Game Day Information
Date: September 27, 1997
Site: Baton Rouge, La.
Stadium: Tiger (79,940)
Kickoff: 7:00 CT
Team Records: UA is 0-3, 0-2 in the MAC; LSU is 2-1 (1-1 SEC).
Radio: WHLO 640-AM, WTIG 990-AM
TV: No live TV. Highlights replayed Sept. 29 as part of Zips'
Monday Night Football. (WAKC-TV Channel 23, 8 p.m.)
Series: First meeting
What do the football teams at Akron and Louisiana State have in common?
On first glance, you might say "Not much." But this week, these two unfamiliar foes have plenty in common. Both lost heart-breaking conference games Saturday night in the final minute. Both fell at home. Both lost by 31-28 scores. There's plenty of disappointment in both Akron and Baton Rouge.
Auburn 31, LSU 28.
Bowling Green 31, Akron 28.
This is a dangerous game for the Zips, who'll be a huge underdog in Death Valley. The Bayou Bengals, a preseason Top 10 club, are licking their wounds. And the Zips are feeling low.
"We needed a win for a lot of reasons," said a dejected UA coach Lee Owens following Saturday's narrow loss. "Morale has been good up to this point. It'll be a huge task for the coaching staff, myself included, to keep the morale up."
Akron played admirably at sixth-ranked Nebraska in opening the season on Aug. 30. Although the Cornhuskers rolled up 644 yards of offense in a 59-14 win, UA competed physically and certainly did not embarrass itself playing one of the nation's elite programs. One need only look at Nebraska's scores at Memorial Stadium during the 1990s.
Mid-American Conference followers remember well in 1986 when the then Miami Redskins toppled LSU, 21-12, in Death Valley. LSU finished 9-3 that year, winning the SEC championship.
SERIES: This is the first meeting. The Zips are 0-3 all-time against SEC schools, falling to Auburn, Tennessee and Florida in consecutive years from 1988-90. LSU is 1-1 against the MAC, splitting a pair of games against Miami in 1986 (L) and 1990 (W).
MEDICAL UPDATE: A sprained left ankle kept TB Bo Hunter (Wilmington, Del.) out of the Bowling Green game. He should be ready for Saturday. Redshirt freshman guard Chad Smith (shoulder strain) also missed the BGSU game.
Senior linebacker Pat Powell (Beaver, Pa.) broke a bone in his foot and did not dress for the BGSU game. He has missed the last two contests. Powell had just been promoted to #2 middle linebacker behind Nate Boyd. Sophomore DB Mike Hughes (New Middleton) was cleared to play the Miami game, following (right) shoulder surgery. Hughes missed the Nebraska game and was not involved in any contact drills during preseason camp.
Junior defensive back Jon Eaton (Wheelersburg) severely sprained his left ankle playing in a 3-on-3 basketball tournament before camp began. A two-year starter and a member of the GTE District IV Academic Team, Eaton ranked fifth on the team in tackles last fall (65 total) and played a key role in UA's secondary being among the nation's top 25 units against the pass. He is considering a medical redshirt for 1997. A persistent shoulder injury continues to keep junior TE Shane Ladner (Pittsburgh, Pa./Keystone Oaks) sidelined.
MAC CONNECTION: LSU coach Gerry DiNardo served from 1978-81 as the defensive line coach at Eastern Michigan under head coach Mike Stock. The Eagles struggled to a 6-35-1 mark during those four years. Coach DiNardo also was the offensive coordinator at Colorado from 1984-90 and helped the Buffs win the national championship in '90. His career record as a head coach is 38-32-1 and includes four years at Vanderbilt and two-plus seasons at LSU.
AKRON CONNECTION: Pittsburgh, Pa., native Hal Hunter, LSU's offensive line coach, served for four seasons (1987-90) at Akron in the same capacity under coach Gerry Faust. Faust coached the Zips from 1986-94. A 1982 Northwestern graduate, Hunter hooked up with Coach DiNardo at Vanderbilt in 1991.
HIGH-PROFILE OPPONENTS: After reaching the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs in 1985, Akron stepped up to the I-A level in 1987. Since that time, UA has played numerous high-profile opponents, including Virginia Tech four times ('89, '91, '95, '96), Auburn ('88), Florida ('90), Illinois ('96), Kansas State ('95), Nebraska ('97), Oregon State ('87) and Tennessee ('89). UA is 0-11 in these games (10 on the road), but last year was tied at halftime vs. Virginia Tech and Illinois.
FACTS YOU NEED TO KNOW RE: THE ZIPS
OWENS ON WAKR: Zip coach Lee Owens will do a 5-minute chat with WAKR's Mark Richards each Friday at 8:45 a.m.
