Marla Ridenour on Future of Zips

[Blue & Gold]

Zips Bleak Ending Shouldn't Obscure Bright Future

[Zipmeister]

Zips Bleak Ending Shouldn't Obscure Bright Future

Upbeat story with one glaring error.

[RootforRoo44]

Upbeat story with one glaring error.

What, that she forgot to insinuate that the entire Zips team does drugs regularly?

[ZachTheZip]

Upbeat story with one glaring error.

To be fair, it would be pretty shocking to see Gilliam as a Zip next year.

[GoZips]

Good grief. The author meant to say "Diggs". Give it a rest.

[GoZips]

In my mind's eye I am having great difficulty in seeing Alex Abreu in a Zips uniform in the future.

Aside from any criminal aspects (let us leave that to the courts), Alex's appearant selfish attitude is a poison.

Wichita State defeated number one ranked Gonzaga. Interviewed the players spoke of everyone playing as a team.

Alex made it a point that he is for Alex and only Alex. Sorry, that does not equate to being a team.

While we all long for a championship and continued improved play, it cannot happen when led a by a self absorbed person.

Either Akron is a team, or it is a collection of individuals all wearing the same uniform. Which is it?

I often ponder Alex's behavior and comments. Last Sunday many churches had as their Gospel reading the Prodigal Son.

The prodigal was welcomed home and feted with a celebration of his return. Great, I am all for that. There remains a

distinct difference with Alex. To this point he has shown no contrition and resolve to be a better person. He is still poison.

That Coach Dambrot wants the best for Alex is great. That is as we expect and will support. Forgiving Alex is part of who

we are. Alex has to change his life to be full participant in the Zips community. Until he changes and is contrite he is not

a full member of the community. Do the work, Alex. Man up.

Thank you in advance for hate mail to follow.

[Dave in Green]

I don't know Alex personally, so it's hard to say how team-oriented he is. What he has posted at the top of his Twitter account may or may not be a clue as to where his priorities lie when it comes to his team:

I hoop for the Zips..I do me and don't live for nobody but me.

[UAZip0510]

In my mind's eye I am having great difficulty in seeing Alex Abreu in a Zips uniform in the future.

Aside from any criminal aspects (let us leave that to the courts), Alex's appearant selfish attitude is a poison.

Wichita State defeated number one ranked Gonzaga. Interviewed the players spoke of everyone playing as a team.

Alex made it a point that he is for Alex and only Alex. Sorry, that does not equate to being a team.

While we all long for a championship and continued improved play, it cannot happen when led a by a self absorbed person.

Either Akron is a team, or it is a collection of individuals all wearing the same uniform. Which is it?

I often ponder Alex's behavior and comments. Last Sunday many churches had as their Gospel reading the Prodigal Son.

The prodigal was welcomed home and feted with a celebration of his return. Great, I am all for that. There remains a

distinct difference with Alex. To this point he has shown no contrition and resolve to be a better person. He is still poison.

That Coach Dambrot wants the best for Alex is great. That is as we expect and will support. Forgiving Alex is part of who

we are. Alex has to change his life to be full participant in the Zips community. Until he changes and is contrite he is not

a full member of the community. Do the work, Alex. Man up.

Thank you in advance for hate mail to follow.

Unless it turns out Alex was innocent - highly unlikely - I don't want him back. This is coming from someone who cinsidered AA their favorite Zip prior to all of this. I really hope to see Diggs back though. His off-court issues have seemed to serve as an eye-opener for him.

A Forsythe/Tree/Kretzer/Diggs/Evans starting unit is as good, if not better than what we put out there in our last games.

[Derrt]

"The university suspended Diggs in October for violating the student code. That penalty runs through mid-May. Such suspensions are accompanied by a list of sanctions that must be completed before he could be reinstated. Diggs will get the opportunity to do so a few weeks in advance of the suspension’s end. He must show continued progress toward a degree, even though he was not allowed to attend a UA satellite campus.

Abreu remains enrolled, UA spokesperson Eileen Korey confirmed. On Friday, Abreu pleaded not guilty to two third-degree felony counts in Summit County Common "

I find it crazy the University suspended Diggs for the ENTIRE school year. Especially when the "alleged victim" did not attend school THIS semester. In fact the young lady is 2377 miles away from the Akron Campus. On top of that he has to go through BS sanctions at the end of his suspension .

Well, I guess Alex is very fortunate to still be able to go to school.

