johnnyzip84

Here's a link to IU's original 2008 recruitment class. It's nice to take one back from the school that is seemingly becoming a bitter recruiting rival of ours! Link

This guy likes the idea of a Big-10/MAC partnership, complete with promotion/relegation ala futbol. Link

It looks like the sound arguments ZW discussed make a whole lot of sense to the PAC-12. Link UTAH IS IN Utah has long had a high birth rate and it's been one of the fastest growing states over the last 15-20 years. It's all about the future. And besides, the Utes can always rely on COLD FUSION when the going gets tough! Can any Longhorn make the same statement? I think not

I'm using IE and my work's McAfee is blocking a Trojan Javascript from running. There is definitely something amiss.

But Akron MEN do. Go watch a bottom barrel MAC football team or go to a sold out Pouch and watch one of the country's premiere soccer squads. Your choice. I know where I will be. The Pouch? lol.... That's like saying go watch the country's premier bowling team. That's wonderful that they're successful and all, but who really gives a f***? The success of the athletic department will always hinge on football and men's basketball. I've said it before and I'll say it again.... Football and basketball could win MAC Championships, every other athletic team could not win a game, and nobody would bat an eye. TW would be the toast of the town. But if football and basketball lost every game, and every other sport won a national title, TW's ass would be grass, and Proenza would be smokin it. Ole Tom would have the first ticket out of town. It's great that you like soccer, and I support them and love to see them succeed just like I love to see rifle and any other Zip sport succeed, but those sports will always take a back seat to football and basketball, regardless of success. The bottom line is, 95% of people in Akron and UA alumni would rather watch and pay for bad football than nationally ranked soccer any day of the week. Well, I'm glad that I was able to drag ITZ away from his Guinness at the Cock & Bull Pub for long enough to stir up a conversation. So ITZ, have you been able to convince your neighbors in the Midlands there that real football is played by real MEN with enough padding for a team of hookers in London's East End? That it would be more interesting if Wayne Rooney and his mates would stand around in a circle before each kick of the ball so that everyone is aware of the "snap count"? But anyway, congratulations again on matriculating to a country which has its sports priorities better sorted. Cheerio, ITZ. I'll let you get back to imagining how you'll be the toast of the town after Clint Dempsey's game winner come Saturday night around 8:30 in the evening, live from South Africa. Just don't offer to buy a round of Budweisers at the ol' Cock & Bull. They drink ale, like real MEN. Not a bad call, Z.I.P. I think ITZ should go ask the Green Street Elite how they feel about the Hammers' own keeper Green fumbling away 2 points for the Three Lions

I've been complimentary of Tom Gaffney's coverage of the Zips in the last year or so, but he was just a tad tardy on this one. ZN Thread

ESPN Link The timing on this is interesting. The MWC must have been hoping for Colorado to team with CSU, but when the Buffs joined the PAC-whatever it was time to get Boise signed, sealed and delivered before someone else came calling.

But Akron MEN do. Go watch a bottom barrel MAC football team or go to a sold out Pouch and watch one of the country's premiere soccer squads. Your choice. I know where I will be. The Pouch? lol.... That's like saying go watch the country's premier bowling team. That's wonderful that they're successful and all, but who really gives a f***? The success of the athletic department will always hinge on football and men's basketball. I've said it before and I'll say it again.... Football and basketball could win MAC Championships, every other athletic team could not win a game, and nobody would bat an eye. TW would be the toast of the town. But if football and basketball lost every game, and every other sport won a national title, TW's ass would be grass, and Proenza would be smokin it. Ole Tom would have the first ticket out of town. It's great that you like soccer, and I support them and love to see them succeed just like I love to see rifle and any other Zip sport succeed, but those sports will always take a back seat to football and basketball, regardless of success. The bottom line is, 95% of people in Akron and UA alumni would rather watch and pay for bad football than nationally ranked soccer any day of the week. Well, I'm glad that I was able to drag ITZ away from his Guinness at the Cock & Bull Pub for long enough to stir up a conversation. So ITZ, have you been able to convince your neighbors in the Midlands there that real football is played by real MEN with enough padding for a team of hookers in London's East End? That it would be more interesting if Wayne Rooney and his mates would stand around in a circle before each kick of the ball so that everyone is aware of the "snap count"? But anyway, congratulations again on matriculating to a country which has its sports priorities better sorted. Cheerio, ITZ. I'll let you get back to imagining how you'll be the toast of the town after Clint Dempsey's game winner come Saturday night around 8:30 in the evening, live from South Africa. Just don't offer to buy a round of Budweisers at the ol' Cock & Bull. They drink ale, like real MEN. The real men of Nottingham join me to watch the real men of Nottingham RFC go to war, while the fairy princesses of the town prance on over to City Ground to watch the boys of Forest FC chase balls. So who do you like in the opener tomorrow, ITZ..........Bafana Bafana or El Tri?

