The Dustin Ford Era

[NWAkron]

Crickets...maybe we will learn something tomorrow.

[Zippy87]

I imagine this will move slower than previous years for mid-majors like Akron. Many players are going to hold out to see if someone will overpay like K State did with Nate first, and then once that P4 money dries up, they'll come back to offers from schools like us. 

[kreed5120]

10 minutes ago, Zippy87 said:

I imagine this will move slower than previous years for mid-majors like Akron. Many players are going to hold out to see if someone will overpay like K State did with Nate first, and then once that P4 money dries up, they'll come back to offers from schools like us. 

 

I agree with this. I'll add it's just not money, but there is also a finite amount of roster spots on those teams as well.

[Let'sGoZips94]

On 4/13/2026 at 9:58 AM, kreed5120 said:

Anyone know if Wednesdays press conference will be streamed on facebook or youtube for those of us who aren't retired or self employed?

 

https://gozips.com/Watch

[Zippy87]

I know things can change quickly in today's college hoops world, but I'm going to assume the players with eligibility remaining who aren't in the portal are returning. Returnees who saw the floor last season would include MMK, Halligan, and Barre with Head, Henderson, and Perkins returning as well. I'll also assume for now that Jones, Ladd, and Christion will stay and redshirt. 

 

MMK and Halligan are both culture guys, and I think they'll bring a lot of value in making sure the Akron culture Groce/Ford built continues forward under Ford. I think MMK in particular can be a valuable rotation player if he continues to add strength and develops more offensive ability. Halligan is going to give you defense and energy, ideally off the bench, and will hopefully improve his spot-up shooting from the outside further over the summer.

 

Barre is a bit of an enigma - he's shown the ability to be an impact player in small samples here and during his time at Duquesne, but there were also times where he looked lost. I'm hoping a (hopefully) fully healthy offseason + time with our big man whisperer in Coach Ford will at a minimum give us a Barre who can rebound and provide interior defense. He certainly has the size and athleticism to do it, and everything I've heard of him is that he is an excellent young man who works hard. 

 

Head was fantastic at Lipscomb as a freshman and I think, at a minimum, can be a solid contributor. I was surprised he redshirted last season, but hopefully a year in our system as a redshirt will help him hit the ground running next fall. 

 

I'm excited to see Henderson and Perkins, and think they'll both contribute as redshirt freshmen. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited 21 hours ago by Zippy87

[blueandgold]

7 minutes ago, Zippy87 said:

I know things can change quickly in today's college hoops world, but I'm going to assume the players with eligibility remaining who aren't in the portal are returning. Returnees who saw the floor last season would include MMK, Halligan, and Barre with Head, Henderson, and Perkins returning as well. I'll also assume for now that Jones, Ladd, and Christion will stay and redshirt. 

 

MMK and Halligan are both culture guys, and I think they'll bring a lot of value in making sure the Akron culture Groce/Ford built continues forward under Ford. I think

 

MMK in particular can be a valuable rotation player if he continues to add strength and develops more offensive ability. Halligan is going to give you defense and energy, ideally off the bench, and will hopefully improve his spot-up shooting from the outside further over the summer.

 

Barre is a bit of an enigma - he's shown the ability to be an impact player in small samples here and during his time at Duquesne, but there were also times where he looked lost. I'm hoping a (hopefully) fully healthy offseason + time with our big man whisperer in Coach Ford will at a minimum give us a Barre who can rebound and provide interior defense. He certainly has the size and athleticism to do it, and everything I've heard of him is that he is an excellent young man who works hard. 

 

Head was fantastic at Lipscomb as a freshman and I think, at a minimum, can be a solid contributor. I was surprised he redshirted last season, but hopefully a year in our system as a redshirt will help him hit the ground running next fall. 

 

I'm excited to see Henderson and Perkins, and think they'll both contribute as redshirt freshmen. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I agree with everything you said, and I also think MMK showed a ton of hustle on defense and rebounding ability both offensively and defensively. 

[Reslife4Life]

10 hours ago, blueandgold said:

I agree with everything you said, and I also think MMK showed a ton of hustle on defense and rebounding ability both offensively and defensively. 

If MMK has one fan that’s me, if MMK has no fans I’m dead

[Let'sGoZips94]

18 hours ago, Zippy87 said:

I know things can change quickly in today's college hoops world, but I'm going to assume the players with eligibility remaining who aren't in the portal are returning. Returnees who saw the floor last season would include MMK, Halligan, and Barre with Head, Henderson, and Perkins returning as well. I'll also assume for now that Jones, Ladd, and Christion will stay and redshirt. 

 

MMK and Halligan are both culture guys, and I think they'll bring a lot of value in making sure the Akron culture Groce/Ford built continues forward under Ford. I think MMK in particular can be a valuable rotation player if he continues to add strength and develops more offensive ability. Halligan is going to give you defense and energy, ideally off the bench, and will hopefully improve his spot-up shooting from the outside further over the summer.

 

Barre is a bit of an enigma - he's shown the ability to be an impact player in small samples here and during his time at Duquesne, but there were also times where he looked lost. I'm hoping a (hopefully) fully healthy offseason + time with our big man whisperer in Coach Ford will at a minimum give us a Barre who can rebound and provide interior defense. He certainly has the size and athleticism to do it, and everything I've heard of him is that he is an excellent young man who works hard. 

 

Head was fantastic at Lipscomb as a freshman and I think, at a minimum, can be a solid contributor. I was surprised he redshirted last season, but hopefully a year in our system as a redshirt will help him hit the ground running next fall. 

