Tuesday, April 10,1990
The Battalion
Page 9
1991
iss
. l^uijohn-
ind sankj
eh the vie-
'iraight it
un. engi-
and three
ilackmahi
deficit into
left in the
n climaxed
1 3-pointet
ir of free
ers’ margin
rites left in
iving layup
lock, John-
behind the
othing but
leir binges
day ruled
Stulce in-
in during
■eason for
University
k&M Ath-
r Tedi Za-
• in ques-
olation of
eligibility
ared ineli-
ved Stulce
lotput tide
ndianapo-
Lggies fin-
standings,
ps the Ag-
r tie in the
lease
imer
nn. (AP) -
f either first
passing cat-
ita Vikings.
, team at &
first-round
iniversitv in
rings' oldt-' 1
dd General
ild him tb al
i better that'
quarterback
ild him ib al
Id be the No-
t Rich C ,al1 '
»d from N e "
(change for
1 ith-round
would ge ta
: with the Vi-
a statemeo'
“I don’i
I’m looking
allenge aim
nity> olea M
m. It shottl
many y earS
reached im
minent,
veteran f
quarterback
,st couple ol
tings lef‘
free agency
rdnotsignc"
contracts ie
n er chibs un-
' arleft ° n J
(tensin' 1 |lt:
"would have
lion this sea
now d
Angels’ Abbott makes ’90 pitch quietly
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (AP) —
The clamor and the curiosity have
subsided. Jim Abbott goes — quietly,
he hopes — about the business of be
coming a successful pitcher.
“This year, I’m going to go out
there and blend into the woodwork
and let the big guys do their thing,”
he said, referring to California’s
other pitchers.
“At the end of the year, hopefully
people can look back and say, ‘Hey,
you did a good job, too.’”
Abbott, who went directly from
pitching the United States to a 1988
Olympic gold medal to pitching in
the majors last year, was a natural as
a story and as an athlete.
He was an Olympic hero, a Sulli
van Award winner, and a pitcher
who was born without a right hand.
Fans and media besieged him as he
made his first circuit of American
League cities.
He survived well; he had a 12-12
record that could have been even
better with improved fielding and
hitting support, and he showed re
markable patience with fans and re
porters.
“A guy who comes right out of
college and makes the major
leagues, that’s a tremendous adjust
ment,” Angels catcher Lance Parrish
said. “Then he was in constant de
mand by the media. Most of us
would have gone crazy, but I never
saw him lose his temper. He was very
gracious.”
Heading into his second season,
Abbott has been concentrating on
his craft with one priority: adding a
dependable changeup to balance his
overpowering fastball and darting
slider.
“It’s a lot more pleasant,” Abbott
said. “It’s nice to be able to not have
to worry about all sorts of things, just
to go out and work on pitching. Now
each time I pitch, I’m not going to
have to repeat my whole life story
every time afterward.”
Last year is kind of a blur in his
memory.
“Everything happened so fast,” he
said. “I guess it was a crash course.”
“I know we (players) say we don’t
pay any attention to what we read,”
Abbott said, “but there were times
when all the things that were writ
ten, saying I didn’t belong, bothered
me.”
But, he added, the confidence
shown in him by Angels manager
Doug Rader and pitching coach
Marcel Lachemann never wavered,
and that helped him keep going.
He finished the year with a 3.92
earned-run average, striking out 115
in 181 1-3 innings.
He lost six times in games where
the Angels were held to either one
run or were shut out, and allowed 16
unearned runs, more than any other
California starter.
€&€ Crawfish Farm
Live, purged, farm raised
crawfish
Call and order now!
580-*0ttS
SUPERIOR
AUTO SERVICE
“SUPERIOR SERVICE FOR TOD A YS CARS”
• On Board Computer and Electronics Repair • Fuel Injection
Diagnosis and Repair • ASE Certified MASTER Technicians • Air
Conditioning Service • 12 month / 12,000 mile limited warranty
Where service really is SUPERIOR!
Sports Focus: Texas Tech football
No more shades of Gray
Tech overcoming loss of star runner in 1990
Battalion Hie photos by F. Joe
Texas Tech must recover from the loss of stellar running back
James Gray (above), who led the SWC in rushing last season.
The Red Raiders will return junior quarterback Jamie Gill (left),
who led them to a 28-24 win over A&M, even though linebacker
Anthony Williams got the better of him last year in Lubbock.
LUBBOCK (AP) — Texas
Tech was the surprise football
team of the Southwest Confer
ence in 1989, using big plays and
a slashing running back to com
pile a 9-3 record and finish the
season with a bowl victory.
But a treacherous schedule in
1990 and heavy losses to gradua
tion on offense have the Red
Raiders’ “backs to the wall” head
ing into the fall, says Tech head
coach Spike Dykes.
“We’ve got some work to do,”
said Dykes, who was named
Southwest Conference Coach of
the Year in 1989. “I look at our
schedule and think we have got to
get good in a hurry.”
