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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 5, 1991)
5 , 1991 ilski 'uJ 7?i)S~j He 5r/)T/ofi." ^oco... Iflc/IMCLE nale in iison ?/ ‘Aycf. /ould have 2 billion in iddition to ic state of iepartment ic-third of de sources s and $h® ries. ;iet Union, ounting on om Japan, [a, Watkins th are ex- this spring- tiave prom- >f the SSC- illion. I re case, th e lion award lal Life ort Bead 1 ' i Haslip- A brarian i° r slip disc 0 '’ srerage ha<i d $3,500 m : in I982f° r ection- who an for Ro° se : abscond giiablfi | gglelond | it up, J ^nnex | :30 p-d 1 - iday. e held , e made i d up | ; year | ilished. | Sports Tuesday, March 5, 1991 The Battalion Sports Editor Alan Lehmann 845-2688 Craig Wilson Sportswriter Rockets still on shaky ground with Olajuwon I heard recently that an anonymous Houston Rockets fan snuck into his car without anyone noticing. He drove dis creetly to Olga’s, i the notorious shop of alleged witchcraft and mayhem on the other side of the railroad tracks. Once inside, the fan paid a small fee, made a wish and watched as Olga rubbed her crystal ball exactly 34 times. A couple of days later, Akeem Olajuwon returned to the Rockets’ lineup. And the team actually harmonized around The Dream. Winning games down the stretch was no longer a problem! As sportswriters often do, most of them bonded over the notion that Olajuwon was a multi-talented, yet selfish space-eater, who put down his teammates to the point where they lost their concentration after losses. And the Rockets consistently fell into the ‘L’ column as a result. But times may have changed for coach Don Chaney and his troops. When Olajuwon’s eye was severely elbowed by the Bulls’ Bill Cartwright on Jan. 3, Rockets fans saw trouble coming toward the Summit. What happened, though, was quite surprising to the ordinary sports fan . . . the Rockets became the hottest team in the NBA. With a 9-2 February record, Chaney may earn the NBA Coach of the Month Award. And the players are much more confident in themselves, especially since Akeem has been sidelined. Chaney mentioned last week that Olajuwon would have to come back with a new attitude. “Basically, it’s going to be a give-and- take situation,” Chaney said. “Akeem has to understand his teammates are walking now, not crawling. He can’t do anything to disturb their games. “A lot of people will be quick to jump to conclusions if we lose a game or two right after Akeem comes back.” Well, the Rockets fbst to the Los Angeles Clippers on Akeem’s goggle- clad debut, 83-80, on Feb. 28. But the Rockets had something to prove when they visited the Forum in Los Angeles Sunday. With millions watching on NBC, the Rockets carefully dismantled the favored Lakers, 104-95, and gained a huge confidence boost. Instead of just Akeem’s name popping up, the country’s basketball fans are becoming more familiar with the names Smith, Maxwell, Floyd, and Thorpe. And Olajuwon has accepted a new role, at least for now. “That’s what I was talking about the other night when I said that I did not want to be the hero anymore,” Olajuwon said. “I said that I want to pick my spots See Wilson/Page 6 A&M hits road for Lamar twinbill Bullard fills starter, closer roles for Ags J. JANNER/The Battalion Aggie pitcher Jason Bullard delivers a pitch in last season’s win over Stephen F. Austin. By Anthony Andro The Battalion For the Texas A&M pitching staff, senior Jason Bullard is a jack of all trades. But the righthander from Sweeny does not mind his uncertain role. “I want to do whatever I can to help the team win,” Bullard said. This year, ‘whatever’ has included start ing, throwing middle relief and closing out of the bullpen for A&M, which is ranked 16th by Baseball America. With all the roles, Bullard has managed to start the season 2-0 while racking up two saves. Despite an ERA of 5.49, Bullard has been elusive enough to strike out 26 batters in 19 and two-thirds innings, continuing a pattern he established last year when he struck out 53 men in 43 and one-third in nings. Today, the Aggies (12-6) travel to Beau mont to face the Lamar Cardials (7-6) in a 1 p.m. doubleheader. Bullard is not sched uled to start either game, but may see relief duty. Freshmen lefthanders Kelly Wunsch and Jeff Granger are slated to start on the mound for A&M. Wunsch is 2-2 with a 3.63 ERA and Granger is 1-1 with a 5.68 ERA. The Aggies lead the Cardinals 17-3 in the series’ history, and swept a twinbill last season at Olsen Field 10-5 and 2-1. Bullard does not really care whether he is starting or coming on in relief as long it means winning games. “I really don’t have a preference,” he said. “I just want to do whatever I can to help this team win. “Whatever the coaches believe, is what I want to do.” Last year, Bullard was 4-0 with a 3.12 ERA for the Aggies. He started four games and came out of the pen 12 times, collecting two saves. He tranferred to A&M in 1989 after playing at San Jacinto Junior College his sophomore year, where he was 8-1 with a 3.00 ERA for a team that won the Junior College National Championship. Bullard pitched for Lamar, today’s opponent, his freshman year. Even though he has an impressive re cord, Bullard is not fully satisfied with his performance. “I believe I haven’t really been as consis tent as I want to be,” Bullard said. “I’ve been throwing good pitches but I’ve been missing on my location and haven’t been hitting my spots.” Bullard said there are differences be tween starting a game and coming out of the bullpen. “When you’re coming out of the pen, you’re never really sure when your going in so you can be more relaxed,” said Bullard. “There’s more pressure starting because you know you’re gonna pitch and you start thinking about it. “But, when you come out of the pen, there’s a lot of pressure on you because you’re coming in when the pitcher is usually in trouble and you have to put out the fire.” Because of his versatility, Bullard figures to see a lot of action this weekend in the Ag gie Continental Classic, as the Aggies play six games in four days. “We’re going to have to use so many dif ferent pitchers because of all the games we’re gonna play,” he