Football

The Zips will hold an open practice and “Meet the Team” event the evening of Aug. 10.

The team released the rest of its practice schedule, but that is the only event that fans can attend. It is tentatively scheduled for 4 to 6 p.m.

New scholarship offers…

Eric Loper, cornerback, Sicklerville, N.J.
Offers: Akron and Buffalo
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 185
Speed: 4.5
Notes: Loper’s coach calls him an aggressive player. Iowa, Rutgers and Temple also have interest.

Marcus McNeal, wide receiver, Bradenton, Fla.
Offers: Akron, Illinois, Iowa State, Ole Miss, Nebraska, West Virginia and Marshall
Height: 6-0
Weight: 180
Speed: 4.37
Notes: McNeal says he loves football and probably wants to leave his home state to play it. Iowa State is one of the early favorites.

Jeremy Crayton, wide receiver, Piscataway, N.J.
Offers: Akron
Height: 6-0
Weight: 184
Speed: Not listed
Notes: Crayton only caught 14 passes last season as a junior. He performed well at a Nike camp in the spring, however.

Also this… ESPN.com listed the recruiting budgets for each MAC school. Akron is No. 3. That’s impressive.

Men’s basketball

GoZips.com conducted a thorough interview with Keith Dambrot, looking ahead at next year’s team. It’s a good read.

Football

The Zips are unhappy that the media picked them to finish last in the MAC East, according to the ABJ’s Tom Gaffney.

When you look at the MAC East, a last-place tally should not have been a surprise. Buffalo and Temple are improving quickly. Bowling Green and Miami played well with young teams last season. Ohio and Kent State… Well, that’s debatable.

With the wealth of mediocrity, it won’t matter to Akron how other teams are playing. The Zips must ascend, not wait for others to fall.

Akron will begin practices on Sunday. I plan to report from training camp as much as possible.

Football

The duel for junior college cornerback Chaz Russell has intensified, with the four-star athlete receiving scholarship offers from Memphis and Kansas State.

Meanwhile, Russell was scheduled to visit Akron’s campus last weekend. The Scout.com story (linked above) makes it obvious that the Zips are doing everything possible to land Russell, who could suit up this season.

With Akron’s lack of depth in the secondary, Russell’s commitment would mean a lot for the pass defense.

New scholarship offers…

Phil Walker, linebacker, Weston, Fla.
Offers: Akron, Kansas State, Central Michigan, Middle Tennessee State, Northern Illinois and Tulsa
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 210
Speed: Not listed
Notes: Boston College is Walker’s top school. One problem: The Golden Eagles have not offered him a scholarship. Rutgers is another school whose scholarship offer would probably draw a commitment from the Florida linebacker.

Shamari Benton, safety, Birmingham, Mich.
Offers: Akron, Bowling Green, Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan
Height: 6-0
Weight: 194
Speed: 4.4
Notes: Benton is Rivals.com’s No. 69 safety in the nation. Benton planned to decide today, unless he received a surprise offer from a big school.

Steve Marck, tight end, Fairless Hills, Pa.
Offers: Akron, Syracuse and Buffalo
Height: 6-3
Weight: 225
Speed: 4.75
Notes: Marck was pleasantly surprised to see an offer from Akron show up in the mail last weekend, despite that he hadn’t talked to the Zips’ coaches much. An offer from Pitt is what Marck has really desired.

Football

(Sorry, I haven’t used a terrible pun in awhile.)

Akron bagged another recruit when Nolan Procter, a 5-foot-9 slot receiver, chose the Zips.

The finalists were Akron and Bowling Green for the Michigan athlete. He decided based on Akron’s offense, the coaching staff and facilities.

Men’s basketball

ESPN.com put together a formula to rank the 300 Division I basketball programs.

Akron is No. 177. Miami leads the MAC at No. 53. Kent State is 82nd.

Football

Akron’s most famous alumnus went from cellar-dweller to playoff team when the Washington Redskins acquired Jason Taylor in exchange for a second- and sixth-round pick.

