 Huggins would lead the Zips to the 1989 NIT before leaving Akron after the season to coach at Cincinnati.Akron would rejoin the Mid-Continent Conference in 1990 and compete for two seasons before officially beginning play in the Mid-American Conference in 1992.The Zips struggled early on as members of the MAC including a disastrous 0–18 MAC season in 1995–1996 which saw the Zips finish the season 3–23 overall on a 21-game losing streak after a 3–1 start.