LZIp

Cole Gest is a surprise. Looks to be a grad transfer from Indiana.

reading into that, I have to imagine his chances of ending up in a Zips uniform have taken a big hit.

Unsure how good Vandy is supposed to be, but Liberty beat them last night. I agree, this tournament should give us a good gauge on how good we will be come conference play.

No commits for the Zips, no more players entered the portal, and no players who entered the portal have committed anywhere yet. I did see Devanier Floyd got an offer from Tiffin.

Unsure is on scholly or not, but this is Warren Ball's little brother.

Did anyone predict Robbie Kelley as a Heisman contender? https://www.reddit.com/r/CFB/comments/e89iti/akron_backup_qb_robbie_kelley_is_currently_in_8th/

very much needed IMO. Only one scholarship RB on the roster right now, and they are unproven.

Kyshad Mack in the portal. He couldn't get on the field this year and we were his only offer so....have to imagine his time in FBS is over. https://247sports.com/college/akron/Season/2020-Football/TransferPortal/

Seriously. One photo of a coach yelling without context?! That's an incredibly soft comment and a reach. I immediately thought of Saban throwing a tantrum in the Iron Bowl Saturday as a counter example. I recall Hicks getting kicked out of a game, can't remember which one, and Arth going straight to him and sternly talking about the incident and why it can't happen. There was no screaming in a situation that would have 100% warranted it.I have met the man, though not in a football environment, but I have also observed him throughout the year, and based on what I can see, Arth's demeanor does not strike me as a blow hard at all. I will say 94zipgrad's comment about being him "too much" did catch my eye though. He's proven that when he says something, we should listen. Is that feeling a result of Bowden not having control? Or is Arth being a control freak and having days scripted and expecting kids go to class, have good grades, etc not common at other places? My guess would be the former. Arth has disciplined players at the expense of the team throughout the year and the team had the highest ever cumulative GPA in his first semester. We all want results on the field - and thats what he's paid to get - but molding young men to be successful citizens post football is pretty damn important too.

We had plenty of discussions about this during Bowden's last season. It just doesn't happen in CFB, but we do now have at least a partial case study in our very own conference Frank Solich's contract expires on 1/3/2020. https://www.thepostathens.com/article/2019/11/ohio-bobcats-football-frank-solich-contract-extension-renewal-amendment Even with them being the standard in MAC East the past decade or so, they are currently ranked 11th in the conference in recruiting, less than 1 point from last place. https://247sports.com/Season/2020-Football/CompositeTeamRankings/?Conference=MAC Whether he ends up getting extended or not, will be interesting to see what effect what looks to be a down year in recruiting does to OU down the road.

Will be interested to see if we take advantage of the transfer portal or kids de-committing due to coaching changes. We did not utilize the transfer portal at all last year or this year thus far. The key I think - at least right now - should be immediate eligibility, however.

FWIW @Blue & Gold, I can't find it, but I believe there was an article posted saying that we offered Isaiah Childs as a RB, which is why he chose us over K State. 247 has Marques Watson-Trent crystal balled to us. https://247sports.com/player/marques-watson-trent-46084631/

One thing I will say - citing overall records without context is kind of a cheap argument for losing programs. Example - Arth could go 8-5 - and tie the record for most wins in a season - over the next 4 seasons and not have a winning record. Look no further than Rutgers going all in to bring back Greg Schiano, who had a 68-67 overall record there. Context is important.

Of course I wish Ramart nothing but the best. As far as I can tell, he’s been nothing but a perfect teammate,student, and ambassador of the program since he’s been here. I should have worded it better, but what I meant was I’m not going to lose sleep over anyone who has minimal chance of getting on the field leaving the program.

I don’t think I’m exaggerating when I’m saying he was the 5th string QB. I personally think much of the attrition (at least meaningful) has already happened.

We have YSU, UMass, and NMSU next season, along with top Clemson of course. No excuse to start off worse than 2-2, with a win over YSU. More likely should be 3-1, but if we can't be .500 coming out of OOC...yikes.

