SPORTS
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Aggies’ Ford: getting drafted Job 1
Photo by DEAN SAITO
Texas A&M’s Ken Ford (far left) hopes to be diving for fum- Field next season. Ford, a senior linebacker, looks to be
bles on National Football League fields rather than Kyle drafted in the fifth or sixth round of the NFL draft Tuesday.
By PETE HERNDON
Sports Writer
Hitting fast and hitting hard is
former A&M linebacker Ken
Ford’s trademark.
For the last two years Ford’s
primary responsibility on defense
was to destroy anyone who found
a way to make it past All-America
defensive end Ray Childress.
Moving to inside linebacker
did not come easy for the versa
tile 6-foot-1, 206-pound junior
college All-America, but the Ag
gies needed help at linebacker
and, with only two years of eligi
bility left, Ford needed the play
ing time.
“1 was used to getting a run
ning start at a 220-pound tight
end or running back,” Ford said.
“Then, all of the sudden, I was
lining up against 260 to 280-
pound tackles three yards away. I
nad some problems adjusting to
the weight disadvantage until I
learned to use my speed to get
around them.”
The hard work and hard
knocks paid off last year when
Ford was named to the Houston
Chronicle’s All-Southwest Con
ference defensive team. But the
Chronicle was not the only one to
recognize Ford’s talents. Several
NFL teams are ready to give him
a shot at his old position — strong
safety.
Although it is too early to tell
where he will end up in the NFL
college draft, Ford said the New
Yorkjets, Pittsburgh Steelers and
Washington Redskins have all ex
pressed a possible interest in
drafting him in the fifth or sixth
round.
Ford is ready to get a chance to
go back to the secondary.
“I was out of place at line
backer because I was so small,”
Ford said,“but the coaches kept
working with me and (A&M tea
mmate) Johnny (Holland) and
that took a lot of the pressure
off.”
Playing linebacker may have
been a blessing in disguise, Ford
said, because it probably got him
some extra attention from pro
scouts.
“The scouts saw that I was
holding my own,” Ford said,” by
playing out of position with peo
ple bigger than myself. For the
last two years I’ve been a small
man in the land of the giants, but
I’m hoping it’ll help me be a giant
in the land of the small.”
Now Ford is going to get a shot
at his dream of playing in the
NFL, but it has been a long road
for him to get to the draft. He has
played several different levels of
amateur football and stepping up
from each one was a challenge.
“The biggest adjustment I had
to make coming out of high
school was with the intensity of
the workouts,” Ford said. “In
high school they pushed you a
little, but basically, if you were
good, you played. In JUCO (ju
nior college) ball there are others
that are as good as you are, and
everyone’s looking for a shot to
play at a major college. If you sat
on the bench, you would never
get the chance.”
Playing for a junior college did
have some advantages though,
Ford said.
“When I got to A&M, I already
knew how to study,” he said. “So
the academic adjustment wasn’t
too bad. The biggest problem I
had was getting used to the size of
the classes. In junior college I
never had more than about 25
people in a class.”
Getting adjusted to the crowd
was a problem he had on the foot
ball field also.
“I was used to playing in front
of 300 people,” he said. “Then,
all of the sudden, there were
40,000 to 50,000 people in the
stands and TV cameras every
where.
“You get excited at all the at
tention, but then you also get
scared. I was really conscious of
the crowds the first couple of
games.”
The biggest adjustment to
make going into the pros will be
maturity, Ford said.
“Here at A&M everything is ar
ranged for you,” he said. “They
provide your place to live, your
food and all the other necessities.
It will be a growing experience
going into the pros because I’ll be
looking to put my own meal on
the table, just like the guys I’m
trying to beat.”
Ford gave a lot of the credit for
his success to his teammates and
coaches at A&M. Defensive Coor
dinator R.C. Slocum was respon
sible for making him a good line
backer, Ford said.
“Coach Slocum stayed with
me,” Ford said.“He knows his
coaching. If it wasn’t for him, I
wouldn’t be where I am today.”
The relationship between Ford
and his coach is one of mutual ad
miration.
Slocum said that Ford will be
missed by the Aggie defense.
“Ken Ford is going to be hard
to replace,” Slocum said. “He had
developed into one of the strong
points of our defense by the end
of the season. He would be an as
set to just about any pro second
ary.”
Ford said the thing he will re
member most about A&M is the
traditional atmosphere and the
close-knit student body. He said
when he first looked at the A&M
campus he found that the “Spirit
of Aggieland” was real and not
just a recruiting campaign in
vented by the Athletic Depart
ment.
“You always have a family
here,” Ford said. “I like the way
that Aggies stick up for Aggies.
You know, this is my school, my
family, my world and I’m proud
to be an Aggie.”
Reds halt
Astros’ win
streak at 4
Ryan loses no-hitter
in seventh inning
Associated Press
HOUSTON — Dave Concepcion
and Duane Walker belted home
runs and Eric Davis used his speed
to break a 3-3 ninth inning tie as the
Cincinnati Reds overcame Nolan
Ryan’s bid for his sixth career no-hit-
ter and beat the Houston Astros 8-3
Wednesday.
Ryan, who has a record five no
hitters, had another with one out in
the seventh when Dave Parker sin
gled to center. Then Walker hit his
first homer over the rightfield wall
and Esasky later scored on an error
by Garner gave the Reds a 3-1 lead.
The Astros, who had scored in the
fifth on back-to-back doubles by Phil
Garner and Alan Ashby, tied it in
the eighth on Jose Cruz’ two-out,
two-run single before the Reds won
it with five in the ninth.
Orioles 2, Rangers 1
ARLINGTON — Mike Young hit
a two-run homer and Mike Bod-
dicker scattered six hits in 8 1/3 in
nings Wednesday night to lead the
Baltimore Orioles to a 2-1 victory
over the Texas Rangers.
Boddicker, 2-1, was relieved by
Tippy Martinez after walking Larry
Parrish with one out in the ninth in
ning. The victory was his second
against the Rangers this year and he
is 6-0 against Texas in his career.
Martinez recorded his second save
of the season.
The Orioles took a 2-0 lead in the
second inning. Fred Lynn led off
with a single and was forced at sec
ond by Larry Sheets. Young fol
lowed with his second home run of
the season.
Joe Nolan singled after Young’s
homer and loser Dave Rozema, 1-3,
then retired 15 batters in a row be
fore Sheets’ infield single with one
out in the seventh.
The Rangers got their run in the
sixth inning when Toby Harrah led
off with a double and one out later
scored on Buddy Bell’s single.
es showed that the pm
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Associated Press
UT, Lebanon — Isratf
on forces have betf
lack from east Lebanon
alley, where they face
in army since Israel’s#
of Lebanon, state#
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radio quoted un
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tg Israeli troops in
personnel carriers
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Radio said Israeli troo
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APOLLO total hjur
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