Critiquing Coach Bowden

[Zipgrad01]

Terry Bowden is the most overrated coach that we have ever had. At what point during this season do we need to consider canning this guy? I already think he needs to go. Please discuss...

[Dave in Green]

This will be a good discussion to have after the season is over and the final record is in the books.

[Zipgrad01]

The season is pretty much over now

[zipsoutsider]

The season is pretty much over now

Not being overdramatic at all, are you?

[Balsy]

Terry Bowden is the most overrated coach that we have ever had. At what point during this season do we need to consider canning this guy? I already think he needs to go. Please discuss...

The season is pretty much over now

As the official ZNO Bowden Cheerleader, whom is becoming disenchanted, the time to fire Bowden in in about 3 years after this season when his contract runs out. This is because we're not in a financial situtation to be paying-out a coach's contract. It's also not like Akron football led by Bowden is going to be what kills Akron football...anymore than what 7 years of mediocrity did before he was here.

Bowden needs to make a shake-up on his offensive staff (Milwee). And perhaps take over the offense again himself. 2012 he was the offensive cordinator and head coach right? He needs to stop being so conservative.

For the MAC, the first 4 games amount to a pay game, and 3 "pre-season games". The only games that matter are the MAC, and we've got a lot of lousy teams on the schedule this year. That will be the measure of Bowden and his 2015 team.

Savannah State will also be a good game to watch, so let's please not jump off the cliff just yet. Let me be the first one as the official Bowden AND Chapman cheerleaders.

[a-zip]

Terry Bowden is the most overrated coach that we have ever had. At what point during this season do we need to consider canning this guy? I already think he needs to go. Please discuss...

The season is young and we keep in mind we have played Oklahoma and Pitt (both from power conferences). If your reason for stating this is because we are 0-2 at this point, I think you are jumping off the cliff a bit early (kinda like some did with our soccer coach ;-) ) The fact that we would even think we could beat Pitt is because of TB and the fact that we beat them last year. Having said that, I do believe we could have beaten Pitt this year if we had a halfway decent offense.

Two things stand out to me as surprises during TBs tenure.

Offensive scheme - we seem to be regressing with Milwee calling the plays. What I watched last night looked like a Pee Wee football offense….I can't think of any throws in the middle of the field…..everything was to the outside (which are actually harder throws to make). A few times we came out in some sort of bunched up formation that made it so obvious there was going to be a run up the middle. It was so bunched up that guys seemed to be running in to each other. If you have an athlete at QB….don't you want to spread the field to give him space to create?

Recruiting - our best players are transfers AND on the defensive side of the ball. Our best wide receiver is actually a converted defensive player. Where are all the speedy skill players from the Florida pipeline? We have the best facilities in the MAC, we have the Bowdens….. I REALLY thought this is an area Bowden would crush all the MAC schools. Like Bobby Bowden always said "it ain't about the Xs and Os…..its about the Jimmy and Joes". Where are they?

The only reason I can think the would have stuck with Chapman is because of the weather and the fact that it is difficult to throw and catch. If that is the case, spread things out and stop calling the same plays that are not working. At least act like you are willing to throw the ball. Pitt stuck with their 2nd team QB last night…..OSU moved their 1st string QB to WR……I think we should do the same.

There is no doubt in my mind that Pohl should have started the 2nd half and deserved to do so. This is soooo RG3/Redskins……I don't think I can take much more.

[K92]

The trainwreck dumpster fire of an offense was foreshadowed in Spring practice when Bowden named it "Read One & Run".

That's not a real offense.

We all saw what a joke it was in the Spring Game but it was explained away with blah blah blah excuses.

Summer practices were closed so that the top secret offense could be unleashed on an unsuspecting Oklahoma. After all, the Zips were going out there to win, or so I heard.

Now, 2 games in, we all see what the deal is. We switched out the Air Raid for a scheme that wouldn't even be considered by a peewee coach.

Time will tell how the season will play out, but along the way I am sure Akron fans will continue to do what they do best: Make excuses.

[skip-zip]

I always have to come back to this thought when I see the prospect of fans turning on Bowden.

If we get rid of a guy with Bowden's experience and proven track record, what do we replace him with?

Sure, there's young "diamonds in the rough" out there, if you can get very lucky to find the right one. If not, you are going back to experimentation and taking chances again.

I certainly don't want to go back to that.

