Rasor on the Zips » Miscellaneous

Elton Alexander picks Zips third in division

mrasor — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:36:10 +0000

Men's basketball

The Plain Dealer's Elton Alexander picked Akron to finish third in the MAC East.

This is the defending MAC Championship team that only lost one player (not a franchise player, either) and brings in the preseason favorite for Freshman of the Year. Yet they'll finish third in the division, according to Alexander, behind Buffalo and Miami.

Miscellaneous

I took first place in my election for Stow City Council At-Large last night.

I appreciate everyone's well-wishes and support. It was a hectic four months, and I'm very excited to simplifying my life by watching Akron beat Kent State on Saturday.

MAC Roundtable

mrasor — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:09:08 +0000

Football

Here are my responses to this week's MAC Blogger Roundtable…

1. Now that we have reached November, what do you really think of this no-Saturday stuff? Is it a necessary evil, an unnecessary evil, or a non-issue? Do you think that the difficulty for home fans outweighs the long-term benefit of being on ESPN?

Because you must balance the fans' interest and the conference's desire for exposure, I think they should only play mid-week when there is a promise to be on ESPN or ESPN2. Being on ESPNU doesn't do it for me. It diminishes the quality of MAC football to say we're willing to play Tuesday morning during breakfast so a handful of football fanatics get to watch live football in an unusual timeslot.

2. As we hit the home stretch, who are your early leaders for MAC Offensive and Defensive players of the year? Coach of the Year?

For offense, you're looking at a three-way race. It depends on 1) if you're willing to vote for a freshman (Temple running back Bernard Pierce leads the league in rushing by almost 40 yards) and 2) whether you can pick between either of Bowling Green's studs: receiver Freddie Barnes or quarterback Tyler Sheehan. I'll go with Barnes. On defense, I could narrow the list to five, but not much further. As for coaches, I'm a big Al Golden fan.

3. Bernard Pierce is making a huge impact as a freshmen at Temple. What freshmen are making an impact or showing promise at your program?

Brian Wagner is a reason to watch Akron play football. Maybe the only reason. The linebacker is second in the MAC in tackles, eighth in fumbles forced, third in fumbles recovered, ninth in interceptions, and he has scored a touchdown. You're looking at a Freshman All-American. J.D. Brookhart knew he had a special player when he nominated Wagner for Preseason All-MAC before Wagner played a single snap.

4. Think back on your time as a fan…..what is the single most exciting or thrilling moment you recall witnessing for your team…..I'm thinking in person, but certainly not a requirement.

This is easy. I was in the front row in Detroit at Ford Field on Dec. 1, 2005. Luke Getsy found Domenik Hixon on a deep post route with under a minute to play. The touchdown gave the Zips their first MAC Championship. We were going absolutely berserk, hugging complete strangers. That was a great time to be a Zips football fan. That's the point when I decided I would never sit in the press box during a football game if I can help it. You can't enjoy a moment like that without high-fives, clapping, shouting, chest-bumping, etc.

5. Rank 'em if you got 'em.

1) CMU
2) Temple
3) NIU
4) Kent State
5) BG
6) WMU
7) Toledo
8 ) Ohio
9) Buffalo
10) Miami
11) Akron
12) Ball State
13) EMU

Men's basketball

The Zips will begin the season ranked eighth in the Mid-Major Top 25. Akron is ahead of some traditional mid-major powerhouses, such as Davidson, St. Mary's, VCU and George Mason. The team sits behind Butler, Creighton and Gonzaga, among others.

Miscellaneous

My election for Stow City Council At-Large is tomorrow. If you're a Stow resident, make sure you get out to vote. Here is my Web site, in case you're interested.

Sellout appears imminent

mrasor — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 15:36:15 +0000

Football

Akron has sold out its general admission and student tickets for Saturday's stadium-opening game against Morgan State. Fewer than 1,000 reserved seats remain on sale.

This will be a crazy two weeks for the university's ticket office. The following week might sell out as well, because Indiana is sure to bring a chunk of fans to town.

I will break down the Morgan State game tomorrow and add some thoughts on the opening of InfoCision Stadium.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Miscellaneous

For those who care, I made it through my primary election on Tuesday for Stow City Council At-Large.

It was a gut-wrenching night, watching the results come in. I needed to be in the top six of eight candidates to pass through to the general election. I took fourth, only 55 votes away from second place. On Nov. 3, Stow will fill three seats, so I'm in pretty good position.

You can follow the campaign here.

Brookhart's press conference

mrasor — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 04:00:23 +0000

Football

Here is the video from J.D. Brookhart's Monday press conference.

He acknowledged that the offensive line played an awful game. He mentioned that Matt Rodgers would continue to play in both halves.

Miscellaneous

Today is my primary election for Stow City Council At-Large. If you live in Stow or know somebody who does, I'd love to see a great turnout.

You can follow the campaign at .

