Paul Winters

[zip37]

His Wayne State team is ranked #6 in Div II.

[johnnyzip84]

His Wayne State team is ranked #6 in Div II.

It's definitely been a nice start to the season for the Warriors, but Paul would be the 1st to admit that their true tests (at LO's Ashland in 2 weeks, and at Hillsdale the week after that) still await. I think it's clear that he's been gearing up for this season. He's even getting a little help from a a Red & Silver transfer. They lost their leading rusher last week due to injury, so we'll see if they have the depth to win the GLIAC and/or make a run in the D-2 playoffs.

[skip-zip]

His Wayne State team is ranked #6 in Div II.

After reading this thread, I'm beating my head against the wall too.....thinking about how we let two guys be at the forefront of our football program for several years who have done nothing more than coach at the D-II level ever since.

That's all the affirmation I need.

[InTheZone]

His Wayne State team is ranked #6 in Div II.

After reading this thread, I'm beating my head against the wall too.....thinking about how we let two guys be at the forefront of our football program for several years who have done nothing more than coach at the D-II level ever since.

That's all the affirmation I need.

And their two D2 teams would probably beat the Zips this year. What does that affirm skip?

[skip-zip]

His Wayne State team is ranked #6 in Div II.

After reading this thread, I'm beating my head against the wall too.....thinking about how we let two guys be at the forefront of our football program for several years who have done nothing more than coach at the D-II level ever since.

That's all the affirmation I need.

And their two D2 teams would probably beat the Zips this year. What does that affirm skip?

That you believe that a D-II team could beat the Zips ?

[Doug Snyder]

His Wayne State team is ranked #6 in Div II.

After reading this thread, I'm beating my head against the wall too.....thinking about how we let two guys be at the forefront of our football program for several years who have done nothing more than coach at the D-II level ever since.

That's all the affirmation I need.

And their two D2 teams would probably beat the Zips this year. What does that affirm skip?

That you believe that a D-II team could beat the Zips ?

LOL It always makes me smile when someone make an outrageous comment, assumes it to be true and then wants to make inferences about it. I called it "pre-crime" with my first wife. I did nothing but would get killed on some outrageous thought that would get assumed to be real.

So...now we are not only beating up ICoach for losing to GW...we are beating him up for losing to Wayne State and Ashland. LOL

[johnnyzip84]

His Wayne State team is ranked #6 in Div II.

After reading this thread, I'm beating my head against the wall too.....thinking about how we let two guys be at the forefront of our football program for several years who have done nothing more than coach at the D-II level ever since.

That's all the affirmation I need.

And their two D2 teams would probably beat the Zips this year. What does that affirm skip?

That you believe that a D-II team could beat the Zips ?

LOL It always makes me smile when someone make an outrageous comment, assumes it to be true and then wants to make inferences about it. I called it "pre-crime" with my first wife. I did nothing but would get killed on some outrageous thought that would get assumed to be real.

So...now we are not only beating up ICoach for losing to GW...we are beating him up for losing to Wayne State and Ashland. LOL

I'm not saying I know who would win in a hypothetical Wayne St/Akron matchup this year, but you're kidding yourself if you think there is a huge gap between the bottom of FBS and the top of D-2. But I'll wait to the end of the season before I definitively decide whether UA and Wayne St fall into these respective categories.

[zip37]

Heck, I think Mt. Union would beat the Zips. DII coaches in D1, B. Kelly, G. Hoak [sp?], just to name 2.

[InTheZone]

I'm not making an outrageous statement. I have seen both Ashland and our Zips play live this year. I can say for a fact our pathetic offense would struggle to score on Ashland. While I have not seen Wayne play, Wayne State is a better team than Ashland, so I'd assume the Zips would struggle with them as well. Like jz84 said, you're kidding yourself if you think there's a big talent gap between the cellar of 1-A and the top of D2. We lost to GW last year, a cellar dweller in 1-AA who would struggle mightily in the GLIAC. The fact that Paul Winters has put together a better team at WSU, which used to be the joke of D2, than we have here at Akron with our plush new facilities speaks volumes to me both about him and the level of competence of those in charge around here.

[Doug Snyder]

I'm not making an outrageous statement. I have seen both Ashland and our Zips play live this year. I can say for a fact our pathetic offense would struggle to score on Ashland. While I have not seen Wayne play, Wayne State is a better team than Ashland, so I'd assume the Zips would struggle with them as well. Like jz84 said, you're kidding yourself if you think there's a big talent gap between the cellar of 1-A and the top of D2. We lost to GW last year, a cellar dweller in 1-AA who would struggle mightily in the GLIAC. The fact that Paul Winters has put together a better team at WSU, which used to be the joke of D2, than we have here at Akron with our plush new facilities speaks volumes to me both about him and the level of competence of those in charge around here.

