Howard a Zip or Is He??

[zipfan330]

Two-time Ohio Mr. Football, Erick Howard, signed a letter of intent to play college football at Akron, but he is not qualified, and a trip to prep school could be in his future. What would that mean to him eventually playing for the Zips? Bill Greene spoke to Howard at the Logan's Sporting Goods autograph signing, to get the latest below is the conversation.

Erick Howard, two-time Ohio Mr. Football, signed a letter of intent to play his college football with Akron, following one of the most acclaimed careers in state history.

Howard rushed for over 6,000 yards, and scored 79 touchdowns in his storied career, and because he is not qualified academically, Akron might not be his next stop.

"The new coach, Rob Ianello, is an amazing coach, and he's legit, in my mind," Howard said of Akron. "The players have totally bought into Coach Ianello, and things are in the process of changing for the better. I knew what went on last year, and there's no comparison with what is going on at Akron right now."

"He's all about winning, not just getting a free education, and having fun," he stated. "Coach Ianello has been training 25 years for this opportunity, and he's going to succeed. I'm excited to be part of his first class, if that works out."

Because he is not yet academically qualified, there is still a possibility of Howard enrolling at a prep school, then going through the recruiting process all over again.

"I am not qualified, but it's close, and if things ended today, I believe I would be alright," he explained. "Even if I do qualify, I might still go to prep school, but I'm not sure yet. If I don't qualify, I'm still looking at the same two options, Akron or prep school."

Howard was given a set of guidelines by Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel, and had he achieved them, he indicated he was promised a scholarship by the Buckeyes.

"They want me to go to prep school, and try to get eligible for Ohio State," Howard declared. "Coach Tressel talked to me about Carlos Hyde and Jamel Turner, and he had me speak to both guys about their experiences at Fork Union. That just might be what I end up doing, but it's probably 50-50, what I'll do."

"I know Carlos Hyde only spent three months at Fork Union, and he's at Ohio State right now," he said. "Both guys said their experiences at Fork Union prepared them for college, from an academic standpoint. It also helps make you a man, because of their rules."

He does have a time frame in mind for making his decision, and it might not be something that happens soon.

"I don't have to decide soon, and I can wait until the end of the school year," Howard stated. "It's important to me that Coach Tressel and Coach (Jim) Bollman are on my side in this. They both said I've picked a great school in Akron, but if things don't work out, then they want me to go the prep school route. Ohio State has been

I DONT KNOW ABOUT YOU GUYS BUT I DONT WANT HIM IF YOU ARENT COMMITTED TO OUR PROGRAM DONT COME, IF YOU HAD A DECISION TO MAKE YOU SHOULDNT HAVE SIGNED!

[Captain Kangaroo]

He can take as much time as he wants. If he decides to come to UA, great. If not, oh well...it didn't cost us a thing.

His chances of going to UA are 50/50. His chances of attending Ohio State via a prep school are 50/50.

His chances of attending any other school are 0/0.

I'll take a 50/50 chance to land a 2-time Ohio Mr. Football over 0/0 any day of the week, and twice on Sunday.

People need to take a chill pill and see how this plays-out. Talents like Howard don't drop on UA's lap without a little drama or risk.

I met Ianello at the Cadillac Ranch last weekend. The guy is all business. If there is any way to get Howard on campus, Ianello will find it.

[Dr Z]

Tough choice for a young man. It'll be interesting how it plays out for him. Zips fans are going to have to be patient on this situation. I wish him luck. Either way, I like to read what he said about our HC. Hopefully this all translates on the field for 60 minutes, because that's what I am most interested in.

"The new coach, Rob Ianello, is an amazing coach, and he's legit, in my mind," Howard said of Akron. "The players have totally bought into Coach Ianello, and things are in the process of changing for the better. I knew what went on last year, and there's no comparison with what is going on at Akron right now."

"He's all about winning, not just getting a free education, and having fun," he stated. "Coach Ianello has been training 25 years for this opportunity, and he's going to succeed. I'm excited to be part of his first class, if that works out."

[InTheZone]

He can take as much time as he wants. If he decides to come to UA, great. If not, oh well...it didn't cost us a thing.

His chances of going to UA are 50/50. His chances of attending Ohio State via a prep school are 50/50.

His chances of attending any other school are 0/0.

I'll take a 50/50 chance to land a 2-time Ohio Mr. Football over 0/0 any day of the week, and twice on Sunday.

People need to take a chill pill and see how this plays-out. Talents like Howard don't drop on UA's lap without a little drama or risk.

I met Ianello at the Cadillac Ranch last weekend. The guy is all business. If there is any way to get Howard on campus, Ianello will find it.

