Monday, August 29,1983/The Battalion/Page 5BX on-conference opponents have Aggies worried AScM scheduled to play Cowboys, Indians and Golden Bears . m - . 17 California head coach Joe Kapp is hoping Golden Bear quarterback Gale Gilbert can reach his potential in ’83. lam tyer nprove, “d \ with hod I Now, the coadf on _ are responil ob.” jram he hasii«| three cycles- spring progn | conditioning I with high tell I les and joints! I >nsists ofheil id is for sti peaking pi Opponent Quick Facts California Nickname — Golden Bears Conference — Pac-10 1982 record — 7-4 Arkansas State Nickname — Indians Conference — Southland 1982 record — 5-6 Oklahoma State Nickname — Cowboys Conference — Big 8 1982 record — 4-5-2 one or twon by John Wagner Sports Editor Of all the lessons learned by Texas Aggie football players last season, perhaps the most impor tant was taught by a young soph omore from Natick, Mass. To be sure,, head coach Jackie Sherrill and his staff spent the season drilling the squad in both fundamentals and flashiness, but neither had as much impact as the 60 minutes of football magic Boston College quarter back Doug Flutie displayed in the Aggies’ opening game. Flutie completed 18 of 26 passes for 346 yards and three touchdowns, leading the Eagles to a stunning 38-16 upset vic tory. The apparent ease in which Flutie moved the Eagles’ offense left the crowd of 55,177 — not to mention the Aggies themselves — with a severe case of defensive doubt. But this is not a story without a moral. If the Aggies learned anything in 1982, it is not to take any opponent lightly. In the case of Boston College, the Aggies thought nothing could spoil Sherrill’s nationally televised de but as A&M’s head man. Flutie showed them the error of such thoughts. A&M players vow not to be so foolish when they host the Cali fornia Golden Bears Saturday — the first of three non conference games. It is not easy to forget the harsh lessons of yesterday, but don’t count on the Aggies making it to South west Conference play without a blemish in the loss column. In fact, despite what appears (on paper) to be a throw-away game in Arkansas State, this may turn into one of the toughest non- \ conference schedules the Aggies have ever played. On the surface, there might be reason for the Aggies to take a light-hearted approach to the non-conference portion of the season. A&M’s non-conference opponents combined for a 16- 15-2 record in 1982, and only Cal finished the year with a win ning record (the Golden Bears went 7-4). But looking deeper, it’s easy to see why California and Okla homa State, and to a lesser ex tent, Arkansas State, have the Aggies worried. All three schools have talented offensive personnel returning, a fact that could translate into long even ings for the A&M defense. vhich W'illia it takes a li h the cycle f nusts e is to get e ed about thep® ill be houst SHOW YOUR FOLKS HOW SMART YOU ARE core board q held, it will be | I be somethini tdmire. e about fourti lliamssaid.' le recruiting ased 1 3ting Foods Plus Tat to 7:00 PI Steak ; and "*S.. ECIAL fENING ' DINNf : SAVE ON LONG DISTANCE CALLS Save Up To 20 To 50% For More Information CALL STAR TEL ■ Bullet’ of any CALL 779-2(30 1313 Briarcrest Drive, Bryan, Texas To begin with, the Aggies have to be concerned about Cal’s Gale Gilbert, a 6-3 junior quar terback with two years of playing experience. Gilbert hit 54 per cent of his passes in 1982 en route to 1,796 yards and 12 touchdowns. Shades of Doug Flutie? Maybe so. Cal coach Joe Kapp says Gil bert is a winner. “There’s nobody better in the Pac-10,” says Kapp. “Gale was a solid quarterback last year, but he has matured now and this season he will start to excel.” Gilbert has a favorite target in all-America tight end David Lewis, a 6-4, 240-pounder. Lewis caught 54 passes for 715 yards in ’82, including six for touchdowns. OSU’s Ernest Anderson led ’82 NCAA rushers QB Tim Langford returns to give ASU stable attack Cal’s Gale Gilbert threw 12 TD passes in 1982 But Lewis wasn’t the only Cal player catching Gilbert’s passes last season. With Lewis double- teamed much of time, Cal’s two starting wide receivers caught 77 passes between them. Although both graduated, the Golden Bears should have ade quate replacements in junior Ranee McDougald and senior Andy Bark. The Aggies are aware the Golden Bears won’t hibernate when they hit College Station. And they say they’re just as aware that a win against Cal could be the springboard for a very successful season. A&M defensive end Ray Chil dress says last year’s opening loss to Boston College is on every one’s mind. “I think (the loss) had a defi nite effect on our season. It hurt our confidence, and made us doubt ourselves. “We know California’s gonna be a big part of our season. To be successful, we’re gonna have to beat California.” “Obviously you want to get off to a great start,” says A&M quar terback John Mazur. “Unfor tunately, half the teams in the nation won’t. We’re just gonna have to fight like the dickens to be on the winning side.” The one game A&M may have trouble getting excited ab out is Arkansas State. With Cal out of the way and OSU up next, the Indians may find the Aggies absent from the warpath. That could be a mistake, however, as eight offensive veterans, includ ing the entire offensive line, re turn. Arkansas State may be a small school — its enrollment is a few hundred shy of 8,000 — but it doesn’t always act like one. The Indians are used to being under dogs, considering last season’s road games against Mississippi St. and Alabama. And quarter back Tim Langford, who accounted for 756 yards of total offense out of the Indians’ wish bone attack, is back this year, along with No. 2 quarterback Greg Grant. Indian coach Larry Lacewell explains the situation. “Timmy Langford is a better player than people give him cre dit for, and I won’t be suprised if he has a super season. But we’ll remain a two-quarterback team because of the physical beating quarterbacks take in the wish bone.” Lacewell says he expects Langford and Grant to throw the ball more in 1983. “We haven’t had any trouble running the ball, but we’ve been so predictable that opponents have been able to stack their de fenses against us. 1 “We feel we’ve got to throw the football more to make our running game more effective.” And last (but usually first, be cause of his speed) is Oklahoma State’s Ernest Anderson, the Cowboys’ all-America running back and the NCAA’s 1982 rushing leader with 1,877 yardsi Anderson was so spectacular last season he has a three-page spread in the 1983 Cowboy media guide, all to himself. The man OSU’s linemen call “Ernie” rushed for 200 yards or more in a single game four times last season, and he hit the 1,000- yard mark after the fifth game, only the fourth back in NCAA history to accomplish that feat. “Anytime, any game, any cru cial play ... I can feel confident when Ernest has the ball in his hands,” says Cowboy coach Jim my Johnson. “He has outstand ing balance — that’s his asset as much as anything. He gets knocked around from all angles but never loses his balance. He just doesn’t go down easy.” Gilbert, Langford and Anderson have got to have A&M defensive players praying, especially when you consider the Aggies gave up over 400 yards a game last season. “I’ve heard some very, very good things about Cal and Okla homa State,” says Mazur. “They’re gonna come out and play their butts off, and we’ve got to be ready for them.” If they are, give the Aggies credit for a lesson well learned. And if they’re not — well, just say Doug Flutie tried his best. AwmclI WoM Serving you better with 2 locations Gulp&pp&i Playa astd Mom*, &cuU Mall Mon.-Sat. 10-6 Sunday 1-5 Mon.-Sat. 10-8:00 For those Preppie Pet needs or even Non Preppie Pets, Your One Pet Shop Stop. Test Your Bank I. Q. Check where you can Dash for Cash! 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