Congratulations Ben!

[g-mann17]

I say we count the UNC championship as our own, because without our guy they don't win it.

So good job and congrats to Speas, and back to back titles for the Zips! (Once a Zip, always a Zip)

[Zip_ME87]

I can't count that as a win for the Zips, but I'm extremely happy for Ben and his family. Transfers like that don't always work out, but Ben is a great player and really stepped up in the post-season (ACC and NCAA Tournaments). Sorry, for those who were supporting Charlotte. They're a great team and deserve better than they got for all that they accomplished in getting to the final. For me, though, without the Zips there, I couldn't have scripted that any better. Ben won another title and was the key in getting it done. As Crew8 said in another thread, come on Columbus Crew and sign our guy from Stow, OH to a homegrown contract.

[bobbyake]

I can't count that as a win for the Zips, but I'm extremely happy for Ben and his family. Transfers like that don't always work out, but Ben is a great player and really stepped up in the post-season (ACC and NCAA Tournaments). Sorry, for those who were supporting Charlotte. They're a great team and deserve better than they got for all that they accomplished in getting to the final. For me, though, without the Zips there, I couldn't have scripted that any better. Ben won another title and was the key in getting it done. As Crew8 said in another thread, come on Columbus Crew and sign our guy from Stow, OH to a homegrown contract.

The sooner he leaves UNC, the happier I'll be.

[fknbuflobo]

We will not count this as our own! UNC won the championship; Akron won nothing.

If we are to count it at all, we will count it the result of an egregious personnel blunder by Coach Porter. It is abundantly evident that Ben Speas should have been convinced to stay, no matter what it took. Porter is my first choice to coach any team on any level, but that does not mean he is infallible.

We will never know the entire truth, but rumors swirl that the two simply did not like each other. It also has been said that Coach Porter refused to guarantee a starting position to Speas during spring 2011. If Speas truly desires to someday play professionally, as he has publicly professed since early in high school, as a junior he must start.

We congratulate local son Ben Speas in winning another championship. Boy, was he stellar throughout the tournament! ESPN announcers note that he is 11-0-4 in NCAA tournament competition. (Is that true?) But it is bittersweet that he has enjoyed this success away from his hometown program, especially considering he was once here.

[Zip_ME87]

We will not count this as our own! UNC won the championship; Akron won nothing.

If we are to count it at all, we will count it the result of an egregious personnel blunder by Coach Porter. It is abundantly evident that Ben Speas should have been convinced to stay, no matter what it took. Porter is my first choice to coach any team on any level, but that does not mean he is infallible.

We will never know the entire truth, but rumors swirl that the two simply did not like each other. It also has been said that Coach Porter refused to guarantee a starting position to Speas during spring 2011. If Speas truly desires to someday play professionally, as he has publicly professed since early in high school, as a junior he must start.

We congratulate local son Ben Speas in winning another championship. Boy, was he stellar throughout the tournament! ESPN announcers note that he is 11-0-4 in NCAA tournament competition. (Is that true?)

I believe Ben's teams' records in the NCAA Tournament are as follows, 11-1-3:

3-1-1 with Zips in 2009 (pk's with Virginia, unfortunately went into the books as a loss, per NCAA rules)

4-0-1 with Zips in 2010

4-0-1 with UNC in 2011

EDIT:

But it is bittersweet that he has enjoyed this success away from his hometown program, especially considering he was once here.

The sooner he leaves UNC, the happier I'll be.

I wholeheartedly agree. I wanted to see Ben reach the pros. He now has the body of work to do so.

[Zip_ME87]

If we are to count it at all, we will count it the result of an egregious personnel blunder by Coach Porter. It is abundantly evident that Ben Speas should have been convinced to stay, no matter what it took. Porter is my first choice to coach any team on any level, but that does not mean he is infallible.

I agree with you that no one is infallible, but this could be a case where Ben's style didn't fit Caleb's. Coach and player may have agreed to disagree which led to Ben going elsewhere. Caleb absolutely has my full support and without knowing all the facts, I don't think I'd call this an "egregious personnel blunder".

[Dave in Green]

@Zip_ME87, I agree with your assessment. There's no guarantee that Speas would have performed as well this season under Porter's system as he did at NC. It happens all the time in pro sports where a player gets traded to another team and suddenly blossoms in a way he couldn't with his original team. I still have confidence in Porter's decisions.

[fknbuflobo]

@Zip_ME87, I agree with your assessment. There's no guarantee that Speas would have performed as well this season under Porter's system as he did at NC. It happens all the time in pro sports where a player gets traded to another team and suddenly blossoms in a way he couldn't with his original team. I still have confidence in Porter's decisions.

