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Page 10
THE BATTALION
FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 1980
Former All-America Mel Nash
New swim coach talks about Ag futur
e
By JOHN BRASHER
Sports Reporter
Becoming the head swim coach at
Texas A&M was a dream come true
for Mel Nash who accepted the posi
tion last summer.
“Getting the job was the greatest
stroke of luck in my life and I
couldn’t be any happier now,” Nash
said. “I never expected such a great
opportunity so soon in my life.”
An opportunity is exactly what
Nash, 25-year-old, will get at A&M
as he tries to turn Aggieland into a
swimming power.
Nash said, “The Southwest Con
ference is coming up very rapidly in
swimming and A&M is a good place
to build a team. A&M’s located in a
good town, has excellent academics,
it’s a good-size university and has
athletic support.”
Nash, from Monroeville, Pa.,
could almost write a book on swim
ming and diving. It’s been his life
since he was eight years old.
As a full-time swimmer at 15, he
went to the National Junior Olym
pics and won the 100-meter back-
stroke and finished second in the
100-meter butterfly.
While in high school, Nash won
the Pennsylvania state champion
ship in the 100-yard backstroke dur
ing his sophomore, junior and senior
years. He also holds the Pennsylva
nia state record in the 200-meter in
dividual medley with a time of
1:55.8.
During the same three years,
Nash was named the Western Penn
sylvania Swimmer of the Year, an
honor which had not been awarded
to a sophomore during its 44-year
existence.
In 1971, he won the National AAU
Championship and went on to win
the 100-meter backstroke in the Pan
American Games at Cali, Colombia.
Two prestigious honors were
awarded to Nash his senior year in
high school. In 1972, Swimming
World Magazine named him the No.
1 high school swimmer in the nation
and another magazine awarded him
Pennsylvania’s High School Athlete
of the Year.
Nash enrolled at Indiana Univer
sity, which was the No. 1 swimming
school in the country, and estab
lished himself as one of the top swim
mers in the nation.
It was here where he became a
member of the World Aquatic
Championship Swim Team in 1973
and 1975.
Nash was also a member of the
400-meter freestyle relay team
which won the world championship
at Belgrade, Yugoslavia in 1973. Two
years later, he won the bronze medal
in the 100-meter backstroke at Cali,
Colombia.
Nash was the Big Ten Champion
eight times, NCAA All-American 15
times, and swam competitively
against such popular swimmers as
Mark Spitz and John Naber.
Did he ever make it to the Olym
pics? Nash slowly leaned back in his
office chair, laughed and said, “You
hit the sore spot. In 1972, I needed
to finish in eighth place to make the
U.S. Olympic team and I finished
ninth.”
In 1976, Nash was still deter
mined to make the team, but once
again his life-long dream turned into
a nightmare when he failed to qualify
by sixteen-hundredths of a point.
“I think that experience will help
me in my coaching career,” Nash
said, “because that was a goal that
was with me since I was a child and I
didn’t achieve it. Now as a coach, I
want to help as many people get
there as I can.”
The key to his success as a swim
mer was the combination of competi-
Mel Nash, Texas A&M swimming coach and former All-
America, gives instructions to his charges during a recent
workout.
Photo by Lisa Martin
tive drive and talent. He stated, “I
had a God-given talent and the com
petitive drive was instilled in me by
my father.”
After graduating from Indiana
with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in
speech communications, Nash re
mained at his alma mater for a year as
an assistant coach. In 1977 and only
22 years old, he became the swim
ming coach at the University of
Texas at Arlington (UTA), making
him the youngest head coach at a
major university in NCAA history.
Before Nash arrived at UTA, the
team only had one swimmer pre
viously make it to the NCAA Cham
pionships. But it didn’t take Nash
long to turn the program around. “At
the end of my first year at UTA, I
took three people to the National
Championships and also recruited
six high school and junior college All-
Americans. During my second and
final year there, I took five people to
the NCAA Championships and had
one All-American.”
