Game 6 - NIU

[clarkwgriswold]

They lost by 6 touchdowns to a one win MAC team.  A little tough to be optimistic today.  He took on an awful team but I think we were all hoping for more improvement a season and a half in. 

[GP1]

The fire the coach crowd is very NE Ohio. Morehead has been here 1.5 years. To fire him now is Browns fans level stupidity. 

[clarkwgriswold]

4 minutes ago, LZIp said:

Can’t blame Irons today. Tough to blame Arth as only a few of his guys are here still. Scary part is, we’ll never have a better hire than Moorhead on paper, so if he can’t turn the program around….

I think we can blame him some for driving the program so far into the dirt that it required a full rebuild (even obviously a multi-year rebuild).

[ewbrooman1]

23 minutes ago, ZipCat said:

I'm going to be honest here: How on Earth can we adequately evaluate Moorehead when the team he was given was a D-III team at best? Folks, hiring and firing coaches is never going to solve the problems, it's 2023. That's never going to happen at a school like Akron.

 

We're in it for the long haul with Moorehead, and he's better than the last guy we had here.

I think we have a very similar example of what can be done by just looking at what happened when Bowden took over. Zips went 1-11 his first year, then 5-7. Even during the 1-11 year we could see some improvement. This season is rolling downhill fast and we'll see if it can be stopped. I agree we have no choice but to stick with Moorehead. I'm not sure the program can survive another change at this point.

Edited October 7, 2023 by ewbrooman1

[NWAkron]

I know very little about the Xs and Os of football, but two things stood out to me:

 

1.  Bullock begins play with his undershirt untucked.  It's hanging loose below his waist.  TWICE he is breaking away for good runs, and twice and NIU player stops his momentum by grabbing the shirt.

2.  4th and 6 OR a 47 yard field goal with a horrible kicker?

[ZippyRulz]

1 hour ago, dre22era said:

NIU better dedicate this game to Garrett Wolfe. This beat down is definitely payback for the 2005 MAC Championship game.

 

Or what we did to them last year. I'm sure they hadn't forgotten.

 

[LZIp]

I’m not souring on Moorhead one bit. I think he gets this turned around in time. Just frustrating we can’t come out ahead in close games and there isn’t any sort of “magic” happening where it just seems to all come together for any given game regardless of opponent.

 

And I’m not writing of Bullock or any of our other young QBs, but we have to find a gamer quarterback next year. Not going to win without one.

Edited October 8, 2023 by LZIp

[Reslife4Life]

Yes, this game was atrocious. Yes, this season has been disappointing, but firing the coach isn’t going to magically turn the team around instantly. Especially at the MAC level. 

*bowden goes 4-8* fired

 

here comes arth, 0-12, 1-5, 2-6 *fired*
 

here comes Moorhead, who was handed a terrible roster and the reputation of a terrible program. It’s obviously going to be hard for anyone to turn around this program. But it isn’t going to help to start over again

[GoZips86]

This team sucks. I'm not in the Joe Moorhead firing camp by any means, but goodness he gets a lot of excuses. People still want to bring up Arth to blame, come on now. Reality is everyone here put so much stock into Moorehead that it just seems like people have a hard time calling him out and admitting maybe he isnt the guy we all thought he was coming here.

 

Him and this staff said during camp that this team was different, their mindset and skills. Well, they are absolutely pathetic on the field. I know he took over a horrible program, but with his supposed reputation as an offensive genius, he deserves criticism. Sorry, we cant blame Arth for everything from here on out. JoeMo will get a lot of credit if/when he can turn things around, but he deserves blame along the way with a performance like this. 

 

We just got our asses kicked by a 1-4 team. We didnt keep it competitive even though we have the same record going into the game. They looked like an SEC team out there with how badly they embarrassed Akron today. 

[Let'sGoZips94]

This is JoeMo's program now. Period. He had the Arth shield last year, but not anymore. The incompetent football we're witnessing is solely on the coaches. The job of a coach is to put their player(s) in positions to succeed. These coaches aren't doing that. You have talent at WR, but they're getting the ball going towards the sideline. You have QBs that are struggling, but are being asked to make the toughest throws in football - deep sideline throws, either in the out-route capacity or up the field. They're also being asked to do this behind a porous offensive line, and very little run game help simply due to a lack of volume (coaching). If there are easier reads that are being missed, it is your job as a coach to reign the QB in, and simplify the game for him. You give them 2 reads. If the first read isn't there, they go to the second read. Keep the reads short and easy so the QB can get the ball in the hands of his playmakers. 

