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I was a student when the JAR was constructed. The original plan called for a larger facility. A downturn in the economy left the Administration with a decision to build a lesser facility or wait for an economic recovery and additional money from the State. Let’s get it right this time. Build a new facility on the east side of the JAR. Connect the two buildings and your practice facility is already there. This also has the added benefit of locating all of our athletic buildings within a half block of each other. Forget a downtown facility. It is clear the people of Akron and Summit County aren’t interested.

I love the Zips. I keep hoping Dambrot will take us to the next level. Maybe there is more to it than just the coach. But after 8-10 years, I think it is quite clear that we are, and will only ever be, a good MAC team. I guess that's okay! Is it the lack of talent? Is it the lack of fan support? Is It the coaching staff? I just don't see us moving beyond a Mid-Major mediocre/good team.

I don't consider myself at all wealthy. I have two kids in college and one in private high school. My wife and I both felt the donation we made to the IS (over and above our season tickets and Z-Fund contributions) was an investment in our school and our community. We most certainly would make a donation for a new arena.

I've been involved in several corporate mergers. It's never a merger of equals. Someone wins, and someone loses. It sounds simple and easy, but egos, personalities, and politics will inevitably get in the way. Athletics may be the easy part of a merger. Will there be two business colleges? Will there be two engineering colleges? Will a student have a class in Akron at 8:00 and a class in Can't at 10:00? There are many issues that would be very difficult to resolve. Let CSU become an Akron branch campus, and let YSU become a Can't branch campus.

I am all for operational efficiency and organizational stream lining I am not prepared to lose our identity. I am not willing to have my soul stripped away. My personal support and affinity for my school would disappear. The Country is experiencing difficult economic times. It’s has been almost six years since the great recession began. And we still have not recovered. A thriving economy would do much to alleviate the financial burdens on all of these schools. I hate to get political, but the truth is, with the exception of Don Plusquellic, the political class that runs Cuyahoga, Mahoning, Lorain, Trumbull and to a lesser extent Summit counties provides virtually zero economic optimism. Cuyahoga County specifically has been destroyed by corrupt, inept and criminal politicians. I believe this lack of local political leadership directly affects all three of these schools. This is where we draw students from!! People go to or stay where there are jobs and opportunities. Businesses provide jobs, but a dynamic, engaged, intelligent political system has to provide direction and vision. We don’t have that folks!!

The only way we are going to get a new arena is with a large single donation, or a whole bunch of us Alum giving nickels, dimes ,and dollars. Has anyone ever taken a straw poll of alum to see if any support exits? Not just support for the arena, but willingness to donate $$$.

The greatest Human legacy is not what we gain in life, but what we leave behind, The comments so beautifully describe the love and positive presence Pete brought to others. God Bless Him! God Love Him! God Keep Him! I still have thoughts of my own Father who never coached beyond Highs School. When he passed numerous former players came back to acknowledge the positive life lessons they had learned from him.

Nice win zips! I was in South Bend to watch another game. I wish gozips.com updates were a little more frequent. Seemed like forever between the updates. Speaking of forever, I know it's off topic, but 4.5 hours to play a game at ND is painful. If not for the weather I would have left even earlier than I did. These television games are ridiculous. I guess it would be a nice problem for us to have though!

I am a season ticket holder, and have been for several years. My youngest is now playing for ST. V-M. Hoban played ST. V-M Friday the attendance appeared to be 8000-9000 fans. When you add in OSU and the Browns, there’s only so much football time to give. Regardless, I believe a couple of solid winning seasons with a MAC title and the fans will show. If I recall we had some nice crowds in the waning years at the RB. The Charlie Frye era! People want to back a winner! I love the school for the opportunities it has afforded me, and the great asset it provides to the community. But not everyone sees the big picture. I am still amazed at the number of people I have talked to over the years, who see Dr. Proenza’s tenor as negative.

Well, I don't know what to say! Great Game! I was surprised, but extremely pleased with a BIG time win. I was so dejected after that Marshall game, I didn't know what to think. I hate to admit my wife was right. LOL! Her response after the Marshall game was “get over it. It’s just one loss in a long season. Let’s see where we’re at in a couple of weeks”. Congratulations to the Coaches, and players for a great win. Let’s keep it going

Maybe I shouldn't bother to comment on this game, but I feel a need to express how disappointed I am in our performance. I couldn't make the opening kickoff, I listened to the game while driving to the stadium. I almost turned around and went back home. I felt the game was over before I even found a parking space. Speaking of parking, my lot 9 season ticket holder parking pass was useless because all the Marshall fans were allowed to park in a supposedly season ticket holder reserved lot. This game was clearly a boy’s vs men contest. I am not knowledgeable enough to know if this is a lack of talent, a failure of coaching or the approaching equinox. Or perhaps all three! Clearly this program has a long, long way to go.

Having worked for a large corporation for many years, and still work for it today, I can see both sides of the Leadership strategy decision. For an organization that is well run and well managed from all perspectives i.e. .Owners, Stockholders, Employees and Customers. And one that has a successful strategy and vision in place. I believe an internal promotion is often the appropriate choice for Leadership succession. I have also seen an organization become stagnant and complacent. The organizations strategic plan, if there is one, is poorly thought out and poorly executed. Personnel decisions are made based on friends, family and other non-relevant traits. When an organization reaches this point, an outside hire is a must. The critical component for success of U of A is the Board of Directors. They must be knowledgeable, independent, and heavily involved in the University’s strategic plan. They must also continuously monitor and evaluate strategy execution. Without strong Board Leadership, no organization will be successful. Looking at U of A from my perspective as an Alum, Student Parent, Financial supporter and all around advocate, I feel that Dr. Proenza has done an outstanding job. I commend him for his service to my University. Let’s hope our new Leadership is as good as he has been.

I felt that was our best overall performance since we beat POTUS’s team. Nice win!

I would like to express my thanks to coach Dambrot and coach Peters for their acknowledgment of my wife and myself at the BG game Saturday. As part of a charity fundraiser silent auction we had access to the entire JAR, and got to sit behind the team at Saturday’s game. It was fun! What a different perspective from our regular seats! Thanks again coaches! Go Zips!!!!!!!

Though I am new to this site, I have been a season ticket holder for several years. I just want to express a few of my observations. The bar set by KD is quite high. The expectations of the fans is also quite high. This is great for the Team the School and us fans. With the exceptions of Tree and Harney, we are a very young team. We struggled early on to settle on a starting line-up. Once a starting line-up was set, injury, illness and self- inflicted judgment errors turned it upside down. Couple that with Coach Peters illness, and this season has been anything but easy. We may not be having the season we all want, but I see our program as very solid. P.S. It’s not over yet!!!!!

Balsy, Thanks for the welcome! Go Zips!!!

An NBA caliber defensive effort by both teams.

I think KD expects to every game.

My son is a student at St. V-M, Alex was at the school last week encouraging members of the B-ball team to make good life decisions.