[a-zip]

I always have to come back to this thought when I see the prospect of fans turning on Bowden.

If we get rid of a guy with Bowden's experience and proven track record, what do we replace him with?

Sure, there's young "diamonds in the rough" out there, if you can get very lucky to find the right one. If not, you are going back to experimentation and taking chances again.

I certainly don't want to go back to that.

I agree 110%. Be careful what you wish for .....you might get it ?

[Dave in Green]

Coach Bowden is halfway toward building a great MAC program out of the shambles left behind by his predecessor. The defense is already there, arguably the best in the MAC. If he can maintain the defense at the current level or even higher and turn the offense around the way he did the defense, he will have fulfilled the dreams of every Zips football fan. But patience will run thin if it doesn't happen soon.

[UA1987]

In the post game radio interview, Bowden focused on his defense as the reason the Zips lost due to the Pitt score right before the half. Either he is delusional or he is playing head games with the fans. It appeared to me that before the radio interview that he (or someone) told French and Dunn to not bring up Chapman, Pohl or the offense as they were not discussed. I understand the ESPN3 TV guy said Bowden was intoxicated with Chapman as he kept playing him despite the poor play. I think Director of Player Personnel John Nemec (Chapman's high school coach) has led Bowden down this Chapman path and it is leading the Zips to ruin. Pohl seemed to try to take a head hit on his last carry just to knock himself out of this nightmare. The Zips are in big trouble and something needs to change very quickly. I hope Pohl is ok and he gets back into the starting QB spot. Bowden pulled this last year when he replaced Stein for Sullivan and then switched back. Lets hope he comes to his senses and he does the same with Pohl. I do expect whoever the starting QB is next week is going to have a good game, but this may only hide our real deficiencies.

[a-zip]

I do expect whoever the starting QB is next week to have a good game, but this may only hide our real deficiencies.

I was actually thinking it might have been a good idea to start Pohl against the opening two power conference teams and use Chapman to change things up from time to time…Main reason….. 1- Pohl has experience playing in big games and almost pulled off our biggest upset ever at the Big House 2- Confidence for Chapman (for him and the team).

If Pohl would have pulled out a win against either Oklahoma or Pitt, keep going with him. If we lose both (as we did) you can say you gave him a chance and Now start Chapman against Savannah State (who gave up 65 points to Colorado State) and expect he lights up the scoreboard.

I realize Hindsight is 20/20. I'm just trying to figure out what the heck is going on. This defense is TOO good….maybe the best we have ever had!! I'm pretty down right now but believe with a semi-competent offense with this defense we could easily be bowl eligible. I mean seriously……forget about scoring points……just give the defense some time to rest for god's sake.

Jatavious Brown is on pace to get himself drafted early!! So impressed!!

[Zipgrad01]

Not being overdramatic at all, are you?

My entire thread was a little over-dramatic, but i did it on purpose to see what sort of reaction it would get because so much of our fanbase is blindly loyal to this guy.

I do believe at the end of the season we seriously need to re-evaluate where he stands because I see next year being an absolute trainwreck. We have possibly the worst offense in the country right now and we lose our entire starting offensive line, best QB, top 2 tailbacks and half of our starting receivers. What makes it worse is that there is nobody lined up behind them as an upgrade. Believe it or not there is actually a downgrade!

Also, the defense will have to replace Coe, Grice, Brown, Evans, Monroe, Givens and Cheek. We dont have guys on the roster to replace them and we dont have a line of transfers like in years past.

The future looks dim

[zipsoutsider]

I was actually thinking it might have been a good idea to start Pohl against the opening two power conference teams and use Chapman to change things up from time to time…Main reason….. 1- Pohl has experience playing in big games and almost pulled off our biggest upset ever at the Big House 2- Confidence for Chapman (for him and the team).

If Pohl would have pulled out a win against either Oklahoma or Pitt, keep going with him. If we lose both (as we did) you can say you gave him a chance and Now start Chapman against Savannah State (who gave up 65 points to Colorado State) and expect he lights up the scoreboard.

1. I realize Hindsight is 20/20. I'm just trying to figure out what the heck is going on. This defense is TOO good….maybe the best we have ever had!! I'm pretty down right now but believe with a semi-competent offense with this defense we could easily be bowl eligible. I mean seriously……forget about scoring points……just give the defense some time to rest for god's sake.

Jatavious Brown is on pace to get himself drafted early!! So impressed!!