Speaking of Cinci, selfishly hoping Fickell gets plucked away ASAP.

With now 3 JUCO DL commits, the staff sees it as a much bigger need than I did, though I certainly won't argue with them. Admittedly, I may be basing my evaluation too much on the Miami game. Scholarships there are going there at the expense of another position group/bringing in freshman.

Unsure if there is more background I'm missing, but they aren't even playing inner city game vs Pitt this year??

Great effort vs the #2 team in the country. Could have gotten ugly, but we fought back and only lost by 6. Won't play another team near this talent level all year. Take what you can from the game and get better for it. Fun game to watch. Go Zips!

Xeryius is ice cold.

Rough half for Cheese as well. Looks like this one is getting away from us....still like this experience.

First time this year Tribble is looking like a freshman.

Nice start.

I was going to wait until after the season to dive into this, but I've got the itch this morning. There is no denying the coaching doesn't have room for improvement, but really trying to limit this discussion to players. Without a doubt, many holes need filled for this team to be competitive in the MAC again. My approach if I were the coach based on expectations to become bowl eligible next season without sacrificing the future: QB: I admire Kato's toughness and how he has seemed to grow as an individual throughout his career. However, his passing and decision making have not seemed to improve since he was a freshman and he seems to be less of a running threat now than ever. I don't believe he is a fit for the offense Arth is trying to install and I believe we've seen the last of him on the field. I propose a 3 way competition heading into camp - Gibson, Marousek, and a transfer QB (D. Clark maybe?). Another QB needs brought in to compete with Gibson. He could be the future, but I haven't seen enough to just hand him the job. RB: Tough to get a good read with the OL, but I believe Hayes-Patrick and Reese are pieces to work with. Still want to bring in a transfer for competition/depth, and at least 1 freshman. TE: We lose Junk, Johns, and Long after the season, leaving only Wofley on scholly. Need to bring in at least 1 transfer and true freshman. WR: Should be okay here for next year with Stewart, Scippio, Hicks, Knight, Morris, and Mathison. Need a few true freshman though to have guys ready after they are gone. OL: Council and Gray are building pieces. Another hole is opening up as we lose Brown. It will not bode well if the current starting C is starting next season. We have some true freshman who aren't playing this year, but if they aren't able to get on the field this year, will they be adequate next year? Bring in 2 transfers here...this is priority #1 with the team if you ask me, but there doesn't seem to be a lot out there in JUCO/transfer portal. Still bring in 3 freshman on top of that so this issue is hopefully fixed once and for all. DL: Cross has improved as the season has went on and I think Mitchell is adequate to plug the middle. We are bringing in one JUCO DL already for competition. The staffs current approach here is likely OK. Add 2 freshman. OLB: Scott, Sampson, Richardson, and Lawson are probably fine here. Really only one of these on the field most of the time with the use of the Nickel..add 1 freshman. ILB: Arslanian, Glover, and Watts are adequate I think. Need 2 freshman. CB: Hooks has developed well over the year. We have a few options to fill the other position, but I haven't seen enough to bank on natural development. 2 transfers and 2 freshman. Safety/Nickel: We are good with Watts and Thomas. There are a couple guys to step up and fill the other starting spot (Daranijo and Mack). I'd bring in 1 transfer and 1 freshman here. Scholarship breakdown based on the above: QB: (2) - 1 freshman, 1 transfer. RB: (2) - 1 freshman, 1 transfer. WR: (2) - 2 freshman. TE: (2) - 1 freshman, 1 transfer. OL: (5) - 3 freshman, 2 transfers. DL: (3) - 2 freshman, 1 transfer. OLB: (1) - 1 freshman. ILB: (2) - 2 freshman. CB: (4) - 2 freshman 2 transfers. Safety/Nickel: (2) - 1 freshman, 1 transfer. Total: 25 new additions. 16 freshman, 9 transfers. The biggest key for acceptable results next year is going to be the staff basically bringing attrition to a halt and have a very good hit rate on the transfers so we are getting immediate improvement. Go Zips..