Lee Adams Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 Given the pathetic attendance and the noticeable lack of interest on this board, where does the football program go from here? The historical low attendance has only been magnified by the pathetic performance of the program over the last 4-5 years. Compounding the problem is the impression that the AD and Head Coach are only minimally involved with the local football community. Unless something miraculous happens,this season is another washout. The Wagon Wheel probably stays in Can't also. The coach's decisions regarding personnel are not improving the team at this point. Assuming Ianello has at least one more year,which he does,what are the options? It is unlikely he will be able to recruit players who will make a significant difference in the program until he shows he can actually win. That looks like it is at least another year away. How many of you are going to renew season tickets next year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbyake Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 Given the pathetic attendance and the noticeable lack of interest on this board, where does the football program go from here? The historical low attendance has only been magnified by the pathetic performance of the program over the last 4-5 years. Compounding the problem is the impression that the AD and Head Coach are only minimally involved with the local football community. Unless something miraculous happens,this season is another washout. The Wagon Wheel probably stays in Can't also. The coach's decisions regarding personnel are not improving the team at this point. Assuming Ianello has at least one more year,which he does,what are the options? It is unlikely he will be able to recruit players who will make a significant difference in the program until he shows he can actually win. That looks like it is at least another year away. How many of you are going to renew season tickets next year? I thought winning the Wagon Wheel trophy changed this year. I was listening to 1350 early and they were talking about it being a competition for all the sports programs. Each program gets a point to determine the winner of the trophy this year. Too bad Can't doesn't have a men's soccer team to beat on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quickzips Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 It is unlikely he will be able to recruit players who will make a significant difference in the program until he shows he can actually win. That looks like it is at least another year away. That is being AWFUL generous to Ianello. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
you am i Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 Given the pathetic attendance and the noticeable lack of interest on this board, where does the football program go from here? The historical low attendance has only been magnified by the pathetic performance of the program over the last 4-5 years. Compounding the problem is the impression that the AD and Head Coach are only minimally involved with the local football community. Unless something miraculous happens,this season is another washout. The Wagon Wheel probably stays in Can't also. The coach's decisions regarding personnel are not improving the team at this point. Assuming Ianello has at least one more year,which he does,what are the options? It is unlikely he will be able to recruit players who will make a significant difference in the program until he shows he can actually win. That looks like it is at least another year away. How many of you are going to renew season tickets next year? I thought winning the Wagon Wheel trophy changed this year. I was listening to 1350 early and they were talking about it being a competition for all the sports programs. Each program gets a point to determine the winner of the trophy this year. Too bad Can't doesn't have a men's soccer team to beat on. There is some sort of over-all trophy presented for what they call "The Wagon Wheel Challenge," but the actual Wagon Wheel goes to the winner of the football game. As long as TW is AD, we're in trouble. This was his signature hire and he screwed it up completely. I just went back and read what he said when he announced the search for the new football coach. He said, "This is not a rebuilding process. The cupboard is full." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave in Green Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 I don't even want to think about it so soon after a loss to another low-end MAC team. I'm more of a basketball fan than a football fan. But I do enjoy watching good performances in any sport. I'm actually starting to develop an interest in soccer, which I never believed possible. But Caleb Porter and the Zips soccer team are so unbelievably excellent that I can't help but want to watch them perform even though I don't fully understand the game. I do have a fair amount of patience if I can see even a flicker of a light at the end of the tunnel. But my patience is being strained by Zips football. I won't give up on them this season, because I believe they are trying hard, and effort deserves support. A few of the players show tantalizing promise, but the overall team performance just can't get it done. I'll make my decision on a season ticket for next year when they go on sale, no sooner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zippy5 Posted October 1, 2011 Report Share Posted October 1, 2011 I'd be more than okay with picking up Luke Fickel whenever the OSU fans inevitably run him out of town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skip-zip Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 I'd be more than okay with picking up Luke Fickel whenever the OSU fans inevitably run him out of town. He's a horrible coach. The guy is clueless. Waiting all of these years for his "big break" at his alma mater might have been the biggest mistake of his career. He's 2 months away from being unemployed. I'm guessing that the Week 2 near-loss to Toledo had already put him on shaky ground, and the Miami and Michigan State games have put the nail in the coffin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dre22era Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 I'd be more than okay with picking up Luke Fickel whenever