Game #11 The Massachusetts Minutemen

[skip-zip]

UMass and Can't are obviously not good teams. But I still give the Zips defense credit for giving up only 20 combined points in the last two games. If the Zips can pull off an upset of Toledo, they'd finish 4-4 in the MAC. A .500 MAC season would be beyond expectations.

1) Absolutely. Give all the credit in the world to the defense over the last two games. They were on the field far too long today.

2) Was I the only one (finally) screaming for a QB change? And this is not a bandwagon that I jump on very easily.

3) Why did we suddenly have so much trouble running the ball against a really bad run defense?

4) It's funny how many of us looked ahead to the Toledo game for that possible 5th win, while not realizing that UMass was going to be such a struggle. I'll never do that again (I swear ).

5) How many people would have guessed, after last year, that the offense would turn horrible at some point this year, yet the defense could be relied upon to win some key games and save the progrum?

[Zipgrad01]

Not exciting to watch, but I'll take a win. We just have to get better play out of the QB position. 3rd downs are crucial to a teams success, and we couldn't have been worse today on the offense side.

I cant blame all of the 3rd down misses on Pohl. He hit quite a few receivers in stride today and they dropped the ball.

[LZIp]

I cant blame all of the 3rd down misses on Pohl. He hit quite a few receivers in stride today and they dropped the ball.

This. I thought Pohl played alright today. Many drops stunted the offense. Would have helped if Chisholm could hold on to the ball, too.

[ZachTheZip]

Umass was a typical "trap" game. Akron had two weeks off, after winning the Wagon Wheel. Too much time for revelry and not enough focus on the next game. Hopefully they learned their lesson, with another bye week before Toledo.

[a-zip]

We won!! Be happy~!! Who cares about the margin…we won. TB is the man! We won!

[akzipper]

Yes unlike the other Akron team, the FOOTBALL team actually won on Sunday. It wasn't pretty but it was a win.

[LZIp]

Yes unlike the other Akron team, the FOOTBALL team actually won on Sunday. It wasn't pretty but it was a win.

sunday? Please tell me it isnt monday right now? I have an 1120-S return due for my corporate tax class.

[footballzip]

We'll take it. Couple road wins this year. Win is a win.

[Dr Z]

Was I the only one (finally) screaming for a QB change? And this is not a bandwagon that I jump on very easily.

It will be interesting to me to see who the starting QB is next year. I would make it an open competition, but I'm only seeing the product on Saturdays.

[GP1]

Huge, huge, huge win for the Zips yesterday. The margin didn't matter. This is all about recruiting as we badly need to increase our overall talent. Four wins says we are no longer a horrible MAC program kids should shy away from. We may still be bad, but we are moving in the right direction with four wins and that is something more meaningful to sell to kids. Nobody wants to play for a terrible program and a kid can now be sold the idea that we won four this year and six or seven wins next year shouldn't be unrealistic.

"Mr. Recruit, how would you like to play in a bowl game next year?"...sounds pretty good to me.

[johnnyzip84]

In between raking leaves, pruning shrubs and mowing grass, I managed to watch much of the game on ESPN3 yesterday. I don't think I've yelled and cursed at a game like that in quite a few years. I guess that's a good sign, in that the fans are beginning to expect a certain level of competency from this program. Here are my observations:

1) Though it was painful to see JC7 cough it up twice early on, I was glad to see TB sit him out to make him think and/or get him settled. But as the announcers (who I thought were actually pretty decent) noted, the team is not as explosive without him in the game. So I was even more glad to see him return and score the decisive TD. JC7 doesn't get much credit on this forum, but that TD was not just a good play. It was a spectacular play (although, perhaps a little risky). He's had some ball security issues before, so hopefully he'll get it straightened out once again. His average yards per carry (6.0) is exceptional over the last 4 games.

2) I thought KP16 was fine yesterday. The 3rd down difficulties (as pointed out by another poster) were certainly not all his doing. Bickley dropped 2 sure 1st downs, one that had huge gain written all over it. LT dropped what looked to be a sure TD. Sure Kyle missed a few, but he also avoided the big mistakes throwing the football.

3) MF20 is making a claim for all-MAC 1st or 2nd team. He has really improved on his route jumping abilities and he's been making some nice catches on the INTs.

4) JR4's stop on 3rd down was just as huge as the 4th down stop. He deserves consideration for all-MAC honorable mention.

5) I never saw Nico or Goodman on the field, so I'm assuming they sat this one out due to injury. I sure hope Nico can play at least a few snaps against UT. I'd hate to see his exemplary career come to an early end.

6) Mizell's return was significant. I don't think March is near 100% as Jon Shelby played more than I remember seeing so far this year.

7) Tough game to watch, but the team rallied when it counted.

[Lee Adams]

Not exciting to watch, but I'll take a win. We just have to get better play out of the QB position. 3rd downs are crucial to a teams success, and we couldn't have been worse today on the offense side.

Was at the game. What a neat place Gillette Stadium and the area around it is. All kinds of retail/restaurant activity right next to the stadium. No charge for parking. All kinds of space to tailgate. Crowd wasn't too bad either. Maybe a 75 or so Akron people there.

Four wins was my benchmark for this year. Done. Great.

The team looked 'flat' whatever that is.But,you are right,unless the play at QB improves significantly next season it will be hard to show the results in the record.

The best the offense looked on Saturday was when Bowden committed to handing the ball to Hundley in the second half and letting him run down hill. They still don't get the ball to Dorazio enough. By far the best receiver.

