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Ohio Basketball Topic
Topic: TOS to Akron (NT)
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ShoreCat
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Posted: 3/28/2017 12:59 PM
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The current Zips roster shows 2 kids from Cleveland and 2 from Akron. I'm not sure what benefit hiring Dru Joyce would have other than you could say this is the guy that coached LeBron. I think there are more qualified current college head coaches and assistant coaches that they could get.

And as far as quality of life in Akron, there are a lot of nice suburbs within a stones throw from there. Medina, Fairlawn, Brecksville, etc. The current state of the university would be a bigger deterrent to me than having to live and work in and near Akron. Having to play my home games in the JAR would require me to get a prescription for Xanax.
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Posted: 3/28/2017 4:58 PM
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John Cooper 4 Akron!
bornacatfan
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Posted: 3/29/2017 8:04 AM
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BillyTheCat wrote:expand_more
I'm just curious as to what you guys think that LeBron brings to the Akron basketball program? Yes, he's been very generous to the University as a whole, as well as the youth of the area. But what specificially is this "connection" that benefits Akron basketball players?
http://www.sbnation.com/college-basketball/2016/3/7/11165...
The Optimist
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Posted: 3/29/2017 8:27 AM
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I'd hire Joyce in a heartbeat. I hope they don't and am cautiously optimistic they aren't smart enough to do that.

Lebron's connection with the Akron program goes a lot deeper than any specific ties to the University. The dude is constantly talking up being from "Akron." I think Akron basketball has really missed the boat in capitalizing on building major fan support in the city. Very similar to Dayton, Akron is a medium-sized city that is often grouped in with a larger city near it in large part because Akron doesn't have any sports teams it identifies as its own. Yes, most people in Akron are Cleveland sports fans but as you see with Lebron, people from Akron identify themselves as being from Akron, not being from Cleveland. It's a big enough city that it could (and would) easily support a major sports team that was "Akron" and I don't think the sport even matters. But basketball is clearly perfect. Beyond Lebron and SVSM, Akron has a very strong local hoops environment. Even Steph Curry was born (but did not grow up in Akron), if I'm U of Akron basketball I'm playing up that the best two players in the world are from Akron. University of Akron or just city of Akron, this is the same logic as owning and marketing the name OHIO instead of focusing on specific ties to the University. Capitalize on your name... U of Akron had no role in this good fortune of naming... That doesn't mean they shouldn't capitalize on it.

More obvious... If you can't see how Dambrot casually name-dropping "I was Lebron's high school coach" could impact recruiting, I can't help you.
bigtillyoopsupsideurhead
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Posted: 3/29/2017 9:15 AM
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The Optimist wrote:expand_more
More obvious... If you can't see how Dambrot casually name-dropping "I was Lebron's high school coach" could impact recruiting, I can't help you.
Dambrot namedropping LeBron might have helped a bit, but if LeBron really wanted to help the Akron basketball program he would have donated some money to upgrade/replace the JAR.

Dayton's arena is infinitely better than the JAR, that is part of the reason why their fan support is so much better. The JAR is a dump.
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Posted: 3/29/2017 9:29 AM
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bigtillyoopsupsideurhead wrote:expand_more
More obvious... If you can't see how Dambrot casually name-dropping "I was Lebron's high school coach" could impact recruiting, I can't help you.
Dambrot namedropping LeBron might have helped a bit, but if LeBron really wanted to help the Akron basketball program he would have donated some money to upgrade/replace the JAR.

