fknbuflobo

I really thought Furman was going to upset Charlotte. Also surprising to see Wake Forest advancing over South Carolina. Bobby, we did not have money on this, did we? I am in last place.

Punts usually result in 50/50 balls. If you take note of the results of punts you will quickly discover that about 2/3 of them come right back to the punting goalie in the form of an attack. This holds true for all high level soccer matches, pros and college. Watch and you will see. The best way to insure near 100% retention of a ball put back in play by a goalie is for him to outlet the ball to one of his defenders and have them take the ball up the pitch. Concerning Meyes, he has a "weak" leg and most of his punts come down near the midfield line. With last night's wind he had no business punting the ball. Most of his punts came down short of midfield resulting in easy attacks for Northwestern. I am by no means a soccer expert. I can discern poor play (most of the time). Personally, I would much prefer a different goalie between the posts. GoZips88 and I go round and round about this. He loves Meves. Me, not so much. Yes, he has a weak leg, but give Meves his due. He excels at the reaction saves, without which, we may have lost vs. NU. Three of his saves last night were SportsCenter shtuff. Since half (at least) of all punts are lost anyway, punting is not especially valuable in soccer. However, Goal Kicks are much more a concern. I will take David Meves over most; he is a winner. That being said, Evan Bush was better.

OMG, I hope not! I cannot take postseason PKs! MEMO TO ZIPS: FINISH OPPONENT IN FIRST @$#%$*% 90 MINUTES!!!!!!!!!!!! How many goals have we surrendered this year AFTER 80 minutes?!?!

Dillon Serna is great news! I believe Matt Foldesy (St. Ignatius) is still on the hook as well. Do not forget Andy Chiu.

Yes, the pre-printed/sold tickets labeled Second Round and dated 11/20/2011 are the tickets to be used tomorrow, at least as far as the season ticket holders who purchased their seats for post-season. That is us. Thanks.

Hey, tix dated S/11/20/2011 are the ones to use for tomorrow? Seriously.?

I like it. Trapp and Gallego are the picks here.

1st Round Coastal Caro. Old Dominion Fairfield CSU Bakersfield West Virginia Bradley Virginia Rutgers Monmouth South Carolina Furman Akron UCF Duke Providence Northern Ill. 2nd Round North Carolina Indiana St. John's (NY) UC Irvine Maryland Louisville UCLA Boston College Connecticut James Madison Furman Akron South Fla. New Mexico UC Santa Barbara Creighton Elite Eight North Carolina UC Irvine Maryland UCLA Connecticut Akron New Mexico Creighton Final Four North Carolina Maryland Connecticut Creighton Final North Carolina Creighton National Champs Creighton

Do you even own long pants?

The last time I watched either channel 3, 5, or 8 news was when the Zips won the National Championship. I wanted to see if they caught me celebrating at the Barley House. Ratings for news stations aren't high for 18-30 year olds. I'm 27. Those news stations are for people that don't have internet. You should've been standing next to this ugly mug here. Front of the Beacon Journal Sports section and the 11 o'clock news. My 3 seconds of fame. Thank you Zips! haha Yeah, I saw you! "You want our title? Come and get it!"

Who outside of members of this message board thing he was the missing piece to the puzzle? I admit I thought he was going to have more of an impact than he did but I don't remember ever reading CP say anything of the sort. Other factor is that for prior 3 years he played at an NAIA program which is arguably a whole different level of play then he faces in Div 1. That certainly could have accounted for his pre Akron gaudy stats and for his "lack of equivalent production" here. I don't think Luke's lack of equivalent production is what the main problem is. Holmes is not in over his head. He just cannot be expected to be the savior of this team. He is a very good, not great, player, playing slightly out of position. The zips need another productive Forward. What if Speas (UNC) had stayed? What if Tulloch (USF) had stayed? What if Ontiveros (Furman) had stayed? What if Navarette (UAB) had stayed for more than a minute?

Yeah. That is all that is happening here. Interested folks are digging deeper than just the rah rah shtuff. Nobody is really taking Porter to task, not now. Everybody look out because Caleb Porter is about to go Mike Krzyzewski on us!

This I do know: Gazelles make good wingers, not stubby, clever players. The latter are more useful in the interior. Holmes belongs in the hole where his lack of pace is inconsequential.