[LZIp]

"The university suspended Diggs in October for violating the student code. That penalty runs through mid-May. Such suspensions are accompanied by a list of sanctions that must be completed before he could be reinstated. Diggs will get the opportunity to do so a few weeks in advance of the suspension’s end. He must show continued progress toward a degree, even though he was not allowed to attend a UA satellite campus.

Abreu remains enrolled, UA spokesperson Eileen Korey confirmed. On Friday, Abreu pleaded not guilty to two third-degree felony counts in Summit County Common "

I find it crazy the University suspended Diggs for the ENTIRE school year. Especially when the "alleged victim" did not attend school THIS semester. In fact the young lady is 2377 miles away from the Akron Campus. On top of that Diggs has to pay for a bullshit psych exam/evaluation at the end of his suspension .

Well, I guess Alex is very fortunate to still be able to go to school.

She wasnt in school, but was still living in Akron most of the semester.

But, I get your point.

[pat]

I don't know Alex personally, so it's hard to say how team-oriented he is. What he has posted at the top of his Twitter account may or may not be a clue as to where his priorities lie when it comes to his team:

"I hoop for the Zips..I do me and don't live for nobody but me."

If that is an exact quote from Alex, then I don't want him to be part of the university as a whole. His grammar is worse than LeBron's It's even more unforgivable than selling 5lbs of pot!

[UAZip0510]

"The university suspended Diggs in October for violating the student code. That penalty runs through mid-May. Such suspensions are accompanied by a list of sanctions that must be completed before he could be reinstated. Diggs will get the opportunity to do so a few weeks in advance of the suspension’s end. He must show continued progress toward a degree, even though he was not allowed to attend a UA satellite campus.

Abreu remains enrolled, UA spokesperson Eileen Korey confirmed. On Friday, Abreu pleaded not guilty to two third-degree felony counts in Summit County Common "

I find it crazy the University suspended Diggs for the ENTIRE school year. Especially when the "alleged victim" did not attend school THIS semester. In fact the young lady is 2377 miles away from the Akron Campus. On top of that Diggs has to pay for a bullshit psych exam/evaluation at the end of his suspension .

Well, I guess Alex is very fortunate to still be able to go to school.

At this point it's pretty clear Diggs got screwed.

[GoZips]

"The university suspended Diggs in October for violating the student code. That penalty runs through mid-May. Such suspensions are accompanied by a list of sanctions that must be completed before he could be reinstated. Diggs will get the opportunity to do so a few weeks in advance of the suspension’s end. He must show continued progress toward a degree, even though he was not allowed to attend a UA satellite campus.

Abreu remains enrolled, UA spokesperson Eileen Korey confirmed. On Friday, Abreu pleaded not guilty to two third-degree felony counts in Summit County Common "

I find it crazy the University suspended Diggs for the ENTIRE school year. Especially when the "alleged victim" did not attend school THIS semester. In fact the young lady is 2377 miles away from the Akron Campus. On top of that he has to go through BS sanctions at the end of his suspension .

Well, I guess Alex is very fortunate to still be able to go to school.

By now, it is quite evident that Quincey did in fact get screwed by an over zealous university administration. Could it be that

certain administrators were punishing Coach Dambrot whom they dislike?

I would love to see Quincey back in an Akron uniform and having a great senior season. He has earned it.

I speak truth, thank you for an incisive post.

[UAZip0510]

By now, it is quite evident that Quincey did in fact get screwed by an over zealous university administration. Could it be that

certain administrators were punishing Coach Dambrot whom they dislike?

I would love to see Quincey back in an Akron uniform and having a great senior season. He has earned it.

I speak truth, thank you for an incisive post.

The craziest part about Diggs' situation is that he wasn't even permitted to continue his coursework. How many UA students have criminal charges that DO stick and aren't dismissed? Are they booted from taking classes for an entire year?

No doubt this was a political move...the sad part is a young man's future was put into the middle of petty politics.

I echo your sentiment that it would be great to see Q get redemption next year - both on and off the court.

[LZIp]

The craziest part about Diggs' situation is that he wasn't even permitted to continue his coursework. How many UA students have criminal charges that DO stick and aren't dismissed? Are they booted from taking classes for an entire year?

No doubt this was a political move...the sad part is a young man's future was put into the middle of petty politics.

I echo your sentiment that it would be great to see Q get redemption next year - both on and off the court.

Wouldnt AA's situation bring about a political move as well, seeing that its under a much larger microscope?

