In game

[dreal1scout]

Angry. At a bar in Santa monica with 40 Penn state fans. I would leave but I want to see if there will be any 3q adjustment on offense or if the standard pattern will hold (come put flat not adjustment).

I was watching at the Brittania Pub in Santa Monica. I was the only one wearing my AKRON ZIPS FOTBALL jersey. Did you see me. I sat upstairs. It was a sea of PSU Jerseys. They all kept doing that lame ass cheer with one guy leading the chant of "we are penn state". There were several PSU fans wearing those T-shirts that just say "We Are". I asked one such young lady fan if that was supposed to mean "We Are Marshall". She kinda smiled and gave me one of those blank looking PSU stares when she saw my jersey. I enjoyed the game. I just hope we learn from this experience and put it to good use. Obviously beating PSU at home for a season opener, is a major challenge for any team. I don't beleive we played to our potential but we need to just build ourselves up, put this game behind us, and play better/smarter for the rest of the season. PSU got some big plays. We messed up at some critical times. It's behind us. We move on and begin winning the rest of our schedule. I KNOW WE CAN.

[ctmjbowes@sbcglobal.net]

We needed Monster Hands aka The Tonganator out there today! Actually, as I noted above, I was much happier with the D than the O today. I'll say it again:Shane Montgomery, Walt Harris and JD, SHAME ON YOU for today's offensive game plan, game prep and execution. With a brand new marketing-driven AD whose first job it is to convince people to buy tickets to UA football, you are WAY on the hot seat, gents. You had better unEFF yourselves before you wreck yourselves. GO ZIPS!STZ

Angry. At a bar in Santa monica with 40 Penn state fans. I would leave but I want to see if there will be any 3q adjustment on offense or if the standard pattern will hold (come put flat not adjustment).

I was watching at the Brittania Pub in Santa Monica. I was the only one wearing my AKRON ZIPS FOTBALL jersey. Did you see me. I sat upstairs. It was a sea of PSU Jerseys. They all kept doing that lame ass cheer with one guy leading the chant of "we are penn state". There were several PSU fans wearing those T-shirts that just say "We Are". I asked one such young lady fan if that was supposed to mean "We Are Marshall". She kinda smiled and gave me one of those blank looking PSU stares when she saw my jersey. I enjoyed the game. I just hope we learn from this experience and put it to good use. Obviously beating PSU at home for a season opener, is a major challenge for any team. I don't beleive we played to our potential but we need to just build ourselves up, put this game behind us, and play better/smarter for the rest of the season. PSU got some big plays. We messed up at some critical times. It's behind us. We move on and begin winning the rest of our schedule. I KNOW WE CAN.

[Roo2]

Any updates on Tonga and Henderson? Our defense could be really good with those guys.

[ejcool27]

Guys this was Penn State and Unfortunately we are still Akron. We never were gonna win this game or even make it close.Penn State is probably the best team in the Big 11. Don't give up hope yet. Our D looked amazing, and are O will pick it up when there not playing one of the best college D's in the country. This was a payday game, and I understand your upset cause I am too, but we gotta look at the positives, and not the negatives. 2nd half score was 7-0 in favor of our Zips. That's pretty good. This is our year, but it's also Penn States as well!

[ZachTheZip]

Speaking of paydays, what the hell did we get for this game?

[tbozeglav]

Coming out of this game comes 2 simple questions:1) Can the defense maintain the level of play it put on the field today throughout the season2) Can the offense build from what little confidence it gained in the second half today?For once in my time as a zips fan I was actually proud of our defense.

[psu1]

You guys shouldn't be that disappointed. You were going up against one of the best teams in the nation in the toughest stadium in America, and you actually put up a fairly respectable score. Obviously your teams offensive game plan was pretty crappy. They weren't throwing the ball at all downfield and they kept running the same stupid running play. But you guys will have a good season. That guy Alex Allen is a stud and he will play on Sundays. And you have some talent on the defensive line. Good luck the rest of the way, you guys will sure as hell beat Indiana.

[LosAngelesZipFan]

Hey dreal-- I was at the bar wearing an Ohio 8 tshirt (my UA gear needs to be refreshed). I left just after the Akron's TD. I'll meet up to watch other games-- I'm in Sherman Oaks.

