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zipsbandman...just a couple of factual corrections. You mention how JAC spends more time looking at the sidelines than being in the huddle. It's because of the offensive scheme that we run. We don't huddle. In addition, you mention turnovers as a factor, and there was only one turnover in the entire game, which did not occur until the fumble in the 4th overtime.

Dr. Z....although I don't like to focus on one play here or there costing a team a game, you bring up a couple of very critical situations.1) The short field goal that was missed early in the first quarter I think really took some steam out of our offense. We had a chance to score first, and blew it. And you need every point you can get.....both for points and for momentum....when you are likely to be at the beginning of a game where you expect a lot of scoring. I don't think we got in synch offensively until the end of the half because of that. Good point.2) The Cruz drop in the end zone, followed by the false start that took us out of field goal range, was maybe the most critical two-play blunder of the game. Looking back, it just seemed like our offense spent the entire night making a couple of good plays, followed by a bad play that took us a step back. It was very frustrating. But, to the poster who thought that time of possession was a factor. I don't agree. The time of possession looked the way it did mostly because our TD drives were normally very short. When we had our execution together, we ran all over these guys, and scored quickly. But unfortunately, it didn't happen often enough. I'll add another critical play....The pass interference call against us in overtime that gave BU the ball with first down near the goal line, when our DB was simply taking a straight path towards the football and happened to bump the receiver. If anyone looks at the replay of the game and sees this differently, please let us know. Remember, we don't get replays at the RB. Will we get them at Infocision?Bad luck play....Igor's long field goal that hit the cross bar. I guess maybe it just wasn't our night.Keep this in mind....We've now played in 5 games that went right down to the wire this year. We've won a couple of them. We could be anywhere from 3-7 right now, to 8-2, depending on whether all of the late game breaks had gone our way, or all of them had not. It's made for a very exciting season...a season where nobody expected us to do anything. I just hope we can get ourselves into a bowl for all of our efforts....or maybe maintain our outside chance of still winning the MAC East.And just to remove any doubt about coaching, JD talked in the Rubber Bowl Closing Ceremony about how he will be proud to be the man who will be leading our team into its new era of football in the new stadium. He's going to be our coach next year, whether you support him or not. In fact, had we won this game last night, I think he would have become the leading candidate for MAC coach of the year. A guy who has done what he's done to make this team a contender this year is not going to lose his job.

Story of the Game:Take your Pick:1) Buffalo was 5 for 5 of 4th down. They had that much confidence in their offense. It was as if we were playing a team that was going to take 4 shots at a first down every time. That's hard to take.2) More dropped passes.3) More offensive mistakes at critical times (delay of game, illegal formation). 4) Although I am not normally picky about JDs play calling....I was surprised at the number of times we tried to run on 3th down with 3-5 yards to go. 5) We simply did not take advantage of enough scoring opportunities in the early parts of the game. Do you notice something? I'm not hanging this on the defense. We gave up only 3.9 yards per carry on the ground. That's not bad for us. We held a high-powered offense to 17 points through 3 quarters, and squandered every chance we had to take control of the game. We were fortunate just to get to overtime.

I agree....Gates should not count. He never played football for Can't. It's fine to talk smack before the game. It gets everyone going. But clearly, a Buffalo fan has no leg to stand on in a argument about players in the NFL. Yes Mr. Buffalo, 7 players is a SIGNIFICANT difference over 2 players. And like was said previously, one is an NFL Defensive Player of the Year and future HOF, and 3 of them (Hixon, Blackburn, and Smith) have won Super Bowls. Smith also has 2 Super Bowl touchdowns. By the way...what a GREAT play by Blackburn in that critical late 4th down play in the Giants/Eagles game.

Remember,......there are still all of the sections on the home side that only sell as Reserved tickets. And those will go last. And you can't get those with the one-dollar voucher. However, your information might mean that there will be more Akron fans on the visitor side than usual.The weather forecast on tonight's news is saying that the rain might be over my mid-day. That is GREAT news.

This is starting to look like a situation like we had a couple of years ago. All of the necessary excuses are in place for them to try to justify screwing us on our tournament seed.

