1968 Akron Zips football team

The 1968 Akron Zips football team represented Akron University in the 1968 NCAA College Division football season as an independent. Led by eighth-year head coach Gordon K. Larson, the Zips played their home games at the Rubber Bowl in Akron, Ohio. They finished the regular season with a record of 7–2–1, ranked No. 17 in the nation, and were invited to play in the Grantland Rice Bowl, functionally the Mideast regional championship game for the NCAA's College Division, against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.^[1]

1968 Akron Zips football
Grantland Rice Bowl, L 13–33 vs. Louisiana Tech
Conference	Independent
Record	7–3–1
Head coach	Gordon K. Larson (8th season)
Captain	Don Zwisler Nate Hagins
Home stadium	Rubber Bowl
Seasons ← 1967 1969 →

1968 NCAA College Division independents football records

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 2 San Diego State			–					9	–	0	–	1
No. 3 Chattanooga			–					9	–	1	–	0
Indiana State			–					9	–	1	–	0
Indiana (PA)			–					9	–	1	–	0
Nevada Southern			–					8	–	1	–	0
UC Riverside			–					7	–	1	–	1
No. 7 Eastern Michigan			–					8	–	2	–	0
Lincoln (MO)			–					8	–	2	–	0
Tennessee State			–					6	–	2	–	1
Hawaii			–					7	–	3	–	0
No. 14 Tampa			–					7	–	3	–	0
No. 17 Akron			–					7	–	3	–	1
Northeastern			–					6	–	3	–	0
Southern Illinois			–					6	–	3	–	0
Cortland			–					5	–	3	–	0
Boston University			–					5	–	3	–	1
Northern Arizona			–					6	–	4	–	0
Pacific (CA)			–					6	–	4	–	0
Samford			–					6	–	4	–	0
Northern Michigan			–					5	–	4	–	0
Parsons			–					5	–	4	–	0
Wheaton (IL)			–					5	–	4	–	0
Drake			–					5	–	5	–	0
UC Santa Barbara			–					4	–	4	–	1
Santa Clara			–					4	–	5	–	0
Portland State			–					4	–	6	–	0
Wayne State (MI)			–					3	–	6	–	0
Wabash			–					3	–	6	–	0
Colorado College			–					2	–	6	–	0
Milwaukee			–					2	–	7	–	0
Lake Forest			–					2	–	8	–	0
Northern Illinois			–					2	–	8	–	0
Mississippi Valley State			–					1	–	7	–	0
UC San Diego			–					0	–	7	–	0
Rose Poly			–					0	–	8	–	0
Cal Poly Pomona			–					0	–	10	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

After their postseason loss, the Zips finished the season 7–3–1, having outscored their opponents 327–172 in total.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 14	at Butler		Butler Bowl Indianapolis, IN	W 32–7	3,800
September 21	Indiana State		Rubber Bowl Akron, OH	W 41–13	43,068
September 28	at Tampa	No. 5	Tampa Stadium Tampa, FL	L 9–24	15,212	^[2]^[3]
October 5	Eastern Michigan	No. T–17	Rubber Bowl Akron, OH	L 7–16	2,051
October 12	at Bradley		Peoria Stadium Peoria, IL	W 27–13	3,000
October 19	at No. 3 Eastern Kentucky		Hanger Field Richmond, KY	W 31–20	12,500
November 2	Illinois State	No. 15	Rubber Bowl Akron, OH	W 46–0	3,500–3,559	^[4]^[5]
November 9	Baldwin–Wallace	No. 15	Rubber Bowl Akron, OH	W 59–19	4,763
November 16	at No. 8 Western Kentucky	No. 15	L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY	T 14–14	7,335–9,000	^[6]^[7]
November 22	at Youngstown State	No. 16	Rayen Stadium Youngstown, OH (Steel Tire)	W 48–13	5,000
December 14	vs. Louisiana Tech	No. 17	Horace Jones Field Murfreesboro, TN (Grantland Rice Bowl)	L 13–33	2,500	^[8]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[9][10]

References

1. McIntyre, Bill (December 15, 1968). "Bradshaw Takes Zip Out of Akron In Frigid Grantland Rice Bowl Tilt". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. Retrieved May 24, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
2. Smith, Bob (September 29, 1968). "McQuay Has the 'Zip' As Spartans Win". The Tampa Tribune. Tampa, Florida. p. 1D. Retrieved December 15, 2021 – via Newspapers.com  .
3. Smith, Bob (September 29, 1968). "Spartans Throttle Akron 24-9 as McQuad Sparkles (continued)". The Tampa Tribune. Tampa, Florida. p. 8D. Retrieved December 15, 2021 – via Newspapers.com  .
4. Bosley, Scott (November 3, 1968). "Zip Homecoming Real Blast!". Akron Beacon-Journal. p. B1. Retrieved October 20, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
6. "Western Ties Akron 14-14". The Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. November 17, 1968. p. C2. Retrieved December 15, 2021 – via Newspapers.com  .
7. "WKU Football 2021 Media Guide" (PDF). Bowling Green, Kentucky: Western Kentucky University. p. 177. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
8. "Louisiana Tech snowballs Akron, 33–13". The Daily News-Journal. December 15, 1968. Retrieved June 27, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
10. "2019 Akron Zips Football Media Guide: Records" (PDF). University of Akron. p. 169. Retrieved May 24, 2020.