Sports-
Wednesday, December 5, 1984/The Battalion/Page 9
Aggies will always
be proven winners
BRANDON BERRY
Sports Writer
Whoosh! The clenched fist
with extended forefinger jutted
Immediately into the sky. The
only thing to rise more quickly
was my pride. We were No. 1.
The year was 1982 and the
event was the Class 5A state bas
ketball championship game. My
high school’s team capped a 87-3
season by bringing home the state
trophy — a testimonial to their
ability, perseverance and hard
work.
More than that, however, the
trophy was tangible proof for ev
eryone to see. Our school was No.
1. We were proven winners.
Since then, those moments for
me have become rare indeed.
Texas A&M has won about as
many Southwest Conference
football championships in the
past three years as there have
been lunar eclipses. Coaches have
come and gone, promises made
and broke and even Reveille has
been retired. Only one thing has
remained constant — the Aggies
have rarely been No. 1.
Oh sure they’ve had their mo
ments, but they never seemed to
keep it going for long. Glorious
victories were always followed by
even more devastating defeats.
And, in between, the Aggies were
always mediocre.
“We’re No. 5 !” just doesn’t
have the same ring to it. Cham
pions just don't come in a plural
form. Yet, on the Ouija board of
SWC athletics, that’s where the
dial always seemed to land for the
Aggies.
But now things are changing.
Not just last Saturday, but
throughout this entire year the
Aggies’ moments have burned
brighter and lasted longer than in
recent seasons.
Texas A&M 37, Texas 12.
What a moment!
Even before 37-12, the Aggies
were big victors on the hardwood
volleyball courts of G. Rollie
White Coliseum. The men’s ten
nis team looks like the best A&M
has ever fielded. Both the men’s
and women’s golf teams have
been nationally ranked and the ^
men’s basketball team can be
competitive against anyone •
So why don’t I feel happier
now that the wins are becoming
more frequent?
Having come from a back
ground of winning, I believed
from the beginning that all of
A&M’s problems could be solved
in the camaraderie and
fellowship of a banner season.
When the Aggies hired Jackie
Sherrill, I told my grandfather
the Board of Regents must have
agreed with me. And to this day,
I’ll never forget his response:
“Son, Aggies will be Aggies.
They’ll be bad losers and even
worse winners, but it won't really
matter. They don’t need to prove
anything.”
Now I’m scared that the com
ing athletic success will make us
forget this legacy of non-proof.
While we lost championships on
the field, we always found them
in the stands.
In fact, sixty thousand students
weaving back and forth sawing
varsity’s horns off just might be
more memorable a few years
down the road than the score of
any game —even 37-12.
I sincerely hope that Texas
A&M becomes synonymous with
athletic glory and conference
championship trophies. But, even
more, I hope that Aggies never
forget our success. Our real suc
cess can’t be counted along with
the wins and losses of any team.
Last Saturday, I finally realized
that we were winners and never
needed to prove it again.
Somewhere, my grandfather
must be smiling.
Metcalf leery of ORU Titans’
‘senior five’ starting lineup
By TONY CORNETT
Spoi ls Writer
If the Texas A&M basketball team
can get Aggie quarterback Craig
Stump to pitch them some of what
ever it was that helped beat Texas
37-12, then they’ll be that much bet
ter off when they take on Oral Rob
erts University tonight in G. Rollie
White Coliseum at 8:08 p.m.
Aggie coach Shelby Metcalf knows
what to expect from Oral Roberts’
“senior five.”
“We’ve got to be very concerned,”
Metcalf said. “If we were playing
well, we’d have to be concerned be
cause you know we’re going to be the
(under)dog tonight. They have an
outstanding ballclub. They’ve lost a
couple of close games, but they were
to Top 20 teams.”
Oral Roberts naturally will send
talented players onto the hard
woods, but their main strength lies
in the team’s overall experience.
‘They’re starting five seniors,”
Metcalf said. “You know if you take
a team that’s been playing together
for four years, they’re going to be a
very polished machine. They put
great pressure on you. Defensively,
they do a good job. They’ve got a
strong bench.”
The Titans have a talented
brother combination. They also hap
pen to be the sons of ORU Coach
Dick Acres. Jeff Acres, a 6-foot-9
forward, and Mark Acres, a 6-foot-
11 center, garnered high praise
from Metcalf.
‘T he two Acres boys are just ex
ceptional players,” Metcalf said.
“The little one, Jeff, is averaging 25
points a game. And Mark was the
second best big-maft we played
against last year to (Houston’s
Akeem) Olajuwon. He’s further
along offensively.”
The Ags have played two games.
Both have been at home. They beat
Stephen F. Austin 79-64 and, to the
surprise of many, lost one to St.
Mary’s 70-66. The Aggies definitely
had a rough night against St. Mary’s,
doing particularly poorly on the de
fensive boards.
“We haven’t been pleased with the
play — period,” Metcalf said. “The
players aren’t pleased. We have to
play with great intensity to be effec
tive and when we do, w'e’re going to
be a good basketball team. I think we
learned that the hard way. I think all
you have to do. is go up there and
write ‘St. Mary’s’ on the board and I
think the whole picture will come
back to the staff and players.”
In spite of the last showing, Met
calf is looking forward to tonight’s
matchup.
“It really is perfect for us from
this standpoint,” Metcalf said. “They
(ORU) are so much like teams in our
conference. Size wise, talent wise, in
tensity wise, they’re a lot like Arkan
sas, Texas Tech and Texas. We’re
going to be giving away sizes. I think
it’s a big challenge. It’ll be good for
us. I’m not foolish enough to think
we’re as far along as they are.”
The Aggies’ probable starters for
tonight’s game are junior Jimmie
Gilbert at center, junior Kenny
Brown at guard, sophomore Todd
Holloway at guard, junior transfer
Don Marbury at guard and sopho
more Winston Crite at forward. All,
except Marbury, are returning start
ers.
“We’ve been working hard and
some of our new players arje starting
to pick up the system a little better,”
Metcalf said. “It just takes a little bit
of time for new people to work in.
There’s always a question of just
doing a better job with the people
who are already in there or inserting
some more people in there. We’re
looking at different combinations.
We’re starting the same way, but
we’re looking at possibly inserting a
little more rebounding in the lineup
as the game goes on, if that contin
ues to be a problem for us.”
Photo by FRANK IRWIN
Texas A&M Head Basketball Coach Shelby Metcalf—“(Oral
Roberts) is starting five seniors. You know if you take a team
that’s been playing together for four years, they’re going to
be a very polished machine. They’ve got a strong bench.”
It’s still awfully early in the basket
ball season. Fan morale over the
closing of the football season with
the Aggie win over Texas is still
high. Metcalf understands the im
portance of fans at an athletic event
— especially one at “The Holler
House on the Brazos.”
“Fan turnout is always impor
tant,” Metcalf said. “But the one
thing I’ve learned is you have to get
what you earn. Me saying we’re
going to have a good team or the
players saying we’re going to have a
good team — talk is cheap. You’ve
got to go out on the floor and do it.
There’s no question about it. When
our crowd is here and the band is
here, we’re a 10-15 point better
team.”
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