 

I'm excited to see Henderson and Perkins, and think they'll both contribute as redshirt freshmen. 

 

I think it's interesting that none of the HS recruits decommitted (yet). Pretty excited for all 3 of them and wouldn't be surprised if at least 1 or 2 get some PT next year. 

 

I said a week or 2 ago after Young & Mahaffey hit the Portal that the 2 key guys to retain would be MMK & Halligan due to their experience within the culture. Each guy has had 3(?) years of experience doing things the Akron Way and both seem like GREAT teammates. I don't care what we get out of them on the court as much as I do in the locker room/off the court. I think MMK can continue to take giant leaps in his abilities to become a legitimate threat on the offensive side of the ball, as he is already a pretty solid defender. Halligan just needs to work on his shot & decision making on offense and we have a legitimate contributor out of him. 

 

Barre could be All MAC next year. As long as he's healthy, an entire off-season in the Dustin Ford School of Big Men should do him wonders. No idea why he didn't get more run last year, but I think we've learned that Groce likes to stick to a core of guys he trusts more than others, especially as the season goes on. 

 

Very excited about Head. I think it speaks volumes to his desire to play for Akron that there wasn't even a hint of him going into the Portal. Health and fit and Arkansas St. made for a not great sophomore year. I expect him to return to his Lipscomb form. 

 

Very excited for Perkins & Henderson - especially Henderson. I've heard nothing but good things about him and love his size. 

 

 

We never had the bonafide build-around guy returning on this roster regardless of who the HC was going to be. However, so far we've been able to at least not lose the vast majority of a potentially very solid supporting cast/depth. Several more open spots to add some top tier production. 

Edited 4 hours ago by Let'sGoZips94

[Zippy87]

 

[Let'sGoZips94]

5 minutes ago, Zippy87 said:

 

 

How cool is this?!

[Zippy87]

4 spots left, and this is a general idea of how we might currently look:

 

Halligan/MMK

Henderson

Burton/Barre

Head

Staveskie/Perkins

[clarkwgriswold]

Mahaffeys are at the presser.

[Reslife4Life]

what is the crowd looking like

[Let'sGoZips94]

3 minutes ago, clarkwgriswold said:

Mahaffeys are at the presser.

 

Plural?!

[clarkwgriswold]

150 or so people.

 

Both Mahaffeys present.

[Reslife4Life]

Someone needs to turn the mic up, computer is at max volume and can barely hear

[Let'sGoZips94]

Someone tell them to turn up the mic. I have my laptop at 100% volume and I can't hear squat.

[blueandgold]

4 minutes ago, Reslife4Life said:

Someone needs to turn the mic up, computer is at max volume and can barely hear

Same. I can't hear a thing. So frustrating!

Edited 2 hours ago by blueandgold

[Reslife4Life]

"The hot water heater went out this morning, so I had my wife go down to the basement and fix it" love this guy

[ZipsBBjunkie]

2 hours ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

 

I think it's interesting that none of the HS recruits decommitted (yet). Pretty excited for all 3 of them and wouldn't be surprised if at least 1 or 2 get some PT next year. 

 

I said a week or 2 ago after Young & Mahaffey hit the Portal that the 2 key guys to retain would be MMK & Halligan due to their experience within the culture. Each guy has had 3(?) years of experience doing things the Akron Way and both seem like GREAT teammates. I don't care what we get out of them on the court as much as I do in the locker room/off the court. I think MMK can continue to take giant leaps in his abilities to become a legitimate threat on the offensive side of the ball, as he is already a pretty solid defender. Halligan just needs to work on his shot & decision making on offense and we have a legitimate contributor out of him. 

 

Barre could be All MAC next year. As long as he's healthy, an entire off-season in the Dustin Ford School of Big Men should do him wonders. No idea why he didn't get more run last year, but I think we've learned that Groce likes to stick to a core of guys he trusts more than others, especially as the season goes on. 

 

Very excited about Head. I think it speaks volumes to his desire to play for Akron that there wasn't even a hint of him going into the Portal. Health and fit and Arkansas St. made for a not great sophomore year. I expect him to return to his Lipscomb form. 

 

Very excited for Perkins & Henderson - especially Henderson. I've heard nothing but good things about him and love his size. 

 

 

We never had the bonafide build-around guy returning on this roster regardless of who the HC was going to be. However, so far we've been able to at least not lose the vast majority of a potentially very solid supporting cast/depth. Several more open spots to add some top tier production. 

Great post. I’m feeling very optimistic about the culture foundation being as strong as ever with Coach Ford and this group - and there may be that extra boost of new energy that naturally goes along with getting out of the routine and changing little things that make the experience feel familiar but fresh! 

[kreed5120]

4 minutes ago, Reslife4Life said:

Someone needs to turn the mic up, computer is at max volume and can barely hear

 

I switched to my phone and it has worked much better.

[Reslife4Life]

Just now, kreed5120 said:

 

I switched to my phone and it has worked much better.

that works thanks

[Zips1991]

36 minutes ago, Zippy87 said:

4 spots left, and this is a general idea of how we might currently look:

 

Halligan/MMK

Henderson

Burton/Barre

Head

Staveskie/Perkins

Wait, who is Burton?

[Blue & Gold]

2 minutes ago, Zips1991 said:

Wait, who is Burton?

 

[Let'sGoZips94]

It's obvious how much this means to Dustin. So awesome. Thrilled for him and his family. He's going to be easy to root for and I can't wait to see where he can take this program. 

Edited 2 hours ago by Let'sGoZips94