Lee Adams
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Posts posted by Lee Adams
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6 hours ago, ZIPFAN21 said:
I know it's tough to relax when there has been 20 consecutive losses but let's look at the upside. 1) This season is really just an evaluation period for 6 weeks. Everything will carry over. These young players 74% of roster is Freshman/Sophomore's will get tremendously better in the off season with a strength and conditioning coordinator that is very highly respected.
2) Offensively they are way better off than last year and it's not even close. The offensive line will only get better and will be together for 4 years. Add Nate Williams and Ronan Chambers and some depth and you can argue in 2 years will be best in the MAC.
3) RBs improved over last season, again not even close. Need more depth with untested Freshman.
4) WRs improved over last season as a group. Qualls and Grimes big upgrades. Stewart is the senior leader. Mathison been injured but future is very bright.
5) QB room has competition now. Nelson is injured but will return at some point. Gibson upside is off the charts. You can tell he is a leader. He can make all the throws. His issue is trying to do too much be because of being desperate to win. Bringing in kid from Vero Beach in January is only gonna solidify that position moving forward.
6) Defense needs to get bigger and faster period. DL is young and weak but will benefit with off season training. May need a couple of transfers at this position.
7) LBs are too small and not physical. Struggle in passing game and overmatched. Bubba does it with heart but seriously 210lb LBs is not a good template.
Need a transfer or two at this position.
? DBs are young and need to get stronger. They lose every physical battle thus far this season. Poor in tackling, poor in coverage. Look confused. Watts, Cochran and Ogbonna will get better with offseason workouts.
Bottomline we gotta be patient. The real Year 2 for Arth begins in 2021.
Right on about the LB's. Not physically up to par even for the MAC. No shutdown DB. Where is Dwight Smith when you need him(LOL). But, please don't go back to Nelson at this point. His train left the station 2 years ago.
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6 hours ago, ZIPFAN21 said:
I know it's tough to relax when there has been 20 consecutive losses but let's look at the upside. 1) This season is really just an evaluation period for 6 weeks. Everything will carry over. These young players 74% of roster is Freshman/Sophomore's will get tremendously better in the off season with a strength and conditioning coordinator that is very highly respected.
2) Offensively they are way better off than last year and it's not even close. The offensive line will only get better and will be together for 4 years. Add Nate Williams and Ronan Chambers and some depth and you can argue in 2 years will be best in the MAC.
3) RBs improved over last season, again not even close. Need more depth with untested Freshman.
4) WRs improved over last season as a group. Qualls and Grimes big upgrades. Stewart is the senior leader. Mathison been injured but future is very bright.
5) QB room has competition now. Nelson is injured but will return at some point. Gibson upside is off the charts. You can tell he is a leader. He can make all the throws. His issue is trying to do too much be because of being desperate to win. Bringing in kid from Vero Beach in January is only gonna solidify that position moving forward.
6) Defense needs to get bigger and faster period. DL is young and weak but will benefit with off season training. May need a couple of transfers at this position.
7) LBs are too small and not physical. Struggle in passing game and overmatched. Bubba does it with heart but seriously 210lb LBs is not a good template.
Need a transfer or two at this position.
? DBs are young and need to get stronger. They lose every physical battle thus far this season. Poor in tackling, poor in coverage. Look confused. Watts, Cochran and Ogbonna will get better with offseason workouts.
Bottomline we gotta be patient. The real Year 2 for Arth begins in 2021.
If I had to guess Arth might be tempted to improve his defense with a couple of transfers/JUCOS just to support what appears to be a developing offense. At the MAC level almost have to do that at some point. Not to the extent Bowden did it however. If Arth can coach up a QB, whomever that may be, the offense should be significantly better than under Bowden and..... Assuming a full schedule is played sometime in 2021,obviously not certain, if Arth finds a competent QB, they will be competitive next season.
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I realize that a lot of people here are again frustrated. I have been frustrated for a number of years. Not just the last 5 or so. That said, There are a few ways a new coach can inherit a program. 1)A coach can inherit a stocked program from a successful coach who moves up. 2)He/she can inherit a program form a coach who was fired or 'moved on' because the program was possibly underachieving or not able to develop a consistently winning program. Maybe some decent talent but not enough to win consistently. 3)Finally, a coach can inherit a program that has very little talent capable of performing at the level the school wants to play at. I think we can safely say Akron was not a program Arth inherited from a successful coach, stocked with talent that was consistently posting winning records. Maybe depending on your viewpoint one could make a case for either 2) or 3) in the case of the Zips. I guess I would lean toward 2). That said ,the incoming coach then has to decide how he/she wants to rebuild/build his program. Either pretty much tear it down and build mainly with new recruits. Or, keep some of the players on the roster and bring in lots of transfers and JUCO's. I think Bowden chose the latter mostly. It appears Arth has pretty much chosen the former. That takes longer, obviously.
