skip-zip

Excellent point.Maybe the answer to why people don't go to games is simple. There isn't a demand for 27,000 tickets (insert 5,500 for MBB games) to go watch a Tier 3 league. I think we need a big stadium because at least once a year it should get filled. Other than that, on a good night, 15,000 is a reasonable expectation for a Zips game.I'll say it again. People like what they like and the more they are exposed to something the more they know whether or not they like it. Some may disagree, but the MAC gets much more exposure now than it ever has. I'm convinced it just isn't an Akron thing. People around the mid-west have seen enough MAC games to know they don't really like it. Look at the empty stadiums on MAC ESPN games. Heck, look at the empty stadium from last night's game with LA Monroe and whatever team they played. There is no difference between that league and the MAC. Both are Tier 3 leagues.Z.I.P. is right. The MAC is a I-AA league. Maybe excitment can be generated from a playoff type team. I doubt that though. Right now, watching the MAC lose to BCS level teams, teams starting out their seasons 1-3 (someone look into how many MAC teams started the season 1-3 or worse....while your at it, what is the MAC ooc record right now), poor play, half empty stadiums, etc. is not generating excitement. I highlighted this item because this sums up my conclusions over the years as well, and represents our biggest challenge. I was sitting in a bar recently, and some guy in a Suckeyes shirt yelled out, "Ohhhh...come on....turn the channel....who gives a s$2t about MAC football?" And that, unfortunately, mirrors the thoughts of so many sports fans in our area. Until we beat someone of some significance, it's not going to change.

Nice talking to you.I will probably lure that lurker equins out; but, it's not who you beat, it's that you win. When YSU wins they sell out, and they play much less recognized opponents then we do. I honestly say it's about winning. Right now. If we were even .500 right now (impossible with 5 games being played I know) we would have attendance above 20,000. The outlook of the team is so bleak to casual fans and students that no they aren't going to come out and spend time, I don't care how great the facility is, or great the tailgaiting and pre-game are. To put things in perspective, they (the athletic department) gave a low ball estimate on attendance for this season being just over 18 thousand27,881; 17,882; 16,230 averages out to be 20664. If they want to hit that goal though, they had better show that they can win some games. (Can't will still probably be over 17, but we will see).Having the Can't game later in the season, instead of the opener, should indeed help our attendance average. equins loves when we talk about YSU, doesn't he?Hey...you seem convinced that another win here or there has a noticable effect on attendance, and I disagree. And I'm sure you have your reasons. I still think you put way too much weight on the local football fans noticing if Akron is 3-3 instead of 2-4. I never have, and don't believe now, that it makes thousands more area citizens suddenly say, "hey...we have to get down to an Akron game". Much, much bigger things need to happen for a significant number of people to change their mindset about Akron and MAC-level football.Although I was many, many years out of school at Akron, I was still going to all of the games in 1992 when we went 7-3-1, playing in the MAC for the first time. It's the best season Akron has ever had as a D-1A. And although the Acme/Zip game was still a big hit, I don't think there was any significant difference in the number of people who showed up for games 2 thru 6 than you would find in any other season we've been 1-A. And remember one very, very dramatic difference when comparing Akron to YSU. Youngstown plays for NATIONAL championships, and Akron does not.

Not expecting anything. And good point about the MAC title possibly giving a little boost to tickets sales the following year, but a MAC title was already looking bleak by that game after the Can't loss. And, winning MAC games is only gonna take you so far. Big things will need to happen to change the mindset significantly. I think you give a little bit too much credit to local sports fans suddenly getting interested in Akron football because we are beating the likes of Can't, OU, Temple, etc. It just stinks. I've been around this program a long, long time, and I expected the new stadium to have much more affect than it did coming out of the gate. Although I always was quite skeptical of the predictions of "a season of sellouts", I was still hopeful that it would at least last a few games into the season. I'm glad someone still has some things to share on this topic. Nice talking to you g-mann.

