Message and Update from AD Guthrie

Happy New Year Zips Nation,

I would like to wish all of you the very best as we enter 2022. As we take on the year ahead, I wanted to provide an update on the current state of the program, our challenges and opportunities, and reinforce my ongoing resolutions as we strive for academic, competitive, operational, and fiscal excellence. I want to express my gratitude for the tremendous support from the university community, from the leadership team to the faculty, to the staff across campus that we interact with on a daily basis - I'm really enjoying getting to know everyone and our engagement. I want to thank our Zips fans, supporters, and donors - it is because of your passion and financial support for Akron Athletics that we'll be introducing a number of capital projects in the near future.

First, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to present ongoing challenges I want to thank everyone involved with our program working relentlessly to ensure the health and safety of our student-athletes, coaches, and staff, and making safe return to play possible. We are working hard to stay in step with the constantly shifting sense of normalcy and aligned with our stringent health and safety protocols. My thoughts are with everyone who been impacted by or continues to feel the burden of these troubling times. I am beyond grateful to those providing medical and mental health care in our department, the University, and the greater Akron community.

Academic Success

Despite the impact of COVID-19, our student-athletes continue to excel in competition and in the classroom. Our coaches have demonstrated tremendous strength, leadership and compassion in guiding their student-athletes to achieve new heights. I'm happy to announce upon completion of the most recent semester, we've extended our streak to six (6) consecutive semesters above a 3.0 department-wide GPA with nine teams posting a 3.3 team GPA or higher. More than 20 student-athletes graduated in December. My favorite experience is always attending graduation and watching these young people reach this moment in their journey. These results are a testament to the hard work and dedication displayed by these outstanding student-athletes, especially amidst the instability of the current COVID-19 environment. I also want to commend our academic services staff for all their efforts in helping our student-athletes achieve their dreams.

Winter Sports Update

Our men's and women's basketball teams are looking to stay healthy as we enter the thick of MAC play. I've enjoyed seeing our fans come out to support both teams at the JAR. Let's bring on the support – hard to believe 2022 MAC Championships, March 9-12, will be here before we know it. If we haven't had a chance to meet yet, please don't hesitate to introduce yourself at a game this winter.

Also in the hunt for championships, come out and support our swimming and diving team, ranked No. 23 in CSCAA DI Top 25 Poll and our riffle team, who kicked off the new year ranked No. 11 in the latest CRCA National Rifle Rankings. Our Track & Field program is also participating in a variety of indoor events leading up to the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships in March and the outdoor season.

Off-Season Program Momentum

Coach Embick Contract Extension
I'm so pleased to announce that we have extended Coach Jared Embick's contract to ensure he will remain at the helm of Zips men's soccer through 2024. Extremely proud of how our team fought in the '21 campaign and although the outcome wasn't what the team hoped for, it was fun to host an opening round game as the program made its 34^th overall NCAA Tournament appearance. Congratulations to all of our student-athletes who earned postseason honors for the fall campaign.

Welcome Coach Moorhead and New Football Staff
Our excitement continues since the introduction of Coach Joe Moorhead. First, a shout out to our football student-athletes who have demonstrated exceptional resilience — from their first summer workouts to the final snap of the season and throughout the coaching transition, they have represented the University of Akron with class and perseverance.

Coach Moorhead and his staff are officially on campus beginning preparations for the upcoming season, working hard on the recruiting trail, and getting to know our current student-athletes. Official announcement of the full staff will be coming shortly.

We look forward to our donors, fans, and the greater Akron community becoming more familiar with Coach, his staff, and our team in a few months at our Akron Football Spring Game scheduled for Saturday, April 30. More details to come!

2022 Resolutions

Recapping a few things that haven't and won't change from my initial message to Zips fans. In 2022, among the many things I want to accomplish, I remain committed to:
·  Winning in and out of the classroom
·  Proactive communication with our fan base and the Akron community
·  Insights on significant priorities such as our new Nike all-sports partnership and our path to a more consistent and impactful brand

Specific to our plans to ensure our brand and spirit logos are generating energy and excitement for our program, I'm pleased to share we've kicked off this initiative. Our goal is to center on a consistent, aligned identity across all platforms, channels, and facilities including uniforms/practice gear, digital/social, game presentation, fan experience/eCommerce etc. Our intent is to reimagine a comprehensive identity that is connected, not fragmented; modern and unique, but aligned with the University as a whole; considers the tradition of our program, but ignites a fresh outlook on Akron Athletics and drives engagement with Akron students, fans, and the community.

We are actively forming working groups that include stakeholders and representatives from our various constituents inside and outside of the department. In terms of both timing and execution, I want to make sure we capitalize on full roll out of our new Nike all-sports partnership apparel and equipment, so you can expect we'll have a go forward approach in place this summer prior to the start of our fall sports season. In addition, we look forward to rolling out options for our fans to purchase official Nike gear featuring the new identity via eCommerce and other channels.

I look forward to sharing another in-depth update on spring sports (baseball, women's golf, women's lacrosse, softball and track & field) as well as other ongoing activity in the department. Updates and team previews can be found at GoZips.com. As always, I want to hear from you. If you're not already a member, I encourage you to join the Z-FUND. Your feedback and your support matter.

Onwards and GO ZIPS!
Charles
Follow: @UAkron_AD

The University of Akron Athletics

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