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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 7, 1989)
Page 10 The Battalion Tuesday, March 7,1989 The Poll: Most Cowboy fans New Pokes owner likes to take chances want Landry Stadium DALLAS (AP) — Nearly 14,000 people have relayed their support to rename Texas Stadium to Landry Stadium in a Dallas newspaper’s push to bring about the change. More than 5,000 people mailed coupons clipped from the Dallas Times Herald to the Irving City Council and 8,815 more called over the weekend to tell the newspaper’s telephone opinion poll that they support the measure. But 5,892 callers to the Times Herald’s non-scientific telephone poll said they’d rather not see the stadium owned by the city of Irving have its name changed. The 14,707 who called to register their opinion represented the sec ond-highest number since the Times Herald began its weekly call-in opin ion poll in July 1987. The most calls received was in re sponse to a pre-election choice be tween George Bush and Michael Du kakis. At least four of nine Irving coun cil members support the stadium name change, two are opposed, and at least two are undecided. One councilman could not be reached for If that happens, it would be the first NFL stadium named after a liv ing coach. It also would be the third Landry Stadium: there’s one at Trinity Christian Academy in the Dallas suburb of Addison and one at Mission High School in Mission, his hometown. Landry, vacationing in Palm Springs, Calif., couldn’t be reached for comment. Landry ended his 29-year coach ing career with the Dallas Cowboys on Feb. 25, when Arkansas oilman Jerry Jones announced that he’d bought the Cowboys and his long time friend, University of Miami coach Jimmy Johnson, would re place Landry. comment. “In my personal view, Tom Landry is more than a football coach,” Irving Mayor Bob Pierce said. “He’s the epitome of how a per son should live. I would have no qualms about going along with nam ing it after him.” Joseph Cavagnaro Sr., general manager of Texas Stadium Inc., said he opposes a change. “I love Tom Landry,” he said. “But to go to all the expense and everything . . . We have an identity as Texas Stadium all over the world. If there is a change — and I oppose one — it should be for Clint Murchison. He’s the one who dreamed it up; he’s the one who put it all together.” Cavagnaro said the proper tribute would be to induct Landry into the Cow'boys’ Circle of Honor, a recog nition given to an exclusive group of team superstars, the Dallas Times Herald reported. DALLAS — The depths to which the Dallas Cowboys have fallen shouldn’t scare the team’s owner. Jerry Jones says he found success by drilling for oil between other’s dry holes. While ownership of a losing pro franchise may seem risky, the Ar kansas millionaire who recently pur chased the Cowboys says he is used to taking chances. Jones said he and his geologist Bill Sparks achieved an “acceptable level of success” by drilling about 2,000 holes between dry holes around Fairview, Okla., over a nine-year pe riod. And Jones says his family has thrown their support behind his Cowboys purchase. “My family has encouraged me and it is our resolve to allocate our resources to the Cowboys forever,” Jones said. The transfer of ownership fiom H.R. “Bum” Bright to Jones was an nounced Feb. 25, and immediate re percussions came when it was an nounced Tom Landry, the team’s coach, was being replaced. Jones said that in his first meeting with Tex Schramm last September he told the Cowboys president and general manager that if he bought the Cowboys, (University of Miami coach) Jimmy Johnson would be come his coach. Without the prereq uisite that Johnson would become coach, Jones said there would have been no deal. “I was naive enough to think that a great man like Tom Landry some day might not coach,” Jones said. “And that since he had built the Cowboys into w'hat had become known as ‘America’s Team,’ if I could commit my resources- and en courage the finest young coach in America to join me in Dallas, then the combination of a new ownership and a new coach might be preceived in a positive manner and be some so lace because what Tom Landry had spent his life building would be in good hands. “I viewed it as going from the old guard j to the new guard, even though the new guard can’t hold the old guard’s water bucket.” Jones, an offensive guard, and Johnspn, a nose guard, were among the senior captains on the 1964 Ar kansas national championship team that also included Razorbacks coach Ken Hatfield and Cotton Bowl Presi- dentjim Williams Jr. Using his redshirt season to his advantage, Jones received both his undergraduate and graduate de grees from Arkansas in 1965 and the dream was there. The following year, he spoke with both Joe Robbie and Lamar Hunt about buying the American Football League San Diego Chargers from Barron Hilton. “Mr. Hilton offered me 80 per cent of the Chargers for $5.8 million with an agreement to give me a 120- day option for $50,000 so I could ar range financing,” said Jones, who dropped the deal after his father asked him about potential cash flow problems. Jones’ father, Pat, said money v never I he most important thing ! his son. “Number one is his family, number two is to be a success, toa complish something,” he said. TANK M C NAMA11A S by Jeff Millar & Bill Hinds UJOOLP T(4£ ££U 0C0S>T£{? CLUB REALLY PAY 4-5" MlULlOKl TO ANY tAEMBEf? WMOKILI^. iwe Aurnof? of u4e export OF IMF F UkjF'P ITOMATE IT ltd MAM6 TO T(4E ££0 ATHLETIC -S-LUS’H FUkJP. 66 No matter how bad they are, Grandma loves to hear the latest jokes.}} CLASSIC B | ' '' s * "h- , £3 You miss her sparkling sense of humor. She misses you and your jokes. Even the bad ones. That’s one good reason to call long distance. AT&T Long Distance Service is another good reason. Be cause it costs less than you think to hear your grand mother start to giggle be fore you even get to the punch line. So whenever you miss her laughter, bring a smile to her face with AT&T. Reach out and touch someone® INY ADS. BUT REAL HEAVYWEIGHTS WHEN RESULTS REALLY COUNT. If you’d like to know more about AT&T products and services, like the AT&T Card, call us at 1800 222-0300. o matter what you've go to say or sell, our Classi fieds can help you do the big job. V Three months later the AFL; NFL merged and Hilton al% : doubled his money. Jones returned to Arkansas an; used his assets from the saleofli E father’s insurance business to stat his oil and gas company. Although Jones declines to com. rnent on estimates of his wealth,; Arkansas magazine reported abom four years ago that he was worth; estimated $100 million and had pet. sonal income of $10 million to $1? million a year. 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