GP1

Good move. You aren't missing anything. Everyone should plan to come to Charleston for the basketball tournament. It is a great event, great city and opportunity for Zips across the country to experience something really special. Throw in my fool proof recommendations for Charleston and it will be a lifetime of memories.

Most are probably just plain lies.

I was late getting to the game. Almost didn't go. Didn't get in until around half way through the first quarter. Score was already 7-7. Stood on the Toledo side as I wanted to at least try to be in the sun because I don't own a lot of warm clothes anymore...at least the kind that will keep me warm for three hours. My feet were killing me by the end of the game. At half, I went and bought some Zips clothes at the team store then walked the concourse on the Zips side and didn't see anyone I would recognize. I would only recognize a couple of guys from the Board anyhow and I don't know where anyone sits. Besides, everyone sort of looks the same dressed in winter clothes. After the game, I had to get straight to the airport but I did walk through Lot 9 and I didn't recognize anyone. My wife threw in the towel at the end of the third quarter (she has even less warm clothes than I do) so I had to stop at BW3 to get her, then the car, then fill up at the gas station on the corner and then straight to the airport to return the car an get on the plane by 5:30. While we were heading down the runway, all I could think was, "My feet are still killing me.". Now that the Zips are going to be good again, I'm going to make it a point to go to more games, in better weather, and tailgate in Lot 9.

3,499. My butt didn't come near an aluminum seat as I didn't have a blanket.

After thawing out, I have a few more comments. Many have already mentioned Pohl, but his progress could be talked about for a while. He NOW has everything a team would want in a QB: accuracy, arm strength, command of the offense, respect of his peers and doesn't turn it over. What a shame it would have been if they started to tinker with replacing players mid season. Going into spring, Pohl should be the #1. The only way he loses his position is if someone completely outplays him and has better upside. If he can develop this much over a season, there is even more upside during the off season when real development takes place. He should be pushed to get better by creating a competitive environment, but not replaced unless the wheels fall off. Chisholm..... What to say the day after a win that isn't too negative? Here is my best shot. The guy is very average and he does things that can kill a team because his head is somewhere else. He is just a robot that runs plays without thinking about where the ball is, down and distance, etc. A couple of cases. With two minutes to go in the half and Toledo having ZERO time outs, he runs on third down getting a big gain but does two things. First, he doesn't run hard enough to fight for an extra three yards. Secondly, he runs out of bounds stopping the clock. I would expect this out of a freshman, but not a junior. Juniors in their 12th game of the season don't need to be told by anyone game situation. They need to have figured it out by then. Second case, the play early in the second half that we can now refer to as the "Chisholm Rumba Rumble Pass". I've never seen a player dance around and rumble backward for such a negative intentional grounding penalty. He's lucky it wasn't a safety. Something tells me that if Toledo would have just stopped running after him, he would have run out of the back of the end zone. My solution for Chisholm isn't to not play him, it is to get carries to more players...#34 being one of them. Play of the game. We could have an entire topic on this subject as there were so many good and key plays. Interception in the end zone at the end of the 3rd quarter is my pick slightly over the blocked extra point because I think it changed the entire 4th quarter and drastically increased the Zips chances of winning. Why? Toledo has an excellent MAC offensive line and had changed their run blocking scheme in the second half to more of a power style and were running it down the throats of Akron. They were controlling the game with their offensive line in a way that makes offensive coaches leave a stain on the front of their pants. The drive prior to this one was an easy score with them using third string RBs to run it down our throats. Their drive leading up to the int., we had slowed it down a little and were showing signs that we might be adjusting to their blocking scheme. The int happens and we gain a lot of momentum moving the ball down field some, punting and forcing Toledo into a stupid fake punt (we'll talk about when a fake punt is stupid or not in a minute). The entire look of the game changed after the int as Akron wasn't so much on their heels. It took Toledo's power running game, their best weapon in the second half, off the table and forced them to throw. Play calling. I have no problem with out play calling whatsoever. We were aggressive at the right times and went for big kill shots at the right times on both sides of the ball. Some may squawk about running the ball late and not "playing to win" (we'll talk about playing to win in a minute). I think Bowden has a lot of faith in his defense and running the ball, reducing chances for turnovers and forcing the opponent to use his timeouts is playing to win. It can make for a lot of close wins and uncomfortable feelings for fans, but it is playing to win. "Playing To Win". Let's have a general conversation about this overused, busted out Daytona stripper (thank you Kenny Powers) of a sports cliche. Ranks right up there with "the coach has lost the team". What is the difference between playing to win and being stupid? When you play to win, an idea works. When you are stupid, the same idea doesn't work. Cases in point. Bowden fakes a punt and it works...he is playing to win. Toledo fakes a punt and it doesn't work...he is stupid. Let's talk about who was really playing to win yesterday. The Zips played to win. They came into the game with a lot of confidence and momentum, they were well prepared for a very good team, made good play calls, executed a good game plan and generally played better than Toledo for four quarters. Yesterday was no fluke. The Zips are a good team and we should expect more next season. This team can and did win against a good MAC team. Well done guys.

My feet and hands disagree.

Hasn't had a turnover in three games. He looked really good today. This guy may have turned the corner.

Given the weather today, I think it would be better to come to this game for my one game a year.

