GP1

What you thought it was is exactly what it is. We aren't getting what it is because we don't have a QB on the current roster to give us Bowden Ball. So, we have to settle for plain old boring winning with Pohl or exciting losing with Woodson. Seems to be a tough spot for Bowden. Doesn't see to be that tough of a spot to me.

When Bowden talks of Woodson, he gets all excited and uses words like exciting and aggressive. Why? Because Bowden just isn't a coach, he's a brand...Bowden Ball. He wants everything about the program to be about Bowden Ball. The problem he has is Pohl is the better QB if you are looking for someone who does things like keep turnovers down, but he is going to do little exciting or aggressive; however, he wins. Bowden doesn't want that type of player at QB but at the same time he wants excitement and aggression without all of the mistakes that can lose a game. He wants a brand guy. A successful brand guy is very hard to get and the Zips don't have a single one on the team. The guy who comes closest to fitting the brand is Woodson. Woodson is everything Bowden says he is, exciting and aggressive. He is also something that Bowden can't say he is and that is turnover prone. Bowden passes his insertion into the game as a spark for the team. If the last two weeks are any indication, that spark will burn down the house eventually, but he keep Pohl on a short leash. Turnovers will destroy a team faster than anything. He continues to shovel Woodson on to the field in the hopes that some magic will happen and the turnovers will stop. It's not going to this year so we have to do the best with the cards we were dealt. Early in the year someone made a comment on the board about Bowden doing what is right for Akron with the existing players. Maybe Bowden made it. In the end, I think he believes Bowden Ball is right for Akron and I believe he is right for believing that. Our problem is we don't have anyone to fit the QB bill in Bowden Ball right now in a way that will allow us to WIN. So, we need the bridge player that may not be desirable for Bowden Ball, but wins. Pohl is the bridge until a better brand guy is developed or recruited. Bowden is at a crossroad. Does he want to risk losing with Woodson to build the brand, or does he want to continue to win with a guy who isn't anything he wants in a QB but wins? The other major problem is Pohl is only a junior. If he ended up being successful this year starting every game (we were on that way with a 4-2 start to the season), it presents Bowden with a huge problem for next year. If you want Bowden Ball, how do you bench a QB who maybe won the MAC East for you, beat a BCS team and maybe took the program to a bow game, but doesn't fit the Bowden Ball mold? Somehow you have to move that player along. Pohl isn't exciting, but the team wins around him. Woodson is exciting, but the team loses around him. It really isn't a tough choice for me because I value winning and QBs who have teams win around them over everything. I'm not promoting a personal brand though so the decision is made much easier.

Just sort of connecting dots.

Chase Blackburn just got done yelling at the crowd from the video board. Its too hot to be that active.

One does more of one thing that can't be done if you want to win. They aren't equal.

ZipsWin! said he was clear to play. That's enough for me.

They all have egos that big.

Don't create fantasy for yourself.

Doesn't matter. Bowden doesn't want him on the field. BTW, 8-3.

Unless he graduates. Why sit the bench in D1 when you can start in another division?

Bowden isn't looking for a reason to be proven wrong. He is looking for a reason to be proven right. If there are 30 reasons why he is wrong and one showing him to be right, he will believe he is right. The whole Woodson vs. Pohl issue is Bowden's solution to a non-existent problem. If Pohl plays and does well, it eliminates possibilities for Bowden being right with Woodson. Woodson has to play in order for Bowden to be presented with reasons for being right. I've already said it once, but I'll say it again. Pohl isn't going to be at Akron next year because he isn't wanted by the coaches. When we discuss future QBs, he shouldn't even be in the discussion. He should be spending some of his time over the next few weeks researching what school he wants to transfer to in order to finish out his career. There is a good chance he'll never play another play for Akron. Interesting finish for a guy who went 8-3 in his final 11 starts AND had the team on pace for a 8-9 win season. Bowden may throw him out next game since the team has lost all confidence and momentum to put a final nail in his coffin and reinforce his Woodson decision, but in general, it's over. Lastly, hats off to the defense. Keep working hard guys. This isn't your fault.