Right now he is having more success on the offensive side of the ball. That figures since he was a QB at the college and pro levels. The defense obviously hasn't caught up yet. The game ready talent either is there and not game ready or pretty much isn't there. Unfortunately, the events leading up to this season placed new coaches rebuilding programs at a big disadvantage to more established programs with established coaches. Arth is still evaluating talent. The rest of this season should tell him several things:1) Does the defense have enough promising talent to make him believe that there will be significant improvement next season with the players he has. Or, will he need to recruit transfer/JUCO's to bolster that side of the ball more quickly. 2) Is Gibson the QB of the future and can Arth 'coach him up' to the point where can become a serviceable MAC QB with the talent around him on the offensive side of the ball. I don't think Kato Nelson is going to get anymore significant playing time save for injury. Could be wrong but, with what 3 games left doesn't seem like that would be real productive for the program. And 3) Arth is going to have to decide if his assistant coaches are up to the task, or not then make the appropriate changes as necessary.
I am still hopeful given what the offense has done with a dominant ground game and QB who is still find his way.
Just hope we get a full season next year.
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On 11/17/2020 at 10:21 AM, Blue & Gold said:
Yeah. He's definitely undersized at 5-9, 205.
Reggie was a 1st Team All-Ohio D1 pick at LB his senior year, but his size obviously dictated the coaching staff envisioning him as a DB - that and his dad played CB for the Zips & then the Buffalo Bills. He looked pretty good at safety during the Spring Game 2 years ago. You're probably right in that it indicates our lack of depth at the LB position.
Ya, dad was really good. Don't think Jr. got a real good shot to play in the secondary the last few seasons. That lack keeps showing up.
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What a shame! They finally found something that consistently works on offense, BUT the defense continues to be a train wreck. They have played 2 really good teams and the defense has fallen apart against both. Give up big plays on the ground and through the air. The overall talent on defense just isn't there. While there are guys who are busting there butts with hustle, they are doing it to try to compensate for a lack of sufficient talent on that side of the ball. Not naming names. Doesn't do any good at this point. It also appears that the coaches on the D side are having problems making adjustments for the second half. The defense is going to take an infusion of talent before we see significant improvement.
The offense looks far better than last season thanks to the improved O-line and dare I say a potentially dominant running game. Gibson obviously is going to have to develop significantly so that the passing game can draw some attention of the opposing D. He only threw 15 passes completed 9 with another pick. Its amazing that Dollard had over 200 yards when he was basically the entire offense.
Too bad that when your offense finally put up a big number(35) against a decent team you end up losing by 34. Might as well start looking at some different options on defense. Get some size on the field at linebacker and play some young guys in the secondary. And, start leaning a little more on QB play to see if Gibson is going to be the guy next season.
There is hope.
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3 hours ago, Blue & Gold said:
I picked us for the win simply because I couldn't bring myself to vote for a 21+ Kent win.
I was hoping for rain to slow down Kent's offense, but no such luck. It is only scheduled to be 35 degrees at kickoff, so maybe that will slow their passing attack a little bit? Crum's awfully good.
Hopefully we can continue to run the ball successfully and keep Kent's offense off the field/our D fresh/run clock. So many advantages to being able to run the football.
I've already mentioned how much I'm enjoying watching our OL develop. But our DL is awfully young too.
DL getting the most PT are
#11 Nazir Sy - R-Sophomore
#97 Janirr Wade - true Freshman (don't believe he played in game #1 - made a difference)
#67 Logan Hawkins - R-Sophomore (don't believe he played in game #1 - made a difference), and
#94 John Mitchell - Senior
(Senior Ja'Quize Cross started Week 1 but didn't play last week.)
A freshman who hasn't played yet but whom I'm excited to see on the DL is Deacon Allen. He's listed as 6-1, 290 and was a state-ranked wrestler in high school. I like wrestlers - they know how to use leverage & have good balance.
