Friday, Movember 22,1985/The Battalion/Page 11
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SWC grim reaper
BRANDON BERRY
Sports Analysis
The day of reckoning in the
Southwest Conference has arrived.
The grim reaper snatched up an
inoffensive little piggie last weekend,
and Saturday, he'll nave his choice of
one or two victims.
Baylor invades Memorial Stadium
in Austin with its second opportu
nity in three weeks to kill two birds
with one victory.
If the Bears defeat the Long
horns, Baylor will finish with an
SWC record of 7-1, no worse than a
first place tie in the standings and a
Cotton Bowl berth.
HOWEVER, if Baylor loses it will
travel to an out-of-state bowl game
and set up a winner-take-all battle in
Kyle Field on Thanksgiving Day,
featuring Texas and Texas A&M.
The rest of the conference teams
are serving out the remainders of
their sentences of mediocrity, with
the exceptions of the Arkansas Ra-
zorbacks (who possess a good team,
excellent defense and a bowl trip
ahead of them) and the SMU Mus
tangs (because their probationary
sentence doesn’t run out for another
three years).
A recent ESPN poll rated the
SWC as the fifth best football confer
ence in the nation this year — not so
hot for a state that worships a
pigskin madonna.
The dismal performances dished
out on a weekly basis this season by
TCU, Texas lech, Rice and Hous
ton have done little to change that
mediocre tag.
However, going into the final two
weeks of the season, the SWC ap
pears to be sending four teams to
bowl games, and that figure would
have been higher if SMU had been
less blatant about their “wild ways.”
Not bad for a conference with no
teams ranked in the nation’s Top 10.
Texas Tech at Houston
The Astrodome
Houston — 7 p.m.
Boy, could this one be fun.
The quality of play will most prob
ably be lousv — fumbles, intercep
tions, missed tackles, personal fouls,
etc. There also should be quite a bit
of scoring.
And all to the beat of Tech Coach
Jerry Moore’s swan song.
Moore, the first footoall coach in
Tech history to be fired, refused to
resign his position and said he will
do nis best to go out a winner.
Moore’s players, meanwhile, feel be
trayed by the school administration
and promise to, “Win one for the
^ Houston has no such motivation.
One year after growling their way to
the Cotton Bowl (even though tney
did as cats are wont to do by sneak
ing in the back dooify, the once-
promising Cougars have looked as
motivated and menacing as fat tab
bies taking a snooze on granny’s lap.
UH quarterback Gerald Landry
has broken most of his school’s pass
ing records, but he’s done so trying
to play catch-up. Tech should be
able to play with emotional intensity
— whicn just about does the trick
against Houston — Tech 28, Hous
ton 24.
SMU at Arkansas
Razorback Stadium
Fayetteville— 1 p.m.
Early in the year, most everyone
thought this game would be the
showdown of the season in the SWC,
where the expected champion
(SMU) would take on the most eligi
ble champion (Arkansas).
But the rest of the conference
teams have made such
championship dreams mere passing
fancies (which, incidentally, have
nothing to do with these two teams
that pass like Buffy and Hildegard
in a singles bar).
The nit-and-miss I-formation at
tack of SMU will take on one of the
best defenses against the run in the
nation. SMU’s less sturdy defense
will try and contain' the Arkansas
“just trv and make me pass” wish
bone.
Neither team is flying high in the
motivation department right now' —
the Ponies are locked in the stable
for their long probationary winter
and the Hogs have already locked
up an invitation to the Holiday Bowl.
This game should go down to the
wire and will probably hinge on who
has the best passing game — which
means the team that throws the least
Football
Forecast
KenSuiy
Sports Writer
d.p.
Cartoonist
Charean Williams
Asst. Sports Editor
f ’’ll
Travis Tingle
Sports Editor
Deep Hall
Sports Writer
Pete Herndon'
Sports Writer
W
(19) Texas A&M at TCU
A&M by 21
A&M by 21
A&M by 30
A&M by 21
A&M by 10
A&M by 35
(15) Baylor at Texas
Baylor by 6
Texas by 1
Baylor by 1
Baylor by 7
Texas by 3
Texas by 1
SMU at (18) Arkansas
Arkansas by 7
Arkansas by 1
Arkansas by 8
SMU by 10
Arkansas by 6
Arkansas by 7
Texas Tech at Houston
Texas Tech by 7
Texas Tech by 1
Texas Tech by 3
Texas Tech by 17
Houston by 1
Texas Tech by 6
(2) Nebraska at (5) Oklahoma
Nebraska by 4
Nebraska by 1
Nebraska by 1
Nebraska by 6
Oklahoma by 3
Oklahoma by 3
(12) Ohio State at (6) Michigan
Michigan by 3
Ohio State by 1
Michigan by 2
Ohio State by 3
Michigan by 1
Michigan by 6
(17) LSU at Notre Dame
Notre Dame by 7
LSU by 1
Notre Dame by 1
LSU by 4
LSU by 3
LSU by 21
Arizona at Arizona State
Arizona State by 6
Arizona State by 1
Arizona State by 4
Arizona State by 9
Arizona by 7
Arizona by 9
USC at (8) UCLA
UCLA by 3
UCLA by 7
UCLA by 7
UCLA by 10
USC by 3
UCLA by 14
Harvard at Yale
Harvard by 14
Harvard by 1
Harvard by 6
Yale by 1
Harvard by 6
Harvard by 1
Philadelphia at Dallas
Dallas by 3
Dallas by 1
Dallas by 10
Dallas by 3
Dallas by 1
Dallas by 4
San Diego at Houston
San Diego by 17
San Diego by 1
San Diego by 7
San Diego by 9
San Diego by 3
San Diego by 17
Last Week’s Record
8-4
11-1
9-3
7-5
9-3
8-4
Overall Record
82-34-4
82-34-4
81-35-4
78-38-4
72-44-4
71-45-4
interceptions returned for touch
downs.