The discussion of fair vs. unfair is not the one we should be having over his comments. My problem is he is trying to cover bad personnel decisions in altruism. Whenever I hear comments like that, my BS meter goes into full alert. A decent press pool would roll over a coach with follow up questions after a nonsensical answer like that. Most reporters are just trying to get a comment for their story so they can get to the free post game buffet before all of the good stuff is picked over.

Why should't we criticize Bowden for horrible personnel decisions? Why is he immune from criticism? I do agree he has turned it around. I guess we'll find out exactly how far he has turned it around in the next nine weeks. One could say it could be a COMPLETE turnaround. Specifically, he may have turned around a team that had gone 8-3 in its previous 11 games with Pohl starting to one that goes 3-8 in its next 11 games. Like I said, it could be a complete turnaround....the kind we should avoid. I said it a couple of weeks ago and I'll say it again. This team will struggle to finish out the season 3-3 without Pohl at QB.

I'm going to throw this idea out there for the board. If you really step back and think about it, it isn't outside the world of reality. So, before anyone reacts, just take some time to think about it. Bowden benched a QB that went 8-3 in his last 11 starts. Bowden is now playing a QB who could easily go 3-8 in 11 starts. He's already 0-2 with nine remaining. With the way he plays, going 3-6 over the next nine isn't outside of the world of reality. He lost a close divisional game last week against a terrible team while throwing two INTs with one being when the game was on the line. Yesterday he stole a loss from the jaws of victory from a team that could be worse than OU. That about covers the methods whereby a team loses in the MAC. There are only so many Howards and Kents on the schedule that will allow a turnover machine like him to win. Since there are few Howards and Kents, there will be few wins. It has nothing to do with whether or not Bowden wants to win and everything to do with bad management. In defense of Woodson, the poor management will not be good for him long term either. There is some talent there. Right now, all he is learning how to do is lose and that is a horrible lesson. This is not the kind of experience he needs. Bowden is in a very tough spot right now. He benched a winner for a guy who doesn't. Moreover, the guy he wants is his pet project. Get ready, because there could easily be three more years of what you saw yesterday.

For those of you who don't have a lot of time to read, I'll translate Dave's post for you since I agree with it......Bowden is full of shit.... My take, Bowden doesn't want a guy who has won 8 of his last 11 games because Woodson is his pet project. I don't think it is any more complicated than that. Pohl is not getting a fair shot and will always be on a short leash or on the bench. As soon as the year is over, Pohl should immediately transfer out of Akron to another school because it is never going to be a good place for him to be. Go somewhere that will appreciate a guy who survived one of the worst periods in a school's history and got things turned around. Pohl has been through a lot and has earned better. Or, just take your scholarship and graduate. Don't kill yourself Kyle, you'll never get a fair shot. Spend less time studying your playbook and more time screwing girls. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm absolutely furious over the destruction Bowden has heaped on this program in the last two weeks. This is absolutely terrible. If you want me to create an even bleaker picture, Woodson has three more years in front of him to give us more of what we saw today. By the time this season is over, Bowden will have ruined Woodson. Pet projects never go away as long as the guy who brought them to the school are around.

The bowl in Alabama would take us. Either of them. The real question is whether or not we can get to six wins.

Would it be too low to call it a clown show? After all, the leader has orange hair?

Only the energy from the WoodSUN matters now.

Because he isn't Bowden's pet project.

What makes you think they will be any better?

I have a theory about winning games. It involves making big plays and winning turnovers. Since I didn't see every play of the game and therefore am not qualified to discuss the game, I have two questions. First, which team had the most plays over 40 yards and how did those plays turn out? Secondly, how was our turnover margin? PS. Pohl is still 8-3 in his last 11 starts.

