Joe Moorhead aiming to lead Akron football back to relevance

Can the Akron football offense take another step forward?

The offense was not explosive last season, but it kept the defense on the sidelines and scored a good number of points in the MAC. Joe Moorhead and the offensive staff love that they have good to great options at quarterback. Demarcus Irons Jr. and Jeff Undercuffler both played and had success in 2022.

Last season’s leading rusher Cam Wiley left via the transfer portal, but the Zips acquired an interesting player via the portal. Florida transfer Lorenzo Lingard was a much-ballyhooed recruit from Florida who had injury issues that kept him from playing. If Lingard can be 75 percent of what he was supposed to be as a prospect, the Zips might have one of the best backs in the MAC.

Lingard won’t have to do it by himself. Arizona transfer Drake Anderson provides some punch from the backfield. Anderson had a solid season at Northwestern in 2019 before transferring to Tuscon. He, like Lingard, has been beset by injuries.

Neither Lingard nor Anderson has to carry the load singularly. Irons and Undercuffler run well from the quarterback position, a staple of Moorhead’s offense — two of its three leading receivers from 2022 return to lead a formidable receiver room.

Where Akron has to get better is the offensive line. Akron was 130th in the nation in sacks allowed, and the running game averaged under 90 yards per game.