Transfer Portal Watch

[Zip JD]

On 5/5/2023 at 2:24 PM, LoyalZIP said:

 

 

I hope he kills it. I think he could've made it at Cleveland State or even for Groce's brother as an experienced guy with potential. Best of luck to Garvin.

Agreed.  Garvin always played hard and never let up on defense, but he would have been near the end of the bench if he stayed.  This is a good move for him, especially if he adds a mid-range jumper in the off season.  I always appreciated his hustle, and he had his best game in the home win last season against Cant. Best wishes to him.   

[Zip JD]

On 5/4/2023 at 9:51 PM, Blue & Gold said:

 

The 3 to close out a 20-point win over Cant in the MACC is still pretty sweet but it says a lot that about his season at Butler that to fill a 59 second highlight film they had to go to his Zips footage.

 

As to the pro/con debate on his return.... In Groce I trust.  It has been one hell of an off season.  Groce has used the Transfer Portal in a couple of weeks to more success than Arth did in 2 seasons.

[Bigzip1]

Call me greedy but I wish we could have added another big physical F that can rebound and defend at a high level while being capable of giving you 10-14 a game like Millner at Toledo or Jacobs and Payton at Kent. Those types of players gave us fits at times they’re a little more athletic than Rique and Sammy. 

[1981 grad]

With Clarke gone I just looked at the large number of players who have come and gone in the past 5 years without graduating and the number of players who have transferred into the program I think Tribble and Freeman will be our first 4 or 5 year players in Groce's tenure.  This is an observation and not a criticism but I miss watching players develop as they go through their 4 years at Akron.  It has been amazing to watch Freeman's development.  I am a little disappointed in the Tribble is a great player but I thought he would develop an outside shot.  He is a fantastic athlete and I thought Groce could teach an athlete to shoot.  Because of the transfer rule we will rarely see 4 year players in Akron and each year we will have a 50% turnover in the roster. Welcome to the new college basketball scene.  

[ewbrooman1]

36 minutes ago, 1981 grad said:

With Clarke gone I just looked at the large number of players who have come and gone in the past 5 years without graduating and the number of players who have transferred into the program I think Tribble and Freeman will be our first 4 or 5 year players in Groce's tenure.  This is an observation and not a criticism but I miss watching players develop as they go through their 4 years at Akron.  It has been amazing to watch Freeman's development.  I am a little disappointed in the Tribble is a great player but I thought he would develop an outside shot.  He is a fantastic athlete and I thought Groce could teach an athlete to shoot.  Because of the transfer rule we will rarely see 4 year players in Akron and each year we will have a 50% turnover in the roster. Welcome to the new college basketball scene.  

Being able to watch players develop was one reason I gravitated toward the women's game in recent years. That's probably over now with the portal heating up on the women's side too and a coaching change.

[Zip Watcher]

On 3/31/2023 at 1:14 PM, Captain Kangaroo said:

Thank you very much for the kind words.

 

I think is was roughly 18 years ago that we began ZipsNation.org. Seven of us met outside Porky's Shop and pitched in some money to get the site started. @Zip Watcher did the original heavy lifting to set up the server and work with Invision. He's also the guy that came up with the "ZipsNation.org" name. Now-a-days "XYZ Nation" is everywhere. Back then is was more novel...and pretty perfect. Although he doesn't post much anymore, he continues to help with the server updates and issues. And keeping the domain name valid. And probably some other stuff I'm unaware of.

 

Beyond participating, @ZZZips helps fund the site, paying for the server. This is greatly appreciated.

 

In addition to his stellar photography skills and posts, @Dr Z has taken over the technical side of things, installing the updates to keep the site modern and running smoothly. This is not his specialty...he has learned this side of the internet on his own and the site would not exist if he hadn't stepped up and volunteered to do this.

 

I pay the bi-yearly Invision fees. And I am the "heavy" when things occasionally get out of control, or improper content gets posted. I'm happy that doesn't happen too often anymore. Which ties into the closing thoughts -

 

{SNIP}

 

In conclusion - thanks to everyone in this community for making the site fun and informational for 18+ years. Who knows how long it will continue, but those of us that fund and run it are grateful that so many of you enjoy it, and contribute to making it great.

 

Just dropping in to echo CK's thanks and comments.  It's a group effort, and a worthwhile one.  Amazing to think about the Porky's Seven and how long ago that really was.  Shout-out to @Z-Pouch, wherever the winds have taken him.

 

The only unfortunate aspect of the move was losing some of those legendary "Blue Board" Dreamwater (??) posters that didn't make the move, such as  "Dan_Hipshers_Seat" and "Rubber Bowl Port-o-let".  We did lose some levity and brevity with the (necessary) shift to a solution that could be moderated.

 

Have a great day everyone!  Go Zips!

[Zip Watcher]

On 5/8/2023 at 3:25 PM, 1981 grad said:

With Clarke gone I just looked at the large number of players who have come and gone in the past 5 years without graduating and the number of players who have transferred into the program I think Tribble and Freeman will be our first 4 or 5 year players in Groce's tenure.  This is an observation and not a criticism but I miss watching players develop as they go through their 4 years at Akron.  It has been amazing to watch Freeman's development.  I am a little disappointed in the Tribble is a great player but I thought he would develop an outside shot.  He is a fantastic athlete and I thought Groce could teach an athlete to shoot.  Because of the transfer rule we will rarely see 4 year players in Akron and each year we will have a 50% turnover in the roster. Welcome to the new college basketball scene.  