It's the theory that people who couldn't conceptualize a game plan, don't sit in on team meetings, don't see the opponents game films, don't understand what is being coached during the week, don't hear what the coaches are talking about during the game and base their opinions on stat sheets understand what is going on because they watch a lot of it. Teams run the same offense and defense all season long, only it is geared to whichever opponent they are playing. There aren't an endless number of plays to run. One doesn't have to watch every play of the season to make a determination about a team. At some point, success boils down the competition between humans and which humans give a team the best opportunity to win the competition. After seven games, there are no more secrets. The Zips need to line up and play. The Zips coaches need to put the guys on the field who give them the best opportunity to win. Run hard, catch passes, throw accurate passes, both lines need to get off the ball, shed blockers, stay on your block without holding, tackle, create turnovers, kick the ball well, if you aren't certain who to block...block someone, don't fumble, break a tackle and make a big play, etc. These are the elements of competition in football. If the Zips can do this today, they will win. None of us has to watch every game to understand this.

Prediction time? Somehow, someway, the Zips get a big play resulting in a score from either special teams or the defense scoring a TD off of a turnover. I don't see them winning any other way, but I can see this happening...preferably early in the game. Big plays are how you get your confidence and momentum back. This is as big of a must win as the Zips have had in a long time. I can't pull myself away from some of the loses BSU has this year and I think the Zips are just a better team, even on the road. Ball State 17 Akron 19

I think we all expect more. However, you have to play the cards you are dealt. I don't think one has to watch every single snap of every game to understand this team. Sports are too simple to understand. Quite honestly, many of those who watch every single play and then post about their expertise just because they see every single play are some of the worst at evaluating on the board. The every play people are rarely able to pinpoint the exact reasons behind a loss. My pants pooping post from Sunday morning was the first and still one of the few on this board that put together pants pooping and the ZipsWin! jinx with the eloquence they deserve while cutting through the crap. Hell, Bowden agreed with almost everything I said. So, my guess is when I turn on the TV in coming Tuesday nights, I'll see a weak arm Pohl who doesn't produce INTs but the team wins around him, a strong arm Woodson who is mobile but is turnover prone (Woodson's development is not something that can be fixed mid season. He has a lot of work to do.), a solid defense, a good kicker (speaking of a mismanged coaching decision early this year), a couple of good RBs, some WRs who are decent and a very good punter. On the coaching side, we will continue to see an aggressive defense, too many slants on offense, too many fade patterns in the red zone and rarely a relationship between the running game and the passing game. Anything else I'm missing? The Zips are exactly what they appear to be and one doesn't have to watch every play to understand that. This really isn't very complicated. Now, getting back to reality. One of the old sayings about a football game is a close game is won and lost on 3-4 plays. Those plays last week were as follows: 1. Pratt fumble. 2. Defense giving up a first down after the Pratt fumble. 3. Woodson interception. It was a pretty even affair until those events took place. Outside of the MAC, those 3-4 events are usually spread throughout four quarters. The Zips managed to compress them in to four minutes like most MAC teams do. Last week was the plane crash theory. Rarely does a plane crash for one reason. If there is one problem, it can frequently be overcome. It is usually a series of events. The Pratt fumble started the chain reaction. A little momentum for OU gets them a first down, a shorter FG attempt and a chance to run some time off of the clock. The Zips still had an opportunity to save the plane and Woodson throws the INT when the Zips still had a chance to win and even Bowden agrees with me in his interview. All of these events are not independent of one another. They are intertwined in a game where confidence and momentum are critical to the success of a team. Once those two elements are eliminated, everything starts to fall apart unless they can be recaptured. With under four minutes to go in a game, there is normally not enough time to recapture it...especially in the MAC.

Good post in general. Woodson has talent, but the talent isn't developed enough. Pohl hasn't delivered? He is 8-3 in his last 11 starts. He delivers enough to keep his job. Maybe I'm missing something, but how many MAC QBs out there right now are 8-3 in their last 11 starts with a win against a BCS team on the road? I'd love to be in the room if Bowden told him he knows he can win with Woodson just to see if Pohl could hold back the laughter.