TennZip

I just googled ACC Network extra and this is what I found: What is ACC Network Extra? ACC Network Extra is a streaming-only option, offered exclusively through WatchESPN and the ESPN app, that airs many of the games not shown on the ACC Network.

on the spring schedule topic, Zip_ME87 posted that the game was showing on the ESPN+ schedule for Feb. 20 on the pitt schedule, it shows as ACC network extra However, on the right of the screen...it shows a link for live stats...and a tv screen link when I click on tv screen, it takes to an ESPN screen and asks me to log in I think if you pay monthly for ESPN+, you should be able to see the game. https://pittsburghpanthers.com/sports/mens-soccer/schedule https://www.espn.com/watch/player?id=725413e4-ebec-40a7-9c22-4bffda33afe4 the zip website has an article on the MAC conference voting https://gozips.com/news/2021/2/16/akron-mens-soccer-selected-to-capture-mac-title.aspx snippet from that article: Akron opens its campaign this week visiting third-rated Pittsburgh on Saturday, Feb. 20. The 3 p.m. contest with the Panthers will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.

Looks like 3 of the 6 coaches in the MAC predict that Akron will finish first in the league

https://getsomemaction.com/news/2021/2/16/mens-soccer-akron-selected-to-take-2021-mac-soccer-title.aspx

this has photos of their 2 hermann trophy candidates https://pittsburghpanthers.com/news/2021/1/28/mens-soccer-noel-petkovic-named-to-mac-hermann-trophy-watch-list.aspx

https://www.giveto.pitt.edu/s/1729/18/interior-giving.aspx?sid=1729&gid=2&pgid=4439&cid=10797&ecid=10797&crid=0&calpgid=2135&calcid=3585 I could not find a link to click in your post....I think this is what you wanted to attach

Let's get this topic started....for the first game of a new and exciting year What do we know about the opponent? Coached by former Wake Forest legendary coach Jay Vidovich Top Drawer soccer(TDS) has them rated pre-season as the #3 team in the country (TDS has the zips at 6) College soccer news has Pitt rated at #8 (our beloved zips are pre-season #26) Pittsburgh played soccer in the fall...and did quite well 3-1 win over Notre Dame on the road 3-2 double overtime win over Syracuse on the road 4-2 win over Va. Tech at home (10 goals in their first 3 games.....impressive high powered offense) 3-2 overtime win over Virginia on the road 4-1 win over the Louisville Cardinals on the road (17 goals in their 5 regular season games ....in ACC competition...wow ) ACC tournament 2-1 quarterfinal win over the Dukies....(game played in Raleigh) 3 days...later....3-1 semifinal win for Notre Dame (game played in Raleigh) 4 days later....2-1 loss in the ACC finals to Clemson (game played in Cary at Wake Med Soccer Park) https://pittsburghpanthers.com/news/2021/2/12/mens-soccer-pitt-welcomes-defending-national-champion-georgetown-for-exhibition.aspx the article above...has many good facts....on Pitt to highlight a few....and compare to the zips Top Drawer soccer(TDS) ....has put zip standout center back Carlo Ritaccio on their preseason 3rd team All America list TDS.....has one Pitt Player on their first team preseason All America team...and another player on their 2nd team All America list TDS....also does a preseason top 100 player list (Sophomores, juniors and seniors) Zips had Carlo at 24 and Colin Biros at 37 TDS...has 4 Pitt Players on their list ....#8 ; #15 ; #50 and #71 TDS...also put a Pitt Freshman on their 11 player preseason All Freshman TDS...did not select any zips to their All Freshman list this biased writer (yes, me...the always opinionated TennZip!!!)...says boo on TDS....Jason Shokalook....will be on TDS....all freshman list...after the season is over going to another source of info......The Hermann Trophy is presented after the season to the nation's best college soccer player....The group does a preseason Hermann Trophy watch list... I think that the list is normally about 45 players....No zips were included on the preseason watch list...2 Pitt Panthers...are on the Hermann Trophy Watch list both are sophomores.... 5'10 midfielder Valentin Noel from France...who has an active streak of 6 straight games with a goal scored https://pittsburghpanthers.com/sports/mens-soccer/roster/valentin-noel/10999 5'10 midfielder Veljko Petkovic (Serbia) scored 2 goals this year in one game against Notre Dame...had another game this year against Louisville ..where he had 2 assists https://pittsburghpanthers.com/sports/mens-soccer/roster/veljko-petkovic/11001 the zips did catch a break yesterday....Pitt was scheduled to play their one scheduled exhibition game yesterday against defending national champ Georgetown game had to be cancelled due to covid concerns in the Georgetown soccer program zips....getting to play 2 exhibition games...will help them against Pitt..... that is all I know.....can't wait for the game next Saturday....I am sure that Coach Embick will have the guys ready....Go, zips !!!

