Owls breezed in season opener against Villanova, provide first conference test for Zips.
View full sizeTemple defensive end John Youboty and the rest of the Owls made life miserable for Villanova quarterback Dustin Thomas last week in a 42-7 victory. The Owls face Akron Saturday in the Zips' home opener.CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Akron Zips get no reprieve this week, coming off a 42-0 road thumping at Ohio State. Next up is one of the Mid-American Conference favorites, the Temple Owls, for the Zips' home opener.
"A well-coached team, a physically team, a really talented team," Akron second-year head coach Rob Ianello said. "They run a lot of power football. Their tailback [MAC Offensive Player of the week, junior Bernard Pierce, 20 carries, 147 yards 3 TDs vs. Villanova] is a tremendous player."
For the Zips to pull off an upset, they will have to be far better than they were against the Buckeyes.
"That's not the standard of performance we are looking for," he conceded. "We gave up a lot of big play yardage in 11 plays. That's way too much."
Some of that can be deposited on Akron's youth. Eight true freshmen, five redshirt freshmen and five others new to the program made their first starts against Ohio State, so the learning curve will have to be steep, and fast, for the Zips against Temple.
Here they come: Considering how Ohio State's defenders pinned their ears back and blitzed at nearly every opportunity, Ianello said it's a good bet teams will continue that tactic until Akron proves it adapt. At the same time, he did not see it as a red flag issue, yet.
"I'm not so sure the blitz was the issue, as much as [Ohio State's] front four," he said.
The Owls will be a good test as Temple is recognized, year in and year out, as having one of the top defensive fronts in the MAC.
Quick Nix: Kent State sophomore defensive lineman Roosevelt Nix, the reigning MAC Defensive Player of the Year, put a gleam into the eye of first-year head coach Darrell Hazell.
"Watching film [of the Flashes' 48-7 loss to Alabama], he was phenomenal," Hazell said. "I'm glad I don't have to play against him. He is as disruptive of a guy that I've seen since Dwight Freeney, when we were playing Syracuse and I was at West Virginia."
Freeney was the No. 11 pick in the 2002 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts.
"[Nix] can take over a game up front and he'll create some open shots for [linebackers] to run through because they are so concerned about blocking him."
Wake-up call: The ongoing sideline petulance displayed by 6-3, 185-pound junior receiver Matt Hurdle, almost every time he makes a mistake, has caught Hazell's eye. "We've got to get that out of him," he said.
Hurdle, who had several drops and a personal foul called on him against Alabama, along with three receptions for 24 yards, remains No. 1 on Kent State's depth chart.
This week, Kent (0-1) plays its home opener against Louisiana-Lafayette (0-1), which is coming off a 61-34 loss at Oklahoma State.
Source: http://www.cleveland.com/sports/college/index.ssf/2011/09/battered_in_alabama_akron_prep.html
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