TennZip

https://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/story/sports/2021/05/03/uwgb-athletic-director-charles-guthrie-expected-take-akron-opening/4930071001/ has a photo likes to give long contracts

this deserves its very own topic truly great article.... love how Kofi mentions...his former Akron teammates https://www.bgn.fm/a-decade-after-he-was-drafted-kofi-sarkodie-is-back-in-texas-to-help-lead-bold-fc/

https://getsomemaction.com/news/2021/4/16/update-regarding-upcoming-siue-at-wvu-mens-soccer-match.aspx West Virginia is going to end the season with a 4-3-1 record They have a huge advantage in goal differential

from Bowling Green web site: my comments below the standings MAC STANDINGS (through matches of Sunday, April 11) School (Overall) MAC Pts. PPG* 1. Bowling Green (6-4-0) 4-2-0 12 2.00 2. West Virginia (6-3-0) 4-3-0 12 1.71 Western Mich. (6-3-0) 4-3-0 12 1.71 4. Akron (4-3-1) 3-3-0 9 1.50 5. Northern Ill. (5-7-1) 4-5-0 12 1.33 6. SIUE (5-5-0) 2-5-0 6 0.86 * points per game Bowling Green controls their own destiny. if they win against WVU and NIU, they finish 6-2 in league....and win the MAC....18 points, 8 games...2.25 points per game If Western Michigan wins both games against Akron, they finish 6-3 in league...18 points, 9 games, 2.0 points per game If West Virginia beats Bowling Green and beats SIU-E, they also finish 6-3 in league...18 points, 9 games, 2.0 points per game the best that Akron can finish....is 5-3...15 points, 8 games...1.875 points per game if Akron loses at home on Wednesday night, they can't win the league Akron needs a lot of help from NIU and SIU-E to win the league and Akron needs a healthy Diogo Pacheco.........great player for the zips

https://gozips.com/news/2021/4/11/mens-soccer-golden-goal-lifts-bowling-green-over-akron-1-0.aspx "Congrats to Bowling Green on the win," Akron head coach Jared Embick commented. "They wanted it more and you could see that from minute one. We needed to have that same effort and intensity we had Wednesday night to compete while we are short-handed, but we couldn't find that competitiveness and effort today. Without that, you can't win a game. We will see who we have available on Wednesday and come out with a better mentality to compete in the game."

need to root fervently for Northern Illinois to beat BG next Sunday

SIU-E schedule shows that they were supposed to play Bowling Green on April 4... but that was postponed due to BG covid issues https://www.siuecougars.com/sports/m-soccer/2020-21/schedule so, they played western michigan on April 4....instead

live stats showed BG led 25-8 in shots 9-0 in shots on goal 12-4 in corner kicks BG seemed to have no problems controlling the ball...playing the against the wind when the zips were against the win in first half....I think it was 11-2 in shots and 8-0 in corner kicks

going by average points per game...3 points for win....1 point for tie so BG is 4-2.....6 games...12 points....2 points per game West Virginia leads NIU 2-0 with 7 minutes to go..... that would make WVU 4-3....12 points ...7 games 1.71 per game Akron is 3-3...6 games...9 points...1.5 per game

youtube link to watch the game go, Zips I know we have some great fans...that made the drive up north....go, zips !!!

The conference standings will show why Sunday's game at BGSU is a big game Tie for first Akron 3-2 Bowling Green 3-2 3. Western Michigan 4-3 4. West Virginia 3-3 5. Northern Illinois 4-4 6. SIU-Edwardsville 2-5 Remaining schedules Akron April 11 at BGSU April 14 ...home against Western Michigan 4 days...later...April 18.....play the same team ...Western Michigan at Kalamazoo Bowling Green all 3 remaining games are at home...but they play 3 very good teams April 11 host the mighty Akron Zips April 14 ....host West Virginia April 18.....host Northern Illinois Western Michigan April 11.....host SIUE April 14 and 18...away and home with Akron West Virginia April 11.....at Northern Illinois April 14....at BGSU April 18....home against SIUE Northern Illinois April 11....home with W. VA April 18......away at BGSU As mentioned before, NCAA bids will be announced on April 19 unless something changes, it looks like Akron and Bowling Green will play 8 league games Western Michigan and Northern Illinois will play 10 league games SIU-E and West Virginia will play 9 league games