After five of the first six games
on the road against teams includ
ing Ohio State, Arkansas and
Texas A&M, the Red Raiders re
turn home for a date with the
reigning national champion Mi
ami Hurricanes.
“Boy, that’s a tall order,” Dykes
said. “We could be worse than 2-
and-5 at one point and be playing
pretty good football.”
Texas Tech was the only SWC
team to win a bowl game last year,
beating Duke 49-21 in the All-
American Bowl.
But the sweetest xictories came
at mid-season wheq .the Raiders,
who finished the season ranked
No. 19, used late-game pass plays
to beat Texas and A&M.
Tech, which completed spring
practice Wednesday, lost nine of
11 starters on offense, including
All-Southwest Conference run
ning back James Gray and the en
tire offensive line.
“The offensive line is tender,”
Dykes said, adding that some of
the players vying for starting
spots have never played in a col
lege game.
“Any time you lose a James
Gray you don’t replace him. You
just hope to go on to the next
stage and develop from there,”
he said. “But we have got some
tools. We are not barefooted.”
Without Gray, who averaged
100-plus rushing yards per game
last season, returningjunior quar
terback Jamie Gill and junior
running back Anthony Lynn will
highlight a pass-oriented offense,
Dykes said.
Defensively, the Raiders return
eight starters, including the en
tire defensive backfield.
Anchored by senior linebacker
Charles Rowe, a consensus All-
SWC selection last year, and
sophomore free * safety Tracy
Saul, who was named SWC De
fensive Newcomer of the Year in
1989, the Raiders’ “bend but
don’t break” style defense is the
backbone of the team, Dykes said.
The defense gave up an aver
age of 400 yards total offense per
game last year, but Dykes said
“we can improve on that with the
experience we’ll have.”
The kicking game worries
Dykes the most, he said.
Junior Lin Elliott, who con
nected on nine of 19 field goal at
tempts last year, has struggled
this spring.
Dykes said no one has emerged
as a solid replacement for de
parted punter Jamie Simmons,
who led the SWC in net punting
in 1989.
Gill thinks 1990 will be a fun
year for the Red Raiders.
“Everyone picked us down in
the conference last year and we
surprised some people,” he said.
“We could smell the Cotton Bowl
last season and I really think we
can get there this year.”
The Battalion
SPORTS
Only the Battalion has cartoonist dp. And only you can enjoy his witty sketchings and scribblings
about Texas A&M sports. If there’s a cartoon to be drawn, dp’s got the pen. Football, basketball,
baseball — whatever your sporting interests are — dp’s your artist. You’ve seen his piece in today’s
issue, so get out your 1990 Aggie Sweeper and catch dp’s next cartoon ... only in Friday’s Battalion.
VcCn^^tlNEMA/
Serica. ThcacKta
A TAXING WOMAN
(Tuesday. April 10-7:30 P M )
701 Rudder Admission is $2.50
Tickets are available at the MSC Box Office.
'faulenuncttett, <yuu<t t&e ‘7ftS& flyukut
*7tt&Utute fan, /Ycvafieuete,.
Aggie Cinema Information Hotline - 847-8478
(ffiTTENTION: fill RECOGNIZED STUDENT ^
ORGANIZATIONS
MSC OPEN HOUSE
REGISTRATION
IS BEGINNING.
OPEN HOUSE
SEPTEMBER 2.1990
EARLY REGISTRATION
APR. 11 - MAY 4 $20.00
LATE REGISTRATION
MAY 4 - AUG. 31 $25.00
^Registration forms can be obtained outside Room 216 C-D
in the Student Programs Office.
*Forms are to be turned in to Geiinda Lara in Room 216
MSC.
*For more information, call the Student Programs Office at
845-7627.
^ - J
111 Royal Street • Bryan • 846-5344
Summer Employment
Opportunities
/or
Liberal Arts Major’s
Wednesday, April 11
5:15 p.m.
302 Rudder
Presented by the Placement Center and Cooperative
Education Office.
WANT TO BE A
RESIDENT ADVISOR (RA)
FOR SPRING 1991?
To be considered, you must register for the RA Class
for the Fall 1990 semester.
(Th«r« Is no RA Class In tha summer)
This Is an 11 week, 1 credit hour class listed under:
A maximum of 40 students will be allowed Into each section.
Take the challenge and apply for a Resident Advisor position.
For more information, contact Tom Murray, 845-1229.
Department of Student Affairs
A part ot the DMalon of Student Sarvicaa
Professional Computing
HAS A CALCULATOR FOR YOU!
CALCULATORS FOR BUSINESS
10B....S37.50
12C....S70.00
14B....$60.00
17BII...$82.50
19BII..$132.00
CALCULATORS FOR
SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
205.. ..$37.50
215.. ..$37.50
225.. ..$45.00
275.. ..$60.00
BUSINESS HOURS
M-F 8:00-5:30
SAT. 10:00-3:00
32S $52.50
42S $90.00
28S $176.25
48SX..$262.50
HEWLETT
PACKARD
Authorized Dealer
505 CHURCH STREET .COLLEGE STATION (409) B46-5332