Interview with Tom Wistrcill — Akron's new athletic director

mrasor — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:33:45 +0000

Miscellaneous

I spoke with Tom Wistrcill today. He seems like a genuine person, certainly passionate without being overly flashy.

He has been married for 16 years. He has two sons, ages 9 and 6. Wistrcill is an assistant coach for his oldest son's football team. He also likes to play golf in his spare time. He will start as Akron's athletic director on Sept. 10.

Here are parts of our conversation:

Mike Rasor: If a coach is graduating players and running a clean program, yet cannot field a winning team, does the coach deserve to be fired?

Tom Wistrcill: There are so many factors that go into evaluating a coach. (Tom mentioned community involvement, cohesiveness with the rest of the athletic department, and the athletes' social experience as other factors.) Certainly winning is an important one because this is Division I institution. We don't set upon a coach that you have to win national championships. But we should win MAC titles at Akron.

MR: What techniques in selling out Minnesota's stadium do you think would translate best to Akron?

TW: I don't know yet because I haven't been there. I have been successful in selling different things in different places. You have to have a knowledge of the environment. I will rely on the staff for that. Sales is hard. It is a hard job. There are some people who are cut out for sales. There are some who are not. The thing about sales is that you can have a great day, then start off the next day at zero. I am not going to come in there with any preconceived notions on how we are going to run things. That will be based upon once I get there and get a lay of the land.

MR: Are you inclined to bring in people who share your vision, or do you prefer to make it work with whoever is currently on the athletics staff?

TW: I told our senior staff that I assume they are the best at what they do. And we'll go from there. Obviously, things have worked pretty well there. Mack (Rhoades) and Mike (Thomas) before him did a good job setting things up for things to work there. I don't come in with any plan that some people are out the door. That is not how we are going to operate.

MR: What did you know about Akron before hearing about the job opportunity?

TW: What I did know about the MAC is that it's a great group of schools. (Former Miami AD) Joel (Maturi) loved his time at the MAC. What always attracted me about Akron is that it was in a city. Much like Akron, (at Minnesota) we're right up against Minneapolis. When you have a city that has its own culture and pulse, that gives you an opportunity — as opposed to a small town, where you have to find a culture and corporate base. When I heard Mack was going to Houston, I said, "Here is a real opportunity." I called the search firm.

MR: What is your greatest weakness?

TW: Sometimes, it's hard for me to delegate because I'm a doer. I'm better at it now than I was five years ago and 10 years ago. I'm getting better at delegating, but that's being a type-A personality that I am. That is something that I constantly work on. When you get the right people in place, they should be better at their jobs than I am. When it happens, that's the perfect situation. I just set the guiding principles and let them chase it. That's what I'm anxious to get at the University of Akron. I spoke with everyone briefly. It seems like a good group.

MR: Do you plan to have Hunter Yurachek working under you?

TW: We had a brief conversation when I was there. It was a really nice conversation. Nothing was really decided in that meeting. We are going to talk again. I encouraged Hunter to stay. I know he's done good things here.

MR: What is your position on the Mid-American Conference? Can Akron do better? Is that something you will look into?

TW: It's important that we position ourselves to be ready if something happens. We need to raise more money. We need to win more titles. The conference landscape is going to change. Don't know when. Don't know how. We are very happy in the MAC, though. It's not something that is on my job duties.

(As we were wrapping up the interview…)

TW: I want to reach out to as many people as possible. I pride myself in a strong communication skill set. That's why I sent out that YouTube video. There are a lot of people who feel deeply about our program. We need to make them feel like they're part of it. … I want to see people wearing Zips stuff everywhere in Akron.

Below is Wistrcill's welcome video from YouTube…

Football

The PD's Elton Alexander picked Akron to win the MAC East. As he points out, the season-ending injury to Buffalo's star running back James Starks takes the Bulls out of the running.

What you can expect on gameday

mrasor — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 02:22:06 +0000

Football

The Buchtelite's story about gameday regulations impressed me. It discusses the policies for road closures, parking and tailgating. It's definitely worth a read if you plan to attend a game.

I'm disappointed about the prohibition against coal grills, but I think the university is doing a great job to create a fan-friendly gameday experience.

Miscellaneous

Here are some issues to watch in the coming weeks:

Will Hunter Yurachek and his staff continue their diligent work in selling tickets?

What other, if any, members of the athletic department will leave the university when Tom Wistrcill arrives — either by choice or by dismissals?

Will Wistrcill and the new administration make any immediate changes to the first season at InfoCision Stadium, considering his overwhelming success in opening Minnesota's stadium?

Will Yurachek surface as a candidate for Kent State's athletic director job, which becomes vacant on June 30, 2009? (Man, that would throw another twist into this rivalry!)

Here is Tom Gaffney's story from today's press conference.

The ABJ's Patrick McManamon wrote a column wondering why Yurachek wasn't given the job.