Oh, I clearly understand the longshot chances of Ball State.But if you were watching the college games this past weekend on CBS, they talked about the way things are working in favor of Utah and Boise BOTH having a very, very real chance of both going to BCS bowls.

My biggest problem with Martin has been his underhanded "jabbs" over the last few years about people on our side showing "no class". In my 40+ years as a sports fan, I have never seen more classless behavior than I see from those jokers to the East.Filming an "FU Akron" chant at the Rubber Bowl last year...and putting it on you tube.Throwing things onto the floor near the end of our basketball game at Can't last year. Yelling out "Go Can't" during the national anthem at the JAR last year.Booing the military personnel who were being sworn in for duty at the Q during the MAC title game last year. And these are just a few things I have witnessed...IN THE LAST YEAR ALONE.

Seriously....did anyone (including me) think that Jac would have an 85 QB rating this year?

Get through the MAC tourney....and we BETTER get a top seed.

Nice find Captain. "Spin" this any way they want, but the game results speak for themselves.I sure wish the article would have mentioned the Zips of last year, as they mentioned the OU game against Cowlumbus State this year. A "measly" 4-8 Zips team who trailed OSwho on the road by 1 at halftime, and was within a touchdown in the 4th quarter. And that's our 2nd trip to Cowlumbus in which we have been easily within striking distance so late in the game. Once again guys....the big boys are now further limited in their ability to "stockpile" all of the best talent since the lowering of scholarships from 95 to 85 a few years ago. The so-called "lower" teams are getting increasingly stronger because of it. Like it or not. Utah AND Boise......and possibly even Ball State (outside chance)...... going to BCS bowl games? I saw it coming

I would think that this would not be likely. Remember, students PAY to go to these classes. Why would they just pretty much close the campus for a day, give their paid faculty a free day off, and not give students access to the learning that they've paid for....unless it was an emergency or safety situation? And how would they communicate such a closing to all 25 thousand students...especially since the game does not conclude until late Thursday night?

Well...let me first comment on the coaches for a second. I love Keith, but Bob Huggins did some incredible things. In 1986 he was only two years removed from taking over a poor program that had NCAA sanctions, kicked his best player off of the team early in the season, and wins a conference title with a few football players, a JC transfer, and a freshman point guard. He then followed that up with several more 20 win seasons. I was a student at that time, and still know some of the poeple who were in our administration at that time. The bottom line with the football/basketball controversy is that Huggy found himself here at a time where the school wanted to go 1-A in football as well. Years later, it appears to have been a great move for us. But at the time, most people were of the opinion that Huggy and Gerry just didn't like sharing the spotlight with each other. And beyond that, does anyone really think Huggy would have stayed here with the huge contract offer he got from Cincy in 1989? It was something like 10 times what he was making here. Back to the scrimmage.....I think it's fair to point out what could very well be deficiencies on our team this season, even if it was a preseason game. I personally find it unacceptable to have gotten badly outrebounded and give up 81 points to an NAIA school, with our projected starters playing a great deal of minutes...probably about the same as they will play during the season. I can see us possibly playing a close game against such a team if we just weren't hitting shots, and had a game that ended up in the 50s. But there were some troubling things going on in this one. At the very least, it appears we have a lot of work ahead of us if we are going to be competitive this year.

I'll add some thoughts....Put me in the group with those who believe that there is no way..under any circumstances....that a team like Walsh should outrebound us that significantly. Players can be a little nervous, and out of synch, but our athletic ability alone should automatically make us better in this area. It appears that Ronnie may finally be that pg that we've needed so desperately since Dru's departure. I've heard a lot about Steve S. coming along very slowly in his development. He may in fact not be ready to contribute for us this year, and that's a dissappointment. But, it sure doesn't mean we need to give up on him.

The weather will be a huge factor, and it's not looking good.Think about it...how many ADDITIONAL people (those who wouldn't normally go to such a game) do you really think want to spend a weeknight in a cold, rainy Rubber Bowl just for nostalgia purposes? An additional 1,000? Maybe 2,000? I don't know. I sure hope that it's more than that. But I am not real optimistic. Because of the circumstances (title on the line, last game) I think the crowd might be bigger than last week...but not twice as big as last week, which is what it would take to make the place look even remotely full. I know this much. After going to games there for nearly 30 years, I am going to enjoy my last trip to the old bowl. And I hope we leave there with a little bit firmer grip on first place in the MAC East....and I would love to see the students run out of the field afterwards.

