Page 10
THE BATTALION
WEDNESDAY, JULY 22, 1981
SWC football coming soon
Late July means several
things to many people. That
long-awaited vacation.
Weekends in the sun — or
weekends at home. But, for
many people around the south
west it means just one thing —
Football.
The 1981 Southwest Confer
ence football season is just
around the comer. Schools
around the conference are gear
ing up for what promises to be
one of the most exciting races in
recent memory.
Everywhere you look you see
the signs of fall. Newspapers
and magazines everywhere are
hill of stories and information
about the upcoming season.
Sports magazines have already
come out with their predictions
of who will win and who will
lose.
The two biggest and,
perhaps, the most respected
sports publications in the state
have released their predictions
for the 1981 SWC race and both
have interesting results.
Texas Football picks Texas to
win the SWC championship
this year. Houston is rated as
number two, followed by SMU
(3), Baylor (4), Arkansas (5),
Texas A&M (6), TCU (7), Texas
Extra Points
by Ritchie Priddy
Tech (8), and Rice (9).
Texas Sports has the order a
bit different. SMU is picked as
the number one team followed
by Texas (2), Arkansas (3),
Houston (4), Baylor (5), TCU
(6), Texas Tech (7) Texas A&M
(8) and Rice (9).
The Aggies, though rated
low, have 48 returning letter-
man — more than any other
team in the league. SMU has 43
letterman returning. Texas and
Rice each have 37, Baylor and
Arkansas 36, TCU 35, Tech 34
and Houston with 25.
The 1981 Texas Aggies also
feature, perhaps, one of the
most experienced teams return
ing this fall. Though young,
sophomores and juniors pre
dominantly, they have had to
step in early in their careers and
fill some pretty big holes.
With all of this talent and ex
perience why are the Aggies
picked so low? My guess is be
cause of the problems encoun
tered last year. The pressure on
Tom Wilson may have some
thing to do with it. But talking
with him Monday that pressure
seems to have made him try that
much harder to field the win
ning team that has eluded him
the past two years.
Another reason for the low
rating for the Aggies, and prob
ably the most sound reason,
may be the fact that the confer
ence is so evenly matched.
Every team has an arsenal of
talent — the scholarship limit
sees to that (only the best
athletes are given scholarships).
This year that talent seems to be
even more evenly matched than
in years past.
Despite the reason for the
low rating, Wilson is excited ab
out the 1981 Aggies and he has
every right to be. The team is
different this year, from the
offensive formation to the atti
tude of the players. Things have
changed. So much, in fact, that
everybody is looking forward to
the September 6 kickoff against
Cal-Berkeley.
Wilson’s not worried about
being picked to finish in the
lower half of the conference.
“That could be a blessing in
disguise (being picked so low),”
he said. “I don’t know that all of
the sportswriters know how to
pick the football teams. I would
say, though, that if I we re on
the outside looking in, not
knowing the things that I do ab
out our program, I would prob
ably pick us in the same area.
“We haven’t done anything
exciting in the last two years.
We’ve had some big wins, but,
overall we have not had the
great football team,” he said.
“Our program has not been
something a lot of people can
get excited about.”
Whatever the reason for the
low pick Wilson is excited about
the season. There’s something
fishy about that excitement,
too. How can a man that has
been through two straight los
ing seasons be excited about
being picked to have a third?
Who knows the answer to
that question, but one thing is
for sure — his excitement is
contagious.
TANK MCNAMARA
by Jeff Millar & Bill Hindi
715- IT FAIR imr A BAe^BAU- PlAYH? N
Ger& 4400,000 for playiuo games
AMP A CANCER RE4GARD4ER GETS
$ 15.000 FOR SOMETiAlMO fMAT
REALLY COUNTS 7
Francis calls it
Dooley realizes it could be tough
to repeat as national champs
United Press International
NEW YORK — Vince Dooley
has had his time in the sun. Now
that he’s back in the shade, and
had tiinp, to reflect on it, he real
izes winning isn’t everything —
unless you can keep doing it over
and over.
Here’s a man who did it all only
Six months ago, achieving what
nobody else ever did by guiding
the Georgia Bulldogs to their first
national college football cham
pionship in 89 years.
His team won all 11 of its regu
lar season games, then made
Notre Dame its 12th straight vic
tim in the Sugar Bowl to emerge
No. 1 not only in the country but
in the entire universe.
Now, with a brand new season
approaching, he’s getting some
heart-warming messages from
Georgia’s overanxious alumni.
Messages like: “Gee, that was a
lotta fun ”. “How come we never
did it before?”. “Let’s do it again. ”
Dooley is beginning his 18th
year as head coach of the Bulldogs
and he knows all about human na
ture. Give people a winner, and
they look for you to do it again. Do
it again, and they accept it almost
as a matter of course.
“It could be a difficult year, ” he
says. “Anything less than winning
every game won’t be good
enough.”
The Bulldogs, with Herschel
Walker, their All-America fresh
man tailback, leading them, came
very close to being the perfect
football team last season. Howev
er, even with Walker back and a
more experienced Buck Belue re
turning at quarterback, they
might not be quite as good this
season as they were last. Dooley
was given some advance notice of
that upon greeting his players the
first day of spring practice.
Absent were seven of Georgia’s
defensive players from last season
and six players from the offensive
unit. Plus the team’s two regular
kickers. They all had graduated.
Dooley talked about those holes
that will have to be filled while he
was here to address more than 50
of the nation’s top high-school
athletes named winners of the
Hertz No. 1 awards. Walker and
Belue both won those awards
while they were still in high
school, although Walker received
his for his outstanding perform
ance in track rather than football.
O.J. Simpson also spoke to the
youngsters during a special panel
discussion Wednesday and when
Dooley was introduced to them,
he talked about the importance of
preparing themselves for when
their athletic careers would be
over.