[GJGood]

I like getting games in each year against solid BCS conference teams but does it really have to be a top 10 or even top 25 team every year? I would like to see us play middle-of-the-pack (not necessarily the bottom just not the very top) BCS conference teams every year, and why does it always have to be in week one? I'd like to see us play somebody we should get a win with in week one (just not an FCS school, I hate when FBS schools play FCS schools).How would we have fared if we had played somebody like Minnesota, Northwestern, Virginia, or even Texas A&M today? I think it would have been a lot more interesting. If we are going to play teams that refuse to give us a return game, lets at least play someone we have more than a punchers chance of competing with.I like the idea of playing Indiana and Syracuse but even if we win those it will just leave people saying how bad those teams are. We need middle ground BCS opponents, like Cincy and NC State in years past.

[LosAngelesZipFan]

I would love for someone that tivo'd the game to tally up the number of runs up the middle. The PennStaters around me were like "WTF is wrong with Akron's coaches that they keep running the exact same play given that it never works".We just had no game plan to deal with this team-- we knew what we'd be facing, we knew what personnel we had, and I think the coaches had already decided that there was no way we could win. And that should be completely unacceptable for a University that has just invested in this program. This kind of effort should no longer be allowed at Akron.I know it's only the first game... but the O just had no attitude at all, no swagger, nothing. With Frye, you felt like there was always a shot at something breaking open. Getsy was a gunslinger, and demonstrated that he could make magic happen every now and then. But Jacq is now on yr 3 as a starter never having demonstrated that. He's just good enough to win half your games if everything else breaks right (and you are playing against lousy teams). It seems like they have limited the play calling to things that won't result in him tossing the game away and precluding a chance at winning, but the result is the O is tentative and unimaginative.I think JD has swagger and attitude and is a very smart guy-- everything you want and need. But not beating the bushes to get a first rate QB when that was the most obvious hole on the team for going on 3 years is unpardonable.

[Zipmeister]

I think all of us at Zipsnation should take some credit for lighting a fire under the collective butts of PSU's defensive front. What an whipping those guys laid on us Except for the first and last drives on the 1st half, the defense actually played pretty damn well, despite the 3-3-5 scheme. Why can't we ever seem to put a good defensive and offensive effort together????

I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm pretty sure the multiple late night crank calls I made to each of them helped stoke the fire. I never get tired of that "Is your refrigerator running?" gag.

[tim123]

Just got back from the trip from hell, you've got to be kidding me. Jacq looked like a deer in the headlights. He is a third year starter? pleeeaaase. No wonder nobody else offered him a scholarship. Pathetic effort from Jacq, somebody needs to make a hard decision or it's gonna be a rough season in Zip Nation!!

[tim123]

Any updates on Tonga and Henderson? Our defense could be really good with those guys.I talked to Tonga at the game and he said they are redshirting him...

[GP1]

Guys this was Penn State and Unfortunately we are still Akron. We never were gonna win this game or even make it close.Penn State is probably the best team in the Big 11. Don't give up hope yet. Our D looked amazing, and are O will pick it up when there not playing one of the best college D's in the country. This was a payday game, and I understand your upset cause I am too, but we gotta look at the positives, and not the negatives. 2nd half score was 7-0 in favor of our Zips. That's pretty good. This is our year, but it's also Penn States as well!

Excellent post. PSU is a Top 10 team. Akron is a Top 90 team. As long as PSU's check doesn't bounce, today was an OK day.The main problem in the first half was bad field position. It killed UofA and would really kill anyone. The defense was spent.Jacq? I'm willing to write this off because the mistakes he made have not been made before. His high passes killed them. His mechanics were off today as well. He frequently did not point his feet to where he was trying to throw causing inaccurate passes. Accuracy is the key to good QB play. He can and will do better. Maybe he was confused, but he will not play a defense that good, or even close to being that good for the remainder of his season. I'll still stick with the senior QB. One more tune up game next week and he will be fine.I think judgement should wait for another game or two. As far as JD, he has 11 more games to win 7 games. It's really that simple and people should hold off judgement when/if he doesn't make it to seven.

[ksu sucks]

As far as JD, he has 11 more games to win 7 games. It's really that simple and people should hold off judgement when/if he doesn't make it to seven.

Agreed. Let's not let post game anger get in the way of common sense.

[mivid12]

As far as JD, he has 11 more games to win 7 games. It's really that simple and people should hold off judgement when/if he doesn't make it to seven.

