catdaddyp Posted July 11 Report Posted July 11 2024 Rewind: Toledo was a bit of an enigma in 2024. The Rockets arguably had the most talent of any team in the MAC and a favorable schedule that could have positioned them for a College Football Playoff push. Instead, they stumbled to a 8-5 finish with puzzling losses to WKU, Buffalo, Bowling Green, Ohio, and Akron. They did manage to finish on a high note with a wild six-overtime bowl win over a depleted Pittsburgh squad. Jason Candle returns for his 10th season and remains one of the most respected coaches in the MAC. Toledo continues to sit near the top of the conference when it comes to institutional support and resources dedicated to football. Recruiting under Candle: *IN MAC* 2016: On3 - 3rd 247 - 2nd 2017: On3 - 1st 247 - 1st 2018: On3 - 1st 247 - 1st 2019: On3 - 1st 247 - 1st 2020: On3 - 1st 247 - 1st 2021: On3 - 1st 247 - 1st 2022: On3 - 6th 247 - 6th 2023: On3 - 5th 247 - 5th 2024: On3 - 1st 247 - 1st 2025: On3 - 1st 247 - 1st Rockets on Offense: Tucker Gleason is expected to be the starter again after putting up 2,793 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions while completing 60.5% of his passes last season. While those numbers are solid, Gleason's inconsistency at times was a source of frustration for the fanbase—and, as is often the case, there was a vocal segment calling for backup John Alan Richter to get more reps. Richter may be the more polished passer, but Gleason brings added mobility to the position, which gives the offense a different dimension. Running back play wasn’t up to par in 2024, due in large part to injuries and the departure of Peny Boone via the transfer portal. Unlike in 2023—when the Rockets could wear teams down with a bruising ground game led by Boone and the dual-threat ability of DeQuan Finn—Toledo lacked that same punch last fall. To address the issue, the Rockets dipped into the portal and added Kentucky transfer Chip Trayanum and NC A&T transfer Kenji Christian. Both backs bring more explosiveness than what was mostly available a year ago and should help reestablish a more dynamic rushing attack. All-MAC First Team selection Jerjuan Newton is off to the NFL, and while his production will be missed, the Rockets appear to have enough firepower to fill the void collectively. Junior Vandeross, another All-MAC First Teamer, returns as the go-to option, and Toledo added a proven playmaker in NIU transfer Trayvon Rudolph. The receiving corps also gets a boost at tight end with the addition of Jacob Peterson, who posted nearly 500 receiving yards at Holy Cross last season. An offensive line that was strong in pass protection, but often struggled to open holes in the run game returns three of its starters. Pittsburgh transfer Terence Moore is expected to step in at one of the vacant interior OL spots, while part-time starter Stephen Gales will look to lock down a starting role at tackle. Rockets on Defense: The defensive line lost all four starters, leaving the door wide open for new faces to step in and claim significant snaps. On the interior, there’s a bit more stability with the return of Martex Poynter and Essam Carter—two backups from last season who saw meaningful action and combined for 46 total tackles and 4.5 sacks. On the edges, former backup Malachi Davis is expected to take on a larger role, while UMASS transfer Louce Julian should slot in opposite him as a projected starter. Linebacker took a major hit, with the Rockets losing almost all of their production from last season. Backups Damon Ollison and Chris D’Appolonia are expected to step into starting roles after combining for just 20 total tackles in 2024. There’s plenty of potential - and uncertainty - at the position, and how quickly they adjust to increased responsibilities could go a long way in determining the defense’s overall effectiveness. Toledo’s secondary went from elite in 2023 to very good in 2024 after losing some standout defensive backs and their secondary coach, who left for Illinois. Even so, the Rockets still have plenty of talent on the backend and should be strong again this season with almost all of their starters returning. When it comes to recruiting defensive backs, Toledo has been second to none in the MAC, and that pipeline continues to pay dividends. Zips fans are familiar with returning kicker Dylan Cunanan, who was excellent during much of the season. Starting punter Emilio Duran is also back, giving Toledo stability in the kicking game heading into 2025. Position Advantage: Both quarterbacks are pre-season All-MAC selections. Neither team has many running backs that have proven much at the G5 level and linebacker is still to be determined. Akron holds the advantage at tight end, whereas Toledo holds position advantages every where else. QB - Even RB - Even WR - Toledo TE - Akron OL - Toledo DL - Toledo LB - Even DB - Toledo ST - Toledo Way too Early Prediction: Toledo’s ground game ought to be much improved, and if that proves true, the Rockets will look a lot more like the 2023 squad than the inconsistent version we saw in 2024. Defensively, Toledo lost plenty of production and key contributors, but there’s still enough talent on the roster to remain one of the better units in the MAC. There’s always a vocal group of Toledo fans who view every loss as the Rockets simply underperforming—rarely giving much credit to the opponent. In the case of last year’s Akron/Toledo matchup, that group would mostly be right. Akron played well enough to win, but absolutely needed some help from Toledo to pull it out. It’ll be tough for Akron to catch the Rockets off guard again, especially with the game coming earlier in the season, at Toledo, and last year’s result still lingering. I say Rockets get their revenge, 31-17. 2 1 Quote