I want to again point out something that I mention from time to time on here.The lowering of scholarships from 95 to 85 a few years ago is having a big impact on closing this gap. The days of the top conferences being able to stockpile all of the nation's best talent on their rosters is over. Just think...that's 10 players from each of those top-level schools that cannot get in, and have to go to a "lower" school.As far as our conference goes, we are certainly getting more competitive with higher ranked leagues. If my recollection is correct, we have been ranked below every conference in the country except the sun belt for quite a few years. And we appear to be better now than at least two other conferences besides teh sun belt. That's great progress. And to see the MAC ranked ahead of C-USA is just incredible. I hope the trend continues.

I'm not exactly sure what the organizers of this event were thinking. First, Kalamazoo has to be about 150 miles or so from Detroit. And there are at least a handful of D-1 programs closer than that. So, I doubt if there are too many Western Michigan fans in the southeast michigan area. Plus, look how far Illinois Univ. is from Detroit? And it's right in the middle of Wolverine country. I guess this would be something comparable to maybe a MAC team like Toledo going all the way down to Columbus, and then playing a Big Ten team from several states away right in the Buckeyes back yard. Neither team would have a following anywhere within close proximity to the location of the game. I just think it was a bad idea.

I heard things from coaches last year such as "he's missing something this year". Maybe a little bit of desire has returned, along with the other things we already know about, such as his injury problems...and possibly this change in running style. Remember one thing...how good your offensive line is playing doesn't determine who the starters are going to be at RB. He flat out got demoted last year, and we may never fully know why. Whatever the reason....I'm glad to see him back.

Good point. This is very much an unknown team in many respects. Maybe, much like the football team, we can take a season where we were supposed to do nothing, and turn it into something surprisingly exciting. I agree that there is a certain element of excitement when you really don't know where you are going to stand, unlike the last 2 years when we knew we'd be one of the best teams in the league.

Thanks Rowdy. I guess this makes our early season matchup against VCU a pretty important one. I wonder if we can have our young troops ready in time to compete in that game. It could be a nice boost for us if we can somehow pull that one off. This poll doesn't surprise me. Unless we can prove otherwise, we are just a young team, with few proven players. It is what it is.

Ha Ha....I got ya. Jumping over the wall after Alcorn's field goal in 1992 wasn't so bad. I was only in my 30s at the time. No way would I do it now.

GP1...maybe you weren't around at the time. The government was about to issue "tickets" that only allowed us to buy a certain amount of gas, because people were lined up down the streets at gas stations. That's how bad it was. Also, by 1970s standards, gas prices were far higher back then. And as you can see, our gas price spike this time only lasted a short period of time. And anyway, gas prices are determined by the stock market, and not the president. I don't like to talk about politics on a sports website, but I think it's important for people to understand that when you increase taxes on businesses...only two things can happen...and they are both bad. Increased unemployment....or increased prices. If anyone thinks that businesses just simply "absorb" those increased costs, you've been misled.

Kangaroo Craig....I'm old enough to remember that...and you're right on the money. I believe that had a lot to do with this election cycle....all of the young people who don't remember that we experienced a completely disasterous period when Jimmy Carter and the Dems tried to run this country. Lines at gas stations....fuel shortages....double digit interest rates on home loans...dramatic increases in consumer prices. Thank God Ronald Reagan was waiting in the wings. Who will be our savior this time? Trying to increase taxes on businesses, and thus forcing them to cut employment and/or raise prices, is something that we already know does not grow an economy. Once the GOP gets back to their roots and returns to a conservative agenda, this country will be back on the right track again.

That was indeed a key play. It took some of the sting out of them marching down the field and scoring right away to start the 2nd half. It could have been a 7 point game, and instead it left us a cushion by being a 10 point game. So, when Toledo scored another touchdown, they were only able to pull within 3 instead of tying the game. Then, thankfully, we regathered ourselves and turned it into a blowout again.