johnnyzip84

This is an interesting take. I missed the first 4 minutes of the game and likely his 1st rotation, so admittedly my observation may be partially skewed. Regardless, I was going to give props to Buddy for being the "toughest" Zip on the court throughout the time I was watching. While not scoring much, he rebounded well, fought intensely for loose balls and displayed fearlessness on defense. You might say, Buddy Hammer Jr was tough as nails 🤣 Seriously, every good team needs a tireless, selfless worker (Nate Linhart, Channel Banks, etc.) and, in my opinion, Buddy is the early candidate to fill this role for this season's Zip squad.

I thought it was a pretty even game with both teams missing several chances to gain the upper hand. Syracuse had some size that was concerning me for a while. I noticed Sam Bunch only played the first 30 - was this injury related? His decisions and strength on the ball have stood out for me this year.

Apparently, not all Virginia Tech transfer QBs are made equal. 19 of 22 for 197 yards and 3 TDs with no interceptions along with 6 carries for 40 yards - VERY impressive.

Fair enough, but if they watch long enough, they'll get to witness a truly sublime moment in collegiate sports history: Gerry being victoriously carried off the field on the shoulders of two linemen after the Zips (1-10) escaped the "winless bowl" against Tom Lichtenberg's Ohio Bobcats (0-11)!

That thought occurred to me - regardless, someone dropped the ball.

The four false starts were easily as harmful as anything else that contributed to the halftime goose egg. On another note (see what I did there), whoever was responsible for announcing the band's last halftime song today hasn't a clue. For those not here, the band played three rock classics, starting with Joan Jett's I Love Rock and Roll, then the Stones' Paint it Black, then they announced they were closing it out with the final song from The Who's rock opera Tommy, then proceeded to play Twisted Sister's We're Not Gonna Take It, a totally different song never played by the band - SMH

I thought I was the only subscriber to Faustian logic 😁

I completely agree. Would I want to have a chance to see Freeman with this team? Sure, but now that we're not dumping it in to the low post so often, the spacing for guys like Nate, Tavari, Shammah and others has opened up and I think this is a big factor for how much we've improved "finishing" at the rim this year. Having said that, we will remain vulnerable to taller teams if (hopefully) the situation presents itself again.

Here's an interesting article about Zay's prior coach from Cornell, who is now trying to turn around William and Mary, one of only 3 schools who have been eligible for every NCAA tournament, but have never qualified. Two things stand out to me. First, Groce is certainly not the only coach who wants to shoot as many 3's as possible while also playing 10. Second, I didn't realize the Ivy League has a rule where players can't play more than 4 years in the league, regardless of circumstances. For that reason, Zay and three of his ex-teammates were forced to transfer to play their final season (I assume they each got an extra covid season). Maybe John and Bud can take advantage of this again in the future?

With Okonkwo's tendency to leave his feet, I hope the Zips follow the food additive genius's advice and have Gray (and Lyles, Marvin and even Seth Wilson) take shifts guarding VonCameron Davis or else this could easily devolve into a matchup nightmare down low if James is forced to sit for most or all of the game. I think it'll also be key for the Zips to key their emotions in check. That's always difficult in this rivalry (Tavari and Ali both had TFs over there last year). Despite their record, I still think Kent has talent - albeit incredibly inconsistent. Sullinger has been a good shooter in the past (although probably benefited from Santiago being another threat), so you have to wonder if that will return this year. Bottom line is I'll take ANY W this Friday - no questions asked.

First MAC victory ever over a top 5 opponent - so I'd say you're spot on.

I was critical of our decision to schedule Colgate as our FCS home game, but it looks like the Red Raiders aren't up to their usual standards with an opening loss at Maine and getting stomped today at home by Nova 28-3. So I fully expect the Zips to win on Saturday.

EMU up early on Washington 3-0 after a nice road win (OK it was UMass and it was expected, but an FBS road win nonetheless). We often point to Toledo as a model program to emulate, and thats understandable given the Rockets consistent success. But I would argue EMU is a better example, given how bad they were for so long before this recent string of respectability. Hell, the better answer is right in the word EMUlate 🤣. Seriously though, EMU has battled the "commuter" school image, lack of consistent winning and extremely low attendance over the years. Sound familiar? So just when we're about as down and out as we can get, consider how EMU somehow has turned it around.

Certainly never meant to imply that (but I thought that would have been obvious). It just struck me as funny and a bit ironic that the program most cited as corrupt back in the day is now doing the very same things, but this time it's on the up and up. Here's a wild idea for additional Info utilization. How about a UFL expansion team?

I'm truly not posting this to further depress our already deflated fan base, but here is a well written article on how the epic landscape changes are helping to resurrect one infamous program back from the dead. This is the flip side if you will - can you even imagine? Pony Up