the OSU fans inevitably run him out of town. aahhhhh no Ricky Bobbys arch nemeses is not a good choice for a coach Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 Its too late to hire Fickell. Any recruiting good-will we might have seen from his OSU connection is gone. if you're looking to hire an OSU castoff, Tressel is the guy you want. Who knows, he might even bring in Fickell as a coordinator and then you get the best of both. Some people are great coordinators and assistants, but don't have what it takes to be a head coach. Unfortunately it looks like Fickell fell into that category. He's probably better at it than Ianello, however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UA Fan Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 I'd be more than okay with picking up Luke Fickel whenever the OSU fans inevitably run him out of town. He's a horrible coach. The guy is clueless. Waiting all of these years for his "big break" at his alma mater might have been the biggest mistake of his career. He's 2 months away from being unemployed. I'm guessing that the Week 2 near-loss to Toledo had already put him on shaky ground, and the Miami and Michigan State games have put the nail in the coffin. He was just thrown in for this year until they can get the ducks in a row to bring in Meyer next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UA Fan Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 As long as TW is AD, we're in trouble. This was his signature hire and he screwed it up completely. I just went back and read what he said when he announced the search for the new football coach. He said, "This is not a rebuilding process. The cupboard is full." Then you have to look at who hired TW. It looks like the Bobinski-Thomas-Rhoades string of progress is over and Proenza now looks bad whether he keeps TW or admits the mistake and fires him. My guess is he may be pressured to resign and/or an "assistant head coach" will be brought in to bolster iCoach for the next couple years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbyake Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 As long as TW is AD, we're in trouble. This was his signature hire and he screwed it up completely. I just went back and read what he said when he announced the search for the new football coach. He said, "This is not a rebuilding process. The cupboard is full." Then you have to look at who hired TW. It looks like the Bobinski-Thomas-Rhoades string of progress is over and Proenza now looks bad whether he keeps TW or admits the mistake and fires him. My guess is he may be pressured to resign and/or an "assistant head coach" will be brought in to bolster iCoach for the next couple years. He has a good track record from Akron Soccer. He locked Caleb Porter into a long term contract, though I think Luis Proenza had a lot to do with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UA Fan Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 TW didn't hire CP. Lolla had the program in great shape with the talent pipeline already established. CP took over and has the ability to win NC's here so there's not a strong incentive to leave (as long as he prefers working with the college guys rather than pros). I don't think TW gets a pass on football because CP stayed. He might have some brownie points for getting the soccer stadium upgrade donations so quickly, if indeed he was the one responsible...I don't know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZachTheZip Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 The athletic department, as a whole, is in better shape than ever before. We have the best academics in the MAC for the first time ever and we get the most bang for our bucks in the country. Most sports are as competitive as they've ever been. Don't let the football team's problems overshadow how good of a job Wistrcill has done in making us excel in all sorts of areas where we have historically lagged behind the rest of the MAC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbyake Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 I have to admit, I do like the youtube videos the University does and think TW is behind those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoZips Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 The athletic department, as a whole, is in better shape than ever before. We have the best academics in the MAC for the first time ever and we get the most bang for our bucks in the country. Most sports are as competitive as they've ever been. Don't let the football team's problems overshadow how good of a job Wistrcill has done in making us excel in all sorts of areas where we have historically lagged behind the rest of the MAC. For my money Tom Wistrcill has done continually improving job performance. This has to disregard the hiring of Ianello who literally is a joke or the butt of many jokes. Wistrcill has to take steps in the near future to replace Ianello before this man totally destroys Zips football. Frankly, this means that Ianello gets fired at the end of this season. The university and the conference can not afford another sad sack year from him. Then Wistrcill has to find and hire a proven coach who plays to win. I over heard a comment on a talking head program that there are only two kinds of football coaches. There are those men who seek to be a head coach because they love being a head coach. Then there are men who seek to be head football coach because they LOVE to win. You can not name a HC at Akron since Jim Dennison who coached for the thrill of winning. Even Gerry Faust, bless his heart, was more enamored with being a head coach than winning. Oddly, at the high school level Gerry was well noted for his strong take no prisoners, killer instinct. Getting the Notre Dame job must have punted those attributes right out of him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbyake Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 The athletic department, as a whole, is in better shape than ever before. We have the best academics in the MAC for the first time ever and we get the most bang for our bucks in the country. Most sports are as competitive as they've ever been. Don't let the football team's problems overshadow how good of a job Wistrcill has done in making us excel in all sorts of areas where