Taylor made headlines this offseason by making it to the finals of Dancing with the Stars. The Dolphins weren’t too enthused, and Bill Parcels wanted to dump Taylor.

A recent poll of NFL coaches asked which one player you would pick first if the entire league was eligible to be drafted. Taylor was one of only three players who received votes. Tom Brady and Peyton Manning were the others.

Men’s basketball

Romeo Travis and Dru Joyce are slowly working their way into coach John Kuester’s lineup.

In Wednesday’s loss to Houston, Travis attempted two 3-pointers and made one in 11:28 minutes of playing time. Joyce, meanwhile, had a rebound in 2:08 minutes during Friday’s loss to Washington.

It makes me wonder if the statisticians confused the two former Zips.

Travis and Joyce don’t mind that everyone thinks they’re on the team because of No. 23, according to the Plain Dealer.

Joyce had a quote with which I disagree:

“It’s always the team first,” he said. “If the team is playing well and you’re a part of things, whether you’re playing or on the bench, everybody gets success from that.”

That’s the proper attitude on any other team, in any other league. However, in Summer League, it doesn’t matter if you go undefeated or don’t win a game (which is where the Cavs’ team is heading). The teams are sorely imbalanced with talent, which demonstrates the parent clubs’ different goals.

My point is, in Summer League, you have to stand out. You want to win, sure. But being more than just one of the five is crucial if you want the league to help advance your career, which certainly is a goal for Travis and Joyce.

I will agree with Joyce in one respect: When the team plays well, it reflects well on the point guard. However, bench players won’t get a lick of success from that.

Football

Scout.com is reporting that Ohio running back Stephen Curtis committed to Akron.

The 5-foot-10, 185-pound rusher also had a scholarship offer from Western Michigan. He averaged 7.4 yards per carry at Wayne High School in Huber Heights. His highlight video shows a shifty runner who prefers to go outside the tackles.

Curtis was a high school teammate of Zips’ 2008 recruit Troy Gilmer, a running back/linebacker. Curtis also might play safety in college.

Curtis did not qualify coming out of high school. Therefore, he will attempt to qualify on campus this fall, then join the team next season if all goes well.

Wide receiver Dee Frieson is the Zips’ other early commitment to this point.

Football

Local four-star offensive lineman Nate Klatt recently committed to Michigan State.

Akron offered the nation’s No. 4 center a scholarship, but the Canal Fulton resident’s decision came down to Michigan State, Northwestern, Indiana and Kansas.

However, Akron did extent another scholarship offer…

Javon Cornley, defensive end, Columbus
Offers: Akron, Indiana, Eastern Michigan, Miami (Ohio) and Marshall
Height: 6-foot-5
Weight: 215
Speed: 4.68
Notes: Rivals.com also mentioned Cornley among the state’s 10 best tight ends. Considering Akron’s 3-3-5 defense and Cornley’s thin frame, he is probably pegged for that position.

Men’s basketball

Pardon me for breaking the silence, but isn’t anyone concerned about Zeke Marshall decommitting?

Marshall’s quotes show excitement for playing at Akron. However, my inferiority complex in regards to my fanhood of Akron tells me not to pencil him in the lineup just yet.

Marshall has verbally committed, and that should have forced most coaches to back off. Still, the nightmare of seeing an adverse story on Rivals.com (or the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) irks me.

Am I alone? Is this topic taboo?

Men’s basketball

ESPN.com’s Andy Katz chronicled the many ways in which LeBron James has helped Akron’s basketball program.

The James Effect was not a factor in recruiting Zeke Marshall, but it has given Keith Dambrot an open door for other guys who otherwise have little business with MAC teams.

Football

The Chaz Russell story I quoted from a few days ago is outdated.

I thought it was from June 2008 not June 2007. (That’s what you get, I suppose, when you blog during class.)

Therefore, Akron probably still has a chance on him. I will find out more in a couple weeks.