Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 4, 1992)
'tember4j !nd raw Sports Friday, September 4,1992 The Battalion Page 7 « 1972tol, first and oiii 'ion. ' od game,!, v slips,” Fisd lnn ing chart, draw." ar -old Russjj ^n, concedi badly" inj d white ar 1 at 3:30 p.j ariation. Fisd g's Indian4 e ,, oohs''fre ; early posititt ; experts we length of Fs Some said! ting Spassi much won - that mea in the world aster Meigi r bee lions o out anode y were wait door andtt r said, jackyard pe Great Darii n battle wit went crazi is pen," Ms g musthaii GO and 28 s doing Oli that's stil i recovered ceived aha: ees was ana ee Identifier :M Universe J.S. Depart ials notified that the in s, Ms. Jand has beende n sure the# I rices, ’lus, it [uation j at iay. •ter. its Dem Cajuns talkin' football in Baton Rouge T his past sum mer, while working in the restaurant of a hotel, I had the pleasure of meet ing a gentleman from New Orleans named Phil LeCompte. Phil was the most diehard Louisiana State football fan I've ever met. Actual ly, he's the only LSU football fan I've ever met. Call me deprived. As I await tomorrow's A&M-LSU clash in Bayouland, I can't help remem ber a heart-to-heart conversation I had in mid-August with my anti-Aggie buddy. "Hey daddy," he calls everyone 'daddy.' "When you headdin on back to school?" "Couple days," I said, not expecting the verbal sparring we were about to start. "Your boys gotta go out to Baton Rouge dis time," he said, obviously not forgetting the ribbing I gave him over last season's 45-7 A&M win over his 'Tiguhs.' "How's about a little wayjah there, daddy?" "What you got in mind?" I said. Never been much of a betting guy, but I was curious. "I was thinkin' along the lines of a couple of cold beahs. Ya know dat's all I'd reel good takin' from you seeing you're gonna be bent outta shape aftah your boys get it takin' to 'em by 20 or so." "Thinking like that, Phil, I don't think you need anymore cold ones," I cracked. Not Don Rickies caliber, I know. But he caught me off guard. "Let me tell you somethin' dad," I knew he was getting serious because now I was just 'dad.' "I know ovah in Aggieland, you guys take your football somethin' See Medrano/Page 9 Ruly Medrano Sports Writer TEXAS A&M VS. LSU Son of a gun, big fun on the Bayou The Legend of Death Valley LSU File Photo Louisiana State’s Tiger Stadium, more commonly known as ’’Death Valley," has haunted the Aggies over the years. A&M has not won there since 1975. how Tiger fans planned it. "The people here love their football," Texas A&M alumnus and current LSU head coach Curley Hallman said. "They get excited about their Tigers." Hallman is enjoying life on the other side after enduring the hostile Death Valley environment several times as a defensive back and assistant coach at A&M. And while he was somewhat pre pared for the traditional onslaught from the fans, Hallman said the Saturday See Death Vai ley/Page 9 placed at the visitor's entrance, having received several shots from a water gun to provoke roars. The official seating capacity is virtual ly ignored, as the Tiger faithful take the attitude that quantity equals quality. The fans themselves are, to say the least, colorful, with periodic sing-alongs to "Hold That Tiger" 80,000 voices strong. And the intimacy of the sidelines to the bleachers insures that the more vocal LSU patrons leave opposing players' ears burning. If it sounds intimidating, that's just Aggies, Tigers continue heated rivalry Saturday By K. LEE DAVIS Sports Writer of THE BATTALION Texas A&M will face Louisiana State on Saturday at 2:37 p.m. in Baton Rouge to continue a rivalry that dates back to the turn of the century. A&M will enter into an unfriendly ter ritory known as "Death Valley." Most people think tnat it is a desert in Califor nia, but for those who have stepped onto a football field in southern Louisiana, there can be little doubt that Tiger Stadi um, on the campus of LSU, is hell on earth. The Tigers have a career record of 284- 108-18 in Death Valley, where a crowd of over 80,000 people are expected to see LSU's home opener. "It's an exciting place to play," said A&M head coach R. C. Slocum. "We real ly haven't played well down there, but I know we can win there." Slocum and his seventh-ranked Aggies will be playing their second game of the season, having squeaked by Stanford, 10- 7 on August 26, with more expectations than perhaps any other team in school history. A&M was put through some long workouts this week as a result of the nar row victory over Stanford. "We have got to get, obviously, some of the rough edges off of our offense," Slocum said. He said that having to play at LSU's home opener will not make their task any easier. "This is their opening ballgame, they're opening at home, and it's a new season with new excitement," he said. With a victory over the Tigers, A&M By DON NORWOOD Sports Writer of THE 8A1TAUON Fans of almost every university in the nation with even a moderately success ful football program like to boast of the atmosphere of their respective home sta diums. Some of these schools do, in fact, feature a more distinct home field ad vantage due simply to the aura and tra dition surrounding their stadiums. Some of the more celebrated cases, like Michigan's 101,000-seat showcase, Syracuse's deafening Carrier Dome, and deorgia's Sanford Stadium, have reputa tions as concrete beasts that chew up vis iting teams and spit them out as shells of their former selves. But there are a few stadiums that sim ply speak for themselves, leaving exces sive hyperbole unnecessary. One of those arenas is Louisiana State's Tiger Stadium, better known as "Death Val ley." Although Gemson has made a pretty good case in their use of the term, many coaches and players around the nation would be quick to admit that the true Death Valley is in Baton Rouge. The Tigers have enjoyed a .715 winning per centage in Tiger Stadium since 1924 and an average attendance of 67,958 since 1957. On the surface, those are impres sive numbers. But mere numbers leave out the near hostility that visiting teams receive when they step on the field. Mike V, LSU's live Bengal tiger mascot, is strategically could be poised for a national champi onship run as the most difficult part of the schedule would seemingly be behind them. The Aggies take on Tulsa at home and Missouri on the road before starting Southwest Conference play. Texas A&M's record at the Baton Rouge landmark is a lackluster 8-22-1 with LSU leading the all-time series 26- 16-3, dating back to 1899. The game is slated to be televised regionally on ABC, which may bode well for the Aggies: LSU has lost 13 of their last 14 games on net work television. A highly regarded A&M team was soundly defeated, 17-8 in 1990, after then star Aggie tailback Darren Lewis was ejected from the game in the first quarter for unsportsmanlike conduct. See LSU/ Page 9 This weekend stay away from the charcoal. The lighter fluid. And the bugs. Get all your grilled favorites at The Black-eyed Pea. Juicy grilled burgers. Tender charbroiled T-bone steaks. Grilled tuna steaks. Charbroiled pork chops. Grilled chicken breasts. To name a few favorites. And each meal comes with your choice of two fresh vegetables along with all the homemade rolls and combread you care to eat. ^he Rlack-eyed Bea RESTAURANT * Home cooking worth going out for. SM 201 E. University (at Texas) College Station, 260-1092 Corps of Cadets 1992 -1993 "A New Approach To Old Traditions!" There’s a fresh wind blowing through the Corps Today—new attitudes, new thinking, a new approach! YOU decide! It’s not too late to discover the leadership ojl tunities and friendship possibilities through the Corps of Cadets. Call Major Mark Satterwhite 70 at 845-9232 or visit the Sanders Corps of Cadets Center located in Spence Park. rm Sam Houston Sanders CORPS OF CADETS CENTER Texas A&M University • Office of the Commandant College Station, Texas 77843-1400