I'm not surprised either, but I had hoped the "stadium effect" would have lasted more than 1 game.Since this was a homecoming crowd, at 16k, and you brought up the Rubber Bowl, I decided to take a look at the last few homecoming crowds for comparison.2008 - BG - 17,119 (same time of year, and also the 3rd home game) 2007 - Temple - 14,017 (same time of year, also 3rd home game) 2006 - Miami - 17,721 (a little later in October, and 2nd home game) I don't know. It sure looks like this year was a "typical" homecoming crowd, new stadium or not. And those were all losing seasons too. I had sure hoped for a much larger crowd.What were the records going into those games?I know for BG it was 3-4.Without looking everything up again, I know we at least had the road loss @ Wisconsin, and the 2 home losses to Ball State and Cincinnati before homecoming in 08.In 06, I know we had 4 losses, just like this year, because it was that dissapointing year right after the title where we played good in a loss at Penn State, and upset NC State, only to lose 3 more @ Central, @ Can't, and @ Cincy prior to the homecoming game.2008: 3-42007: 3-32006: 2-4That's why this is always such an interesting topic. Could we possibly conclude that a Miami homecoming at the Rubber Bowl drew more than a OU homecoming at Infocision because the team was 2-4 instead of 1-3? Personally, I find that quite unlikely. Most of the people I know who are sports fans, but are outside our die-hard loop of UA fans, don't even pay too much attention to Akron's record. They may know, in general, if Akron is having a good season, or a bad season. But that's about it...if that. The lack of attendance just ticks me off, and has for a long time. But especially after I walked into the Indiana game, and the crowd was dissappointing. I knew the new-stadium-honeymoon was over. It brought me back to the same conclusion I've had for years...not enough people care about Akron or MAC-level football in general. We don't compete for any big prize in the minds of area football fans. Until we can win something....something BIG....the same old attitude will continue.

I'm not surprised either, but I had hoped the "stadium effect" would have lasted more than 1 game.Since this was a homecoming crowd, at 16k, and you brought up the Rubber Bowl, I decided to take a look at the last few homecoming crowds for comparison.2008 - BG - 17,119 (same time of year, and also the 3rd home game) 2007 - Temple - 14,017 (same time of year, also 3rd home game) 2006 - Miami - 17,721 (a little later in October, and 2nd home game) I don't know. It sure looks like this year was a "typical" homecoming crowd, new stadium or not. And those were all losing seasons too. I had sure hoped for a much larger crowd.What were the records going into those games?I know for BG it was 3-4.Without looking everything up again, I know we at least had the road loss @ Wisconsin, and the 2 home losses to Ball State and Cincinnati before homecoming in 08.In 06, I know we had 4 losses, just like this year, because it was that dissapointing year right after the title where we played good in a loss at Penn State, and upset NC State, only to lose 3 more @ Central, @ Can't, and @ Cincy prior to the homecoming game.

I'm not surprised either, but I had hoped the "stadium effect" would have lasted more than 1 game.Since this was a homecoming crowd, at 16k, and you brought up the Rubber Bowl, I decided to take a look at the last few homecoming crowds for comparison.2008 - BG - 17,119 (same time of year, and also the 3rd home game) 2007 - Temple - 14,017 (same time of year, also 3rd home game) 2006 - Miami - 17,721 (a little later in October, and 2nd home game) I don't know. It sure looks like this year was a "typical" homecoming crowd, new stadium or not. And those were all losing seasons too. I had sure hoped for a much larger crowd.

