2008 Woodie Awards
The final ride
Rasor's Edge
Adam Ferrise
Issue date: 5/1/07 Section: Sports
This is my last week before graduation.
In this final installment of "Rasor's Edge," I will be your guide as we reminisce through the roller coaster's hills and valleys of the past four years in University of Akron sports.
...
The ride noisily creaks to a start.
"Who's got the WD-40?" asks a smart-aleck Dru Joyce from the back.
To your left, you will see the building of a great foundation for the men's soccer, men's basketball and football teams. There is J.D. Brookhart and Keith Dambrot. They are signing contracts to become head coaches at UA. On the other side of the train is Ken Lolla, recruiting Sinisa Ubiparipovic and Ross McKenzie.
Riders begin to sense the train is about to descend.
"Holy cow!" former athletic director Mike Thomas shouts. "Is the coaster seriously going down there?"
(Heh. You have no idea where this thing is going, I think to myself.)
In Brookhart's first year, and Charlie Frye's last, Akron will be the only bowl-eligible team not to play in the postseason.
"Dang. That hurt my groin just seeing it," Dambrot jokes to assistant coach Jeff Boals.
Don't get too comfortable, coaches. This ride shifts quickly. As a matter of a fact, the men's basketball team will miss out on the NIT in Dambrot's first year as head coach, despite an RPI that almost qualified the Zips for the Big Dance.
But please nurse your bruises quickly, gentlemen. We are preparing for a steep incline. This is the fall of 2005. The men's soccer team will reach the ultimate regular season pinnacle: a No. 1 national ranking. The football team will shock the Mid-American Conference by coming back to score two touchdowns in the final minutes to win the title over Northern Illinois. Yep, that's right. Wee-little Akron is on SportsCenter and getting national publicity. There's Chris Berman, calling the Zips the athletic department of the week.
"You've got to be kidding me," a bitter Buckeyes fan says from the back of the train. "The only school in Ohio is The Ohio State University."
In this final installment of "Rasor's Edge," I will be your guide as we reminisce through the roller coaster's hills and valleys of the past four years in University of Akron sports.
...
The ride noisily creaks to a start.
"Who's got the WD-40?" asks a smart-aleck Dru Joyce from the back.
To your left, you will see the building of a great foundation for the men's soccer, men's basketball and football teams. There is J.D. Brookhart and Keith Dambrot. They are signing contracts to become head coaches at UA. On the other side of the train is Ken Lolla, recruiting Sinisa Ubiparipovic and Ross McKenzie.
Riders begin to sense the train is about to descend.
"Holy cow!" former athletic director Mike Thomas shouts. "Is the coaster seriously going down there?"
(Heh. You have no idea where this thing is going, I think to myself.)
In Brookhart's first year, and Charlie Frye's last, Akron will be the only bowl-eligible team not to play in the postseason.
"Dang. That hurt my groin just seeing it," Dambrot jokes to assistant coach Jeff Boals.
Don't get too comfortable, coaches. This ride shifts quickly. As a matter of a fact, the men's basketball team will miss out on the NIT in Dambrot's first year as head coach, despite an RPI that almost qualified the Zips for the Big Dance.
But please nurse your bruises quickly, gentlemen. We are preparing for a steep incline. This is the fall of 2005. The men's soccer team will reach the ultimate regular season pinnacle: a No. 1 national ranking. The football team will shock the Mid-American Conference by coming back to score two touchdowns in the final minutes to win the title over Northern Illinois. Yep, that's right. Wee-little Akron is on SportsCenter and getting national publicity. There's Chris Berman, calling the Zips the athletic department of the week.
"You've got to be kidding me," a bitter Buckeyes fan says from the back of the train. "The only school in Ohio is The Ohio State University."
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