we have historically lagged behind the rest of the MAC. For my money Tom Wistrcill has done continually improving job performance. This has to disregard the hiring of Ianello who literally is a joke or the butt of many jokes. Wistrcill has to take steps in the near future to replace Ianello before this man totally destroys Zips football. Frankly, this means that Ianello gets fired at the end of this season. The university and the conference can not afford another sad sack year from him. Then Wistrcill has to find and hire a proven coach who plays to win. I over heard a comment on a talking head program that there are only two kinds of football coaches. There are those men who seek to be a head coach because they love being a head coach. Then there are men who seek to be head football coach because they LOVE to win. You can not name a HC at Akron since Jim Dennison who coached for the thrill of winning. Even Gerry Faust, bless his heart, was more enamored with being a head coach than winning. Oddly, at the high school level Gerry was well noted for his strong take no prisoners, killer instinct. Getting the Notre Dame job must have punted those attributes right out of him. I honestly think Caleb Porter should be the one that picks the next football coach at UA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 Roo Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 The athletic department, as a whole, is in better shape than ever before. We have the best academics in the MAC for the first time ever and we get the most bang for our bucks in the country. Most sports are as competitive as they've ever been. Don't let the football team's problems overshadow how good of a job Wistrcill has done in making us excel in all sorts of areas where we have historically lagged behind the rest of the MAC. I gotta agree with Zach. TW's body of work is good and getting better. Every program is on the rise or about to be made-over to get it there. Tom knows he has a huge problem with football. I predict he will give Ianello another year before pulling the plug. But Ianello will have to achieve 6 or more wins to stay after his third year. If Ianello goes it will be with one year left. We don't have the money to eat two years. He has four years guaranteed, that's why I feel he will be given another year. I think we need to take a deep breath. The season is not over. Strange things can happen, like wins. If we win four I would be happy with the direction of the program. But the next year I expect a winning program despite the schedule or whatever. Let's revisit this discussion at the end of the season. He's our coach and this is our team. I want them both to do well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GP1 Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 The athletic department, as a whole, is in better shape than ever before. We have the best academics in the MAC for the first time ever and we get the most bang for our bucks in the country. Most sports are as competitive as they've ever been. Don't let the football team's problems overshadow how good of a job Wistrcill has done in making us excel in all sorts of areas where we have historically lagged behind the rest of the MAC. I gotta agree with Zach. TW's body of work is good and getting better. Every program is on the rise or about to be made-over to get it there. Good grief. Can anyone other than me look at the state of college athletics and realize TW has horribly missed at hiring a new football coach...the most important sport in college athletics. Am I the only one with a television? He just didn't swing and miss, he was standing in the batters box and swung at a pitch thrown into right field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skip-zip Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 The athletic department, as a whole, is in better shape than ever before. We have the best academics in the MAC for the first time ever and we get the most bang for our bucks in the country. Most sports are as competitive as they've ever been. Don't let the football team's problems overshadow how good of a job Wistrcill has done in making us excel in all sorts of areas where we have historically lagged behind the rest of the MAC. I gotta agree with Zach. TW's body of work is good and getting better. Every program is on the rise or about to be made-over to get it there. Good grief. Can anyone other than me look at the state of college athletics and realize TW has horribly missed at hiring a new football coach...the most important sport in college athletics. Am I the only one with a television? He just didn't swing and miss, he was standing in the batters box and swung at a pitch thrown into right field. At the very least, I think we could possibly be confirming that the shortfallls we immediately saw in his background may actually be the kinds of things that would put you at a disadvantage as a head coach. In particular, Its becoming more and more obvious that he looks like he's struggling to outduel the guy on the other sideline with decisions he's making during the game. At this point, I guess we need to start asking, "what will it take for the remainder of the season to show that we're improving"? First, let me repeat something I said last season. ON paper, we were NOT going to be as talented of a team. I still believe that's true. At least in terms of experience. But, that doesn't mean that I don't expect THIS YEAR'S TEAM to show progress through the course of THIS season. For me, I'd like to see us beat at least one beatable team, such as Buffalo or Ken+. AND...show one performance that exceeds expectations by beating a team that we should not have beaten. If that happens, I'll have some hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zipsbandman Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 The athletic department, as a whole, is in better shape than ever before. We have the best academics in the MAC for the first time ever and we get the most bang for our bucks in the country. Most sports are as competitive as they've ever been. Don't let the football team's problems overshadow how good of a job Wistrcill has done in making us excel in all sorts of areas where we have historically lagged behind the rest of the MAC. I gotta agree with Zach. TW's body of work is good and getting better. Every