 

I'm not going to say much about the defense today. They've been the reason we've had any type of optimism this year. 

 

I call him Joe Arth now because the talent is clearly upgraded, but the schemes and execution are dog 💩. Honestly, maybe worse than Arth given the talent Moorehead has vs. Arth.

 

This is unwatchable football on the offensive side of the ball, and we have a head coach that is supposed to be an offensive wizard. Don't do interviews and say, "I could've gone elsewhere - NFL, P5, etc. - but I chose Akron," like we're some sort of charity you're volunteering for, then not deliver a lick on Saturdays. It's awesome if you deliver; doesn't sit well if you don't. 

 

For the record, I'm not on the fire JoeMo bandwagon. Reality is he is our coach through the end of his contract. All I'm asking for is competent, competitive football on Saturdays. Please deliever, JoeMo. 

[GP1]

2 hours ago, Lee Adams said:

please donn't blame the D. It has tried to carry Moorehead all season. At some point you just give up.

Keep a list of all the quitters and give them the URL for the Transfer Portal at the end of the year. 

[GP1]

Miami and Toledo are currently the class of the MAC. Martin won 2 and 3 games his first two years at Miami. He took over a better program than Akron. Akron is a massive turnaround that can happen with the transfer portal.  

 

Martin went 6-6 his third year. All the fire the coach clowns need to get control of their Nihilism. 

[Captain Kangaroo]

3 hours ago, Lee Adams said:

please donn't blame the D. It has tried to carry Moorehead all season. At some point you just give up.

They surrendered 280 yards and 4 TDs to a 1-4 NIU team’s  running back on 13…yes, 13 carries.

I can’t excuse that level of giving up. 

[LoyalZIP]

Akron has fired every single coach in its Division 1-A football existence. Joe Moorhead is the most accomplished head coach they have hired since Faust, and that was marginal accomplishment at best. Every time you fire a coach, especially a well-accomplished coach with a good track record, the fewer quality candidates you will find who are interested in the job. Look at Joe’s comments regarding the Brookhart firing. Most coaches worth a damn would have no interest in the Akron job if we just dumped Moorhead before he has time to actually build something. Anyone calling for his firing is someone who has no connections in the college football world or knowledge of how anything in college football works.

 

Luke Getsy interviewed for this job in 2018. He said the AD at the time was a jackass and had no interest in ever speaking with him again. Relationships and reputations matter. Fortunately Williams isn’t here anymore, but that doesn’t mean Guthrie and Co. are immune to making their own mistakes and burned bridges. 
 

The coach-speak is old to me too, but coach-speak is coach-speak. Moorhead has won a MAC title, B1G title, coached vs. Nick Saban and Ed Orgeron. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that NIU shouldn’t be out-gaining you by 7,000 yards on homecoming. 10 years ago, in year 2, Akron lost to Ohio 43-3 on homecoming, only to rally to win 4 of their last 5 to finish 5-7. Granted, they laid an egg in 2014, but still finished strong even after a 1-6 start in ‘13 (2-17 thru 19 games with that staff). All is not lost in 2023 yet, but we are close. 
 
 

For 6 straight seasons, we have dealt with horrid football. In 2018, I was furious. 2019 thru 2021, pretty apathetic. 2022, optimistic, 2023, angry and disappointed. Zero happiness. Akron football isn’t for everybody. 

[Blue & Gold]

 

[GP1]

20 minutes ago, Blue & Gold said:

 

I'm a glass half full guy. At least he didn't run for 22.0 yards per carry. 

[GP1]

9 hours ago, LoyalZIP said:

Akron has fired every single coach in its Division 1-A football existence. Joe Moorhead is the most accomplished head coach they have hired since Faust, and that was marginal accomplishment at best. Every time you fire a coach, especially a well-accomplished coach with a good track record, the fewer quality candidates you will find who are interested in the job. Look at Joe’s comments regarding the Brookhart firing. Most coaches worth a damn would have no interest in the Akron job if we just dumped Moorhead before he has time to actually build something. Anyone calling for his firing is someone who has no connections in the college football world or knowledge of how anything in college football works.

 

Luke Getsy interviewed for this job in 2018. He said the AD at the time was a jackass and had no interest in ever speaking with him again. Relationships and reputations matter. Fortunately Williams isn’t here anymore, but that doesn’t mean Guthrie and Co. are immune to making their own mistakes and burned bridges. 
 