Agreed. Let's not let post game anger get in the way of common sense.

spoken like true fans of average to below average football

[mivid12]

I love how after the first loss of the season we are ready to fire the coach. It was a bad game against a good team. Lets learn from the mistakes and move on.

you're kidding right? this has been the same garbage for the last three+ seasons...i've never seen so many apologist...

[Kangaroo Craig]

I'm not to worried about the quarterbacks. After reading all of the posts, of few people actually got it. I think Big Zip mentioned it first. The problems with this team was 100% related to the offensive line. They did not block in the first half. Period! I have to give the coaches credit because they obviously made some sort of adjustment at halftime. I'm not sure what it was, but it worked. The entire second half was a different story for the Zips offense. The line gave our quarterbacks enough time to throw the ball and they made some plays. The running game was also better in the second half as a result of better blocking. Football games are won and lost in the trenches and this game was no exception to that rule. We will not face another front seven like that the rest of the season so this was a good early learning experience for our OL.

[GP1]

As far as JD, he has 11 more games to win 7 games. It's really that simple and people should hold off judgement when/if he doesn't make it to seven.

Agreed. Let's not let post game anger get in the way of common sense.

spoken like true fans of average to below average football

I am a true fan of UofA and the MAC. I also know it is average to below average football. Somehow it doesn't anger me though. I'm not stupid enough to believe it can be anything other than what it is and I still like it.

[mivid12]

As far as JD, he has 11 more games to win 7 games. It's really that simple and people should hold off judgement when/if he doesn't make it to seven.

Agreed. Let's not let post game anger get in the way of common sense.

spoken like true fans of average to below average football

I am a true fan of UofA and the MAC. I also know it is average to below average football. Somehow it doesn't anger me though. I'm not stupid enough to believe it can be anything other than what it is and I still like it.

you just proved my point...it can be more than it is..but if apologists like yourself are happy with 5-7 seasons...enjoy

[GP1]

As far as JD, he has 11 more games to win 7 games. It's really that simple and people should hold off judgement when/if he doesn't make it to seven.

Agreed. Let's not let post game anger get in the way of common sense.

spoken like true fans of average to below average football

I am a true fan of UofA and the MAC. I also know it is average to below average football. Somehow it doesn't anger me though. I'm not stupid enough to believe it can be anything other than what it is and I still like it.

you just proved my point...it can be more than it is..but if apologists like yourself are happy with 5-7 seasons...enjoy

I'm not happy with 5-7. I fully expect JD to either win seven games this year or hit the bricks. Eight wins in the MAC is like winning 10-11 games in a BCS league. Look at the records of those MAC schools that have won the league or come in second over the past few years. Not impressive.BTW. How can it be more than what it is? I wish that it was possible, but my mother taught me a log time ago, "Make a wish or sh!+ in your hat, see which one fills up first." I just want to be the best team in a bad conference.

[ksu sucks]

you just proved my point...it can be more than it is..but if apologists like yourself are happy with 5-7 seasons...enjoy

A 5-7 record means you are one of the worst teams in an average to below average conference. I believe Akron can be a good team relative to the others in the MAC. That said, things can't get any better than that until we get out of the MAC. We can't have a Big 11 budget while in a small time conference.

[ctmjbowes@sbcglobal.net]

Proenza and Co. just produced 61.5 million reasons (not including other improvements) that you're wrong on your last point GP1, at least going into the future. There is no way in hell that middling MAC shit football is going to put asses in those seats and we all know it. I believe that the new AD is going to demand whatever it takes to produce powerhouse football, no more lame MAC excuses, or UA will have a helluva time paying down the debt on that facility. This has become about big money. NE Ohio football fans are frontrunning fools and if UA doesn't produce some real excitement on that field heads are going to roll. Serious people who make serious investments expect serious results. If JD thinks he's still living in the mid-sized world of mediocre MAC football, expecting to maybe win 7 games and pack 13,000 people into a stadium that holds twice that many, he should start packing his house and getting ready for a move. You and I may be fans of MAC football, but the revenue producers (i.e. NE Ohio locals) don't generally give a rat's ass about the MAC. At a minimum Akron now needs to become Marshall before they left the MAC, the team everybody in the MAC hated, the team that crushed the rest of the MAC, the team that could compete with the big boys. Short of that, this whole spending spree is a big fat waste of time and money.Right now the new AD should be saying to JD "THIS IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH. YOU PRODUCE AND FILL THAT STADIUM OR YOU ARE GONE BIG FELLA."STZ

As far as JD, he has 11 more games to win 7 games. It's really that simple and people should hold off judgement when/if he doesn't make it to seven.

