Who Will Win Akron’s “Offensive Coordinator of the Game” Contest? Everything You Need to Know Ahead of Today’s Winner Reveal

Dylan Wilkerson Sports Betting Expert

3 minute read

The University of Akron has spent the past three weeks watching an idea nobody expected to work turn into a national phenomenon. On Aug. 4, Akron Athletics announced a first-of-its-kind fan promotion called "Offensive Coordinator of the Game," giving one lucky season-ticket holder the chance to help head coach Joe Moorhead script the opening drive of the Zips' 2026 home opener against Robert Morris on Sept. 12. Today, Aug. 25, the university says it will finally reveal who that person is.

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How The Contest Works

The mechanics are simple. Every current Akron season-ticket holder was automatically entered into a random drawing. Fans could boost their odds by referring new season-ticket holders — each successful referral earned the referrer additional entries into the pool. A winner was then drawn at random on Aug. 19 from all eligible entrants, though Akron didn't reveal the name publicly right away. Instead, athletic director Andrew T. Goodrich announced a group of finalists first, with the actual winner's identity held back until today's announcement.

To keep the process legitimate, Akron's College of Business — Department of Accounting handled the balloting and selection to ensure a randomized outcome. As Goodrich put it at the finalists' news conference, "To the best of our knowledge, this has never been done before... I anticipate a lot of copycats. And you know what? We're not mad about it."

The prize itself comes with one important caveat. Fine print on Akron's original promotional graphic makes clear the winner won't be calling plays solo — they'll be doing it "with the head coach, of course." The disclaimer read: "This hasn't been done before but we're not crazy."

Why it Blew Up Nationally

The tweet announcing the promotion racked up more than 23 million views, and the ripple effects went well beyond social media buzz. According to Akron, the contest has driven the school's stadium suites to sell out for the first time ever and produced a record number of new season-ticket sign-ups. Moorhead even appeared on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Aug. 6 to talk about it, and the promotion pulled in a wave of media-world buy-in — Pat McAfee and Jon Gruden were among the sports-media personalities who said they'd bought Akron season tickets specifically to get an entry. Barstool Sports' Dan "Big Cat" Katz reportedly went even further, purchasing eight Akron season tickets, while radio host Bobby Bones and college hoops analyst Dan Dakich also bought in.

Moorhead has plenty of playcalling pedigree to make the collaboration credible. He's Akron's primary offensive playcaller, having called plays for 14 of the previous 15 seasons before taking the Zips job — including two years at Oregon and a stint as Penn State's offensive coordinator during Saquon Barkley's time there. He also called plays for Akron back in 2005, the year the program won its conference title and made its first bowl appearance. Notably, Akron doesn't currently employ an assistant with the official "offensive coordinator" title — Moorhead handles those duties himself, which made the promotion's premise even more fitting.

The 9 finalists

Akron held a news conference on Aug. 19 at House Three Thirty in Akron to reveal the finalists, announced in this order:

1. Brandon Wigen – Bellevue, Nebraska
2. Dan "Big Cat" Katz – Barstool Sports personality
3. Jack Rooney – Long Island, New York
4. James Bordeaux – Kentucky (a popular YouTuber/streamer known for College Football 27 content)
5. Martin Alan Whims II – Akron, Ohio (former UA student and longtime Zips season-ticket holder)
6. Mike Beck Jr. – longtime Zips season-ticket holder
7. Sean Struncius – originally of Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey, now based in Kansas City, Missouri
8. Steve Moyer – 1989 UA graduate and longtime Zips season-ticket holder
9. Tim Sharfman – Austin, Texas

Interestingly, a 10th candidate was reportedly drawn but ultimately withdrew from the contest, according to the university — bringing the final group down to nine.

What's Next

Akron says the winner has already been selected via the random drawing but is being formally announced today, Tuesday, Aug. 25. Whoever it is will meet with Moorhead ahead of the home opener to help put together the script for the Zips' opening offensive series against Robert Morris on Sept. 12 at 3:30 p.m.

Before that, Akron opens its season on the road against Wake Forest on Thursday, Sept. 3. But for Zips fans — and apparently a good chunk of the sports-media world — the bigger story right now is finding out which of these nine finalists gets to stand next to Joe Moorhead and call the first play of Akron's season at home.

Dylan Wilkerson

Dylan Wilkerson has over 5 years of experience reporting and analyzing the sports betting industry for various sites. His portfolio includes work for SportsHandle and Action Network, in addition to VegasInsider. His favorite sports are the NFL, College Football, The PGA Tour, the LIV Tour, and Cricket. Dylan has a broad and deep understanding of various sports-related topics. More from Dylan Wilkerson