Dayton's arena is infinitely better than the JAR, that is part of the reason why their fan support is so much better. The JAR is a dump.
I think LeBron is rightfully more concerned about donating $41 million to education at Akron. As InfoCision has painfully demonstrated, "if you build it, they will come," is a pile of crap when it comes to Akron sports. Maybe fill the 5,000 or so seats at the JAR to watch a consistent winner before claiming you "need" a new arena. The JAR sucks, but that fan base deserves it.
bornacatfan
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Posted: 3/29/2017 9:31 AM
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bigtillyoopsupsideurhead wrote:expand_more
More obvious... If you can't see how Dambrot casually name-dropping "I was Lebron's high school coach" could impact recruiting, I can't help you.
Dambrot namedropping LeBron might have helped a bit, but if LeBron really wanted to help the Akron basketball program he would have donated some money to upgrade/replace the JAR.

Dayton's arena is infinitely better than the JAR, that is part of the reason why their fan support is so much better. The JAR is a dump.
That and from the Blackburn era (50s)NIT wins when that was the more prestigious tourney, through the NCAA loss to UCLA in the Final Game under Donoher and now through Archie they have put out a consistently good product. THe old Fieldhouse was always full so they built the Arena. The AD was the Treasurer of the the NCAA and negotiated the first CBS Billion Dollar contract. Dayton fans unlike every other pocket of the state surrounding a major Uni are seemingly not automatically born in a tO$U sweat shirt...
OU_Country
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Posted: 3/29/2017 9:43 AM
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bornacatfan wrote:expand_more
More obvious... If you can't see how Dambrot casually name-dropping "I was Lebron's high school coach" could impact recruiting, I can't help you.
Dambrot namedropping LeBron might have helped a bit, but if LeBron really wanted to help the Akron basketball program he would have donated some money to upgrade/replace the JAR.

Dayton's arena is infinitely better than the JAR, that is part of the reason why their fan support is so much better. The JAR is a dump.
That and from the Blackburn era (50s)NIT wins when that was the more prestigious tourney, through the NCAA loss to UCLA in the Final Game under Donoher and now through Archie they have put out a consistently good product. THe old Fieldhouse was always full so they built the Arena. The AD was the Treasurer of the the NCAA and negotiated the first CBS Billion Dollar contract. Dayton fans unlike every other pocket of the state surrounding a major Uni are seemingly not automatically born in a tO$U sweat shirt...
I agree with what you're saying, and I'll add this: The City of Cincinnati is quite similar in that regard. While it's in the middle of O$U, IU, U of L, UK, the majority of people in that city identify with UC or X. Much fewer identify with the evil Scarlet Empire. At least that's my perception.

To the point of the thread and where you were going comparing Dayton, I've never been able to grasp why Akron basketball hasn't been able to captivate the city more. The points about lack of Tournament wins, and subpar arena are true. But they were fun to watch, and consistently successful. It would seem like Kent & Akron Basketball should be what that city hinges on in the winter.
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Posted: 3/29/2017 10:09 AM
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OU_Country wrote:expand_more
More obvious... If you can't see how Dambrot casually name-dropping "I was Lebron's high school coach" could impact recruiting, I can't help you.
Dambrot namedropping LeBron might have helped a bit, but if LeBron really wanted to help the Akron basketball program he would have donated some money to upgrade/replace the JAR.

Dayton's arena is infinitely better than the JAR, that is part of the reason why their fan support is so much better. The JAR is a dump.
That and from the Blackburn era (50s)NIT wins when that was the more prestigious tourney, through the NCAA loss to UCLA in the Final Game under Donoher and now through Archie they have put out a consistently good product. THe old Fieldhouse was always full so they built the Arena. The AD was the Treasurer of the the NCAA and negotiated the first CBS Billion Dollar contract. Dayton fans unlike every other pocket of the state surrounding a major Uni are seemingly not automatically born in a tO$U sweat shirt...
I agree with what you're saying, and I'll add this: The City of Cincinnati is quite similar in that regard. While it's in the middle of O$U, IU, U of L, UK, the majority of people in that city identify with UC or X. Much fewer identify with the evil Scarlet Empire. At least that's my perception.
Perception correct. Living here for the better part of nine years, I've even noticed that UC and X have their own little pockets in the city. But almost none of my friends who associate with either of those like OSU. And there aren't many IU or UL fans here. Once you cross that river to KY it's Big Blue Nation.
The Optimist
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Posted: 3/29/2017 10:13 AM
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bigtillyoopsupsideurhead wrote:expand_more
More obvious... If you can't see how Dambrot casually name-dropping "I was Lebron's high school coach" could impact recruiting, I can't help you.
Dambrot namedropping LeBron might have helped a bit, but if LeBron really wanted to help the Akron basketball program he would have donated some money to upgrade/replace the JAR.