My thoughts…

A lot of people within the athletic department are dismayed about President Luis Proenza's decision. It was a surprise. Many employees have worked with Yurachek. They knew what they were getting: A knowledgable, gregarious person who was great to work with.

Try to think of it from Proenza's perspective, though. The university had the opportunity to snag a person who had accomplished the exact thing that will be most important for Akron. He made a new stadium into a financial success.

People don't realize this, but Akron is paying a mortgage of sorts on InfoCision Stadium. The university must make service payments on its investment. Candidly, Proenza knows thing could go in one of two directions. 1) InfoCision Stadium opens with a blast, then fades into the back of everyone's memory (see Canal Park). 2) InfoCision Stadium helps to create a network of students and alumni who become life-long Zips fans (see Jacobs Field).

Could you entrust this task to Yurachek? Yes. But is there someone whose life experiences better suit the job? Yes. For that reason, I side with Proenza.

More on Tom Wistrcill

mrasor — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:47:43 +0000

Miscellaneous

The next athletic director at the University of Akron is coming off a year where he helped to sell 50,000 tickets to the first game at the University of Minnesota's stadium.

It is this sort of achievement that pushed Tom Wistrcill over the hump for UA President Luis Proenza. The administration is greatly concerned with making InfoCision Stadium a success.

Before his interview with the president, Wistrcill investigated campus. He dropped by a soccer practice, a volleyball practice and the Rec Center. He called former Akron athletic director Mike Thomas to get a feel for the job.

While Proenza thought highly of the runner up Hunter Yurachek, he chose Wistrcill because of his marketing accomplishments and his energy.

You cannot argue with Proenza's choices for athletic director. Several schools coveted Thomas, before he moved on to Cincinnati. Mack Rhoades was a finalist for a few jobs before Houston selected him. Even the interim athletic directors, Yurachek and Mike Waddell, are future Division I athletic directors.

Zips fans should be very excited that Wistrcill brings a wealth of experience in marketing a similar — albeit larger — football program. He also shares Yurachek's track record of sterling references at all points in his career.

Wistrcill also has experience working for a former MAC athletic director. His boss at Minnesota was Joel Maturi, the former AD at Miami (Ohio).

The PD's Elton Alexander reported that some people within the athletic department are upset about the hiring. Some even believe that my previous report sabotaged Yurachek's chances.

I'm not sure how that's possible. Maybe the administration was leaning toward Yurachek, but I have a hard time believing fans' comments persuaded Proenza to go with Wistrcill. The administration knew that a majority of fans wanted a fresh face weeks ago. It's nothing new.

Click here to read Tom Gaffney's story, which includes quotes from Wistrcill. I plan to speak with Wistrcill in the near future, as well.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Football

Akron received its ninth commitment for 2010 on Monday, according to ScoutingOhio.com.

Lawrence Smith, wide receiver/safety, Painesville, Ohio
Offers: Akron and Ohio
Height: 6-foot-0
Weight: 190
Speed: 4.45
Notes: ScoutingOhio.com ranks Smith as the No. 141 prospect in Ohio. Rivals.com calls Smith an impressive athlete. Akron recruited him as a safety, while Ohio put the generalized "athlete" tag on him.

Click here for the cumulative list of offers and commitments.

Gaffney: Next athletic director comes from Minnesota

mrasor — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 22:28:44 +0000

Miscellaneous

According to the ABJ's Tom Gaffney, the university has chosen Tom Wistrcill from the University of Minnesota as its next athletic director.

Wistrcill is a senior associate athletic director at Minnesota. He also spent time at the University of Wisconsin. He played four years of basketball at Saint Mary's University in Winona, Minn.

AD report is premature

mrasor — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 14:19:02 +0000

Miscellaneous

I received word from an upper-level administrator that my previous report is premature, at best.

The university is now looking at an early September timeline for announcing the athletic director. Hunter Yurachek remains in "serious consideration."

I sincerely apologize for the confusion. Since Friday, I worked diligently to confirm or deny the rumor that I heard from a reliable, yet unofficial, source. One hindrance was that the search committee is sworn to confidentiality about the proceedings.

I struggled with whether to post the source's information. In the end, I felt it would better serve the readers to know everything I know, with the caveat that the information comes from an anonymous source.

My anonymous source heard this information second-hand. The administrator suggested that my source was merely speculating. I do, however, think it is appropriate to assume there is some fire behind this smoke.

Update on AD post

mrasor — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 21:16:11 +0000

Miscellaneous

I am working to validate the story I posted below.

I went back and forth about publishing it without more than a source whom I cannot name. Because this is a blog, I went with it. I'm about 90 percent confident that it's true. This is mostly because there is no incentive for this source to lie. On a newspaper article, you want to be 100 percent certain that the source is correct, however.

It might take some time to find out if this story is true because the search committee is conducted behind closed doors, and the members are sworn to secrecy. I will write more when I know something.