said. In last year’s tournament, Bullard tossed a four-hit, complete-game shutout against St.John’s University in the final game. Bullard likes the way this year’s squad is pitching, especially the freshmen. “I think the team is pitching well,” he said. “The freshmen have come in the game in pressure situations and have pitched fashionably. “They’ve done the job that they’ve had to do.” And, he thinks the loss of Ronnie Allen, who is serving a six game suspension for academic reasons, has changed the pitch ing. “I think it affected us a little,” he said. “It messed up the rotation a little bit. “But, I don’t think that it has been the difference is us winning or losing games.” Bullard does not see his role with the team changing during the season. “What I’m thinking right now, coach Johnson will keep me doing both things,” Bullard said. “It really doesn’t bother me because I don’t have to think about any thing the night before. “I’d rather not have to worry about it.” Despite the fact the team has lost four of the last six games, Bullard sees glimmers of hope. “Each day, we’re getting closer and closer as a team,” he said. “I think this team will come around and be one of the good ones at A&M.” Bullard is worried about how the fans are taking the teams recent slump. “I just hope the fans aren’t getting down on us right now,” he said. “We’ll be there.” Bad breaks have hurt the Aggies lately, Bullard said. “I think in the Louisiana Tech series, they got lucky,” he said. “Everything they hit was falling in.” And, while Tech was getting hits, the Ag gies were not. “We just hit the ball right at people,” Bul lard said. “We’re not playing up to our po- 'tential right now.” Longhorn player identified in steroid scandal AUSTIN (AP) — University of Texas offensive lineman Kevin Wiley has been identified as a football player who was selling falsified prescriptions for steroids similar to the falsified prescriptions that led to the arrest of a Longhorn player last week, the Austin American-Statesman re ported. In addition, an Austin pharmacist told the newspaper on Saturday that he filled at least four prescriptions for steroids last year from Duncanville doctor David Hubler, but he said he had no knowledge the prescriptions were falsified. Local weightlifter Tim Bruner, who told the American- Statesman he bought falsified prescriptions for steroids through a broker for $400 last October without the initial knowledge they were falsified, said he engaged in two transactions with Texas f ootball players. Bruner said he witnessed the first transaction between his broker and Wiley outside a campus dormitory where the players live. Bruner said he was told by his broker the second exchange inside the dorm involved a second foot ball player. Bruner picked out Wiley’s picture from more than a dozen mug shots taken from a Texas football media guide. In addition, Bruner said the broker told him the player who sold him the prescriptions was Wiley. Wiley, a fifth-year senior offensive guard from San An tonio who completed his eligibility in the Cotton Bowl, has an unlisted telephone number and could not be reached for comment. Selling falsified prescriptions is a second-degree felony and is punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. Walter Leamons, former owner of M D Pharmacy on Lavaca near the Texas campus, told the American-States man: “I did not knowingly fill them illegally. The fact they were forged doesn’t make me a criminal. It makes the per son presenting them a criminal. “I don’t know any football players. I wouldn’t know them if I saw them. I don’t keep up with football,” said Leamons, who sold M D Pharmacy last year. The Dallas Morning News reported recently that fake prescriptions for steroids have been filled for Texas foot ball players and their acquaintances at the pharmacy for merly owned by Leamons, according to two people who claim firsthand knowledge of the scheme. The newspaper said Leamons routinely fills drug or ders printed on forged prescription slips being sold and used by Longhorns football players, said the two sources who asked to remain anonymous. Leamons said the four prescriptions with Hubler’s name do not match those that w^ere reprinted in the Amer ican-Statesman Saturday. Anabolic steroids are chemicals that athletes use to build and enhance muscles and increase strength. Brent Beauchamp, a Texas reserve punter and quar terback, was arrested Feb. 21 and charged with obtaining the male hormone testosterone by fraud from a phar macy, using prescriptions carrying the name of Hubler, the Duncanvule doctor. The Texas Department of Public Safety is continuing its investigation into that case. Since mid-February, at least three additional Austin pharmacies have been approached by persons trying to obtain steroids with prescriptions bearing Hubler’s name. Hubler has told the American-Statesman all the prescrip tions were falsified. The current owner of M D Pharmacy said Saturday his pharmacy has been given a prescription bearing Hubler’s name, but he did not fill it. This brings to five pharmacies across the state that have received falsified Hubler prescriptions, the American- Statesman reported. Bruner’s broker, who is a former Texas football player, told the American-Statesman that players on the football team told him the prescriptions with Hubler’s name on them were stolen by a player. The broker declined to name the player. Asked where Beauchamp obtained prescriptions with Hubler’s name, the broker said, “Brent just got them from somebody else on the football team.” Texas Athletic Director DeLoss Dodds told The Morn ing News Sunday that any steroid abuse among Longhorn football players will be stopped at all costs. “It’s going to grind to a halt” if it exists, he told the newspaper. DPS is investigating the matter involving Beauchamp and has said more arrests are possible. 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Both plant and animal components will investigated. Prerequisites: Introductory biology or ecology course For more Information contact: Prof. Keith Arnold Prof. Douglas Slack 845-5777 Nagle 2128 845-5777 Nagle 3118 Study Abroad Office 161 West Bizzell Hall 845-0544