Take the "Mid" out of Mid-Major

[ZipAnalyst]

Take the "Mid" out of "Mid-Major" so says Coach Donovan of the Florida Gators.Obviously he is being flattering George Mason (perhaps to get a pyschological edge) But he is also setting up the plausibilty of George Mason getting to the championship game. Now that a Mid-Major (MMs) has reached the Final Four and it is increasingly common for MMs to reach the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight, this MM v. Major distinction is sort of like the NFL/AFL thing in the years following the Jets win in the Super Bowl.The NFL die-hards said the Jets' win was a fluke. That did not last long.If there is a distinction it is the quality of schedule played in getting to the tournament. MMs who want to get into the tournament and be competitive must play tough schedules and win.The next move for Dambrot and the Zips is to eliminate Denison, Mt. Union, Wooster et al from the schedule and only play teams that could possibly beat them. This is a necessary evolvement in the schedule even it means playing more games on the road than Dambrot would like.When we see the Zips make this move, then we will know that they are serious about competing for a national championship.The Zips soccer schedule is chocked full of national championship caliber teams. Result: the Zips are a realistic candidate to win Akron's first ever national championship.

[UAZipster0305]

Analyst,Kick-Ass post!...I couldn't agree more!...We need to get the fluff out of our men's basketball and football schedules as the men's soccer team has already done. Only Can't State schedules games against I-AA opponents for the fact of saving face (their only win in football for 2005). We definitely don't want to be like them!I'll be very disappointed if our 5th home football game is against a I-AA opponent. The best way to shed the mid-major label is to have a schedule full of major schools. A couple wins and respectable play are also a must. :macc:

[zipsbandman]

Well Penn State, NC State, and Cincy all on the road is no easy schedule by any stretch of the imagination. But I think they are talking about hoops.

[GoZips]

Some things to consider ... Dambrot has 150-90 overall record as a college coach witha 42-20 record at Akron, the Zips are 26-1 in their house under Dambrot, they currentlyhave the fourth longest home court winning streak in the nation.Getting some OOC home games is a huge challenge. Right now the only home gameswe have are Nevada and the Bracket Buster.We owe away games to Niagara, Oakland and Youngstown State.If we renew with Cleveland State that would be a home game. I don't think we will.If we renew with Duquesne that would begin with a road game. There will be about eleven out of conference games next year and possibly more ifwe get into an exempt tournament.I speculate that we have some bargaining power to get a series with Temple, but they'llbe thinking they "deserve" a two for one.Look for some announced home-n-home series with CAA and MVC schools.Coach mentioned that there is a strong possibility of a tournament in Florida againstsome high majors (stay tuned). I would hope they are working hard on a home-n-homewith Clemson with them coming here first.

[zipboy]

Rick Chryst was on during halftime of the Temple game. I thought he said that the league was going to 16 regular season games this year, a great move if they do. With 12 teams in the league, 16 makes a lot of sense, 10 interdivision and 6 cross division.He also said there was going to be some mandate for at least X home games or neutral games. Not sure I understand that one. Instead they should have a mandate, no Div 3 teams.The schedule this year was a step in the right direction. I hope to keep CSU and make YSU a longtime rivalry. Hopefully someone similar to Westfield steps up and sponsers a tourney here that gives us some good name teams at home. I know that is a longshot, but still a hope. Heck, take the money we were going to waste on Kennedy, keep her 1 more year, and pay someone to come here. Also, did anyone see the NCAA is looking to expand the tourney? Even adding 6-8 more teams gives us a shot at a 2nd team every other year.

[gozips19]

i am sorry i don't have the link but there was a really good story about the heads of the mac, mvc, caa, and wac getting together shortly after the season to talk about a possible agreement were the conferences would showcase their top 6 teams and play each other... i think its a great idea and all of these conferences have problems getting quality home ooc games. also in the article it stated that the ncaa selection comittie would be in favor of this going as far as saying that it would help their (mid majors) cause with getting at large bids.lets hope they can get this done asap!