akzipper

Hopefully a new center scoreboard and ribbon boards to replace the old black and orangish-yellow boards behind each basket. Have to think the money earned from new advertising space would be worth it.

I think deep down LeBron would want anything 'Akron' to succeed. Not just UA, but the city in general. I would think most people would feel the same way about their hometown (well except for maybe our last head coach). He's always been supportive of Zips football and really has no ties there.

There are some reviews online from people in select markets using YouTube TV. Sounds like it runs a lot smoother than other services and has unlimited DVR. Something I wish I had with DirecTV Now. ESPN is included, but a lot of channels missing. Seems like every service has it's advantages and drawbacks. Nothing is the clear cut #1 option. Hopefully YouTube TV can be that. Unfortunately it's probably going to be a long time before it's in cities like Akron.

Yeah I wish.... 4 years of out of state tuition. But even Ohio residents have a ton of debt. There's enough companies and donors around Akron to help get a much needed arena done.

Uhh I have six figures worth of student loans because of UA. They can't really rely on us to pay for the arena. It blows my mind that the school has no money to pay for anything.

Seemed to be a lot of "last coaching staff" references too. Would be nice if Groce and UA avoided bringing up the old coach by name.

Probably would have been better to not show up at all.

Why are they forcing us to watch sideways? this is beyond frustrating....

I'd say this is a bad omen, but really have any of the Zips video feeds ever worked well?

I feel like "meet and greets" are always cheesy and a little bit awkward. Especially coming from a big school, the turnout will probably be a little bit depressing for Groce. I'd hope that maybe the Rowdies can get a big group to go or something. It would be nice to give him a warm welcome.

If Groce was going from one major program to another it would make sense for a player to transfer. But nobody is going from Illinois to Akron because of the coach....

Hopefully it's good for the Zips and good for the MAC. I know that plenty of people had their favorites, but we all have to support him. Don't give up on the Zips because you disliked him at OU.

I can agree with that. I don't really care that he left, it's more of where he went and how he left. I'm not a fan of the hire for a variety of reasons. But I still dislike it when a coach bails on their alma mater. That should be a place you want to make better, not use it as a stepping stone.

Meh. 83-81 record. Only finished first in the conference one time, while being 4th-5th the other 4 years. A lot of people have been critical of Dambrot leaving his alma mater. How do we feel about Jamion Christian doing the same?

Maybe we should tap the breaks here. It was only tweeted by one account that has 600 followers.

Groce would be a better hire than I expected. Hopefully if he chooses to come to Akron he doesn't jump ship in a couple of years. Even though he struggled at Illinois, I could see him going to an AAC, A10 or CUSA school if they came calling. Our only hope is that his "dislike" of Dambrot would drive him to try and break KD's records? right?

I feel like Groce would just return to the MAC until he found a bigger gig somewhere else. I hated him at OU, but he won and made it further in the tournament than Dambrot ever has.

Seems like a "make a splash" hire on the day of the National Championship. The school's most famous alumni, with no college coaching experience and not great in the NBA. I remember a few years ago the Magic wanted him to coach in the D-League. John Thompson III had been a good coach for them, that unfortunately just had a couple bad years recently. I could see him being successful again. Obviously not coming to Akron.

More like if Lebron left the Cavs in 2010 to play for the New Jersey Nets because he wanted a challenge. At least James went a better team where he could compete for championships. And unlike Lebron, I have no interest in seeing KD anywhere near Akron again. All of these people thanking him on social media is irritating.

Probably the most important point right there. Not something we can say about any other candidate. Recruiting makes me nervous. ..and I don't understand Jim Christian. It's only a matter of time until he get's let go at BC, but why does he keep coming back to the MAC after struggling at bigger schools?

Can potential NFL draftees decide to not hire an agent and if undrafted return to college? I know it's common practice in the NBA draft, and was thinking that might have been a better move for Lane. Since most people seem to think with a WR-heavy draft he might end up signing somewhere undrafted. I'm hoping the Browns take a chance on him. They did a good job making Pryor a receiver and think that coaching staff can help Lane become more polished.

I agree too. We basically knew what we'd be getting every season. - 20+ wins - Weak OOC schedule (of which we'd probably lose a few games to cupcakes) - Start MAC strong and struggle towards the end (split games with Kent, Buffalo, OU, lose some to cupcakes) - No star players (Zips never had anyone with the ability to take over a game on a consistent basis) - Lose in MAC championship - Try to get excited about the NIT or CBI Maybe I'm being greedy but I think we deserved to finally see the Zips get over that hump. Instead of being let down at the end of every season. KD said he was disappointed after winning 26 & 27 games? How does he think we feel as fans? He can actually control what the team does. We have no choice. We can't just run to Pittsburgh because we're sick of being let down. We're in for a rough patch as Zips fans, where we'd probably wish we didn't take those 20-win seasons for granted. But maybe somewhere down the line we'll get that fluke Sweet 16 appearance or get to see one of our players make it to the NBA. Two things that could never happen with KD.

What worries me the most is that we are now in the cycle of a mid major. Where two things happen: A coach is successful and moves on OR a coach is a dud and he's let go. I'd say go for a UA alum, but we just saw a UA alum leave.

I think Akron basketball peaked during Zeke Marshall's senior season. It was the best season the Zips ever had. Up until the Abreu incident it seemed like the Zips were going to make a nice run in the NCAA. Then we got blown out by VCU and haven't returned to the tournament ever since. After this past season I've been struggling with the realization that maybe the Zips will never make the tournament again. Probably never get to see a great Sweet 16 run or even a tournament win. This imaginary new arena is never going to happen. The JAR is a dump and no matter how much money they pour into it, we'll still have a glorified HS gym. Maybe Keith Dambrot had enough. I don't think Duquesne is a better option, but maybe he's just frustrated with UA. The same way a lot of us fans feel. Even though UA has a lot of problems, he won't have the same following in Pittsburgh. Lebron isn't coming to watch games in the Palumbo Center or practice with his players. The student body and fanbase is very small. A small catholic college in the shadow of a big ACC school that has a history of success in just about every sport. That city doesn't care about Duquesne. If you live in Pittsburgh you are either a Pitt fan or WVU fan.