This is going to be a long , passionate post about how proud that I am ...of zips soccer..... the players ...and the coaching staff. I am going to start by posting the news article from the WVU site...and quotes from their coach https://wvusports.com/news/2021/4/7/mens-soccer-wvu-falls-in-double-ot-at-akron.aspx WVU led 14-9 in shots ...and 8-2 in corner kicks "It's cruel when it happens that late in the game, with just two minutes left," Mountaineer coach Dan Stratford said. "Although, it wasn't like we were trying to hang on at the end by any stretch. In fact, I thought it was quite the opposite. I thought we had the better of the game throughout, quite honestly. The stats will likely support it and so will the possession, I would anticipate. I have to give credit to Akron, they're a quality team. That was a great game of football, really, and I wish we didn't have to be on the receiving end of an unfortunate result." Now, my comments .....and my long passionate post After the Northern Illinois game, I posted that the zips had to play NIU.....without an incredible amount of key starters and key reserves Pol Hernandez, Will Jackson, Jason Shokalook, Johnny Fitzgerald, Marco Milanese, Federico Serra and Nick Scott.... A good friend...also pointed out that Josh Hangi...also did not play in the NIU game For tonight's key game against a West Virginia team...with a road win over a very good Charlotte team...and a home win against a top 10 team - Marshall, the zips played without arguably....their 2 best players this year.....Diogo Pacheco and Pol Hernandez Pacheco has been an absolute beast all year on the left side......In my opinion, he has the most valuable zip this year Pacheco played against NIU.....but was not available for last night's game against WVU Pol Hernandez has improved so much during his time at UA.....Pol has been an outstanding offensive threat all year from the Left back spot....Pol also battles on defense Credit to both Diogo and Pol...for their hard work and tremendous improvement at Akron....get well soon, guys.......hope to see you both doing great work from the left side soon Marco Milanese was also not available tonight.....Daniel Strachan and Carlo Ritaccio were both absolute warriors against WVU and were absolutely gassed by the end of the game would have been so nice to have a great, quality player....like Marco Milanese ...to spell them for a little bit.... but that was not an option tonight.....but yet....the will and determination of the 2 outstanding center backs was huge in helping the zips persevere This may have been Carlo Ritaccio's finest effort as a zip. My heart absolutely broke for Carlo when a fluky bounce earned a PK for WVU. The zips could have crumbled with a fluky bounce late in the game....but they did not. They kept defending with all of their heart....and they should be very proud. Carlo was an absolute leader on the field. Several times, I saw him calming down Dyson Clapier and Sam Tojaga. Carlo was a tremendous captain tonight. Carlo, Zips nation is very proud of you tonight. The West Virginia coach was correct....WVU had the bulk of the possession. I lost track of the number of times that Daniel Strachan had great clearances under pressure. The zips played also tonight without ....Federico Serra.....Serra has been a key player this year and has had some outstanding moments. Many people, myself included....were calling for Tonny Temple to get the start against WVU. Tonny has done some great work this season. Tonny Temple was not available for tonight's game. Dyson Clapier and Jason Shokalook and Ryan Combe all have to be exhausted...but they gave herculean efforts up front with Temple not available I can not say enough good things about Will Jackson and Jason Shokalook. Both were unavailable for NIU. They are probably 2 of the guys that Coach Embick was talking about....with 2 days of training since the middle of March. Will Jackson....put forth one of the most unselfish, tremendous efforts tonight that I have ever seen. Since the moment that Will Jackson has stepped on campus, he has played the glory position.....center forward.... Tonight, Will Jackson did what the team needed...Pol Hernandez was not available to be the zips great left back Will Jackson moved from the glory position...center forward....to the left defensive back position... Will Jackson is not match fit...the way that he would like to be....but he defended all over the field Truly unselfish, magnificent effort. The zips would not have won with out Will Jackson. Jason Shokalook should be a senior in high school. I am very happy that he started at Akron a year early. He is a high school senior in age....but he has a man's size heart He hustled down a ball....and made a tremendous feed to Colin Biros....that resulted in the 2nd goal Jason fired a shot off the post in the 2nd OT...and then aggressively challenged the GK... as Hazem said, Jason should have been the hero....but Jason kept fighting for his teammates...and Hazem got the win for the zips Jason gave a tireless, team first effort tonight. After being inactive for so long, his fitness is not where he wants....but his effort and heart were vital in the zips win. Be honest, zips fans....who had heard of Nate Metsack before the NIU game? Nate played an incredible amount of minutes tonight at right back....and his defensive efforts kept the high powered WVU team from putting more goals in the net. Colin Biros - 2 magical moments tonight....his 22 yard goal strike was an absolute thing of beauty. His corner kick on the first goal...was tremendous. Corner kicks have not been a super strength for the zips over the past few year. Colin Biros is an outstanding corner kick taker. Colin is the zips engine. When he is good, the zips are good. Dyson Clapier was aggressive and had some very good runs with the ball. Johnny Fitzgerald consistently challenged for the ball in the midfield and had some quality runs. Sam Tojaga has not been fully healthy this year.....but he fed a quality ball into the box in the 2nd overtime. All Hazem Sobhy....did was....win the game It is 4:00 in the morning as I type this. I could not sleep as I was so proud and excited about the zips effort. I do not want to slight any players. This was a total team effort. This team has been thru a 3 week period....that very few athletic teams have ever encountered. The courage, resilience and the heart of this team should be greatly admired. They beat an NCAA tournament caliber team...with zips players that have been very sick and that have not been able to train. Ryan Combe had to play an upfront winger position tonight after playing right back all year. Will Jackson did what was best for the team and moved from center forward to left back. Finally, the coaching staff. They have not been able to work with a full team for the past 3 weeks. The coaching staff made bold adjustments tonight. Moving Will Jackson to outside back and moving Ryan Combe away from right back. This was not classic Akron possession soccer against West Virginia.....but the coaches put together a game plan that gave the zips the best chance of winning. Kudos to Coach Embick, Coach Ger C. and Coach Nanchoff. Great adjustments.....and great belief in your players. The effort and heart put forth by the players tonight show how much they care and like playing for this coaching staff. I am so very proud of these players and this coaching staff. This team is not perfect but they battled their hearts out for 108 minutes tonight. Great effort, zips.