Sometimes there are factors at play that the cans just aren't aware of until much later. I caught word, after the game, from someone listening to the game on the radio, that Pohl left the game for concussion protocol and went into the locker room. I totally missed that from the stands. This could have also been a factor in limiting Pohl against, arguably, the strongest defense the Zips will see all year.

Also, is Bowden sticking with Chapman because he believes we can win a few games with Pohl, but not the MAC and believes if we give Chapman the experience we can win the MAC with him? He would never come out and say that in an interview, but it think it's a possibility.

There are some already on the Chapman stinks bandwagon. I will say he looks inexperienced. He improved from game 1 to game 2. I am willing to let them to work through some issues in out of conference if it means we have a shot at the MAC title. We really need 7 wins to go to a bowl. With our MAC schedule and Savannah State we can still get 7 wins. Assuming our offense gets its act together by MAC play, here they are:

1. Savannah State
2. Ohio
3. EMU
4. UMass
5. Miami
6. Buffalo
7. Can't State

Bowling Green will be a tough game for us. I was impressed with how well they played TN. CMU is winnable, but won't be easy.

Bowden has said our season isn't made or broken in the heat of the summer, but it will be won in the cold of November. The out of conference games are moral wins, if we get them, but the goals are still the MAC championship (I see that as a pretty far stretch) and a bowl game birth, which is attainable if we can work out the offense.

It's entirely possible we win our last four straight games. Great way to end the season.

[K92]

. . .the strongest defense the Zips will see all year.

YSU didn't think they were so strong.

[zipsoutsider]

YSU didn't think they were so strong.

I meant OK, not, Pitt.

[GJGood]

As the official ZNO Bowden Cheerleader, whom is becoming disenchanted, the time to fire Bowden in in about 3 years after this season when his contract runs out. This is because we're not in a financial situtation to be paying-out a coach's contract. It's also not like Akron football led by Bowden is going to be what kills Akron football...anymore than what 7 years of mediocrity did before he was here.

Bowden needs to make a shake-up on his offensive staff (Milwee). And perhaps take over the offense again himself. 2012 he was the offensive cordinator and head coach right? He needs to stop being so conservative.

For the MAC, the first 4 games amount to a pay game, and 3 "pre-season games". The only games that matter are the MAC, and we've got a lot of lousy teams on the schedule this year. That will be the measure of Bowden and his 2015 team.

Savannah State will also be a good game to watch, so let's please not jump off the cliff just yet. Let me be the first one as the official Bowden AND Chapman cheerleaders.

I agree with the first two paragraphs and the last paragraph but not the one about non-conference games being "preseason". When you need six wins to be postseason eligible and seven to make it likely and the non-conference win total counts toward this total then the games DO matter. This isn't basketball where ipostseason berths all come down to a few games in a conference tourney. The goal this year is a bowl game, that means 7-5 or 6-6 at worst and the non-conference counts.

[Dave in Green]

Louisiana-Lafayette will be a good test to see where the Zips really stand this season. The Ragin' Cajuns destroyed a weak Northwestern State team and lost by just 7 to a Kentucky team that beat South Carolina. Louisiana-Lafayette looks to be roughly equivalent to top tier MAC teams, and they have a bye week while the Zips are playing Savannah State. Beating Louisiana-Lafayette could go a long way toward setting the Zips up for a good MAC run.

[K92]

[ctmjbowes@sbcglobal.net]

I've been a distant follower of the Zips in the last couple of years, and an even less frequent poster, but after yesterday's debacle in the pouring rain, and today's crushing of the Browns, there can be absolutely zero doubt that NE Ohio football fans, especially those of us who follow the Zips AND Browns, are the worst-off of any fans, anywhere. Talk about gluttons for punishment. Talk about being cursed.

Regarding Bowden, I fail to see the appeal at this point. He's a southern "aw shucks" huckster whose recruiting and style work well in the deep south, obviously, but does any of that "daggum" schtick work in the industrial north? Not that I see. I watched the entire game yesterday and this team looks just like Zips teams have since Ianello was here, which is to say too small, too short, too slow, poorly coached on offense. Tell me again about Terry and offense? Tell me again about his recruiting? I suspect that posters here are still on his jock for no reason beyond him not being Ianello. He may not be Ianello, but he's clearly not good enough.

Based on the first two weeks, scheister Scarborough should have completed the switch to OH-PEE-U before this stinker of a game.