Agreed. Let's not let post game anger get in the way of common sense.

spoken like true fans of average to below average football

I am a true fan of UofA and the MAC. I also know it is average to below average football. Somehow it doesn't anger me though. I'm not stupid enough to believe it can be anything other than what it is and I still like it.

[tbozeglav]

I am going to hold off on any opinions on JD until our next game. We're playing a team next week that we should crush the same way we were crushed by PSU. If anything less than a double digit victory is on the scoreboard saturday evening, I will have serious doubts about JD making it past this year.

[GP1]

Proenza and Co. just produced 61.5 million reasons (not including other improvements) that you're wrong on your last point GP1, at least going into the future. There is no way in hell that middling MAC shit football is going to put asses in those seats and we all know it. I believe that the new AD is going to demand whatever it takes to produce powerhouse football, no more lame MAC excuses, or UA will have a helluva time paying down the debt on that facility. This has become about big money. NE Ohio football fans are frontrunning fools and if UA doesn't produce some real excitement on that field heads are going to roll. Serious people who make serious investments expect serious results. If JD thinks he's still living in the mid-sized world of mediocre MAC football, expecting to maybe win 7 games and pack 13,000 people into a stadium that holds twice that many, he should start packing his house and getting ready for a move. You and I may be fans of MAC football, but the revenue producers (i.e. NE Ohio locals) don't generally give a rat's ass about the MAC. At a minimum Akron now needs to become Marshall before they left the MAC, the team everybody in the MAC hated, the team that crushed the rest of the MAC, the team that could compete with the big boys. Short of that, this whole spending spree is a big fat waste of time and money.Right now the new AD should be saying to JD "THIS IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH. YOU PRODUCE AND FILL THAT STADIUM OR YOU ARE GONE BIG FELLA."STZ

As far as JD, he has 11 more games to win 7 games. It's really that simple and people should hold off judgement when/if he doesn't make it to seven.

Agreed. Let's not let post game anger get in the way of common sense.

spoken like true fans of average to below average football

I am a true fan of UofA and the MAC. I also know it is average to below average football. Somehow it doesn't anger me though. I'm not stupid enough to believe it can be anything other than what it is and I still like it.

I'll stand by what I wrote. 7-8 wins in the MAC is a good season. Nine wins is a once in a decade season if you are lucky.Marshall was a great MAC school because, looking back, they were breaking one NCAA rule after another. That's what it takes to win 9 games a year in the MAC....or real NFL players at QB.If the bar becomes...either 9 wins a year or you're fired, then we are in for a revolving door of coaches. The revolving door is worse than anything and will destroy the program. Another thing that revolves is the water in a toilet. Akron needs to produce 7-8 wins a year and get into the MAC Championship game on a regular basis. 7-8 wins a year gets bowl games. Post season is the key. I'm 40 and in my life, the Pittsburgh Steelers have had a total of three coaches, six Super Bowl Championships (at least one by each coach) and another Super Bowl appearance which they lost to one of the all time great teams in NFL history. They do it by maintaining a team good enough to get into the post season. If you get into the post season enough, you will win championships. Getting into the post season is the key. UofA needs to have a team that wins the MAC East every season or at least gets them a lot of wins for bowl consideration.I think we agree, for different reasons, that MAC football is not going to fill that stadium. The product is just too bad. If winning is the key, moving to another conference is not the key because the losing will destroy the program....just ask Marshall how things are going in CUSA. They believed they would take over that league like they did in the MAC and now they are wondering what happened.There is no doubt that the school needs to raise money right now for the stadium, but the taxpayers have been supporting the program for years. That's not going to stop now or in the future. Everyone wants to "build" (in all fairness, The Big Telephone Booth was much more of a necessity as it was a desire). Well, when you build, you have to pay for what you built. Right now, UofA is sitting on what amounts to an interest only loan on a $500k house and they have an income of $40k per year. The bubble is probably going to burst. The government bubble is about to burst here in the near future. When it does, it is going to make the shit storm the country is in right now look like a mist.