Dayton's arena is infinitely better than the JAR, that is part of the reason why their fan support is so much better. The JAR is a dump.
I completely agree on the JAR. I like to imagine the Akron admin's "master plan" for basketball as them sitting around in a board room waiting for Lebron to build them an arena.
Dayton's basketball program is obviously miles ahead of Akron in many areas. The programs themselves are not comparable. My comparison was on the situations both schools are in with relation to the city they are located in, but I think above differences in competition level or success of the program, the biggest difference between the two schools is their arena.

I don't (entirely) blame casual Akron fans for not filling up the JAR, because the upper reaches of that arena are so cramped and uncomfortable you're sacrificing your personal health by sitting in GA. I'm 5-11 and in above-average/good shape and the one game a year I attend a game there to watch Ohio play is the most uncomfortable I'll be all year. If I was an Akron fan, I'd pay for lower bowl season tickets or I wouldn't buy tickets.
bigtillyoopsupsideurhead
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Posted: 3/30/2017 9:51 PM
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Getting this thread back on track, one of the front runners for the Akron job seems to be Anthony Stewart. He's from Akron and went to Mount Union, so it makes sense.

Stewart just finished his first year as a head coach at UT-Martin (22-13). Remember he was an assistant coach at OU during the JC era. People may not like Jim Christian and his staff due to how the 2013 season ended and how he bailed as soon as he could, but as far as Anthony Stewart goes, he was the lead recruit for both Maurice Ndour and Tariq Owens. How he was able to recruit in his short time in Athens was pretty special. If he ends up at Akron he could easily remake their program in a couple years.

Owens: http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/high-school/varsity-le...

Ndour: http://www.athensnews.com/news/sports/transfer-strategy-h...
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Posted: 3/31/2017 3:32 PM
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Hearing a couple of places Groce trying to go to Akron, if not then to IU as asst. Interesting....no .....shocking to me. Illini payout is large enough that he can afford to take a hit on salary and still collect his monies. Dambrodt was at 900K according to their board with bonuses....ack. That is interesting and not at all what I heard earlier. Maybe this is just as unsubstantiated ....but I don't think so...
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Posted: 3/31/2017 3:42 PM
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bornacatfan wrote:expand_more
Hearing a couple of places Groce trying to go to Akron, if not then to IU as asst. Interesting....no .....shocking to me. Illini payout is large enough that he can afford to take a hit on salary and still collect his monies. Dambrodt was at 900K according to their board with bonuses....ack. That is interesting and not at all what I heard earlier. Maybe this is just as unsubstantiated ....but I don't think so...
Archie and Groce at Indiana might be an absolute force.
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Posted: 3/31/2017 4:06 PM
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bornacatfan wrote:expand_more
Hearing a couple of places Groce trying to go to Akron, if not then to IU as asst. Interesting....no .....shocking to me. Illini payout is large enough that he can afford to take a hit on salary and still collect his monies. Dambrodt was at 900K according to their board with bonuses....ack. That is interesting and not at all what I heard earlier. Maybe this is just as unsubstantiated ....but I don't think so...

Uck
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Posted: 3/31/2017 4:53 PM
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The Optimist wrote:expand_more
Hearing a couple of places Groce trying to go to Akron, if not then to IU as asst. Interesting....no .....shocking to me. Illini payout is large enough that he can afford to take a hit on salary and still collect his monies. Dambrodt was at 900K according to their board with bonuses....ack. That is interesting and not at all what I heard earlier. Maybe this is just as unsubstantiated ....but I don't think so...