Our starting LB's also have a couple/few more years to reach full potential:
Bubba - R-Junior (I'm digging the fact this year doesn't count against eligibility)
Brandon Bischof - Junior
Ryan McClain - Junior, and
Julian Richardson - Sophomore
Two linebackers I'd like to see more of are R-Soph. Reggie Corner (undersized but a natural baller) and R-Freshman Quevan Lawson - one of our higher rated recruits and has great size at 6-5, 240. (I haven't seen Quevan at all - I'm thinking he's probably sick.)
Puzzles me about moving Reggie Corner to LB. Didn't he actually come in as a possible CB then move to safety? Think it indicates how thin they think they are at LB
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Can't see Zips win. Even if they can run the ball effectively, I fear the D is far too leaky to stop the KSWho offense. Their O is better than OU's offense. Only hoping Akron can keep it competitive and continue to show improvement at least on the offensive side.
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On 11/10/2020 at 10:45 PM, 72 Roo said:
After last week this was a huge improvement. OU is no WMU and it showed. Last week I was depressed; this week there is reason for hope. My biggest concern is Gibson. I questioned his decision making against Western and I saw little improvement tonight. You cannot win with a QB who turns over the ball. Around him the team has gotten better. Love Dollard, love Bubba. The OL showed it can grow and learn. The DL showed flashes of talent. Riley is out of his depth, he can not cover a #1 receiver. The coaches stepped up their game and had the team ready. My compliments to them. Looking ahead Kent looks good and BG can be our first win. Hope so.
Much better than anything we saw last season. Just the fact they have a running game that they can rely on to help control a game is huge. The O-line can actually block it. Seen it for 2 games now. It looks for real. Haven't seen a legit running game for seasons. Liked some of the tighter formations Arth used to force the defense to respond to that instead of the opponents D dictating. Dollard does indeed look like a horse. Stay healthy. Gibson should be able to clean up his mistakes since he doesn't have to carry the offense. Those picks hurt. I love to watch an O-line that can block a running game.
They have to clean up the back end of that defense. Can't consistently give up completions in critical situations and not be able to get off the field. Still have to get more consistent play from the D-line to keep the LB's clean to make plays without having to use them to blitz just to pressure the QB.
Lean on the run game against KSWho and try to keep Crum off the field. Just be competitive against the.
Just wish we could watch in person.
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22 minutes ago, zippy5 said:
fearless forecast: Kato isn't the starting QB
Is he out for sure?
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15 hours ago, NWAkron said:
A new day. 6 game season beginning 11/4 with a conference championship. Mid Week #MACtion. Miami at home. Kent away?
Is there an 'official' schedule out yet? Or, are we still waiting? No fans. Wonder which network might pick up some of these games? Since it looks like week nights maybe one of the ESPN clones. Fox Sports? NBCSN?
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Back in ancient times they never had a problem 'filling the Bowl' with the Acme Zip game. 2 for 1 tix at Acme stores if I am not mistaken. And that was at the Bowl(RIP). There must be a local business that might be willing to enter in to a sponsorship of some sort for one game to get people into the seats. Those games were a helluva lot of fun. And that was when they were DII. And more often than not they won. Take a shot at it. And yes,the performance on the field must be consistently better season after season. Not just once every 4-5 seasons. Easily said. Not easily done.
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Does this mean no more French and Dunn???!!!
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On 8/9/2020 at 3:50 PM, Spin said:
I'd be interested where you get your information from, because everything I have heard and read says that the P5 "sacrafice" games and the ESPN Tuesday/Thursday night games cover not only the football program, but a big chunk of the athletic dept. budget.
So if you want to drop those games, drop a division, then you're looking at loss of scholarships for most if not all athletes. Which would be really ignorant IMO because we have a tournament quality mens D1 basketball program and a championship winning D1 men's soccer program. To name two. You're castrating yourself, unless you really want to play Bluffton and Marietta. Akron did that in the 1800's.
The whole university is hemorrhaging money, athletics is just one part. An very visible part, and making it an easy target. The 0'fer season doesn't help, and makes everyone forget the bowl games we went to the last few years (that paid seven figures). Football critics point to the attendance at the monsoon game last year, conveniently forgetting 90% of the sporting events wish they had that many paying fans...
If you want to make football your target, you need to understand how other the sport's bread is buttered...
Student fees? Yes they are a crime. I was a non-traditional student, so paid for parking. And I paid for the busses I never used. I never used the bowling alley, the theater, the pool hall, the indoor basketball courts, the climbing wall, the gym, the activities, I could go on all day. All of those fees I paid for stuff I never used, so I don't want to hear about athletics fees. That was the one fee I actually was able to take advantage of.