program is on the rise or about to be made-over to get it there. Good grief. Can anyone other than me look at the state of college athletics and realize TW has horribly missed at hiring a new football coach...the most important sport in college athletics. Am I the only one with a television? He just didn't swing and miss, he was standing in the batters box and swung at a pitch thrown into right field. Sorry but this is all on TW. He inherits a brand new stadium and a decent budget in the MAC, something which his predecessors did not have the benefit of. He hires a no-name position coach (not even a coordinator who called plays) at a school who perennially underachieves. Even Zack can recruit at Notre Dame. And he gets paid how much to do what he does? Body of work? Sorry, but college tennis is not what sells tickets. My entertainment dollars will be spent elsewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Kangaroo Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 The athletic department, as a whole, is in better shape than ever before. We have the best academics in the MAC for the first time ever and we get the most bang for our bucks in the country. Most sports are as competitive as they've ever been. Don't let the football team's problems overshadow how good of a job Wistrcill has done in making us excel in all sorts of areas where we have historically lagged behind the rest of the MAC. I gotta agree with Zach. TW's body of work is good and getting better. Every program is on the rise or about to be made-over to get it there. Good grief. Can anyone other than me look at the state of college athletics and realize TW has horribly missed at hiring a new football coach...the most important sport in college athletics. Am I the only one with a television? He just didn't swing and miss, he was standing in the batters box and swung at a pitch thrown into right field. I am with you 100%. Wistercill was brought to UA for one reason - to get the football program on track. His hand-selected coach is losing around 90% of his football games after 1.5 seasons. If he continues to lose, and the football stadium remains empty, TW has failed. And there are varying degrees of failure. A 65% is almost a D-. TW is no where near a D- right now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zip Watcher Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 Disagree. There are something like 500 student athletes @ UA. 400? .. and 85 of them are FB players. Less than 25% of the Athletic Department. The AD is responsible for a Department that includes much more than Football. While his choice of a FB coach hasn't generated a quick turnaround, it isn't the only lens through which an AD's tenure should be judged. The only AD with a team National Championship on his watch. Multiple other MAC titles. Highest finish ever in Directors Cup, Efficiency Cup .. and Department Academic standing is at an all time high. Multiple facility improvements. Vast improvements in media and fan resources. All of these things at TW's direction. I get that a single decision by TW has many of us frustrated. But it's not the only job he has to do. And with most of them, he is excelling. Regardless, the FB ship is starting to turn. Slowly, but it is. B) B) Go Zips! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skip-zip Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 Disagree. There are something like 500 student athletes @ UA. 400? .. and 85 of them are FB players. Less than 25% of the Athletic Department. The AD is responsible for a Department that includes much more than Football. While his choice of a FB coach hasn't generated a quick turnaround, it isn't the only lens through which an AD's tenure should be judged. The only AD with a team National Championship on his watch. Multiple other MAC titles. Highest finish ever in Directors Cup, Efficiency Cup .. and Department Academic standing is at an all time high. Multiple facility improvements. Vast improvements in media and fan resources. All of these things at TW's direction. I get that a single decision by TW has many of us frustrated. But it's not the only job he has to do. And with most of them, he is excelling. Regardless, the FB ship is starting to turn. Slowly, but it is. B) B) Go Zips! I haven't been a TW or RI "basher", but I disagree that TWs body of work somehow paints a success story despite a deteriorating football program. Football is the most high profile sport at most schools, and it's hurting how we're viewed as a college sports prgram, tremendously. In soccer, he simply retained a coach in a program that was already a national power long before he got here. In basketball, we're probably OK, no matter who is AD, as long as Keith sticks around. But, I sure hope you're right about the football ship turning around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave in Green Posted October 2, 2011 Report Share Posted October 2, 2011 Some folks who used to sit near us at Zips basketball games gave up their season tickets and quit coming to games last season. They expressed extreme disappointment that Zeke Marshall didn't dominate the MAC and earn Player of the Year in his freshman season as they expected from a 7-foot player in the MAC. Point is, not all 7-footers are at the same developmental level early in their college basketball careers, and the same applies to college football coaches early in their head coaching careers. Some develop fast, some develop slowly, and some never develop much at all. Zeke has developed a little slower than we might have hoped, but he did show fair development by the end of his sophomore season. Much more is expected of him in his third season. At this point, Ianello's development appears to be pretty slow. But being head coach of a football team is one of the most complex and challenging jobs in sports. So while I'm disappointed like everyone else at the results to date, I continue to support the concept of giving Ianello a fair and reasonable opportunity to demonstrate if he can develop into a winning head football coach at UA. Fair and reasonable to me is a minimum of two full seasons and a maximum of three full seasons. He must show at least some progress by the end of this season, and if he does, next season is make or break time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.