Congratulations to Sam Harter for being names to the Beacon Journal boys soccer all star team https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/sports/high-school/2021/02/14/beacon-journal-boys-soccer-all-star-team-features-multiple-players-hudson-copley-revere/6720282002/ Harter, a University of Akron men's soccer commit, was named the SLAC Player of the Year in 2020. He also was selected to the Division I All-Ohio second team as a senior midfielder, and was a first-team All-District and first team All-SLAC choice in each of the past three seasons. Harter finished his four-year varsity career with 29 goals and 22 assists at Copley.

good, legitimate question. Discussion is needed and welcome on this board. I am a passionate fan but I sure don't consider myself a "futbol expert." Your question is really hard to answer due to Covid restrictions. Normally, by this point....the local futbol experts on this board would have seen several practices. Several posters on this board would have seen both exhibition matches. That being said, I remember the 0-7 start from 2019. The zips open the season with #3 Pittsburgh, #9 Marshall and #12 Kentucky. Confidence and momentum are gained more easily by wins. Losing 2 exhibition games against teams not ranked in the top 25..... does not provide momentum. Pittsburgh and Kentucky both played matches in the fall. I would be lying if I said that I was not concerned about the possibility of another slow start to the season. Top drawer soccer has the zips rated as 6 in the country. College soccer news has the zips as a pre season number 26. I hope that the game at Pittsburgh is streamed so we can have "informed" discussion on the board. Coach Embick's comments in the Welker interview were very encouraging. I am a huge Diogo Pacheco fan. If he stays healthy, I think that he can do very good things. This team has 2 kids up front....(Jason Shokalook and Tonny Temple)....that were ranked in the top 50 by top drawer soccer. Neither was in the starting lineup for either exhibition and none of us know the minutes played for those 2 key upfront guys and the starter for both games (Will Jackson). Like Zip_ME87 said, we need to see improvement from 2019.....in controlling possession in the midfield and scoring goals. Dyson Clapier sounds like a great January addition. Wil Meyer held the zips scoreless in 110 minutes in the 2018 NCAA quarterfinal. Experienced goal keeper and 2 experienced talented center backs.....is a great backbone for this team. Not sure where Daniel Strachan will play...but he is a leader....and was arguably the 2019 MVP. There are many reasons for optimism .......but this team has many new pieces.... Pittsburgh will be a humongous test. Go, Zips

Jason Shokalook did not start but appears to have been on the field when Diogo Pacheco scored

a few different starters from last week

good interview with Coach Embick

https://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer-articles/freshmen-to-watch-in-mens-spring-season_aid49014 Jason recognized as a freshman to watch Jason Shokalook, Akron With David Egbo’s departure for a contract with Vancouver Whitecaps, Shokalook is one of a handful of players to pick up the slack. It’s not all going to fall on the shoulders of the former Internationals standout, with Tonny Temple and Will Jackson also likely to be in the mix. Shokalook scored goals for fun in the Development Academy, and his progress could be significant for a Zips team that has quality at the back and midfield.

thank you for the player update and thank you very much to the person updating the twitter account for the halftime score update. go, zips !!!

just saw this tweet with 4 photos

your starting 11........ Will Jackson, Ryan Combe, Colin Biros, Dyson Clapier and Pol Hernandez in the front row Wil Meyer, Sam Tojaga, Henrique Cruz, Carlo Ritaccio, ???? (going to need to help with 2nd from the right) and Diogo Pacheco Go, Zips

https://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer-articles/di-mens-championship-spring-contenders_aid48990 in this premium article (published before their top 25 was released), this is what they wrote about Akron(see writeup below in bold) My comments about their writeup...and some of my comments on where the zips will find production up top...are in non bold below top drawer soccer was very aware.....that David was in the pros. very poor writeup by TDS. They could have written that Jason Shokalook is an incoming freshman that they had ranked as one of the 50 recruits in the country. They also could have written that Akron transfer Tonny Temple (from NC State) was a 4 star Top drawer soccer recruit when he committed to NC State as fknbuflobo and Zip_ME87 have both commented, Akron has the players that can step up at the forward position. I have always been a huge fan of what Diogo Pacheco can do on a soccer field (when he is healthy) The coaches will find the best lineup.....but Diogo feeding passes in from the left side.....to a combination of Jason Shokalook and Tonny Temple.....sounds very promising to me.... I also think that Will Jackson .....will show a lot of improvement from his first year Good wishes to Egg-ie....in Vancouver.....but the cupboard is not bare in Akron AKRON Another side that should be talented and young, Akron is set to start the season without David Egbo, picked up by the Vancouver Whitecaps. Provided that the team can replace his quality up front – and there are options – players like Colin Biros, Daniel Strachan and Carlo Ritaccio give the team a solid spine that will be very competitive.

on instagram, someone asked if there would be streaming for this exhibition. they replied no for this exhibition...but they hoped to have streaming for the regular season matches go, zips !!!

Top Drawer soccer thinks highly of the Zips https://www.topdrawersoccer.com/college-soccer-national-rankings/men

JLew showed his great value last night https://www.burgundywave.com/2021/1/20/22237614/packed-2021-usmnt-calendar-gives-rapids-forward-jonathan-lewis-opportunities-to-flash-his-talents

Congratulations to former Zip Dillon Serna

https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2021/01/28/columbus-crew-sc-sign-veteran-midfielder-perry-kitchen Bezbatchenko's quote from MLS article “Perry is a seasoned player whose addition to our roster will help bolster our midfield,” Crew president & GM Tim Bezbatchenko said in a club statement. “Along with bringing a decade of professional experience and leadership in MLS and abroad, Perry will provide another important veteran voice to our locker room. We believe that his qualities as a player on and off the field will allow him to fit right in at our club.”

https://gozips.com/news/2021/1/25/akron-announces-2021-spring-mens-soccer-schedule.aspx Due to current university COVID-19 protocols, family members and friends of the players and coaches, as well as fans, will not be permitted to attend on-campus events, including Akron men's soccer games until further notice. The University of Akron is following the Summit County Stay at Home Health Advisory issued by Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro and Summit County Health Commissioner Donna Skoda.

exciting day tomorrow....we get to see the schedule