The answer doesn't start with raping or eliminating the football program. It's actually the one program that brings in more than it spends.
Never said anything about wanting to 'eliminate' football. Have said that over and over. And yes, I was a commuter back in the early 1970's. And yes I went to football and B.ball games on my student ID. Not because I was paying the fees,but because I loved watching football and basketball. I paid my own parking fees too. And yes the entire University is in financial trouble. But no, the target is not just the athletic department. The administration is making drastic 'cuts' on the academic side as we write. How will that affect the viability of the University in the future. Stay tuned.
If the money from the 'sacrifice' games in football or basketball games for that matter put the ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT on the positive side of the financial ledger we would have been there long ago. We are not there. Why? Someone please tell me.
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22 hours ago, Spin said:
IDK I think the pros have shown that you can play the season with the proper precautions.
And the Mariners showed what happens when you don’t. And the Indians are showing their rogue teammates just what they think of their carelessness.
I’d rather have the players busy with sports and class, on campus (open or not) and staying in the “bubble”. You turn them loose between now and spring football season, they’re a heck of a lot more likely to put themselves at risk.
Looks like the only plan that is REALLY working so far is the so called 'bubble'. The NHL and NBA have sequestered all players and teams in very limited locations. They are however reportedly spending millions of dollars to do so. NHL was smart to go to Canada. But,those are professionals not college 'students'. I suppose that if universities could 'sequester' athletes when the attend classes and play sports it might work. But,somebody else mentioned it earlier. If the schools are just using them to play sports and not requiring them to be enrolled for classwork then they are not student/athletes. Besides the cost of doing what the NHL and NBA are doing would be way beyond the financial abilities of all but a small number of schools.
By the way the NHL playoffs have been great.
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On 8/8/2020 at 11:06 AM, DannyHoke said:
Regardless of any past thoughts, seeing an entire FALL SPORTS SEASON be cancelled is a major blow to Akron, and every program in the MAC.
Likely not the only conference to make this move, but the first at the FBS level. The economics without football buy games is impossible to navigate.
Football impacts schools, but not really the NCAA. If this extends to the winter and there is no basketball tournament for a second season, the end of the NCAA will be in short order. No $$$ no sports.
This could well be the total reset that we have been tossing around in various ways for years.
So where do we go from here? I highly doubt football will be played in the spring. Where is the money going to come from to do that? Loss of 'payday' football games doesn't help. But those games have been played for years and the severe financial problems at schools like Akron,Kant etc. continue. So what do we think a permanent 'reset' might look like for the Akron's of the world? Again the problem has been there for years. The pandemic simply is forcing the the issue to finally be dealt with now. Please, no more 'kicking the can down the road'. What does the 'reset' look like? Any ideas?
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We see comments now about 'separation'. I am not real clear on what this 'separation' might look like. Are we talking about about the P5 schools,the real big boys, leaving the NCAA? What about the so called G5 schools like the MAC? What are they going to separate from? I doubt the P5 schools would really want or need those lower level DI schools hanging on to them if they wanted to go there own way. The bottom line for schools like Akron,Kant,OU etc. is to reduce the costs of running athletic programs,drastically. It obviously does not involve playing 'sacrifice' games year after year,after year. Been doing that forever and the financial problems are still there. Continuing to soak the general student body with 'fees' drives students away from the University. It costs too damn much to attend.
So what are some possibilities for permanent,realistic COST REDUCTION in these athletic departments? Lets see some concrete ideas. The time for gnashing of teeth is over.
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On 7/23/2020 at 5:26 PM, NWAkron said:
Please, lets re-litigate this yet again.
Unfortunately the University can't auction off Infocision and its burden. Also unfortunately, numerous UofA administrations have 'kicked this same can down the road' for years and years and years. The pandemic simply forced this administration to finally have to make decisions that should have been made decades ago. Proenza knew the situation of the Athletic Department in particular and the the University in general when he was in charge. Subsequent administrations have passed it on...until now. Should athletics be more drastically downsized?
Should football be played at a lower level if at all? Your response depends on your personal opinion toward athletics at this level. Personally, I hope football doesn't completely go away. But at whatever level Akron plays football I will watch. But, its obvious that its time to pick up this can and finally throw it in the trash.
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On 7/20/2020 at 10:58 AM, 94zipgrad said:
What the hell happened to this University of Akron FOOTBALL Forum?