Agreed. Perhaps Ben Speas needed a change of scenery.

I too remain supremely confident in Caleb Porter. Do not misunderstand me.

Like any other executive officer, Coach Porter is subject to retrospective scrutiny. It comes with the position.

I challenge interested journalists out there: Ask Coach Porter about the circumstances surrounding Speas' departure.

[bigzipguy]

I got on the Tar Heel website and watched the post-game interviews, which of course included Speas. He was asked several questoins, comparing last years title and this years title. The other question was why he transferred. Before he anwsered he took a drink of water , took his time and then basically stated that it time for him to move on.

I do not blame either him or Coach Porter for the split.

[robh91]

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/college/in..._speas_ear.html

A nice article about Ben. At the end he talks about the Zips a little bit.

[bobbyake]

[Crew8]

Columbus Crew looking outside MLS for players

Bliss also said the Crew are considering adding several Home Grown players, a group that includes North Carolina junior Ben Speas, who scored the lone goal in Sunday’s College Cup title match.

“He’s on our list for sure,” Bliss said. “A lot comes down to him. I know he transferred down there [from Akron where he won the College Cup in 2010], and I don’t know his college credits situation and if he wants to complete his last year and maybe graduate. He also has to weigh, ‘How much can I make today as opposed to how much I can make if I wait a year?’”

[bobbyake]

Columbus Crew looking outside MLS for players

Bliss also said the Crew are considering adding several Home Grown players, a group that includes North Carolina junior Ben Speas, who scored the lone goal in Sunday’s College Cup title match.

“He’s on our list for sure,” Bliss said. “A lot comes down to him. I know he transferred down there [from Akron where he won the College Cup in 2010], and I don’t know his college credits situation and if he wants to complete his last year and maybe graduate. He also has to weigh, ‘How much can I make today as opposed to how much I can make if I wait a year?’”

If he doesn't get Generation Adidas which pays around 100k, who knows. Aaron Horton, a Columbus homegrown un-drafted player, has a 45k salary and 60.5k guaranteed for 2011.

Non-Generation Adidas draft pick compensation:

AJ Soares, 6th, 42k s, 82k g

Jalil Anibaba, 9th, 42k s, 82k g

Eddie Ababio, 18th (Last of the first round) 32.6k s, 32.6k g

Jeb Brovsky, 19th (1st of 2nd round), 42k s, 42k g

Ampaipitakwong makes 32.6kChris Korb makes 42k

If he signs a homegrown contract, he could be looking at a 45k salary with 60k guaranteed for 2012. This beats what he'd be given if he was a late first rounder in the draft.

Make around 50k in 2012, or finish college (tuition costs $26,834 for out-of-state at UNC)

He's majoring in exercise and sports science. Starting salary for this degree is between $18,000 to $30,000

He's got options to consider. Who knows, if he has a decent career in the MLS, maybe he'll get an honorary degree from UNC or possibly Akron for Sports Science.

[ZachTheZip]

A beloved local guy is a major contributor for his local team who has been near or at the top for the entire time he was there, but then suddenly leaves to go to a team that he thinks will surround him with better talent and give him a better chance to win a championship. Who is it?

[fknbuflobo]

Fine job, Bobby.

With that analysis, it would be insanity to enter the MLS draft without either a graduated degree or a Generation Adidas contract.

[fknbuflobo]

A beloved local guy is a major contributor for his local team who has been near or at the top for the entire time he was there, but then suddenly leaves to go to a team that he thinks will surround him with better talent and give him a better chance to win a championship. Who is it?

Le Bron Speas

[Zip_ME87]

Fine job, Bobby.

With that analysis, it would be insanity to enter the MLS draft without either a graduated degree or a Generation Adidas contract.

It's almost always better to go into the MLS as an underclassman than a graduated senior. Graduated seniors don't usually have enough options to give them negotiating leverage. To do well, they have to be selected high in the draft, and there's no guarantee next season will be as good to Ben. This year, he can claim, at a minimum...ACC Tournament MVP, "winning" pk in the 2011 College Cup semi-final (with a very confident approach), beautiful championship-winning goal in the 2011 College Cup Final, being instrumental in UNC getting over the hump and winning the title after 3 previous tries, and if you go back to the final game of 2010, he can claim being the ONLY Akron sub in the 2010 Championship game.

[Zip_ME87]

A beloved local guy is a major contributor for his local team who has been near or at the top for the entire time he was there, but then suddenly leaves to go to a team that he thinks will surround him with better talent and give him a better chance to win a championship. Who is it?

