Bill Morgan

I have been a supporter of this concept for years. I once worked at a radio station, where the owner's daughter got a degree in Art History. Really ? Art history...... what kind of a job do you suppose she got with that ? You got it !!! She got a job in a career field that was totally unrelated. Nothing wrong with art or history, but at the same time MANY in the academic world clearly look down their collective noses at the world o' sports. As somebody mentioned in an earlier post, it's not like expanding the number of sports-related majors would cause a major academic landslide at UA..... students in those majors would still be required to take the same basic core classes that others at the university in different majors take as well. Would you have a small number of student-athletes who would try to take advantage of that potential opportunity ? Yep....... but you have students now, both athletes and not, who are always trying to get away w/ something. For better or worse, that's how some some of humanity is. Go Zips !!!

Tuesday night's win was a key early season victory for the Zips....... this team has the potential to be not only Coach Kest's best team, but - arguably - the best in UA history. With Rachel Tecca returning healthy from last season's knee injury, the team is poised to make a run at the MAC East title and at 20 wins - which would be a school record. While Rachel, deservedly so, gets a lot of press....... the team also features Taylor Ruper, the leading 3 pt. shooter in school history and Kacie Cassell, who is emerging as a solid MAC point guard. And forward Sina King....... all she did was win MAC 2nd team honors last season The key for this team is developing depth beyond the top 6 players....... Coach Kest and company are working on that as you read this.

Words are never enough at a time like this....... when I first had the good fortune of beginning to broadcast WBB for the Zips during the 2006-2007 season, Scott was one of the first to greet me and make me feel welcome to UA. My deepest condolences to his family and close friends. Wow.

Coach Kest and WBB will team-up with Coach D and MBB on Saturday for an Akron hoops double-header at the JAR......... Buy a ticket to the women's game vs. Can't and you'll be able to stay for the men's game against OU ( your ticket for WBB will get you into the GA seating for MBB ). Ticket info is available at 888-99-AKRON or by checking out gozips.com. Listen to both games on Fox Sports 1350, with the Zips clashing with the Flashes at 1 while the men meet Ohio U. at 4 ( you can also catch " live " audio and video of both games at gozips.com ). If you have any questions about WBB, post 'em here and I'll try and answer them or you can e-mail me at bmorganakronzips@hotmail.com. For those who don't know, I do the radio play-by-play for WBB on 1350. Nice to be on the zipsnation board.......... I enjoy the passion of the Zips fans who post here !!!

Despite losing leading scorer and rebounder Rachel Tecca to a season-ending knee injury 3 weeks ago, the Zips WBB team is playing well. They are 1-2 in the MAC headed into Saturday's showdown w/ Can't at the JAR. They lead the conference in scoring, averaging 80 ppg through the first 3 conf. games. Come out & watch 'em !!! If you're not entertained, I'll personally refund your $$$$ Go Zips...........

Coach Bangtson, like all coaches, is always looking at angles to improve his program and the opportunity to showcase this year's team by playing a number of games at Canal Park is a great chance to highlight what should be the team's best pitching staff in years. With the return of talented juniors Andrew Brown and Alex Loftin as starters and relief pitcher Chris Bassitt in the back end of the bullpen, the Zips are looking forward to the upcoming 2011 season. The position players are led by a fourth junior, Drew Turocy, who will be one of the premier outfielders in the MAC. Turocy is one of those rare five-tool players who pro scouts have their eye on. The addition of Greg Cypret to the coaching staff will do great things for recruiting...... Coach Cypret comes to Akron after leading the recruiting efforts at Ohio State, until veteran Buckeye head coach Bob Todd retired following the 2010 season and OSU was the leading program in the Big 10 during the Todd era.

Big Zip and Zach The Zip - Thanks for listening to our Zips Live shows on Fox Sports 1350. The passion you both display for UA Athletics is great and without that kind of interest from you and many others that post on this board, Zips' sports would not be what it is today ( one of the premier men's soccer programs in the nation, a MBB team that - under KD - has consistently been one of the best in the MAC, an up and coming WBB squad that won more games last season than any other in school history, and an impressive track & field team led by Coach Mitchell, etc. ). A couple of responses to your statements about the Zips Live shows......... Zach, UA has never " pre-selected " any of the questions I've asked Coach Ianello ( or any of the other coaches ) when they've been guests on ZL. Zips Live always has been and always will be an opportunity for UA to promote their athletic department through a partnership with Fox Sports 1350 and ISP Sports - IMG College. As host of the show, in an ongoing effort to PROMOTE the teams........ I'm going to consistently make the effort to look at things from the " glass is half-full perspective, " as opposed to the half-empty angle. Any other similar show - it doesn't matter what conference you're talking about ( MAC, Big Ten, SEC, ACC, etc. ) - takes a similar approach. Do you think the host of Alabama's version of ZL grilled and diced & sliced Nick Saban when the Tide lost that game earlier in the season ? Of course he or she didn't. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY feels worse about a Zips' loss than the UA coaches and players who experience it personally. Whether it's KD, Caleb, Coach I, Jodi Kest, or whoever........ nobody has more invested in the success of these teams than the coaches and players. To suggest otherwise is, simply, incorrect. Big Zip - I'm not sure what you were listening to last week, but it wasn't ZL. There was no show a week ago, because WBB was playing in their season-opener last Monday in Ft. Wayne. So if you heard an interview with a graduate assistant of the football program, it WAS NOT on ZL. Again, your passion is great and thanks for listening to our UA broadcasts on Fox Sports 1350. You can e-mail me anytime at bmorganakronzips@hotmail.com Even better, stop by a ZL broadcast sometime soon @ the Ripper Owens Tap House on Waterloo in Akron. Your first burger is on me......... Ripper and Randy will take great care of you !!!