He talked pretty much the same
way to Herschel Walker earlier
this year when the Montreal
Alouettes of the Canadian Foot
ball League came around waving a
contract for what was said to be as
much as $750,000 in front of him.
You can tell how much Dooley
thinks of Walker by the way he
speaks of him.
“He, as much as anyone else I
can think of, represents the role
model of someone preparing him
self for that time when his athletic
career is done,” Dooley says.
“O.J. Simpson is an excellent ex
ample of a player who did the
same thing. Herschel is a serious
student.”
fore last season started, he didn’t
foresee the Bulldogs going
through the whole season undefe
ated. His wife, Barbara, did,
though.
“For some reason or other, she
had total confidence we would win
every game,” he says, smiling.
This season, though, the Bull
dogs will simply be the defending
champions.
United Press International
FOXBORO, Mass. — Last year
the New England Patriots had two
experienced, talented tight ends
to help take the pressure off their
running game. Now, with sum
mer training camp just beginning,
they have none.
Russ Francis, 28, the three
time All-Pro who developed a
reputation as one of the best all-
around tight ends in the NFL,
shocked the Patriots by announc
ing his retirement Tuesday for
personal reasons.
“I’ve given this a lot of thought
in the last few months,” Francis
said in a radio interview. “A career
change is not something one does
overnight. All I can say right now
is that I am retiring because of
personal reasons. Beyond that, I
can’t go into it at this point.”
Francis at times perturbed Pat
riots officials with his penchant for
dangerous hobbies such as sky di
ving, motorcycling and shooting
rapids.
The retirement leaves the Pat
riots, considered a strong conten
der in the AFC Eastern Division,
without a veteran tight end under
contract. Second-stringer Don
Hasselbeck is unsigned, along
with several other veterans. Only
one rookie in training camp at
Smithfield, R.I., is a tight end.
Patriots’ spokesman Tom Hoff
man said Francis and most other
veterans are not due to report un
til 5 p.m. Friday.
Head Coach Ron Erhardt, who
talked with Francis at his Wren-
tham home early Tuesday, appa
rently could not talk him out of
retiring.
“We are in complete shock of
something like this happening due
to the fact training camp has just
opened, said Patriots’ President
William Sullivan.
“We find the timing of this to be
very inconsistent with Russ Fran
cis’ character, since in the past he
has shown to be very considerate
of the Patriots’ management and
his teammates,” he said.
“It’s going to be very difficult,
the Hawaiian-born Francis said in
a telephone interview with a Hon
olulu radio station. “It entails a lot
of emotion. It’s been fun. It’s been
a good game. I’m going to miss it . ’’
Francis has a year remaining on
his present con tract an d said he
was not using the retirement deci
sion as a means of getting a re
negotiated contract.
He also discounted reports that
he had sought — and was denied
— a trade to a West Coast team so
he could be closer to hisImb
said his many injuries were if I
factor. , ’
B
A remarkable altv
athlete, Francis was drafted
pitcher by the Kansas Cityfo
during the 1974 baseball If you’d
He consistently has score! ardrobe
the nationally televised me tim
stars sports competition rganizat:
Francis’ best NFL season.is a sug£
1979, with 39 receptions and That c
yards llis statistics were yodays i
spectacular j . jar Kud<
TD catches and 500 yard id 5 p.n
ccptions per year. Buth Jes wills
excellent blocker who wa- ruction c
tently double-teamed, ociety’s i
New England receivers h Chris C
Morgan and Harold ]a ith the 1
have 1, (XX)-vard seasons.
Francis agent. Kennel
kin, said, “It was a diffiei
sion and he wants the fans
England to know he app
all the support they are
him.”
lirts fea
lyings —
30,’ as v
T-shirt ]
id $6 foi
“There
:r said.
She exp
i faculty
ic Veter
k 'The or
BEGINNING
JUDO CLASSES
Monday thru Friday
5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Room 260
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ent Ceni
Before Walker met with Mon
treal officials to listen to what they
had to say, Dooley met with him
to point out some things he felt he
should know.
“I merely warned him about the
NCAA rules, the fact he could not
accept anything from Montreal
without jeopardizing his college
career,” Dooley explains. “He
assured me he understood the
rules.”
Women are encouraged to attend
Fee is $5 for the Summer
For information call 693-9476 or 846-15
After Walker came to his deci
sion, he visited with Dooley in the
coach’s office at Athens, Ga.,
again.
“Coach, I was born in this coun
try and I see no reason to leave it
to make a living,” he said. “The
college experience is important to
me. I’m staying.”
“You made the decision I
thought you’d make,” Dooley
said.
Dooley honestly admits that be-
cBfcwtj&y-fl
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Day students get their news from the Batt.
Oddsmaker
picks teams
for game
United Press International
LAS VEGAS, Nev. —
Oddsmaker Bob Martin has pick-
; ed the Atlanta Falcons and the San
Diego Chargers as co-favorites to
reach Super Bowl XVI in January
1982.
Martin has given 4-1 odds on
the two squads making it to the
championship game, slightly
ahead of Philadelphia, rated at 5-
1.
The Dallas Cowboys, Los
Angeles Rams and Oakland Raid
ers were picked at 6-1, followed by
Cleveland Browns, 7-1; New Eng
land Patriots and Buffalo Bills, 8-1;
Pittsburgh Steelers and Houston
Oilers, 9-1.
Others attempting to reach the
Super Bowl and their odds, were:
Minnesota Vikings, Chicago
Bears, Detroit Lions, 20-1; Tampa
Bay Buccaneers, Denver Bron
cos, Baltimore Colts, Miami Dol
phins, 25-1; New York Jets, 30-1
and Washington Redskins, 40-1.
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