https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/sports/college/zips/2021/04/07/university-akron-mens-soccer-zips-edge-west-virginia-3-2-double-overtime/6969972002/ some absolutely wonderful pictures in the article and gallery https://www.beaconjournal.com/picture-gallery/sports/college/soccer/2021/04/08/akron-zips-vs-west-virginia-mens-soccer/7135630002/ Sobhy got a head on it and pushed it into the right corner to end it. “We knew it was our heart. It was our mind that was going to win us this game, and it did,” Sobhy said. “We’re all tired. Everyone was cramping, but we saw our way through it. “I can’t tell you how big time of an effort that was,” Embick said. “It was probably one of the greatest I’ve seen in my time of coaching.”

the article on go zips....references that West Virginia was #1 in soccer RPI here is an article from a West Virginia TV station ....about RPI https://www.wboy.com/goldandbluenation/morewvusports/wvu-mens-soccer-ranks-no-1-in-rpi/ The Mountaineers rank No. 1 in RPI through matches played April 4. The MAC team with the next best RPI is Bowling Green at No. 20, and then upcoming opponent Akron at No. 31.

https://gozips.com/news/2021/4/7/mens-soccer-sobhys-golden-goal-lifts-akron-past-west-virginia-in-2ot-3-2.aspx "That was unbelievable, the guts, the heart, I hope people appreciate how special that was," Akron head coach Jared Embick commented. "We have had guys train two days since March 17 having to play minutes, guys just grinding it out, nowhere near full fitness from what we have been having to go through. To gut it out, to grind it out, to stick together and play, I hope people really realize that probably was one of the most special efforts I have ever seen from a team. I'm incredibly proud."

Gutsy effort by the short handed zips great win

Article in the Sunday morning Beacon...said that the Zips would be without 5 players...that were not cleared yet to play https://niuhuskies.com/documents/2021/4/4/Game_11_NIU_3_Akron_1.pdf From looking at the minutes played in the box score above....here are some of the key regulars/key subs that I do not see 1. Marco Milanese 2. Pol Hernandez 3. Will Jackson 4. Jason Shokalook 5. Johnny Fitzgerald 6. Federico Serra 7. Nick Scott that is a lot of talent...to be missing Sunday Beacon article...said that 3 players only got to practice for the first time in over 2 weeks on Saturday I was doing Easter family things today...and did not see the game... I am not making excuses for the team....but Bowling Green, the league leader with a 3-1 record...has also had to postpone 3 games due to Covid... Bowling Green will face similar issues .....to what Akron did today......when they are able to return BGSU will not be sharp when they return...and they will lose some matches Akron still gets to play them one more time (beat them 2-0 in MAC opener) current MAC Standings Bowling Green 3-1 West Virginia 3-2 Northern Illinois 4-3 Akron 2-2 Western Michigan 2-3 SIU-E 1-4 Wednesday night match against West Virginia is a must win...... Northern Illinois had no games ...against BGSU or Akron...that were cancelled due to covid NIU will get to play all 10 games..... no clue how Akron and BGSU will get to play all 10 games they each will make up 1 of the 3 post poned games on Wed. April 14 Sounds like a very depressing game today....but the zips need to put one foot forward.....and get a win on Wednesday night

has links for live stats and ESPN+ TV

https://www.dispatch.com/story/sports/2021/04/02/evan-bush-happier-back-ohio-columbus-crew-even-backup/4828147001/ There’s also Bush’s familiarity with Porter and former Akron teammates Darlington Nagbe that should make the transition easier. "A lot of the dedication, commitment, the desire to push every day. The intensity that I try to bring to training is a byproduct of those three years working with Caleb,” Bush said.

despite not playing , Akron is staying in the rankings dropped from 19 to 21 in coaches poll Akron tied Kentucky in Akron's first game. Kentucky dropped out of the rankings after losing to 1-9-1 Alabama Birmingham Marshall (Akron's best quality win) dropped from 8 to 13...as Marshall lost last week to West Virginia sure hope that the zips can play this Sunday against Northern Illinois https://unitedsoccercoaches.org/rankings/college-rankings/ncaa-di-men/