All in all, the Zips outplayed Toledo. Could have easily blown it and they decided to win instead. Great job! Sitting at the Akron airport and my feet and hands are killing me from the cold. Worth every second standing in it. The Zips wouldn't have dared to lose with me in attendance.

The work overwhelmed isn't used enough in reference to sports teams. Nice use of it. Conversely, the word choke is overused in reference to sports. Teams don't choke over an eight minute period. One player chokes at one moment in time.

Their program finished 4-8 this season and is in the toilet. A move to IA isn't going to make them all of the sudden better. CFU eventually got good, but it is in Orlando, FL, not Boone, NC. App State is in the middle of nowhere with nothing but a tiny, tiny town and the mountains surrounding it. IAA teams can be really good with a couple of great players who sneak through the cracks at a BCS school for grades or whatever reason and App did that for a long time. They are going to have trouble attracting the kind of players and the number of good players necessary to win in IA. App State was the head of the mouse at one point. Now, they are going to be the ass of the lion. In a few years, all they will be like Miamioh and their endless blathering about tradition without any real recent success. They will all have their "We Beat Michigan" shirts though. I guess that means something to some, but try to tell that to some hillbilly sitting out in the mountain cold in November by himself watching App State finish another 5-7 season. The insanity of college athletics continues...

What if by the time a kid gets to 12th grade, he doesn't want to live by his 10th grade decision? It seems nutty to me that an 18 year old should have to live by the decision he made when he was 15. What if between the kids 10th and 12th grade season, he blows out his knee or turns into a completely bad player and the school wants out? My point is this. Schools shouldn't be making offers to 10th graders, or 11th graders for that matter. High school kids shouldn't be committing to colleges when they are 15 or 16 years old. It is one of the many things about college athletics that has gotten completely out of control. Lastly, they do hand out a lot of offers and there is zero advantage in accepting one. In almost every case, they offer more players scholarships than available scholarships. Someone almost always gets screwed and it is rarely the colleges. There is no need for early commitment.

See, you made me think about something I haven't thought about since my last post...

It's not hard for me to think about because the only time I think about it is when the YSU score goes across the espn crawl. Then I immediately forget again. You shouldn't concern yourself for one second about what mouth breathing ysu fans say about anything. They are exactly where they belong...behind their big brother Akron pulling on our shirt every once in a while seeking attention. I'm not even certain that if they were D1A, I would want to play them every year unless we had to if the MAC went insane and allowed them to enter. In reality, ysu is making a sane choice staying in IAA. Schools like umass and mid tenn could be good some day similar to some of the success Buffalo has had. ysu has no shot at ever competing in D1A. Long term, schools like App State, GA Southern and Charlotte are making big mistakes. App State for example has made a decision that foregoing national championships at IAA in favor of a potential Sun Belt Championship and automatic entry into the New Orleans Bowl is good for their school. I would argue that there will be a lot fewer $40 parking spaces in Boone being filled on game day after the move. At some point, it has nothing to do with balls and everything to do with stupidity. Then again, App State is one of those schools people attend when they can't get accepted at a good school.

Schools give out verbal offers like everyone handed out Halloween candy a few weeks ago. There is more substance to the candy. The only offers that matter are those on paper.

It must be hard for YSU to sit back and look at the success Can't and Akron, schools no further than 60 miles away, have had in football over the past 25 years and not want to be a part of it. In the insane world of college athletics, I'm surprised it hasn't happened already.

Do you also agree with the golf saying, "100% of the puts that come up short of the cup don't go in."?

Ah! You're right. Nice catch.

I agree. App State has a good name and they are well down the road to destruction of a once great I-AA program. By the time 2016 comes around, the Zips should be riding high and they will be in the sewer. Should be victories for the Zips both years. I'm looking forward to a trip to the mountains to watch.

Did I get a Facebook notice today about the Zips playing WVU or was that my imagination?

He doesn't have anything in writing yet. The only offer that matters is the letter of intent. Verbals don't count. I'm suggesting he advise his players to keep their options open when they are in 10th grade.

Let's hope not. Terrible high school football. I like the App State game. Their win against Michigan has catapulted them into a horrible team and I don't see them winning at the D-1A level. Should be a nice trip to Boone and overnight in Blowing Rock.

He fidgets too much between plays. Always adjusting something about his uniform or pads. It may seem like a petty thing to pick on, but I don't like that kind of nervousness in a player. To me, it is a sign of a lack of confidence. He was a really good high school player, but not BCS level. Michigan will be wasting a scholarship with him. A little too passive as well. He made a horrible error in committing to Michigan while in 10th grade. High school coaches should do a better job of steering kids away from early decision such as that. I have a relative who coached this guy in high school. He was one of the best high school LBs I have ever seen..tough, fast, smart, "a nose for the ball", etc. He couldn't get on the field at MSU much at all. He was way better than Ferns in high school playing against much better top tier competition around Columbus and just wasn't able to make the next step. Some guys just don't make the transition well. St. Clairsville has a kid by the last name of Stewart who just finished his 10th grade season. I saw he was on the sidelines before the Penn State game last weekend. Keep an eye on him.

The CFL has rules on import vs non-import players. Since Jabari is a non-import (he is Canadian) he could have a long career in the CFL.

That's because I'm here every day.