I still think there's one important factor missing in some of these evaluations, and Zip ME87 tried to make the "we're having a losing season" point too. But, some of you are failing to remember that the attendance dropped dramatically BEFORE we lost to Indiana. Nice job by those presenting a financial picture. But my earlier post related directly to wanting to see more people in the stands, and creating a more exciting in-stadium atmosphere. That's why I have struggled for years weighing both the negatives and positives of offering incentive discounts. I just want to see more people in the stands. At the Indiana game, I think most of the entire East stands were occupied by visiting fans, our band, the high school bands, and our student section. That's sad, especially when you couldn't attribute it at all to having a "losing season" at that point. The novelty of the new stadium definitely wore off much sooner than I expected.GP1...I know your comment about youths attending the game may have strictly pertained to selling a discounted youth ticket. But, don't underestimate the value of having a lot of kids at the games. I'm sure there's many, many cases where a kid being taken to an Akron game by his parents resulted in a becoming a longtime fan. And some of those examples have been mentioned previously by people on this site.

Quote from an OU grad friend of mine that went to the game..."Wow, those are two lousy teams to watch play football. Very nice stadium."Sometimes your defensive success is a direct reflection of the offensive effort that it is up against. Wagner rulz! I think we have the ability to be a better defense if...sorry, I just can't type it anymore.Hmm, well apparently BGSU must be even worse. I mean what they have up 30+ points to them, what defense do they run?Actually...Ohio rang up 44 points on BGs defense. And they run a 4-3.Still proves my point. Everyone says "how awful" Ohio is, we held their offense to 12 points. With our "crappy" 3-3-5. Yet a 4-3 gives up 44 (thanks for the correction ).Schemes don't matter talent does. Our crappy 3-3-5 went 6 quarters without giving up a score, 7 without giving up a touchdown. Then we suffer through 8 quarters of completely inept quarterbacking (starting from the second half of the IU game) giving up the ball at least 8 times and wonder why we get humped.I don't know if you read my post wrong or not, but I know the point you were trying to make, and was agreeing with you, and supporting your point by pointing out how badly OU's offense destroyed BGs 4-3 defense.

Quote from an OU grad friend of mine that went to the game..."Wow, those are two lousy teams to watch play football. Very nice stadium."Sometimes your defensive success is a direct reflection of the offensive effort that it is up against. Wagner rulz! I think we have the ability to be a better defense if...sorry, I just can't type it anymore.Hmm, well apparently BGSU must be even worse. I mean what they have up 30+ points to them, what defense do they run?Actually...Ohio rang up 44 points on BGs defense. And they run a 4-3.

I've often been torn on this very topic. As a longtime season ticket holder, I am one of those older people who remembers several decades of the Acme/Zip game. Were those tickets heavily discounted? Yes. But, did it create some excitement leading up to the game, and a great game day atmosphere? You bet it did. I used to get really pumped for the game since often there were a lot of ads, and even cheerleaders standing in the lobby of the stores handing out schedules. It was a time of the year I always looked forward to. Seeing the wave go around the bowl, and 30,000 people rising to their feet after a touchdown was quite exciting.But, the other side of the issue is important too. We have a great stadium, and we shouldn't "cheapen" the value of attending a D-1A football game. And among a lot of people in the area, those discounted tickets may have indeed created a "I'll go to an Akron game when it's free" mentality.But, here's the current problem....The novelty of the new stadium wore off very, very quickly for a lot of people. Even before we took the field against Indiana, with a chance to knock off a beatable Big 11 team, and coming off of a blowout win. Even during some of our best D-1A years, attendance dwindled as the weather got colder. And primarily, as I expected, it's happening now among the General Admission crowd. It appears as if a good number of Reserved fans are continuing to come.So, I don't think it would be a bad idea to entice some people with a little bargain on GA tickets. Even a company as big as Subway is discounting their Buffalo Chicken sub to get people to try the product. I'm sure many Zips fans today grew out of old Acme/Zip game patrons who were trying the Akron Football product for the first time, and grew into season ticket holders and lifelong fans.I clearly understand the argument not to discount tickets.....but I'm probably more upset by all of the empty GA seats.

