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Because a weak Big 10 helps the MAC. We're in the same region of the country, and recruit basically the same region of the country. This should be pretty obvious.

On your first point, ragging on the Big 10 is simply pointing out the obvious. And a bad Big 10 is helping us big-time. The worse the Big 10 keeps dropping, the more of those players that are considering MAC schools, in the same regions. The gap is closing quickly between these two conferences, and we are the beneficiaries. On your second point, please give us the list of those "great" teams in the Big 10.

Let me just say this: In my decades long history as a Zips fan, I have probably never seen a game have as much uncertainty attached to it as this game. Have we truly taken a big step forward? Or, did we play the game of our lives?

Oh, it will happen. It's like a yearly event here in Ohio.

He wouldn't have necessarily known that he was going to get blitzed, and therefore can't tell his running back who to block before the play starts. That would have been up to the running back to recognize, if the play called for him to stay in and block. But, what the QB should have recognized immediately is that there was a void in the direction of where the blitzer was coming from, in which case Dillard coming underneath should have been the obvious target. This is why I think that Zach, breaking free to the back of the end zone may have been his intended target on that play from the get go.

Dave, this is what hurts so badly right now, which is the longevity of all of this. That one yard will be the difference between the attention lasting a few days, and lasting for years.

I like most of what you are saying here, but if you are going to give the D-Line an "A" and the Linebackers an "A-", which unit gets less-than-perfect grades for giving up 5.5 yards per carry on the ground to Michigan?

Dillard breaking to the inside was a sure TD, if time had allowed.

Perfectly Said.

That's not a high standard. Every away game I've been to over the last few decades have been better experiences as a visiting fan than my trips to Cowlumbus. But, I was particularly surprised at the number of people who saw my shirt, and stopped us to tell us what a great game we played, and good luck. Class people. Now I'll wait for our resident Suckeye Honks to appear and give us the standard OSWho "there's bad apples in every bunch" excuse.

It shouldn't be, but it is. If we had won, you might have gotten 20-25k to show up next week, but certainly not a sellout. Most would not be convinced it was anything else but an absolute fluke. The close call is only going to have minimal immediate effect. However, if we take what we accomplished today, and turn it into an impressive win next Saturday, we can start to build something. A loss next Saturday, and the momentum gained by what we witnessed in Ann Arbor will have faded away.

I've brought this up on many occasions. They've done a fantastic job of creating a loyal following in the SW section of Ohio. The bUCkeye State shirts are hilarious. The anti-OSWho radio spots that they ran a few years ago are hilarious as well. This is a perfect example of what we should do up here. And it doesn't need to wait for football. It can start with Basketball, and extend into Football, just like it did in Cinci.

Typical OSWho fan. 1) Denial 2) Excuses I actually have a friend who defended OSWho religiously through all of this, but he has recently told me that he wants those clowns down in Cowlumbus to clean up their act. He's embarrassed. I respect that. Don't you want things to change? You can't possibly think that it's OK for a public institution to exceed every school in the country in NCAA violations by such an astronomical margin. And ranting and calling people names changes none of the facts. Seriously, please understand that I am a Zips fan in my 50s, and I don't treat OSWho any differently than I treat Ken+ State. So, spare me the 'jealously" rants, because I don't think anyone is jealous of Ken+ State's success. Wouldn't you rather be clamoring for a solution instead of exacerbating the problem? Do you think that there's a value in having college athletics be....well....college athletics? Akron won the EM Cup for this very reason, and I have respect for people who run their athletic program with this level of integrity. And I will continue to hammer on those who make a joke out of it, and OSWho happens to be the biggest perpetrator, by an extremely wide margin. Thanks for your analysis of my mental state, and for the entertainment. I need to go finish my 3rd grade homework, so I can't continue this discussion right now.

I'll be sure to check myself into counseling asap. In the meantime, I will make sure that all of these are on the list of standard OSWho excuses I have already heard from your fellow fans. But if there is anything new, I will add it to the list. And for the record, I disagree with the hiring of JT. And I have many posts which indicate that. By the way, do you know that there are numerous internet boards for OSWho supporters? They all believe you that there must be some other explanation for all of these NCAA violations over there.

First, you do know that the Cowlumbus Dispatch dug up the NCAA violations records, and in a 10 years period OSWho had almost TWICE as many violation as the NEXT CLOSEST SCHOOL? Right? So, spare me the standard OSWho excuse that "everyone cheats". Secondly, how did you know that I am so clueless in my life? The language in your posts tells me everything I need to know.

I'm talking about having winning sports programs, and doing it without cheating. Do you recall Akron winning the Excellence in Management Award, or being 6th in the Capital One Cup standings a few years ago? Question: If you are not proud of what the Zips accomplish, and defend OSWho at every opportunity. Is there a reason why you are on this board?

LOL !!! Remember, the idiots at OSwho already tried to go after Florida's football program this summer with accusations. We all saw how that worked out.

Sure, I'd risk some violations for a major jump in notoriety for the Zips. However, I do respect that we do things the right way, pretty much. I like to think that we serve as a pretty good example of a program that wins, while dispelling the "everyone bends the rules" theory. But, I wouldn't trade a few years of shame, such as being a disgrace to college athletics like OSWho.

We'll never know what transpired, but I am so incredibly thankful for Bowden. A proven winner at every level, including at a major 1-A school. If he can't turn it around, nobody can. Meanwhile, Winters has never even been a D-1 coach. Not even a 1-AA coach. Barely a .500 record as a D-II coach. And he just followed up his career year at that level with an "impressive" 5-5 season. This is pretty much the end of the story for me. Like I've said before, when the D-1 schools come clamoring for his services, maybe I'll change my opinion. But with coaches, most times they end up right where they ought to be. If big schools see your talents rising, they come calling, and produce the resources to bring you there. But, in this case, 10 years now at a D-II school. Likewise with Owens.

I'm not sure what bothers me more. The fact that the guy clearly acted. Or, the fact that the official decided to hand out a yellow card for something that he didn't even see.

I already mentioned this on another thread, but unfortunately a lot of people who would be at this game will already be in Ann Arbor, MI on Friday night for the 12pm football game against Michigan on Saturday. I sure hope some of them postpone their drive until Saturday morning, but with the early start, everyone I know is going up there on Friday.

THANK YOU!!! It needed to be said, because one of them would chime in eventually.

Amen. Our coach isn't going to tell the players that they are going to Michigan just to show up and not get hurt. They will want to try to win the football game, and so will the coaches, and they will play the best guys who are able to be on the field.

I would indeed be happy if we can play them better than CMU did. That would be a good benchmark for us. But, it all depends on what Michigan wants to do. I expect them to run the ball a lot this year, and we can't tackle. But, that probably keeps the score down a bit as opposed to them throwing against our weak secondary all day.

And because of unlucky circumstances, a lot of people who would have been at that game will already be in Ann Arbor, MI.