't going to save Brookhart's job. This season is what it is.

Akron wants to move up to the Big East. That has been in the works for a long time. The stadium was the first step. Building a new basketball arena downtown will be the next.