CONTENTS n n n - of College Football Games

The Un i v e r s i T y of Ak r o n • 2008 fo o T b A l l Me d i A GU i d e
COACHES AND STAFF
Don sm i t h
Student Assistant
Fifth Season
Don Smith is in his fifth season as student
assistant coach on J.D. Brookhart’s staff, lending
a hand with various administrative and
coaching duties. Specifically, Smith helps with
the defensive staff, coordinates the defensive
scout team unit and works with Brookhart on
the special teams.
Boasting one of the more diverse resumes
on the UA staff, Smith served in the United States Marine Corps from
1988-92 as a reconnaissance marine and was stationed in Honolulu. He
kept up on his football game during that time, serving as defensive captain
for the San Diego MCRD team at Camp Pendleton.
Smith’s athletic endeavors stretch far beyond the gridiron, though. He
was a Quick Silver sponsored surfer from 1989-99, a member of the U.S.
kayak team from 1997-98 and a world champion outrigger canoe champion
in 1997.
He coached kayaking at Honolulu’s Pac-Five High School from 1995-99.
Smith has also worked as a construction supervisor in Honolulu and Ohio.
He is pursuing a bachelor of arts degree in secondary education from
Akron and did an internship with the NFL during the summer of 2005.
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tim Ca m p B e l l
Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach
kev i n o’Co n n o r
Head Eqipment Manager
she r r y Bu t l e r
Administrative Assistant
luk e ge t s y
Student Assistant
First Season
Former Akron quarterback great Luke Getsy,
who set or tied 24 UA records in just 25 games
under center (2005-06), returned to Akron midway
through the 2007 fall campaign.
Getsy led the Zips to the 2005 Mid-American
Championship, throwing a school-record 23
touchdowns that season. He threw for 3,455
yards, second-best on the UA single-season
chart, and completed a UA record 278 passes. In 2006, Getsy threw for
2,662 yards, fourth on the UA single-season list, and ended his career with
6,117 — third-best all time in Akron history.
Getsy, a standout student while at Akron, signed as a free agent with the
San Francisco 49ers and lasted until the final cut prior to the 2007 season.
He is a 2007 graduate of The University of Akron.
Akron’s 66th and Final Season at the Rubber Bowl
Jar e D Ce C C h e t t i
Student Assistant
First Season
Jared Cecchetti is in his first season as an
Akron student assistant, spending the last four
years (2004-07) as a defensive lineman for the
Zips.
As a senior, Cecchetti missed the first three
games with an injury but still recorded 32 tackles,
while ranking second on the squad with
3.5 sacks and five tackles for loss. In 2006, the
Kane, Pa., native started all 12 games and talllied 39 tackles. Cecchetti
played in 12 games in UA’s 2005 championship season, starting the Zips’
48-42 overtime win over Northern Illinois.
kri s ka s p a r e k
Student Assistant
First Season
After grauating from The University of Akron
in the spring of 2007, Kris Kasparek, threeyear
starter at tight end, begins his first season
working with the Zips’ coaching staff.
A native of New Brighton, Pa., Kasparek is
one of six Zips to have played in a school-record
48 games over a career (2004-07). He will
also go down as one of the best blocking tight
ends in UA history.
As a senior (2007), Kasperek had seven receptions for 79 yards and,
other than Jabari Arthur with 10, was the only UA player with more than
one touchdown reception. As a junior, he caught 12 passes for 152 yards.
During the Zips’ championship season of 2005, Kasparek caught 27 passes
for 312 yards.