The coach-speak is old to me too, but coach-speak is coach-speak. Moorhead has won a MAC title, B1G title, coached vs. Nick Saban and Ed Orgeron. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that NIU shouldn’t be out-gaining you by 7,000 yards on homecoming. 10 years ago, in year 2, Akron lost to Ohio 43-3 on homecoming, only to rally to win 4 of their last 5 to finish 5-7. Granted, they laid an egg in 2014, but still finished strong even after a 1-6 start in ‘13 (2-17 thru 19 games with that staff). All is not lost in 2023 yet, but we are close. 
 
 

For 6 straight seasons, we have dealt with horrid football. In 2018, I was furious. 2019 thru 2021, pretty apathetic. 2022, optimistic, 2023, angry and disappointed. Zero happiness. Akron football isn’t for everybody. 

Good post. The central problem at Akron since 1985 has been culture failure around the football program from the board of trustees to the coaching level. If a book was ever written on how to create and maintain a losing college football program, Akron would be the central character. It would give War and Peace a run for its money in terms of length. 

Edited October 8, 2023 by GP1

[Captain Kangaroo]

15 hours ago, zipsoutsider said:

A good reminder that, no matter how bad things get, there’s always someone worse off than you.

[LoyalZIP]

7 minutes ago, Captain Kangaroo said:

A good reminder that, no matter how bad things get, there’s always someone worse off than you.

Surely, that head coach would never disappoint during a high expectation season with a 1-4 team coming to town, right?!?!

 

 

https://www.espn.com/college-football/game/_/gameId/401020812

[dirtyolcrowe]

I see all these deep thoughts for a 1-5 football team.   
a football team that should be 0-6 and the only reason they are is because of a miracle forced fumble and score in the waning seconds.  I won’t even count the 32yd FG attempt at IU as there’s % tied to making them.  
I’m not one to say fire the coach but this team is so bad.  They need people to ignore them.  They need people to tell them to win and more importantly win convincingly.   
 

this team sucks.  Pure and simple. They will suck until they win.  Nobody respects them!  
why should they!  
 

bring on basketball!!  
 

[ZippyRulz]

 

 

less coachspeak, more bluntness..

 

 

 

[Lee Adams]

13 hours ago, GP1 said:

Miami and Toledo are currently the class of the MAC. Martin won 2 and 3 games his first two years at Miami. He took over a better program than Akron. Akron is a massive turnaround that can happen with the transfer portal.  

 

Martin went 6-6 his third year. All the fire the coach clowns need to get control of their Nihilism. 

Problems with relying too much on the portal. It cuts different ways. Kids are going to look at these 2 seasons with Moorehead and think, 'why do I want to go there' especially when the record has been so bad for years. Kids currently on the squad can leave by the portal. If you have some talent and eligibily you may want to take a shot someplace else.

Funny how the same names of the quality MAC programs keep popping up year after year..Toledo, OU etc.

[Lee Adams]

2 hours ago, GP1 said:

Good post. The central problem at Akron since 1985 has been culture failure around the football program from the board of trustees to the coaching level. If a book was ever written on how to create and maintain a losing college football program, Akron would be the central character. It would give War and Peace a run for its money in terms of length. 

I still go back to the Dennison situation. Faust was a publicity stunt. There was also this guy by the name of Lee Owens. Remember him? Recruited NFL caliber talent. Got fired after a winning season. Brookhart and Moorehead won for 2 seasons with a lot of Owens' recruits especially on the offensive side. Charley Frye, Dom Hixon, good O-linemen. JD got Getsy from Pitt to replace Charley. Moorehead was given some talent to work with. Like JD said after the 2005 season, 'we got lucky before we got good'. Moorehead is not going anywhere unless he steps away. He has got to decide on which QB he has on the roster that he is going to go with and play him!

[zippy-claws]

13 hours ago, Captain Kangaroo said:

They surrendered 280 yards and 4 TDs to a 1-4 NIU team’s  running back on 13…yes, 13 carries.

I can’t excuse that level of giving up. 

And Good Captain, there was one glaring similarity to all 4 TDs and almost every single yard...it was the left side of our defense, every single time, where he gained the yards and TD.  Every.  Single.  Time.  Where the heck was the D Coordinating adjusting to that?  We called it every time...#1 - right side- TD.

[ZipCat]

18 hours ago, LZIp said:

Tough to blame Arth as only a few of his guys are here still.

 

That's exactly the reason why you can blame him. He gutted this team into D-3 status, how on Earth can we expect a team to start to compete when it's relying on portal players because the previous dude couldn't even make a full roster of D-3 players...