Thank you! As we now know the University is not done 'looking at' how to possibly make UofA athletics less of a drain on University financial resources. It appears the blowback from the cuts on the educational side has forced the administration to again at least publicly acknowledge that resources going to the athletic department might be 'adjusted' to place less of a financial burden on the student population in general. That population keeps shrinking which means an even smaller financial base to draw from. Can the situation as it stands now continue?
Has there even been a FINAL decision as to whether Akron and/or the MAC will even play football this year? Anybody know for certain?
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12 hours ago, kreed5120 said:
The bottom 10-11 scholarship players on FBS rosters would definitely be getting scholarship offers at FCS schools. I'm not opposed to it. I just feel it's disingenuous to state those players would have no other options.
I've actually stated a few years back I'd like to see the NCAA reduce the scholarship to 80 as that would trickle some of the talent from schools like OSU down to schools like Iowa. In turn players who normally would go to Iowa would then trickle down to other schools like Akron. This would help create a more level playing field. The current 85 scholarship limit makes it easy for OSU to hoard a player like Warren Ball on their 3rd or 4th string when in reality he's good enough to start at a school like Akron.
But for the playing field to be 'even' all FBS schools,OSU,Mich.,Alabama etc. have to do it.
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23 hours ago, UA1987 said:
I believe what you are referring to is an article written by young Cameryn Justice of WEWS news on 5/14 where she says - 'The school said that while football remains, the scholarships players receive will likely be reduced while they work on making the program more lucrative.' I don't see anything about a value reduction in her vauge article and I still believe they are referring to the scholarships that the football program awards will be down (now in the mid-seventies or so) as the University works through this crisis (and NCAA recruiting rules). I also beleive that our OOC schedule going forward is going to require that we get to full strength in scholarships (eighty-five) as we will be playing in alot of big stadiums each year (more than prior years - $$$$).
Even fewer schollys,even worse.
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On 5/18/2020 at 4:46 PM, clarkwgriswold said:
Not that it equates to a lot, but the UA students as a whole could get a little more of their money's worth by taking the opportunity to go to the damn games for free. Back in the dark ages the excuse was that it was a commuter school and students weren't on campus to go to the games. That's not the case any more. Those kids are living in or around campus and there can't be that much else to do.
They don't go for 'free'. Just like I didn't go for 'free'(as I posted earlier) in 1970,1971,1972,1973 or 1974. My student fees helped pay for the athletic programs just as they do, even more so, now.
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7 hours ago, morris buttermaker said:
I would expect any football reduction not to be in terms of scholarship numbers, but the cost of attendance $... but thats my guess
Again, didn't say numbers, but a possible reduction in the value of EACH of those 85 schollys.
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8 hours ago, UA1987 said:
I took it that Arth is currently fielding a team with under 85 scholarships. I would expect the football team will be able to fill the 85 scholarship limit in the future.
That is not really the issue. If those 85 schollys are INDIVIDUALLY going to be worth less than currently what are the ramifications? Big difference.
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If I read correctly the statement was made by either Miller or Williams was that scholarship amounts going to student athletes in football would have to be reduced. Not sure if he/they were including all other remaining sports or not. I read that to mean that the amount going to individual participants would be reduced. Anybody have any further info.?
Week 4: Miami RedHawks
in Akron Zips Football
Posted
! step forward 2 steps back. The Defense is a broken record week after week. Can't stop the run or pass. They constantly look lost. One would expect even with an undermanned squad there would be some improvement at this point. Coaches aren't coaching them up or making adjustments. That might normally call for some changes on the defensive side of the ball in the off season. But...what competent D coach would want to walk in to the mess That is the Akron D and possibly ruin a career. Not much light at the end of that tunnel. Surprised Miami didn't hang 'half a hundred' on them.
Still think the offense can be competent with improvement in the O line and at QB. However its obvious unless Akron can run and run and run the passing game can not carry the offense.
Other than Gibson's sack yardage they only ran the ball 15 times for 25 yards? They were down 24-0 at half and only threw the ball 27 times for 141? Can't play catch up that way. Miami knew Gibson couldn't carry the offense and planned to take Dollard out of the game. They did. No adjustments from the coaches apparently. Arth is going to stay with Gibson for now. But, if he doesn't improve they are going to be breaking in a new QB next year. Again, changing the offensive staff isn't likely to bring in high quality coaches. Who would come.
Where is Jim Dennison when you need him?