The University of Akron’s running back situation grew cloudy after the first play of the first drive of the second half in a 54-10 loss to Wisconsin on Saturday.
That’s when starting running back Warren Ball left the game and backup Van Edwards carried the weight for the running game the rest of the way.
Rumors have circulated that Ball suffered an injury and coach Terry Bowden, unlike NFL coaches, isn’t obligated to release information in a formal injury report as the NCAA and its member institutions are bound by Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) laws related to disclosure. In his Tuesday news conference, Bowden only acknowledged that the Zips are banged up at that particular position and declined to go into greater detail.
“We haven’t made any final decisions yet,” Bowden said. “We have to look and see where we are with our backs. We’ll try to get a little closer to that around Thursday or so. We’ll look and see where we are. We’ve got some guys who are banged up.
“We don’t want to be premature on any of that stuff because there’s no reason to. This time of the year, once you get into the season, there’s a lot of guys who aren’t practicing on Tuesday and Wednesday that you’re counting on them being ready on Thursday.”
Open ended to be sure.
What happens if Ball, who has rushed for 181 yards on 25 carries and a touchdown in two games, can’t play Saturday against Marshall.
Expect Edwards to get the lion’s share of the work. Coming out of fall camp, the two were neck-and-neck for the starting gig.
“It was nip-and-tuck,” Bowden said. “We decided to start Warren [because] he was a senior. They were both kind of ones. Warren is a senior. … He’d worked so hard.”
Bowden did acknowledge that Ball had solidified his hold on the position. If he can’t play, he will be missed on the field and off. Despite being with the team for just a single camp, he came in second on the offensive side when the Zips voted for captains.
Wisconsin redux
The Zips went into Madison, Wis., last week knowing they had to accomplish two tasks against the Badgers.
“You’ve got to create some turnovers and have some big plays in a game like that,” Bowden said. “Wisconsin … was just not giving that up.”
Bowden said that he went into the game hoping his Zips wouldn’t be completely overpowered, but ultimately, they were.
“When they did that and didn’t turn the ball over, or give up big plays, it was kind of an outcome determined kind of thing. You just fight and fight for your life,” he said.
Terry’s take
The big talk of the weekend was the game between Central Michigan of the Mid-American Conference and Oklahoma State of the Big 12. The Chippewas pulled out a miracle win over the Cowboys following a botched call by officials who gave Central Michigan an untimed play at the end of the game.
“All I could think was ‘Congratulations, Central Michigan,’ because if Oklahoma State couldn’t win that game at home with one more play, probably Central Michigan deserved to win,” Bowden said.
Bowden put the blame where it belonged.
“The fact that our officials made a mistake and their officials made the same mistake — and they were reviewing everything — shame on the officials for doing that,” he said.
Special honor
Senior wide receiver JoJo Natson was named MAC East Division Specialist of the Week for his performance against the Badgers, which included a 55-yard punt return for a touchdown, the first for the Zips as a team since Domenik Hixon returned a punt 85 yards against Ball State on Oct. 23, 2004.
Kickoff time
The Sept. 24 game against Appalachian State will start at 3:30 p.m. on the American Sports Network/ESPN3.
George M. Thomas can be reached at gmthomas@thebeaconjournal.com.