[Dave in Green]

The situations involving Abreu and Diggs are quite different. Q was found guilty of a violation of the University's Code of Student Conduct and issued a punishment by UA. Alex is accused of violating a state law, to which he has pled innocent. While some of us may believe that Q's punishment was excessive, he did have his day in UA court, so to speak. Alex has not yet had his day in court, has not yet been proven guilty of anything, and therefore should not at this time be subjected to any form of punishment.

[Zipmeister]

The situations involving Abreu and Diggs are quite different. Q was found guilty of a violation of the University's Code of Student Conduct and issued a punishment by UA. Alex is accused of violating a state law, to which he has pled innocent. While some of us may believe that Q's punishment was excessive, he did have his day in UA court, so to speak. Alex has not yet had his day in court, has not yet been proven guilty of anything, and therefore should not at this time be subjected to any form of punishment.

I wish you had posted this before he was suspended.

I'm fairly certain the athletic department would have taken a different action had they considered your compelling argument.

[Dave in Green]

Being suspended by an athletic department is a different issue from being suspended from a university. Scholarship athletes sign up for a different set of rules than other students. Scholarship athletes can be suspended from college teams for being charged with a serious crime. Proof of guilt is not required. Suspending a star athlete is as much a punishment for the team as it is for the player.

[Derrt]

The situations involving Abreu and Diggs are quite different. Q was found guilty of a violation of the University's Code of Student Conduct and issued a punishment by UA. Alex is accused of violating a state law, to which he has pled innocent. While some of us may believe that Q's punishment was excessive, he did have his day in UA court, so to speak. Alex has not yet had his day in court, has not yet been proven guilty of anything, and therefore should not at this time be subjected to any form of punishment.

[RootforRoo44]

If Diggs gets back onto the court in a Zips uniform, he deserves a standing ovation for fighting through the BS he has had to go through in the past year.

I liked Q before the "incidents" that went down last summer, but after learning more about the situation and how much he was royally screwed, I have a lot of respect for him. Don't get me wrong, he wasn't by any means some poor innocent person, but he didn't deserve how it went down. And the fact that he's been doing the right things since is very admirable.

[legendofzippy]

I hope both are back, but they need to do everything right. Playing for the Zips - or any team - is a privilege and they need to earn that back.

Not sure why Diggs is getting off easier on this board right now, other than the timing of Alex's mistake being far worse.

As far as I'm concerned, hitting a woman is far worse than doing/dealing pot.

[LZIp]

I hope both are back, but they need to do everything right. Playing for the Zips - or any team - is a privilege and they need to earn that back.

Not sure why Diggs is getting off easier on this board right now, other than the timing of Alex's mistake being far worse.

As far as I'm concerned, hitting a woman is far worse than doing/dealing pot.

Wasnt Diggs found not guilty?

Big difference when going from word-of-mouth, where any girl can claim you hit them vs feds catching you buying 5 pounds of pot.

[Dave in Green]

..... As far as I'm concerned, hitting a woman is far worse than doing/dealing pot.

In the original discussion, the description of "hitting" was disputed by some who described it more as "pushing away." In the absence of indisputable, proven evidence that any male was guilty of striking any female in a manner that could have caused injury, care should be taken in how one chooses to describe such incidents. I trust that neither the Zips coaching staff nor players would want to have a player back on the team who was guilty of hitting a female with intent to injure.

[akronzips71]

I hope both are back, but they need to do everything right. Playing for the Zips - or any team - is a privilege and they need to earn that back.

Not sure why Diggs is getting off easier on this board right now, other than the timing of Alex's mistake being far worse.

As far as I'm concerned, hitting a woman is far worse than doing/dealing pot.

That is not true.

"Hitting a woman" can be:

Harassment

Misdemeanor

Felony

or

SELF DEFENSE

or

just plain old fashioned BS and NOT GUILTY

Selling drugs is ALWAYS a Felony if found guilty. You can not go to trial on that and be convicted of a violation or misdemeanor.

So I take some exception to your statement. It is just overbroad and too general.

[Zipmeister]

In the original discussion, the description of "hitting" was disputed by some who described it more as "pushing away." In the absence of indisputable, proven evidence that any male was guilty of striking any female in a manner that could have caused injury, care should be taken in how one chooses to describe such incidents. I trust that neither the Zips coaching staff nor players would want to have a player back on the team who was guilty of hitting a female with intent to injure.

I'm sure if some "physical contact" occurred it was only because he loved her.

I'm also sure OJ was innocent.