Me thinks you butted heads with the big linemen once or twice to often.

[johnnyzip84]

Winter's nemesis, the Ashland Eagles, end the Warriors 10-game undefeated streak, 20-17. LO has definitely had Paul's number in GLIAC confrontations. Wayne State remains in the GLIAC race and D-2 playoff picture, but there's little margin for error over the rest of the schedule. They likely face a must win at Hillsdale next Saturday.

[InTheZone]

Winter's nemesis, the Ashland Eagles, end the Warriors 10-game undefeated streak, 20-17. LO has definitely had Paul's number in GLIAC confrontations. Wayne State remains in the GLIAC race and D-2 playoff picture, but there's little margin for error over the rest of the schedule. They likely face a must win at Hillsdale next Saturday.

If both Ashland and Wayne State win out, it looks likely that ole Lee O and Coach Winters will be seeing each other again come playoff time.

[GP1]

The fact that Paul Winters has put together a better team at WSU, which used to be the joke of D2, than we have here at Akron with our plush new facilities speaks volumes to me both about him and the level of competence of those in charge around here.

Maybe he is focused on winning and not facilities. Our focus has been on facilities and not winning...that's the real joke with the football program.

[Big Zip]

Wayne State made the playoffs today after finishing 8-3. Lost the last game of the year 43-42....imagine that offense.

[Captain Kangaroo]

Wayne State made the playoffs today after finishing 8-3. Lost the last game of the year 43-42....imagine that offense.

Ole Miss has led his team to a combined 6 points in the last two games.

43 points in a single game? That's insane...must have been septuple overtime?

[johnnyzip84]

I’ve been a supporter of Winters on this board before, and I stick by the assertion that he’s done a really nice job in a very difficult place to win. Having said that, the Wayne State loss over the weekend at home to Findlay is eerily reminiscent of games UA somehow managed to lose with Paul as OC under Lee Owens. They did manage to still make the playoffs, but will be forced to win on the road at St Cloud next Saturday if they want to make a run. A record of 8-3 and a D-2 playoff berth is nice, but there’s no question Paul was shooting for more this season. We’ll see if he can get his team, especially the defense, to elevate their game in the playoffs.

[Lee Adams]

I’ve been a supporter of Winters on this board before, and I stick by the assertion that he’s done a really nice job in a very difficult place to win. Having said that, the Wayne State loss over the weekend at home to Findlay is eerily reminiscent of games UA somehow managed to lose with Paul as OC under Lee Owens. They did manage to still make the playoffs, but will be forced to win on the road at St Cloud next Saturday if they want to make a run. A record of 8-3 and a D-2 playoff berth is nice, but there’s no question Paul was shooting for more this season. We’ll see if he can get his team, especially the defense, to elevate their game in the playoffs.

Hell I'll take 6-6 at this point!

[InTheZone]

Hell I'll take 6-6 at this point!

You know, I remember quite a few people who still post around here celebrating the dismissal of Lee Owens after my senior season over on the old angelfire board. That man was fired for a 7-5 season which included a top 10 offense and a near upset of a top Big 10 program. What would you all give for 7-5 now?

[GP1]

Hell I'll take 6-6 at this point!

You know, I remember quite a few people who still post around here celebrating the dismissal of Lee Owens after my senior season over on the old angelfire board. That man was fired for a 7-5 season which included a top 10 offense and a near upset of a top Big 10 program. What would you all give for 7-5 now?

I'd be nice, but not as nice as the 7-3-1 season Faust gave us or the MAC Championship season JD gave us.

[johnnyzip84]

Hell I'll take 6-6 at this point!

You know, I remember quite a few people who still post around here celebrating the dismissal of Lee Owens after my senior season over on the old angelfire board. That man was fired for a 7-5 season which included a top 10 offense and a near upset of a top Big 10 program. What would you all give for 7-5 now?

Don't forget the crazy one point loss at UConn. No doubt, 7-5 (even with one extra FCS/1-AA team) sounds spectacular right about now. And don't get me wrong. I'd take Winters over Ianello any day of the week, and that was my stated opinion as soon as Rob was hired. That hasn't changed. I just feel Paul missed a nice opportunity to state his case to his numerous detractors on this board by losing last Saturday. Of course he has a chance to reverse that with a deep playoff run.

[Doug Snyder]

Hell I'll take 6-6 at this point!

You know, I remember quite a few people who still post around here celebrating the dismissal of Lee Owens after my senior season over on the old angelfire board. That man was fired for a 7-5 season which included a top 10 offense and a near upset of a top Big 10 program. What would you all give for 7-5 now?

I always liked Owens...still do. Not sure if he was a good coach or not...I was not in the area and information was not as easy as it is today.

