Week 1 Preview: Akron Zips @ Nebraska Cornhuskers

The wait for the 2018 Akron Zips football season is nearly over. After a 7-7 finish, a MAC East title, and their 2nd bowl appearance in 3 years, our Zips look to “finish the climb” and build open a solid season. The first hurdle comes in the form of the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Led by former (National Champion) UCF Head Coach Scott Frost, the Huskers are looking to make a statement after a very disappointing 4-8 2017 campaign, which included a loss to fellow MAC member, NIU.


Quick Hits: Nebraska

• Scott Frost returns to his alma mater with a coaching record of only 19-7. Frost was also the OC/QB/WR coach at Oregon from 2009-2015 and was the LB coach at Nothern Iowa from 2007-2008.
• True Freshman Adrian Martinez will be the Huskers’ starting QB Saturday. Martinez is the only scholarship QB on Nebraska’s roster. Nebraska hasn’t started a true freshman at QB since 2009.

Quick Hits: Akron

• Sophomore QB Kato Nelson gets the week 1 nod. Nelson came on for the suspended Tommy Woodson late on last season. Kato’s breakout game came against Ohio in the de facto MAC East championship game, where he went 22/38 for 322 yards and 4 touchdowns.
• One major change in the Akron Zip coaching staff comes with the retirement of long time defensive coordinator Chuck Amato. Replacing Amato is Defensive Line Coach Todd Stroud.

Where To Watch/Prediction

Week 1 will kick off September 1st at 8 PM. The game will carried on Fox Sports and online through the Fox Sports GO App. Now, Vegas has the Zips as 24 point underdogs. But you know how we do it here in Akron. Go bold or go home. Having a relatively green 1st year head coach and a True Freshman QB that hasn’t taken a real snap in over two years are going to be major problems for Nebraska. I predict that the Zips defense will make key plays at key times. Not only will I predict that Akron will cover the spread, I'm going with a 27-24 Akron win. Book it.

If you have any comments, questions or predictions about the week 1 matchup for our Akron Zips, be sure to tweet it at us and give us a follow @Zips_United. For everyone here at Zips United, have a good semester and GO ZIPS.