 

This is certainly not unique to the Zips and is sadly one of the consequences of the current rostering climate.  

 

As a guy who went to schools in the Big East and Big Ten, when I moved back and resumed watching the Zips, it was refreshing to watch guys develop over several seasons.  There have been guys like Jeremiah Wood who might have gotten plucked up by a bigger program .. and we would have missed seeing him mature, rally from injury and become one of the elite Zips players of all time.  A bigger loss, in my mind is guys like Jimmy Conyers and Jawanza Moore who were afforded the time to get better, have the game slow down .. and then have really impactful senior years.  

 

That's one of the reasons I wouldn't have traded my JAR seats for front row at Mackey or Gampel .. my kids could follow the program, see the same players .. get to know them a bit, and really follow the program. 

 

It will be interesting to watch as it develops.  The pendulum will eventually swing a bit back in favor of the smaller programs when guys start getting left in the portal to land in D2 / D3 ... or nowhere.  With the top programs eating each other up for a one year deep tournament run, teams like SDSU and FAU will become more common and succeed with continuity and togetherness and make a dent in the Sweet 16 and beyond.  It takes the right people and a commitment to the mindset .. but it can be done.  Stability isn't something many of the top programs value at the moment, unless they're hanging banners.

[X got robbed of POY]

Maybe Caleb Love has enough credits to join Reggie Bass down the road in summer school.

[Zipmeister]

On 5/7/2023 at 5:52 PM, Zip JD said:

The 3 to close out a 20-point win over Cant in the MACC is still pretty sweet but it says a lot that about his season at Butler that to fill a 59 second highlight film they had to go to his Zips footage.

 

As to the pro/con debate on his return.... In Groce I trust.  It has been one hell of an off season.  Groce has used the Transfer Portal in a couple of weeks to more success than Arth did in 2 seasons.

 

I checked in with Arth and he said he thought it was unlikely that few, if any, players in the transfer portal that Groce used would have an interest in playing football. 

[LZIp]

Aziz to Cincinnati.

[72 Roo]

If he has a good year at UC will he transfer to UCLA, Kansas or Kentucky? 

[Bigzip1]

48 minutes ago, 72 Roo said:

If he has a good year at UC will he transfer to UCLA, Kansas or Kentucky? 

He had an offer from Duke lol

[RoyalBlu]

On 5/19/2023 at 12:38 PM, X got robbed of POY said:

Maybe Caleb Love has enough credits to join Reggie Bass down the road in summer school.

C'mon, really. Maybe he has enough credits to join Ali Ali. Let's be a bit bigger/better than this.

[Let'sGoZips94]

14 hours ago, RoyalBlu said:

C'mon, really. Maybe he has enough credits to join Ali Ali. Let's be a bit bigger/better than this.

 

You must be a hoot at parties. 

 

I like the idea of Suckeye fans being put in a mental & emotional pretzel over this.

 

Deny the talent upgrade for the illusion that OSUcks has higher academic standards than Michigan

 

OR

 

Accept the talent upgrade and admit OSUcks has lower academic standards than Michigan

Edited May 22, 2023 by Let'sGoZips94

[X got robbed of POY]

[Blue & Gold]

1 hour ago, X got robbed of POY said:

JUCO. Maybe grades were an issue with Prince?

[ZIPS96]

[Let'sGoZips94]

58 minutes ago, ZIPS96 said:

 

Good for RayJ. Waco is fantastic and their coach is apparently quite the human being. My wife and I honeymooned in Waco, and our Fixer Upper tour guide was good friends with the coach. Learned a lot about him.

 

He'll actually experience success in March!

Edited June 1, 2023 by Let'sGoZips94

[Blue & Gold]

Kobe Johnson scored 32 points last night as Walsh upset D1 Oakland. Good job, Kobe!

It's good he's found a level where he can excel, but what raises my eyebrow is that he did this against a D1 team. Every time he was on the floor with the Zips he looked like a deer in headlights and as if the defenders were just a little bit too quick for him & made him rush his shot just a bit too much.

[RoyalBlu]

7 hours ago, Blue & Gold said:

Kobe Johnson scored 32 points last night as Walsh upset D1 Oakland. Good job, Kobe!

It's good he's found a level where he can excel, but what raises my eyebrow is that he did this against a D1 team. Every time he was on the floor with the Zips he looked like a deer in headlights and as if the defenders were just a little bit too quick for him & made him rush his shot just a bit too much.

It's not unusual for a player to make a major jump between freshman and sophomore year once they have had time to process what they have gone through take one step back so to speak then take two steps forward. The sad part is the portal encourages quick exits before the player has a chance to go through the entire 'freshman' process. Wouldn't be surprised to see him back at the D1 level before his college career is done.

 

[Blue & Gold]

 

[zippy5]

Garvin Clarke PSAC player of the week 

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/C0uYOPJuY6q/?igshid=ZWI2YzEzYmMxYg==