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Tough again in 1975
THE BATTALION
WEDNESDAY, JULY 9, 1975
Page 9
Defense is key to A&M’s success
By MIKE BRUTON
Sports Editor
If you wanted to strike up an in
spiring conversation with any Texas
A&M football coach, mention the
Aggie defense.
They’ll all agree that defense has
played an integral part in the recent
success of the A&M football prog
ram. And Melvin Robertson, assis
tant head coach and defensive coor
dinator for the Aggies, said this
year s eleven should be better than
f the national runner-up unit of1974.
With starters returning, includ-
ing two All-Americans, and 17 let-
I termen, the foundation to supre
macy is already laid for the Maroon
defense. Many have questioned the
overall depth of A&M’s anti
offense-device, but there is ample
talent that should develop into a
solid unit.
Most Aggie opponents point first
to the front four when speaking of
| i lack of depth in the A&M defense,
i. But a coach has to go with his star-
■ ters first and the Aggies have four
men that most coaches would be
glad to have.
Add 30 pounds to Blake Schwarz,
Edgar Fields, Tank Marshall and
Jimmy Dean and you get a half-a-
ton wall of muscle. All are excellent
pass rushers and runners beware,
because there won’t be many places
to run.
It is true that there’s no proven
depth in the A&M defensive line,
but sophomores Richard Frey and
Steve Spitzenberger, along with in
coming freshman Johnnie Donahue
have enormous potential for an ade
quate bench.
All-American Ed Simonini heads
a fine group of Aggie linebackers
who will assist the front four in
thwarting enemy offensive assaults.
At the other outside post will be
Garth Ten Napel, the Ags leading
tackier last season, who has a habit
of robbing opponents of the ball.
Transfer Robert Jackson and let-
terman Grady Wilkerson produce
plenty of thunder at the middle
linebacker spot.
The key to having a solid 4-3 de
fense is having linebackers with the
ability to coordinate with the line
and the secondary in any situation to
take away any advantage the offen
sive unit might have.
The A&M linebacking unit boasts
quickness, strength, aggressiveness
and mental alertness. There’s ade
quate size in the middle with Jack-
son (229) and Wilkerson (224).
Simonini and Ten Napel aren’t con
sidered large for outside backers,
but both play with such intensity
that their size is inconsequential.
Underneath, Jesse Hunnicutt
will be the biggest help to the out
side linebackers, as he had a super
spring. Sophomores Kevin Monk
and Phil Bennett should also see
considerable action.
It is a common tendency for an
offensive football team to go to the
air to try and weaken a strong de
fense. That strategy could prove de
trimental when dealing with A&M’s
talented defensive backfield.
Everybody’s All-American Pat
Thomas will lurk in the minds of
opposing quarterbacks when they
let the pigskin fly. Thomas is the
kind of athlete that demands re
spect, because he has the talent to
turn a game completely around if
ignored.
Joining Thomas in the secondary
will be Willie Thompson at the
other cornerback and safeties Jackie
Williams and Lester Hayes. Sharing
the strong safety spot with Hayes is
Reggie Williams, who was the star-
-ter until an injury slowed him in the
spring.
Robertson says he plans to do
more things with the secondary in
the 1975 season, because he has a
wider range of talent to work with.
Hayes and Thomas both are excel
lent blitzers and Jackie Williams di
rects traffic well enough to compen
sate for any weaknesses created by
blitzing.
Versatility is the factor that will
enable the Aggie defense to main
tain their high standard of perfor
mance.
Players like Hunnicutt and
Hayes, who can step in and play two
positions, are like having a couple of
extra men. Hunnicutt saw action as
a linebacker and defensive end last
season, with Hayes having played
linebacker for the past two seasons
before being moved to strong safety
in the spring.
Versatility in having different
types of football players should also
prove to be an asset to the 1975
Aggie defense. The reckless play of
Thomas and Simonini sets a pace for J
the entire unit, while Ten Napel’s
ball-hawking ability results in tur
novers for the offensive foe. Fields
Dean and both middle linebackers
Jackson and Wilkerson produce the
physical deterrent, with thinkers
like Jackie Williams and Schwarz
adding stability.
The way things are shaping up,
I’d urge everyone to make a special
effort to read your programs next fall
to learn the names of the defensive
personnel, because they’ll probably
be on the field so little that you may
never know them otherwise.
Tom Pucci gets job
Arkansas names new
head tennis instructor
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Tom
Pucci has been named as the new
head tennis coach at the University
of Arkansas, Athletic Director
Frank Broyles has announced.
Pucci comes to the Razorback ath
letic program from the University of
New Mexico, where he guided the
Lobos to their best season in a de
cade (18-8) in his first year as a col
lege head coach last spring.
Pucci, 27, was born in Sac
ramento, Calif., where he received
his BA degree in physical education
from Sacramento State in 1969. He
also holds a MA degree from the
University of Pacific and a PhD in
physical education from the Univer
sity of New Mexico.
In addition to his coaching duties,
Pucci will be an assistant professor
2iif£
7 *’■*&&*.
Typical Aggie defense; Pat Thomas (28) destroys blocker as Garth Ten Napel (71) destroys ball carrier.
Why is this family
having fun on a
Wednesday?
Kentucky Fried Chicken presents
the Mid-Week Picnic Break
You don’t have to wait for the weekend to have fun. You can turn any day
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110 Dominik Drive, College Station
3320 Texas Avenue, Bryan
of physical education. He replaces
Jeff Cook, who resigned recently to
accept a position with a tennis club
in Pennsylvania.
“This is a step up for me
there is a big challenge here,” Pucci
says. “It is an honor to be associated
with such a fine athletic program.
Pucci is single, and will be mov
ing to Fayetteville in the next few
weeks.
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