If Pohl doesn't improve significantly through spring and summer Bowden may crank up the competition. Hirscman is listed as a Jr. Is that right?

[UA1987]

I noticed that MTB did not catch a pass.

[legendofzippy]

I didn't get to see this game. Out of curiosity, why so much criticism of Pohl? His stats look ok, though the team's 3rd down conversion rate was pitiful. Did he miss every 3rd down throw or something?

I guess I'm neutral on Pohl, but competition at QB is fine with me. There should be competition for every position.

[skip-zip]

I didn't get to see this game. Out of curiosity, why so much criticism of Pohl? His stats look ok, though the team's 3rd down conversion rate was pitiful. Did he miss every 3rd down throw or something?

I guess I'm neutral on Pohl, but competition at QB is fine with me. There should be competition for every position.

I don't know. Maybe his stats weren't bad. But, after witnessing the Ken+ and UMass games, I think there's some obvious problems sustaining drives and scoring points, and I finally broke down and decided that making a change in leadership behind Center might be what's needed right now to get this offense moving again. That's the first time this year that I really started to feel that way, because I try to hard to resist the normal temptation to blame the QB.

[ZachTheZip]

I didn't get to see this game. Out of curiosity, why so much criticism of Pohl? His stats look ok, though the team's 3rd down conversion rate was pitiful. Did he miss every 3rd down throw or something?

I guess I'm neutral on Pohl, but competition at QB is fine with me. There should be competition for every position.

I think part of it is that the offense looked so much better under Dalton Williams. Dalton made his decisions quicker than Pohl. I think that will sort itself out by ext season, though.

Another part is that Pohl looked better last year in limited duty. He didn't progress as fast as fans had hoped.

[Dr Z]

I think part of it is that the offense looked so much better under Dalton Williams. Dalton made his decisions quicker than Pohl.

Agreed, that it is a decision making issue. I disagree with you about when. Dalton was able to go through progressions, Kyle doesn't often do that. He often makes his decision before the snap of the ball. A couple throws that fans are blaming on the receivers dropping Saturday (and other Saturdays) shouldn't have been thrown. A QB needs to give his players the best chance to move the sticks. Throwing into tight coverage is not usually the best option. If everybody is covered, I understand, but often, that's not the case. 3rd downs and 4th quarter completion percentage separate the boys from the men. I love Kyle's accuracy on the go patterns, but the crossing stuff in middle of the field seems to present a challenge. This may be all due to the comfort level of running the offense too, remember DW ran this offense before he arrived at Akron. Whatever the issue is, I hope it improves, I would LOVE to head into the offseason with a three game win streak! That would also be the last four out of five (even though it's crummy competition)!?!?

[ZachTheZip]

This may be all due to the comfort level of running the offense too, remember DW ran this offense before he arrived at Akron.

I'm not sure about that. Last year, Pohl gained more in-game experience with the offense than Williams had in four years before coming to Akron. Williams had never taken a snap. Pohl played for just over four quarters.

Maybe it's a confidence issue. Dalton lived up to his nickname of the Lone Ranger, coming in guns blazing and making throws and not letting the risk of an INT stop him. What looks like Pohl making decisions too quickly by not considering all his options may actually be a symptom of not believing that he can make those throws and instead settling for his first receiver.

Whatever it is, he has another week off to work things out. In January, Chandler Kincade will enroll and Tommy Woodson's redshirt year will be over. Not to mention that Nick Hirschman will hopefully be healed by spring practice. It will be an interesting QB battle.

[Dr Z]

Dalton lived up to his nickname of the Lone Ranger

Wrong QB, Clayton Moore.

[UA1987]

Of the 33 pass attempts only 5 (15%) went to MTB (2), Smith (2), and Dillard (1). None of these three (about half of our receivers) caught a ball, but they sure did get less than their share of attempts by Pohl this past Saturday. Was Pohl looking for D'Orazio and Bickley too much and was this the thing that hurt us on third down conversions and almost cost us the game or were MTB, Smith and Dillard just not open much of the time?

[ZachTheZip]

Wrong QB, Clayton Moore.

Shows how much I've tried to block out the last three years.

[johnnyzip84]

I just watched the coach's show for the week, and here are the players of the game and the players "whose stock are rising":

Offensive POTG - Pohl

Defensive POTG - Freeman

Offensive Riser - Bickley (although TB said he dropped 2 balls, one of which was a sure TD)

Defensive Riser - CJ Mizell

Here are some other notable comments:

1) The winning TD on the bubble screen was KP16's own call. TB said he had a VERY good game (noted the drops) and that this especially was revealed over his head set (implying that KP16 was getting the team in the right positions/calls more often than not).

2) He thinks Freeman, though small, will get a look by the NFL.

3) He implied they'd try to plug a few holes on defense next year via transfers (presumably D-Line), but he is REALLY excited about the LBs who return.

[Dr Z]

The winning TD on the bubble screen was KP16's own call. TB said he had a VERY good game (noted the drops) and that this especially was revealed over his head set (implying that KP16 was getting the team in the right positions/calls more often than not).

Good to hear. I hope this VERY good game is not his ceiling.

[johnnyzip84]

Good to hear. I hope this VERY good game is not his ceiling.

I was paraphrasing But TB was clearly pleased with his game. Of course he has to improve and I'm sure he knows it. I expect him to enter spring ball as the "starter", but the competition will be more intense next year. The Scout list of Akron propects lists a JC QB who we've supposedly offered. If we land another, it could get pretty crowded behind TS67.

[LZIp]

ts67?