I'm a little surprised that I don't see much mention of this...I really think that was a solid performance by our guys on defense. That OU team has the ability to rack up a lot of yards and points. And despite the situations they faced, we performed pretty well. It reminds me of the Cincinnati game last year. When these guys play with some heart, they can make plays.More thoughts:Give Wagner the defensive MVP for the season....right now.Any word on Sewell's injury?Give our secondary some credit for making a lot of good plays back there.When your starting QB is your top rusher, that's usually not a good thing. But Matt took advantage of what we were given, and that TD at the end of the first half could have been big. I think if he had taken off a second earlier, he would have been in the end zone, and the whole game could have changed.I'm far too ticked off to even talk about the special teams blunders this morning, but that blocked punt for TD was, without a doubt, the biggest play of the game. If ever a game was decided on one play, that was it. I like Nicely's mechanics, but it's hard for me to put a raving endorsement on a guy who completed 9 of 23 passes, and an offense who scored once in the 2nd half on a very short drive after a turnover. A lot of over/under throws even on some simple routes. But, I will look forward to seeing if he can show some promise over the next few games. We really have no options now...it appears Matt is done with that injury. No, Tuzze is not our "best" running back. But with his determination, he's certainly been our most productive. At the start of the season, I saw this road NIU/Syracuse/Buffalo stretch as the most challenging part of the season. But with 4 losses already, it really seems darn near impossible to salvage any decent season now. At least I have at least that to make me feel good this morning.

This is really tough. As much as we want to be ambitious with the numbers, a 10,000 seat arena assumes that we need it becuase our home attendance numbers will TRIPLE once the facility opens. Unless we plan on joining the SEC or ACC in the next few decades, a nice 8,000 seat arena would be far more than enough for most games. And adequate enough for even the big games.

Where is UIC ranked?We are indeed all getting spoiled. It's funny how you win a game 3-1, and you're still ticked that it wasn't another shutout. lilroodude...To be fair to our other athletes we must acknowledge that we have some of the best players in the country. I don't think the lesson is "watch the soccer team, and see what successful teams do to win". It's simply a lesson that "if you have the best players, you're going to win a lot of games".

Every time I think about the 26-1 scoring advantage, I realize how dominant this team has been through the first 8 game. And these stats support that thought even further.

As I recall most of the city felt an Arena was a necessity too. It was part of the Akron 2025 project. Just a look around to other communities is depressing. Y-town has one, Dayton has two, Toledo now has one. Why shouldn't Akron have one (we used to have one at Goodyear, but these things outdate so fast).Let's go Akron; Let's go Zips!!! Let's make this thing happen.Remember, we DID think we were building an "Arena" back in the early 80s. And although it was a dramatic improvement from what we had, It just wasn't done right, and with enough foresight, in my opinion. From what I've been told by some pretty good sources lately, I'm more encouraged than I have been that this could possibly happen within 5 years. But again, I think it all comes down to whether the agreements between all of the people involved will work out. If the U ends up having to do something on their own, I still think that making improvements to JAR will win out over justifying the expenditure to entirely replace a facility that is only 25 years old.

This is about what I'm thinking.I got a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach when I walked in to take my seat at the Indiana game. Why? Because I realized after only one game that many people had already returned to the "I don't have any interest in Akron or MAC football" mentality. 18,000 for a Big 10 team, in 70 degree sunny weather, won't remotely be matched by a game against OU in 50 degree weather. Forget the "homecoming atmosphere", and the OSWho game. Too many people have already decided that the novelty of coming to the new stadium is over. They decided that before we even had these last two poor performances. Apparently, many of the people who said that they would start coming when we left the Rubber Bowl were not telling the truth.

Actually I talked to Rick McFadden at the Indiana game and he told me they were waiting to see what time the football game was going to be and they would schedule the basketball game around it. Sounds pretty smart to me. I'm more worried that the Sunday basketball game and the soccer match could overlap.Thanks MD. I'm convinced that's a smart move. It wouldn't be fair to those of us who have season tickets to both sports.