Lack of funds forced UTA to can
cel its swimming program in the
spring of 1979 and Nash admitted he
wasn’t too sure what he was going to
do. “I had heard a lot of good things
about A&M so I did a little research
on it and when I was asked if I would
accept the job, I very gladly said
yes.”
The urge to coach has always been
there, Nash stated, but he shied
away from it in his early college years
because he
was told a
couldn’t make money
saw that the best coaches mad;
big dollars so I went into the
sion with the attitude of be
best.”
what you enjoy no matterwhal;
is offered. “I was offered raanyi
lie relation jobs and could havei
a lot of money but I never
have been happy. By coaching
ming. I’m never bored, let
I’m interested in it and I’m
with it. ”
m
As a coach, Nash is fairly strietj
expects things to be done theij
way and doesn’t stand for bre
the rules and then apologizing I
"College is not four years o(|j|
time. Athletes are getting!
aid through their athletic ahj
and need to sacrifice. They ovj
responsibility to their school,a
and athletic department.”
Nash believes that gettinginJ
sport for fun and notforthecom[<
tive aspect is wrong. “I’m notbl
thirsty but if you get yourbesttii|
and still finish last, how goo
you really feel? You’re still goinj
be dissatisfied, so you have tele
to be competitive.’’
PREGNANCY TESTS
Immediate Appointments
• Confidential Counseling
• Birth Control Information
• Termination of Pregnancy
WEST LOOP CLINIC
622-2170
2909 WEST LOOP SOUTH
HOUSTON, TEXAS 77027
Track team led by Olympic hopefuls
By STEVE SISNEY
Sports Staff
Lead by seven Olympic hopefuls,
the Texas A&M track team is off to an
early start in the 1980 indoor track
season which will climax Feb. 15 at
the Southwest Conference Cham
pionship in Fort Worth.
National qualifiers will head to
Detroit, Michigan, for the NCAA
Championships to be held March 14-
15.
Aggie thinclads who have thus far
qualified for the national meet are
Curtis Dickey in the 60 yard dash.
Mike Glaspie in the 60 yard high
hurdles, Leslie Kerr in the 440 yard
dash, Randy Hall in the pole vault,
and Jim Howard in the high jump.
These five, along with quartermil-
ers Steve Willis and Vernon Pitt
man, all hold an excellent chance of
being able to compete at the U.S.
Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon
June 21-29.
“We have a good team this year,”
believes Head Track Coach Charlie
Thomas. “We hope to win the South
west Conference Championship but
we don’t have any really good dis
tance runners,” he admits.
Indoor meets are geared around
middle-distance races, an area in
which the Aggies are severely lack
ing after losing three half-milers to
graduation last spring.
Thomas predicts a third or fourth
place finish for the Aggie tracksters.
Houston, Texas, and Arkansas will
be the main contenders for the SWC
TIRED OF WORKING
YOUR WAY THROUGH COLLEGE?
WOULD YOU LIKE TO EARN UP TO $8500 IN
YOUR
LAST 12 MONTHS OF COLLEGE?
JUNIORS SENIORS GRADS
If you have calculus through integrals and one year of phy
sics, you may qualify to earn over $8500 for your last 12
months in college plus a year of training in the nuclear power
field. Contact the Nuclear Programs Manager at (713) 224-
1756 collect or write to:
NUCLEAR PROGRAMS MANAGER
Melrose Bldg., 9th floor
1121 Walker St.
Houston, Texas 77002
U.S. Citizens Only Equal Opportunity Employer
crown.
A&M figures to be able to score
high in the field events, sprints, hur
dles, and relays, events where they
have traditionally been strong.
Both Thomas and Assistant Head
Coach Ted Nelson agree that, “We
have several extremely good
athletes, but we don’t have a lot of
depth.”
Heading the Aggie speedsters will
be Dickey, a world-class sprinter
and anchor-man of the 400 meter
sprint relay team.
Joining Dickey on the sprint relay
team, which captured first at last
years conference meet, will be Wil
lis, Kerr, and possibly either Pitt
man or Mike Mosley.