Don't let anyone talk you out of your thoughts and into catching the northeast Ohio syndrome, Bisbee. We're so used to losing around here and so scared of it, most of us don't know how to support by talking about the positives in the face of some adversity. It's easier to talk about the negatives and then be pleasantly surprised when something positive happens. The Zips are going to defeat the Wildcats at home and move on to play SMU in Ampai's backyard. GO ZIPS! From your mouth to God's ears!

You might try Big10 website. Bisbee, you have not been around the last 5 years. I have not seen a Zips team this confused during Porter's tenure. I have seen teams less talented, but not this disoriented. Lesser Porter teams played with cohesion and purpose not evident on this squad. I am very worried. NU looked really good on TV vs. PSU (Big10 Championship). Should Zips get this one, who knows, they may tear off a streak. But this is the match that troubles me.

The Haiku caught me off guard. Huskies are from UCONN, right?

A Haiku? Really? Well done! I seriously hope you are wrong, but I am ascared you are right.

Already there!

rpi

I guess anyone can choose to interpret this number any way they want. But, it definitively answers the question for me regarding whether our soccer attendance is due to the Zips having a nationally-successful sport, as opposed to NE Ohio being filled with soccer fanatics who are just thirsting for the opportunity to see a good soccer game. And by contrast, the last MAC football title game drew over 12,000, at a neutral site, with two teams that were also a very long way from home. I think it was two reasons: 1) People were still shocked, sore, depressed, etc. about Friday. I'm a huge soccer fan no matter who is playing, but even I had a hard time walking past the Pouch yesterday without being depressed that two schools were playing for a MAC title on our field and one of them wasn't us... 2) It was a sunday and we all know how people feel about the NFL... Skip, I believe the NEO is indeed a hotbed of soccer. Under normal conditions, I would have attended. But I just could not do it Sunday.........

What time?

We'll get in, we'll have a game Thursday at home, and we're going to make a run for the Cup. I'm expecting a Big 10 school possibly for the first round. I'm calling it now...Northwestern at home in the first round. And we finally have a chance to return the favor from circa 2006! I think we have a chance at making a strong run too. We need to play consistently and Mattocks needs to return to his scoring prominence. His lack of goals in the last few big games may have cost him the Herman Trophy. I'd love to see a 4-4-2 with Mattocks and Holmes up top...I'd love to see that two-headed monster Their speed and willingness to make things happen one-on-one could shift the balance of play towards the opponent's goal. And having Holmes up top with him would prevent the defense from exclusively keying on Mattocks. I hope Coach Porter makes some such adjustments next game. We need them. 100% agree I dont necessarily see the problem with your lineup, I just have one bone to pick...I don't know where or how it happened, but Luke Holmes and "speed" do not belong in the same sentence. His technical skills are marvelous but he is slow...notice he never beats anyone based on pace. Holmes is not fast, but he is very quick in tight places. His technical skill is stellar and his tactical understanding of the game is very good. That is why I prefer him at offensive MF, or in the hole, to Forward.

I agree to your points, with a few caveats regarding Mattocks. While he has certainly grown as a player, it is my opinion that Mattocks could use another year at Akron before turning professional. His passing has improved, but it still is not at the level of an all-purpose Forward. (Yes, he should have had two assists vs. WMU.) An inveterate poacher, Mattocks is not yet physically strong enough to be a first rate target/post-up man. Nagbe was a consummate target man during the last two seasons, but he has found the going rough in the MLS where there are truly strong players. The transition from collegiate soccer to the pros is significant. A strong boy does not equal a strong man. Mattocks is really not physically strong even in comparison to collegiate players. Another year at Akron will allow him to fill out his frame, gain 5-10 pounds. Judging by the progress made this year, Mattocks could easily be the first player selected in the 2013 draft. It would only make sense for Mattocks to turn professional this year if Generation Adidas came a calling. That deal is simply too good to pass up. Porter will provide valuable guidance and advice. I hope Darren Mattocks remains a Zip for another year.

UNC now up 3-1. Speas just came on and scored with his first touch. They said it was his second of the game, so two goals and an assist for Speas in this game so far?? Wow. Ben Speas won ACC Tournament MVP Award That really hurts! What does Akron lack the most right now? Offense. Zips sure could have used Speas around here lately. Perhaps I am alone, but I am still having a tough time letting this one go.

You got it. That was the Henry move.