This is why I keep emphasizing that it's several games too early to push the panic button.As fans, it's sometimes hard to take this, and I've said this before......Some players have been with us for several seasons, through games, spring drills, the spring intra-squads, and the August practices. They've executed many plays, and have been continually evaluated by position coaches, coordinators, and the head coach. And many meetings have taken place to discuss their findings together.As hard as it might be for us to accept, we likely have our best players on the field at this point. Scrapping all of that history, all of those practice reps, and any continuity that may be developing, and starting that process over again with younger, less experienced, and less prepared players in the hopes of catching lightning in a bottle is not something I would expect to happen after only 4 games of a 12 game season. Our offense has already been forced to operate under a new QB, and some folks want to change that position again? And suddenly switch to new formations too?Right now, it seems like we can't tackle, and we can't execute plays offensively. But, making massive personnel changes or formation changes at this juncture of the season is like throwing away everything that’s been worked on up to this point. To me, the “let’s give some young guys some experience for the future” time is at week 10…..not week 5. And, despite our frustration, I believe that the right move over the next couple of weeks is to identify some issues, work to correct them, and try to get better.

Interesting that a home basketball and football game are going to be on the same day. And neither of them show a time right now. I'm assuming the only way to pull this off will be to have one in the early afternoon, and one at night. Could there be a chance that tv scheduling may force those games to overlap? I sure hope not.

Oh, come on guys. There's still 9 games left! Remain optimistic a little bit longer. I'm not quite ready yet to forget about the football and just and the rest of the season. I think this will be the game where we find out if our defense has gotten better in the off-season, since this is a MAC East opponent that piled up some good yardage and points on us last year. And after those numbers they put on BG last week, it's going to take a great effort by our guys to slow them down.This should also be a game where our offense has a chance to get rolling. I expect a wild game with a lot of scoring (except that it may be raining). A turnover in a key situation late in the game could decide this one.I think our boys have something to prove, are rested, and will respond at home.No RainAkron - 35OU - 31RainAkron - 24OU - 23

He is not mentioned at all.And Mcgee is the younger brother of the former Zip. There are a lot of references to U of AI've seen the movie now. I would recommend it to anyone. More interesting, entertaining and emotional than I even expected.And it does show a brief picture of Illya in his Zips uniform from 20 years ago. So, that answered my question. It really doesn't talk about anyone else on the team, except for the Jones kid, who took over McGee's starting spot.

One thing is for sure.....the Preseason #1 doesn't seem to have had any negative affect on this team. A 26-1 scoring advantage over the first 8 games? And the shot advantage has been even much more telling in each game.I'm getting used to this.....let's keep rolling!!And a special thanks for the students, who even braved the adverse weather last Wednesday to continue to give our team a boost. Go Zips!

I found an interesting fact about the Movie today....It talks about Willie McGee being raised primarily by his older brother Illya McGee. I'm guessing that's the same Illya McGee who played guard for the Zips back in the late 80s. Can anyone confirm that?

Best of the worst? Isn't that pretty much the situation in the MAC East just about every year recently?

Skip, I would choose Jacq, unfortunately he isn't an option. I gave Rodgers the benefit of the doubt (still pray he improves everyday and everynight) but from watching him the past three years, he hasn't improved on the weak points that I and everyone else (coaches included) identified. Pocket presence and being too quick to run. (I chalk decisioning up to those two lacking) so yeah, I still say let's see what we get with him, but Nicely had better be getting some reps. And Additionally it has been rumored here for a while that Matt hurt his shoulder (if true, it could only take one hit and then what)Based on your response, you might be one of the people who've decided that shuffling quickly through your entire depth chart in desperation is a good idea. And you're sticking with it. I have quite a bit more strategic knowledge of basketball than I do about football. But, read the first part of my post again. I think some of it pertains to any team sport. I don't know you, but were you also among those individuals who were asking the Browns to give Dorsey or Spurgeon Wynn more playing time when you were unhappy with the other QBs? Just a few games into the season? That's the point here. I think I'll give our coaches a little more credit for knowing their people, and their best options. And that's the best place you can hope to be when you are a few games into the season, with your own divisonal games still ahead of you.