Uck
double uck.... I cannot understate how depressed I would be watching Groce take Akron to the level he was about to take Ohio (Caris Lavert anyone?) right before he bolted to Illinois.
Last Edited: 3/31/2017 4:54:20 PM by Ohio69
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Posted: 4/2/2017 2:45 PM
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Wisconsin Associate Head Coach Lamont Paris hired by Chattanooga. He was thought to be one of the favorites at Akron. He was a former assistant there.
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Posted: 4/2/2017 5:20 PM
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What's so funny about this thread is the speculation running rampant is a 180 from the people these ADs are really considering to fill the positions. Why not put anyone who has ever had a MAC head or asst job, put them in a hat, and pull one out?
Last Edited: 4/2/2017 5:21:30 PM by giacomo
OhioCatFan
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Posted: 4/3/2017 12:47 AM
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Not that it means anything, but there's lots of discussion over at zipper-nation about JG possibly being hired as their new head coach.
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Posted: 4/4/2017 1:40 PM
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OhioCatFan wrote:expand_more
Not that it means anything, but there's lots of discussion over at zipper-nation about JG possibly being hired as their new head coach.
This is picking up a ton of steam over there.
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Posted: 4/4/2017 2:16 PM
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Couple cbb twitter accounts have it too...

Silver lining is this rivalry will be the best in the MAC... Wait... It already was...
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Posted: 4/4/2017 2:41 PM
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That thread over there is interesting to read for sure. For one, they throw out Boals' name way too much not knowing he DIDN'T recruit Oden and Conley to Ohio State...that was Groce. And some of them are very against Groce, which to seems amazing considering his tournament success and their total lack thereof under Dambrot.

I'm not going to like it if it happens, but man that should make Akron/Ohio games way more fun.
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Posted: 4/4/2017 2:45 PM
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bornacatfan
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Posted: 4/4/2017 3:26 PM
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GoCats105 wrote:expand_more
That thread over there is interesting to read for sure. For one, they throw out Boals' name way too much not knowing he DIDN'T recruit Oden and Conley to Ohio State...that was Groce. And some of them are very against Groce, which to seems amazing considering his tournament success and their total lack thereof under Dambrot.

I'm not going to like it if it happens, but man that should make Akron/Ohio games way more fun.
FUnny. Groce took Oden, Conley away from Mike Davis/IU and the exodus from IU started. Had Mark Titus and Dequan in that package deal with IndyHeat and Mike Conley Sr. Also Buford, Mullin, Lauderdale, Lighty, Deibler, Offutt, Deshawn were guys Groce was on...

I would not like Akron for the kids and Allie but if John makes it work... I think I would hang out and find a better opportunity and closer to the P's. Those spots are out there. IU filling their staff out...not sure where he is on that but Miller with Groce as a recruiter would be big...that they both come out of the same system using the same Pack Line D and Offensive principles would seem to be a good fit.
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Posted: 4/4/2017 4:23 PM
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Posted: 4/4/2017 4:34 PM
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GoCats105 wrote:expand_more
... but man that should make Akron/Ohio games way more fun.
Not sure if I'd say way more fun. I actually hate it.

I still love John Groce (as well as Dustin Ford & Jamaal Walker) for what they did for Ohio hoops.

It will be like watching two of your kids battle it out....but one of your kids coaches that sack of garbage in NE Ohio.

I dislike Akron....and the Dambrot vs. fill-in-the-blank Ohio coach rivalry was great.

This kind of dampens it for me. I hate to root against Groce. Was hoping he didn't take this job (or Fiami)

Oh well. Guess that's just the world of college hoops. Just more proof that they are only as loyal as the logo on their chest and the person signing their paychecks at the moment.
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