1976 Akron Zips football team

The 1976 Akron Zips football team was an American football team that represented the University of Akron during the 1976 NCAA Division II football season. In their fourth season under head coach Jim Dennison, the Zips compiled a 10–3 record and outscored all opponents by a combined total of 282 to 144. In post-season play, they defeated UNLV, 27–6, in a Division II quarterfinal, and defeated Northern Michigan, 29–26, in the Knute Rockne Bowl. In the championship game in Wichita Falls, Texas, Akron lost to Montana State in the Pioneer Bowl.[1][2][3] The 1976 season was the first and only ten-win season in Akron's program history.

1976 Akron Zips football
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
APNo. 3
1976 record10–3
Head coachJim Dennison (4th season)
Defensive coordinatorWally Neal
Home stadiumRubber Bowl
1976 NCAA Division II independents football records
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 2 Northern Michigan ^      11 2 0
No. 3 Akron ^      10 3 0
No. 7 UNLV ^      9 3 0
No. 4 Delaware ^      8 3 1
Nevada      8 3 0
Portland State      8 3 0
Tennessee State      7 2 1
Santa Clara      7 4 0
Chattanooga      6 4 1
Central State (OH)      6 5 0
Lehigh      6 5 0
Cal State Los Angeles      5 3 1
Lafayette      5 5 0
Bucknell      4 5 0
Nebraska–Omaha      3 8 0
Northeastern      2 7 0
  • ^ NCAA Division II playoff participant
Rankings from Associated Press poll

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResult
September 11TempleL 13–23
September 18Morehead State
  • Rubber Bowl
  • Akron, OH
W 26–6
September 25at Youngstown StateW 24–3
October 2at Indiana StateW 34–7
October 9Dayton
  • Rubber Bowl
  • Akron, OH
W 27–6
October 16at Ball StateNo. T–5
W 3–0
October 23Eastern MichiganNo. T–5
  • Rubber Bowl
  • Akron, OH
W 36–0
October 30at MarshallNo. 3L 0–13
November 6at No. 7 Western IllinoisNo. T–8W 21–14
November 13at Western KentuckyNo. 5W 29–16
November 27No. 7 UNLVNo. 3
  • Rubber Bowl
  • Akron, OH (NCAA Division II Quarterfinal)
W 27–6
December 4No. 2 Northern MichiganNo. 3
W 29–26
December 11vs. No. 1 Montana StateNo. 3
L 13–24

[4]

References

  1. "1976 Akron Zips". databaseFootball.com. Archived from the original on November 30, 2015. Retrieved December 30, 2015.
  2. "Montana State wins title". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. December 12, 1976. p. 4B.
  3. "Dennehy leads Montana State's bowl win". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 12, 1976. p. D1.
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 30, 2015. Retrieved December 30, 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) Akron Team Schedule 1976
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.