Belt Loops: Akron Unveils New White Helmets

We've already seen Akron's Notre Dame-inspired gold chrome helmets the team will be rocking this fall, but per Zips head coach Terry Bowden that's not the only fresh set of lids the team is getting.

You think the gold chrome was sharp...take a look at the white! We will have both helmets this year! #GoZips pic.twitter.com/zXYl2UmnwX

— Terry Bowden (@TerryBowden) July 12, 2014

These new white beauties are nice, even if only because they're not ugly. Granted, I know there's only so much teams in the MAC can do, but sometimes keeping it simple and going with a traditional look is the best. What may seem like a novel idea, can quickly spiral into a Jackson Pollock-esque nightmare. Just ask anyone who had to set in the press box and watch Ohio play in these things.

On the eve of what has been the annual release of NCAA Football, the now-defunct game series still lives on. While there will be no official updates, past features such as conference realignment, the ability to import custom rosters and online play (which is still operational) will allow it to live on for sometime. Ultimately, it is doomed though, as there's no ability to add in the college football playoff.

And finally, Eastern Michigan and the world of college baseball lost a legend on Friday. Ron Oestrike, who coached the Eagles baseball team for 23 years—or how long I've been alive—from 1965-1987, passed away at age 82. Oestrike is a MAC baseball legend. He led the Eagles to a pair of College World Series appearances in his tenure, and oversaw the program's elevation from an NAIA school—where they won a national championship in 1970—to a Division I team. From all of us here at the 'Belt, I'd like to extend our condolences to the Oestrike family.