SECOND DOMINOE - It's Colorado to Pac-10! Link

It looks like this thread's days are numbered.

Where is the story? I can only find things like "all signs point towards Nebraska in Big 10" on the ESPN site, and I don't see anything on their ticker (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU or ESPN News). Edit: I see the story where Nebraska's Board of Regents has OK'd the move. Link

Zach's favorite web site has the Zips in another infamous list. Link Edit: I see they misrepresented our % capacity figure (they have 40% including Rubber Bowl stats. It would be 58% for the INFO). They also have the INFO opening in 2008. Maybe if we bring it to their attention, we'll get off of the list? There's no arguing over who's number 1 though.

I think you're confusing the interests of an Athletic director with that of a fan. I fully realize that soccer is a small budget sport. But I could care less. As a zips fan I want to see a winner. Interesting. I wonder where all those alumni were last season? I certainly didn't see them at the football games. I also find it interesting that the AK-Rowdies were late to a football game last year because they were too preoccupied with watching the soccer team WIN. I also find it interesting that the AK-Rowdies dumped plans for a bus trip to watch Akron football. Instead, the took a bus trip to Buffalo to watch Akron soccer WIN. Of course football will bring more publicity--IF YOU WIN. Akron football has sucked. I'm not interested. And judging from our attendance, neither is most of Akron. I couldn't agree more. I should be looking forward to tailgating and watching the new-look Zips but I'm actually very pessimistic about UA football. It's not a winning program and I was one who hoped that the Info, resulting recruiting, emphasis on the program by the administration, etc, would really put the program on solid footing. Where is the promotion? Where is the recruiting? Where is new AD TW? He's become completely invisible as far as I can tell. I'm not impressed with his utter lack of visibility. How do you become a community notable without being notable in the community? How can the administration allow the team shop to still be sitting empty on Exchange? What exactly was the purpose of taking a 5-cent program, providing a beautiful new facility, and then allowing it to remain a 5-cent program? I feel guilty at this point about having spent money again this year on priority reserve tickets for football and not supporting the soccer team. They are the winners. No field, being stripped of the playoff game two years ago, losing their best players to the pros and simply reloading each year. Playing for national championships. That's the kind of program we should all get behind. At this point, THAT is the team that should be playing in the Info. Let the bedraggled and losing football team play on the soccer pitch. It's where they belong until they can actually compete in the worst D-1 conference in the country. Last question: is it really that much to ask that UA football be competitive, every year, in the worst D-1 conference? Drealscout, where are you???? We need you now more than ever buddy!! And bring in the BIG guns

Is the sky falling? I don’t really think so. Will the divide between the “haves” and the “have nots” grow wider? It’s possible. Will it be enough to change college football from what it’s traditionally been, that is, a wide-ranging continuum of programs running the gamut from national powers to regional powers to solid programs to lucky squirrels to wannabees? This is the real question. And the answer, I believe, lies in how future “mega-conference” OOC schedules are developed. If these “mega-conferences” begin to EXCLUSIVELY schedule only teams from other “mega-conferences”, then I think the landscape will truly be changed to a point where schools like UA will be forced into a different classification. If they don’t, I’m not sure that I see a huge effect on a school like Akron. We see this “rich getting richer” phenomenon in all sports. And it certainly makes it more difficult for the “small market” teams to compete. But in the end, there is always room for a set of players with the right coaching staff to buck the odds and compete “against the big boys”. When I watched Utah demolish Alabama in the 2008 Sugar Bowl I believed at the time that they were the best team in the country. In hindsight, I believe it even more. The fact that the Utes were not in a BCS conference did not prevent them from embarrassing a BCS power smack in the middle of BCS country (although it DID prevent them from playing for the national championship). My point is if you play well on the field, you will get your chance to be noticed. Do we really think that programs like Kansas, K-State, etc will fall off the face of the earth if they’re forced out of the Big XII? Perhaps they’ll join up with the MWC and wind up flourishing 10 years from now. Who knows? Changes have occurred in conferences from the beginning of the sport until now. While the impending changes are no doubt significant, I don’t think it will be the last of them. It’s the nature of the beast.