Go with Arkansas — you can’t in
tercept them if it doesn’t throw them
— Arkansas 24 SMU 21.
Baylor at Texas
Memorial Stadium
Austin—12:04 p.m.
For once, the Raycom Sports Net
work got it right.
The ’Horns and Bears will play
for the Cotton Bowl bid in front of a
regional television audience. Ray
com color commentator Bud Wilkin
son will prove to the world (or at
least Texas) why he is the best candi
date to replace Jerry Moore at Tech
(at least the Raiders could claim nat
ural causes when it came time to get
rid of him).
This game would be a sell-out
anywhere.
Last week, with Baylor rooting for
an A&M upset of Arkansas, the BU
“Golden Wave” marching band
struck up the “Aggie War Hymn.”
This week, the Aggies are actually
rooting for the Longhorns.
Cats and dogs, living together — it
just goes to snow that die Cotton
Bowl makes strange bedfellows.
Unfortunately tor the ’Horns, Ag
gies and the rest of the world, Texas
? |uarterback Brett Stafford is not at
ull strength, even though he. is ex
pected to start the game. And on his
passing arm hinges any chances UT
nas of postponing indefinitely the
Bears’ Cotton Bowl reservations.
Baylor’s solid defensive line will
bend but not break under the all-
too-predictable, plain vanilla Texas
running game. Stafford will feel
BU’s defensive pressure when he
drops back to pass.
Texas can win this game if they
roll Stafford out and utilize a short,
controlled passing game to open up
the Bear defense for the run.
Baylor can win if they don’t turn
the ball over and Texas plays with
the offensive conservatism that has
made it one of the most boring
teams in the nation.
The Texas defense should play
respectably and keep the score close,
but A&M's Kevin Murray couldn’t
E ass on the No. 1 nationally-ranked
aylor pass defense and Stafford
probably won’t be able to, either.
BU Coach Grant Teaff eats
worms to get his team motivated. He
once somehow motivated a player
S zed from the neck down to
in a pregame pep talk. He mo
tivated a team that lost its first four
games all the way to the Cotton
Bowl.
Texas’ 34-year Memorial Stadium
winning streak doesn’t stand a
chance. And you’ll hear the groans
from Austin to College Station —
Baylor 24 Texas 20.
Texas A&M at TCU
Amon Carter Stadium
Fort Worth — 2 p.m.
A fun game tor A&M amidst the
pressures of a Cotton Bowl run.
A relief game for TCU in a yeat
where everyone in the SWC pos
sessed Horned Frog poison and
much more experienced players.
A game that doesn’t really mean
that much in the standings.
If the Horns win and the Aggies
win, next week’s Thanksgiving
match-up is for all the Cotton. If the
’Horns win and the Aggies lose, next
week's game is for all the Cotton. If
the ’Horns lose and the Aggies show
up, the game will be for what it has
traditionally been for — pride and
bragging rights.
A&M Coach Jackie Sherrill would
like to win the game to enhance the
Aggies’ record in whatever bowl
game they participate in and keep
tne forwara momentum his team
has generated with three straight
wins.
Moreover, Sherrill and TCU
Coach Jim Wacker have reportedly
not been the best of friends in con
ference coaching circles and beating
one’s enemy is always more satisfy-
ingthan mugging a pal.
The Aggies expect the Toads to
be fired up for their last game of the
season and to try an assortment of
gadget plays.
Sherrill said the Aggies must be
ready for anything
And they will he — the Aggies
should beat TCU and beat mem
handily.
The only sad thing about Satur
day for the Aggies and a possible na
tional TV Cotton Bowl audience will
be a Baylor victory in Austin —
which means the best team in the
SWC, not to mention the most fun to
watch, will be going to another bowl
in another state — A&M 31, TCU
13.
The Aggie blood drive
committee would like to
express our warmest the
inks to you for helping to
make the blood drive a success!
2,314 pints were donated - the largest supply
ever! Wav to ao Aos!
Congratulations to Contest
Winners:
Special Thanks to:
• All who gave the gift of life
1 st place
• Wadley Nurses and attendants
6th Battalion - large group
• Bob Cannon, Mama’s Pizza
Squadron 16 - small group
• Creamery
• Dan Mizer, Steve Hodges, Willis
2nd place
Richie
Mosher Hall - large group
• All student workers and other volun-
Squadron 13 - small group
teers
3rd place
Thanks Again Aggies,
Squadron 15 - small group
APO, OPA, Student Government
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INFO
764-9115
1 up
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