Le Bron Speas

(edit) I remember LeBron crapping on Cleveland rather than (edit) making statements like Ben's for the PD article: He, along with Akron coach Caleb Porter, decided a transfer was best, so Speas jumped at the chance to play for North Carolina. "No hard feelings," he said, and the transition was smooth and easy. He still keeps in touch with his old mates, including roommates Chad Barson, David Meves and Scott Caldwell. "I was following them a lot," Speas said of the Zips season that ended with a 1-0 upset loss to Charlotte in the third round of the playoffs. "I'm still very close friends with several of the players, great friends actually. We've been texting. They wished me best of luck in all my games, and I did the same. It was tough for them when they lost, for sure."

However, I must say I'm not quite sure there were really "no hard feelings" having watched that post-game interview on UNC's website and Ben's body language, sipping from the water bottle and other, before he answered It was time to move on after being asked why he left Akron. Just my interpretation, but I get the feeling there was some disagreement with Coach Porter. At any rate, kudos to both Ben and Caleb for keeping any issues that may have existed internal where they should remain.

[bobbyake]

fast forward to 8:35

[Z.I.P.]

(edit) I remember LeBron crapping on Cleveland rather than (edit) making statements like Ben's for the PD article: He, along with Akron coach Caleb Porter, decided a transfer was best, so Speas jumped at the chance to play for North Carolina. "No hard feelings," he said, and the transition was smooth and easy. He still keeps in touch with his old mates, including roommates Chad Barson, David Meves and Scott Caldwell. "I was following them a lot," Speas said of the Zips season that ended with a 1-0 upset loss to Charlotte in the third round of the playoffs. "I'm still very close friends with several of the players, great friends actually. We've been texting. They wished me best of luck in all my games, and I did the same. It was tough for them when they lost, for sure."

However, I must say I'm not quite sure there were really "no hard feelings" having watched that post-game interview on UNC's website and Ben's body language, sipping from the water bottle and other, before he answered It was time to move on after being asked why he left Akron. Just my interpretation, but I get the feeling there was some disagreement with Coach Porter. At any rate, kudos to both Ben and Caleb for keeping any issues that may have existed internal where they should remain.

Yes -- the disagreement was that the player wanted a guarantee that he would start this season. No coach in his right mind sets that precedent. Period. I salute Caleb for sticking to his guns.

[robh91]

(edit) I remember LeBron crapping on Cleveland rather than (edit) making statements like Ben's for the PD article: He, along with Akron coach Caleb Porter, decided a transfer was best, so Speas jumped at the chance to play for North Carolina. "No hard feelings," he said, and the transition was smooth and easy. He still keeps in touch with his old mates, including roommates Chad Barson, David Meves and Scott Caldwell. "I was following them a lot," Speas said of the Zips season that ended with a 1-0 upset loss to Charlotte in the third round of the playoffs. "I'm still very close friends with several of the players, great friends actually. We've been texting. They wished me best of luck in all my games, and I did the same. It was tough for them when they lost, for sure."

However, I must say I'm not quite sure there were really "no hard feelings" having watched that post-game interview on UNC's website and Ben's body language, sipping from the water bottle and other, before he answered It was time to move on after being asked why he left Akron. Just my interpretation, but I get the feeling there was some disagreement with Coach Porter. At any rate, kudos to both Ben and Caleb for keeping any issues that may have existed internal where they should remain.

Yes -- the disagreement was that the player wanted a guarantee that he would start this season. No coach in his right mind sets that precedent. Period. I salute Caleb for sticking to his guns.

I don't think it was even that he wasn't guaranteed a starting spot. I get the impression Porter told him he would get beat out by a lot of new players. Something had to have happened between him and Porter. I always felt he earned way more time than he got, but it seemed like Porter was reluctant to give him much time. Seeing how he played in spring too, I half expected him to be a captain here. Like Zip_ME87 said though, I have respect for both of them for keeping it private.

[Crew8]

[Zip_ME87]

Very well-spoken interview by Ben with nice comments for both his current and former teams. Thanks Crew8.

[GLOID]

A beloved local guy is a major contributor for his local team who has been near or at the top for the entire time he was there, but then suddenly leaves to go to a team that he thinks will surround him with better talent and give him a better chance to win a championship. Who is it?

Le Bron Speas

Very bad call. The LeBron comparison is assinine.

[zoomtime]

A beloved local guy is a major contributor for his local team who has been near or at the top for the entire time he was there, but then suddenly leaves to go to a team that he thinks will surround him with better talent and give him a better chance to win a championship. Who is it?

Le Bron Speas

Very bad call. The LeBron comparison is assinine.

+1