Completely agreed. It's not like Ianello based an entire recruiting class on "50-50 chances" like ole JD did his first few seasons. It's one kid out of 25, and why not take the chance? If he gets here and on the field, SCORE! If not, we've lost one scholarship out of 25 that probably otherwise would've went to a kid that would've had a 50-50 chance of ever being an impact player anyways. I'm all about us taking one "chance" a year on getting a talent like this, so long as it doesn't slip back into JD Brookhart "Best Recruiting Class in the MAC" mode.

[Roo2]

He can take as much time as he wants. If he decides to come to UA, great. If not, oh well...it didn't cost us a thing.

His chances of going to UA are 50/50. His chances of attending Ohio State via a prep school are 50/50.

His chances of attending any other school are 0/0.

I'll take a 50/50 chance to land a 2-time Ohio Mr. Football over 0/0 any day of the week, and twice on Sunday.

People need to take a chill pill and see how this plays-out. Talents like Howard don't drop on UA's lap without a little drama or risk.

I met Ianello at the Cadillac Ranch last weekend. The guy is all business. If there is any way to get Howard on campus, Ianello will find it.

Completely agreed. It's not like Ianello based an entire recruiting class on "50-50 chances" like ole JD did his first few seasons. It's one kid out of 25, and why not take the chance? If he gets here and on the field, SCORE! If not, we've lost one scholarship out of 25 that probably otherwise would've went to a kid that would've had a 50-50 chance of ever being an impact player anyways. I'm all about us taking one "chance" a year on getting a talent like this, so long as it doesn't slip back into JD Brookhart "Best Recruiting Class in the MAC" mode.

Exactly. This kind of thing happens every year to some of the Zips recruits, the only difference this year is that the player is openly talking about it. I don't really like the way Howard has gone about handling this thing, but I do respect the fact that he's being honest about the situation. Everybody knows where they stand.

[Lee Adams]

Two-time Ohio Mr. Football, Erick Howard, signed a letter of intent to play college football at Akron, but he is not qualified, and a trip to prep school could be in his future. What would that mean to him eventually playing for the Zips? Bill Greene spoke to Howard at the Logan's Sporting Goods autograph signing, to get the latest below is the conversation.

Erick Howard, two-time Ohio Mr. Football, signed a letter of intent to play his college football with Akron, following one of the most acclaimed careers in state history.

Howard rushed for over 6,000 yards, and scored 79 touchdowns in his storied career, and because he is not qualified academically, Akron might not be his next stop.

"The new coach, Rob Ianello, is an amazing coach, and he's legit, in my mind," Howard said of Akron. "The players have totally bought into Coach Ianello, and things are in the process of changing for the better. I knew what went on last year, and there's no comparison with what is going on at Akron right now."

"He's all about winning, not just getting a free education, and having fun," he stated. "Coach Ianello has been training 25 years for this opportunity, and he's going to succeed. I'm excited to be part of his first class, if that works out."

Because he is not yet academically qualified, there is still a possibility of Howard enrolling at a prep school, then going through the recruiting process all over again.

"I am not qualified, but it's close, and if things ended today, I believe I would be alright," he explained. "Even if I do qualify, I might still go to prep school, but I'm not sure yet. If I don't qualify, I'm still looking at the same two options, Akron or prep school."

Howard was given a set of guidelines by Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel, and had he achieved them, he indicated he was promised a scholarship by the Buckeyes.

"They want me to go to prep school, and try to get eligible for Ohio State," Howard declared. "Coach Tressel talked to me about Carlos Hyde and Jamel Turner, and he had me speak to both guys about their experiences at Fork Union. That just might be what I end up doing, but it's probably 50-50, what I'll do."

"I know Carlos Hyde only spent three months at Fork Union, and he's at Ohio State right now," he said. "Both guys said their experiences at Fork Union prepared them for college, from an academic standpoint. It also helps make you a man, because of their rules."

He does have a time frame in mind for making his decision, and it might not be something that happens soon.

"I don't have to decide soon, and I can wait until the end of the school year," Howard stated. "It's important to me that Coach Tressel and Coach (Jim) Bollman are on my side in this. They both said I've picked a great school in Akron, but if things don't work out, then they want me to go the prep school route. Ohio State has been

I DONT KNOW ABOUT YOU GUYS BUT I DONT WANT HIM IF YOU ARENT COMMITTED TO OUR PROGRAM DONT COME, IF YOU HAD A DECISION TO MAKE YOU SHOULDNT HAVE SIGNED!

as numbers of folks including myself have already stated,if he goes prep and qualifies he won't be coming to akron...tressel or some other big time program will give him a year...