That's cool. Of course, I only wish that college soccer got some attention in this country, then the whole University would benefit from this publicity. I think one of the significant aspects of this story is that the writer expects the careers of Kofi and Zarek to transcend college soccer and perhaps make a splash on the USMNT. If that occurs, UA could very well receive a decent amount of publicity.

Bump. It is sounding more and more like the big landscape shift is right around the corner. With the Big 12 reportedly issuing ultimatums to Nebraska and Mizzou, and the PAC-10 getting into the picture, the next two weeks could be very interesting indeed. Administrators at Kansas, K-State, Baylor and Iowa State have to be pretty nervous right now. ESPN Link

I wonder how long Zac Dysert plays in this game. If I'm Haywood, I take him out pretty early. He's the one kid they have who could go a long way towards turning their program around. We all know the tide can turn fairly quickly in the MAC. It's popular to pick Miami in the 7th slot this year, but history says they won't be there for too long. I'm certainly enjoying the Sweater misery while I can!

Can anyone Cut-n-Paste? That site isn't working for me. Ask, and ye shall receive.

Looks like RI landed on an undesirable list put out by Bleacher Report. At least he's in good company (Sweater, Kelly, Urban)!! Link

Thanks for the scoop! The evening kickoff will gives us all day to break into Lot 9

I'll say......6'3", 330 lbs is more like the size of a Wagon Queen Family Truckster. I thought akropolis meant high place. Perhaps akropolis means high place and akrópolis means highest?

Your link doesn't seem to exist. Hmmm you're correct. They must have taken it down temporarily because I read the full article earlier. They mention all of the expected (scheme switch, QB named in August, Lemon ordeal, Ianello's recruiting reputation) and some it up by saying we should expect some "rookie" HC mistakes in this year of transition. If you Google "JD Brookhart" and look at the "News" options only, the Orlando Sentinel story picking the Zips at #91 will be first in the list of three. I'll bet they'll have it back up tomorrow. Here is a new link. New Link I know that sum on this board appreciate your effort in posting this link. I due two. Zipmeister grammar police! "dew" would've been funnier. And I'd go with "you're effort." You need to optimize your making fun of other posters. I love starting off days like this. The original post has been corrected.

I'll say......6'3", 330 lbs is more like the size of a Wagon Queen Family Truckster.

It's quite possible he is the son of former Raiders offensive tackle John Clay. If so, Clay Sr. has made an incredibly bad choice about where to invest in real estate. I don't get your point. I go driving through that neck of the woods all of the time in my trusty vehicle On a serious note, often it's a great sign when a kid can use an opportunity like sports to keep on a good path in an otherwise difficult environment. Just because Scout or Rivals doesn't see anything (yet) in the kid, doesn't mean a whole lot to me, especially in a situation like this.

Height: 6 ft - 2 inches Weight: 195 lbs Position: SS-Strong Safety And his name is actually Mark. And his last name is actually Murphy.......his dad, also Mark Murphy, played safety for the Packers. Rivals says he has offers from Arizona, K.E.N.T. and Indiana. I actually had a chance to help coach him in basketball at an early age. He is a good kid from a good family. His dad also coached at Akron under Faust, right? Yes, indeed. I believe he coached the secondary? He's an assistant at StV/M currently. Edit: As I thought about it, I became pretty sure that the older Mark Murphy coached under Owens. I found an old program (Va Tech one at that!) that shows Mark joining the Akron staff in 1995 coaching DBs.