Mosley’s track future is uncertain
at this time due to conflicts with his
football schedule. At the conference
meet last season, he was able to place
in both the long jump and 110 meter
hurdles.
Kerr, Willis, and Pittman should
be the toughest trio in the confer
ence in the 400 meters as Kerr and
Willis finished one-two in the con
ference last year, and Pittman is pre
dicted to have a strong season.
All three are members of the 1,600
meter relay team that finished third
in the conference last year and are
together again this year on the team
that ranks as favorite.
Expected high point scorers in the
field events will be the experienced
Randy Hall, Tim Scott, and James
Howard.
Hall, the current SWC outdoor
pole vault champion, has already
made a strong showing this season.
Scott, the premier weightman for
the Aggies, is a favorite in the discus
at any meet he attends. He picked
up points in both the shot put and
discus at the conference meet last
year.
Howard, the returning high jump
champ, will be out forthenestfiil
six weeks following an ankle in
a meet last weekend. Other I
standing Aggie high jumpers kI
Chuck Perry and Mike Glaspie |
Freshmen football standout)*
ny Hector shows promise in the J
jump, and Mike Newsomshdel
the Ag s best javelin thrower. I
Things look bleak for Texas Ail
in the 10,000 meter run, triple]!!!
and steeplechase, three events
cently added to the SWC slate,
cause, according to Coach Thoi
“We just don’t have any one inti
events yet.”
He added, “Because of I
scholarship limit imposed by I
NCAA, you can’t be strong eve|
where. You just have togowith*!
you have.”
The Aggies have two moreii
meets before the championship!
Ft. Worth. The outdoor season if
gins February 23 at Rice Univri
At last years SWC outdoorti
and field championship, Texas.Ail
took second with 96 points bea
the University of Texas whofinsll
with 110. The University of Hons*
placed third. P— :
Fort
STEAK HOUSE 4:
A UNIQUE EXPERIENCE IN GOOD FOOD, FUN
AND FRIENDS.
2528 S. Texas College Station
The Longest
Happy Hour
in Town
(3 till 7)
When you take over the controls of an airplane and fly it,
you’ll discover a great big difference in your life. Everything
will look different and you’ll feel different, too. If you’d like
to do something that everyone else isn’t doing, take our
Discovery Flight. It’ll only cost you $10.00 and you’ll
actually fly an airplane under the guidance of a professional
Cessna Pilot Center Flight Instructor.
And ask the folks at Brazos Aviation about receiving college credit for
completion of their course.
Drinks two for the price of one
Ladies bring this coupon
good for one free drink
courtesy of
The Ultimate
Peace Lutheran
Church
Meets weekly in the A&M Con
solidated School Cafeteria. (En
ter off Welch Street)
STUDY 9:30
WORSHIP 10:45
Stan Sultemeier
693-1047
ittee
A fellowship of believers that strives to bring people into touch with
one another, themselves and God.
Eddie Dominguez {I
Joe Arciniega 74
WANTED:
lends a Dand
1.
BROTHERS
JT'
Were looking for brothers, not just ac
quaintances; not just a gang to party with,
but a group to which you’ll have strong
ties and from which lifetime friendships
will grow.
Lambda Chi Alpha...
.. . honest friendship
Jim Hepburn - President, 696-0013
Steve Fant - Treasurer, 693-3961
prts
;end
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Disco Extravaganza
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PHOT CENTER
NOW’S THE TIME TO 00 IT!
BRAZOS AVIATION
Easterwood Airport
696-8767
Across from Campus
in Skaggs Shopping Center
TECHNOLOGY: TOOL OR TYRANT?
Selection for A&M delegates to the
Conference held on Feb. 13th to 16th begins
On Mon. January 28th thru Feb. 1st
Now accepting applications for interviews
At Rm. 221 MSC; Directors Office
M
S
c
BE ONE OF 25 TEXAS A&M STUDENTS WHO WILL JOIN OVER 150 STUDENTS FROM ACROSS NORTH AMERICA
IN DISCUSSING THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY IN OUR SOCIETY.