lance99 Posted yesterday at 08:02 PM Report Posted yesterday at 08:02 PM "Akron Vs. Toledo=Black Friday Week Fun!'" Not this year. Toledo has already did their MAC Screw Up already and I do not know what will happen. Will Toledo Phone it in, or will they come to play Will Akron Defense do just enough to keep the Offence around? Will there be a offence explosion? Discuss..... 1 Quote
Ham Posted 23 hours ago Report Posted 23 hours ago Finley had mid 50% completion rate. If you give him the drops, his numbers would look much better, but "if wishes were horses, beggars would ride". That int can't happen again! People aren't giving the Dukes much credit, but they are scholarship players. We man handled them. Give the guys some credit. The Rockets are struggling, but I'm guessing that we will be +15 or so. If we can limit the explosive plays on D and create some on O, we will play the Rockets even up. Our D has a real good taste in their mouth. They will limit the Rockets. The O needs to step it up in the passing game complimenting our run game. This is the week we start to put it together. Zips 27 / Rockets 20 Quote
GP1 Posted 12 hours ago Report Posted 12 hours ago (edited) 14 hours ago, MangoZip said: Wow, Toledo -21.5 I wish the Zips could start out a season 2-2 and fans describe us as struggling. Toledo plays extremely well at home. They blew out Morgan State and handled a good WKU program. They have a relatively close loss at Kentucky and a one point loss on the road at Western, who always plays well at home. Take the Rockets giving the points. If you don't have much to do Saturday, go to the game if you are close enough. Toledo is a great setting for a college football game. It's going to be 80 degrees there on Saturday. Enjoy it while it lasts. Edited 6 hours ago by GP1 1 Quote
ZippyDoo Posted 9 hours ago Report Posted 9 hours ago I can't believe I am saying this, but I am actually taking the Zips and the 21 1/2. I don't think they can beat them straight up but I don't think they get beat by 22 either. I expect some changes on the defensive line. They have to get pressure on the qb. I am so impressed with Coop and Malcom. They have really been a bright spot to the defense. Coop is ranked 52 out of 786 by PFF and Malcom is ranked 20 out of 834 by PFF Those are incredible..... 1 Quote
clarkwgriswold Posted 8 hours ago Report Posted 8 hours ago Toledo, 2-2, are struggling and....Zips are getting 21.5 points? Quote
kreed5120 Posted 8 hours ago Report Posted 8 hours ago With Toledo coming off a loss and Akron beating them last year, I think there is little chance Toledo comes into this game sleeping. Whether or not Toledo wins by 20+ I'm uncertain, but I have little faith of the Zips pulling off an upset. 1 Quote
ZippyDoo Posted 3 hours ago Report Posted 3 hours ago I was playing on PFF which as you know is completely unbiased and I was completely shocked when I looked and saw these stats. I am not the guru that CAT is and you come to the conclusions that you want. I am just posting for you all to see in case you are curious like I was because I was stunned... OFFENSE MAC RANKING NATIONAL RANKING QB Finley 5 137 (out of 294) RB Gant 2 86 ( out of 438) RB Patrick 9 177 (out of 438) TE Cravaack 10 218 (out of 420) TE Newell 15 280 (out of 420) WR grear 15 393 (out of 905) WR walker 22 536 (out of 905) WR williams 28 686 (out of 905) WR polk 33 728 (out of 905) This is where I was completely SHOCKED !!! The offensive line rankings: Center Lyons 4 86 (out of 297) Guard Davis 1 5 (out of 574) Guard Archer 12 238 (out of 574) Guard McManus 13 247 (out of 574) Tackle King 1 43 (out of 568) Tackle Motley-Simmons 2 94 (out of 568) DEFENSE MAC RANKING NATIONAL RANKING CB Dewalt 1 (out of 40) 20 (out of 835) CB Reed 2 (out of 40) 196 (out of 835) S Johnson 15 (out of 46) 421 (out of 837) LB Cooper 3 (out of 43) 52 (out of 784) LB Spriggs 12 (out of 43) 201 (out of 784) LB Summers 28 (out of 43) 428 (out of 784) LB Bosswell 40 (out of 43) 757 (out of 784) DT Laventure 15 (out of 48) 381 (out of 902) DT Murphy 19 (out of 48) 439 (out of 902) DT Hull 25 (out of 48) 564 (out of 902) DT Mixon 35 (out of 48) 698 (out of 902) DE Dall 11 (out of 41) 233 (out or 867) DE Durham 30 (out of 41) 733 (out or 867) DE D. Frazier 39 (out of 41) 834 (out or 867) 2 Quote
MangoZip Posted 2 hours ago Report Posted 2 hours ago Very impressive, a lot of top 10 players for a 1-3 team. Grant had to take a gigantic leap after padding his stats last week but still, good for him. Good homework Zippy Quote
GP1 Posted 28 minutes ago Report Posted 28 minutes ago Ya, id rather think about food and the possibility of some.of you being able to go to a game that starts on a day and time that is convenient for you to attend. It's going to be 80 degrees. Get out of your freaking house. The lawn can wait another week. Rent a room and stay the night after going to a great steakhouse. You won't regret it. https://mancyssteakhouse.com/# Quote
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