NEED A LIFT?: The UA Football Parents Group is sponsoring bus transportation to and from four upcoming Zip football games: Oct. 11 at Marshall, Oct. 18 at Eastern Michigan, Nov. 1 at Ball State and Nov. 15 at Toledo. Round trip fares range from $15 to $28. Contact Monica Gromek at (440) 729-4140 for information.
SCHEDULE STRENGTH: A recent NCAA survey of Division I-A football schedules reveals Akron having the 44th (out of 112) toughest schedule in the nation. The Michigan Wolverines grade out No. 1 with their 1997 opponents having a .659 winning percentage in '96. Akron is ranked first among MAC schools, with games against preseason Top 10 opponents Nebraska and LSU.
AKRON'S NFL PERFORMERS: Former Zip star Jason Taylor has shined as a rookie starter for the Miami Dolphins. A third round draft pick (73rd overall) and a starter in all five preseason games, Taylor has racked up 14 tackles and one QB sack (in four games so far). In the preseason, he had four sacks for 35 yards in losses. Miami is off to a 2-2 start. A first-team All-MAC DE last fall, Taylor had 18 tackles for loss, including 10 sacks.
Victor Green, a Zip letterman from 1990-92, led the NFL in tackles last year as a DB for the New York Jets.
AKRON'S MAC AWARD NOMINEES FOR SEPT. 20: Sophomore tailback Mike Lagasse (Hudson) is the Zips' Offensive Player of the Week. Lagasse accumulated 192 all-purpose yards in the 31-28 loss to Bowling Green. Lagasse rushed for 83 yards, caught one 19-yard pass and had three kickoff returns for 90 yards (long of 38 yards). His all-purpose and rushing totals are career highs.
Senior defensive end Corey Christian (Pittsburgh, Pa.) is the Zips' Defensive Player of the Week. Christian racked up four tackles for minus 17 yards among his six tackles against the Falcons.
"LUNCH WITH THE COACH" ON MONDAYS: UA's popular "Lunch With The Coach" program takes place on Mondays at noon at the Martin University Center, 105 Fir Hill Street. Zip head coach Lee Owens reviews the previous week's game and previews the upcoming contest. Tickets are priced at $7.25. Joe Dunn serves as emcee.
MAC'S NEW ERA: The Zips are in the East Division of the new Mid-American Conference format. Marshall and Northern Illinois have rejoined the league, bringing to 12 the number of schools in the 51-year-old all-sports conference. At the MAC Media Day on July 23 in Pontiac, Mich., the Zips were picked to finish in fifth place in the East, ahead of rival Kent. Akron won three of its final four games last fall to finish 4-7 and 3-5 in the MAC (t-6th).
The MAC will stage a Championship Game, pitting East and West champs, Dec. 5 in Huntington, W. Va. The winner will advance to face an at-large team in the first Ford Motor City Bowl, Dec. 26, at the Pontiac Silverdome.
NONCON: UA's Oct. 18 date at Eastern Michigan is a non-conference game. The Zips play five games within the East Division (BGSU, Kent, Marshall, Miami and Ohio) and three cross-over games (Ball State, Central Michigan and Toledo). The Eastern Michigan game will not count in the league standings.
RADIO COVERAGE: For the sixth straight year, Akron radio station WHLO 640-AM is the flagship station for University of Akron football. Massillon station WTIG 990-AM has reached agreement for a third season to form the Zips Football Radio Network. WHLO's 5,000-watt daytime signal covers 66 of Ohio's 80 counties in addition to western Pennsylvania and into West Virginia.
In his ninth season as the "Voice of the Zips" is Steve French. He is joined in the broadcast booth by Clint Scroggs, who last year served as UA's sideline reporter. The UA network is on the air 15 minutes before kickoff with the pre-game show, featuring Zip head coach Lee Owens.
AKRON ZIPS' MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL: Every Monday night throughout the season, Zip football fans will be able to see UA game highlights on WAKC-TV Channel 23 at 8 o'clock. The one-hour show, hosted by Joe Dunn, will feature head coach Lee Owens evaluating game highlights from the previous Saturday. Coach Owens also will preview the Zips' upcoming opponent. The LSU game will be shown Sept. 29 with the final show Nov. 17 following Toledo.
ZIPPY THE KANGAROO: Zippy, Kasey, Moe and Katy. What do they have in common? They are the only four college kangaroo mascots in America. The University of Akron has Zippy, the University of Missouri-Kansas City has Kasey, Virginia Military Institute has Moe, and Austin College in Sherman, Texas, has Katy. UA's Zippy originated in 1954 with the playing of the first Acme-Zip football game.