[Doug Snyder]

Hell I'll take 6-6 at this point!

You know, I remember quite a few people who still post around here celebrating the dismissal of Lee Owens after my senior season over on the old angelfire board. That man was fired for a 7-5 season which included a top 10 offense and a near upset of a top Big 10 program. What would you all give for 7-5 now?

Don't forget the crazy one point loss at UConn. No doubt, 7-5 (even with one extra FCS/1-AA team) sounds spectacular right about now. And don't get me wrong. I'd take Winters over Ianello any day of the week, and that was my stated opinion as soon as Rob was hired. That hasn't changed. I just feel Paul missed a nice opportunity to state his case to his numerous detractors on this board by losing last Saturday. Of course he has a chance to reverse that with a deep playoff run.

You know my opinion. Winters was not on my radar before but I am now convinced it is in our best interest to hire a succesful guy with Akron ties...someone who wants to be here and loves UofA. Put me down as a Winters supporter.

[skip-zip]

Hell I'll take 6-6 at this point!

You know, I remember quite a few people who still post around here celebrating the dismissal of Lee Owens after my senior season over on the old angelfire board. That man was fired for a 7-5 season which included a top 10 offense and a near upset of a top Big 10 program. What would you all give for 7-5 now?

I'd be nice, but not as nice as the 7-3-1 season Faust gave us or the MAC Championship season JD gave us.

I couldn't have said it better myself.

ITZ...go back and look up the teams LO beat that year. A few lower division teams, and some 1-A teams that ranged anywhere from Zero wins to 1-2 wins made up nearly all of those wins. We needed to show that a 20+ games under .500 resume, and beating the lowly teams in the MAC every was not going to be good enough to keep your job here.

And I still want to keep asking this question.....why are the guys who ran this program back then still coaching at D-II schools? I think some things speak for themselves.

[johnnyzip84]

Ask and ye shall receive

The infamous Howard game notwithstanding, the opponents weren't THAT bad.

And has been stated numerous times, the defense wasn't Winters' responsibility.

We all know the loss to K.E.N.T. to open the season that year put LO behind the 8 ball.

[InTheZone]

I couldn't have said it better myself.

ITZ...go back and look up the teams LO beat that year. A few lower division teams, and some 1-A teams that ranged anywhere from Zero wins to 1-2 wins made up nearly all of those wins. We needed to show that a 20+ games under .500 resume, and beating the lowly teams in the MAC every was not going to be good enough to keep your job here.

And I still want to keep asking this question.....why are the guys who ran this program back then still coaching at D-II schools? I think some things speak for themselves.

I don't have to look it up skip, I started on that team, I know who we beat. My point is, we were competitive with every team we played and we played our asses off no matter what. We were not a joke of a team, we were a team who would go out and play with anyone. I look on the field now and I see a bunch of guys who just don't give a shit. It's heartbreaking and appalling to those of us who wore the uniform, and those also who have sat in the stands year after year supporting this team with everything they have. The lack of competitiveness and "don't give a damn" attitude falls squarely on the head coach. I'm not saying we should go out and rehire Owens. I'm just saying look at what we used to complain about compared to what we have now. My how the standards have fallen.

In my years under Owens, we weren't all that talented, but Owens and Winters were both guys who inspired you to play your ass off. They were the kind of coaches that made you want to run through a wall for them. Was Owens a great coach on the field? No he wasn't. He made some questionable decisions that I feel like cost us some games throughout my career and especially in 2003, where I feel like we legitimately could've had a 10 win season.

Owens had two big problems as a coach: He always gambled at the wrong time, and he did not distribute the talent he brought in properly between the offense and the defense. As an offensive coach, his first priority was always stacking the offense with talent. There were a lot of very talented guys that came into the program during my career that could've played either way. Those guys always went to the offense. I can remember during strength and speed testing during the spring, the discrepency between the offense and the defense was always astounding. Owens didn't place a high priority on defense, and as a result we had defenses who could stop no one. That led to never being able to get over the hump and become a dominant MAC team.

To this day however, I believe that Paul Winters is an offensive genius. We had talent on offense, but he took that talent and brought excellence from it. In '03, Wisconsin's defense was bigger, faster, and stronger than us, but we hung 500 yards on them and were a blown call away from sticking it to them at their house.

We need a coach here at Akron that:

1. Cares about the program beyond advancing his own career

2. Can squeeze the most out of the talent he's given to beat more talented teams

3. Inspires his players to play their ass off and want to win for him

Paul Winters meets all 3 criteria. Rob Ianello meets none. Paul Winters gives us the best of the Lee Owens era in terms of unstoppable offenses and inspired play, and I believe would be a much better decision maker and steward of the talent brought in. The 2003 team would be a god-send right now, as was my original point, but Paul Winters could take us back there and beyond.