“Keil Fleming If you had to sum up the University of Akron sports 2006-2007 year in one word, disappointing would have to be the first one out of your mouth. The ’06-07 season was easily the most anticipated season in school history. The football team won its first MAC Championship in team history and the basketball team was coming off of a 23-win season, including an NIT win over Temple.”
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Keil Fleming
If you had to sum up the University of Akron sports 2006-2007 year in one word, disappointing would have to be the first one out of your mouth.
The ’06-07 season was easily the most anticipated season in school history.
The football team won its first MAC Championship in team history and the basketball team was coming off of a 23-win season, including an NIT win over Temple.
It was assumed that this year would bring championships, and UA would be the toast of the sporting world.
Well, that sure didn’t happen. Not that it was entirely UA’s fault in most cases.
There isn’t enough time in the day to describe how I feel about the bastards that screwed the basketball team out of both tournaments.
Even as bad as that was, the football team is still the most disappointing memory of ’06-07.
They caught everyone’s attention by beating North Carolina State on the road.
After an understandable loss at Central Michigan and after handing North Texas a smackdown, the stage was set for Akron to prove that 2005 was not a fluke.
Entering the Kent State game, UA was 2-2 (0-1 MAC).
That Saturday should have been the beginning of something special.
Instead, it was one of the darkest days in UA history.
Losing 37-15 propelled the season to a 5-7 finish and no hope of any bowl game, leaving the season a smoldering pile of disappointment.
Maybe if I just think everyone will suck in 2007-08, they actually will be good.
Adam Ferrise
There is no question what the Zips’ most heartbreaking disappointment was this year.
The Zips men’s basketball team pummeled through the regular season and the first two rounds of the Mid-American Conference tournament, securing its name in the record books with 26 wins - the most victories of any University of Akron basketball team, regardless of what division or conference they were affiliated with.
They had it all: size, speed, a stifling defense, efficient offense and experience. Even in their few losses they were impressive. The two-point loss to Nevada - who graced The Associated Press and Coaches polls’ top 10 – were encouraging signs that the Zips would not only make the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1986, but could wreak havoc once they inevitably got there.
More excruciating was the way they didn’t fulfill expectations. After they beat Kent State for the third time in the season, this one in the tournament semifinals, they had Miami (Ohio) on the ropes in the finals. Up by seven at half and by two points with 6.6 seconds left, Zips fans and players were celebrating while Cedrick Middleton walked to the free throw line to seal the Zips trip to the Big Dance. Anyone who remotely pays attention to Zips sports or watched SportsCenter the next day knows what happened.
To make matters worse, the Zips were victims of one of the most mindless snub jobs in NIT tournament history.
The football team’s expectations were only high because they backed in to the MAC Championship game the year before and luckily produced two touchdowns in the final minutes of the game. They were not close to being the dominating team of the conference like the men’s basketball team was last season.
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