[zipsoutsider]

I've been a distant follower of the Zips in the last couple of years, and an even less frequent poster, but after yesterday's debacle in the pouring rain, and today's crushing of the Browns, there can be absolutely zero doubt that NE Ohio football fans, especially those of us who follow the Zips AND Browns, are the worst-off of any fans, anywhere. Talk about gluttons for punishment. Talk about being cursed.

Regarding Bowden, I fail to see the appeal at this point. He's a southern "aw shucks" huckster whose recruiting and style work well in the deep south, obviously, but does any of that "daggum" schtick work in the industrial north? Not that I see. I watched the entire game yesterday and this team looks just like Zips teams have since Ianello was here, which is to say too small, too short, too slow, poorly coached on offense. Tell me again about Terry and offense? Tell me again about his recruiting? I suspect that posters here are still on his jock for no reason beyond him not being Ianello. He may not be Ianello, but he's clearly not good enough.

Based on the first two weeks, scheister Scarborough should have completed the switch to OH-PEE-U before this stinker of a game.

You, obviously, know little to nothing about football. Defense has several guys from power 5 conferences. Tra'von Chapman was a 4 star recruit, one OL from. Power 5 conference and the RB from CSU, was successful at his last school. We don't get those kids without Bowden and Amato.

Is the offense where we want it to be? Nope, but making fun lf someone's cultural background is just ignorant and adds nothing to the conversation. You cite only your own cultural biases and provide no factual basis for your comments. Maybe it's best you remain a distant follower.

[lance99]

The "Fire Bowden" crowd needs to stop now!

Ask yourself this question: If he is gone, do you really think Amato stays?

We all know the answer to that question.

I was at the Pitt game and know that the offence stinks. This is a far cry from when Williams was the Quarterback. This last game was a Meatgrinder and this was the result. Air Raid will not happen this Season, so STOP acting like Cleveland Sports Fans and wanting the worst from your team.

We have the best Coach here since Larson, so Deep-Sixing him will not be an option for at least another Two Years. Do I like this team right now? No, but you have to make the best of a bad situation.

I am saying this as the "Joe Akron!"

[skip-zip]

Dave, The Louisiana-Lafayette game is important to me too. Just like it was last time.

Knowing that we are superior to a top level Sun Belt program is a great measure of progress. It's also just as important that the MAC shows the country that they are better than the Sun Belt as a whole. Being the "worst conference in the country" is not a good title to carry around, for a number of reasons. Lets allow the Sun Belt to keep that title.

[akronzips71]

I know I am going to get dumped on here, but I have to say this:

BOWDEN caused the injury to Pohl. All this QB controversy nonsense. Chapman has been HORRIBLE. Pohl has moved the team.

Pohl was so desperate to help the team and stay #1 that he made a bonehead play, fighting for that first down. It was brave, but dumb and BOWDEN's fault. He should not have put his actual starting QB into that position in the first place.

[ctmjbowes@sbcglobal.net]

Interesting reply, keyboard commando. Last time I checked, the points get totaled to decide who wins the games. Kids who are reclamation projects from larger conferences don't impress me until they win lots of games. Those power 5 kids have won how many games this year so far? It's the MAC playing OOC you say? The MAC has performed well so far in OOC games this year, and yet once again, the Zips are where they have been for far too long.

Cultural bias? TB clearly plays up the "daggum" aspect in his delivery and I suspect that doesn't always play so well in the industrial midwest. It's part of the whole Bowden family schtick, which is great if they're winning. Why are you so defensive about this staff? Are you a Bowden? Do you want UA to win or not? What exactly has the staff done to justify support?

I don't know who you are but I'd bet a paycheck that I've been following Zips football far longer than you have. Don't sugar coat this start to the season. This is an Ianello-esque offense. Since you know so much more about football than I do, how about you tell us how they're going to win more than a couple of games with this offense, smart guy.

You, obviously, know little to nothing about football. Defense has several guys from power 5 conferences. Tra'von Chapman was a 4 star recruit, one OL from. Power 5 conference and the RB from CSU, was successful at his last school. We don't get those kids without Bowden and Amato.

Is the offense where we want it to be? Nope, but making fun lf someone's cultural background is just ignorant and adds nothing to the conversation. You cite only your own cultural biases and provide no factual basis for your comments. Maybe it's best you remain a distant follower.