Page 5
Monday • November 4, 1996
i Turnabout is fair play
Aggies reverse turnover trend, capitalize
on OSU giveaways in 38-19 victory
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By Ross Hecox
The Battalion
STILLWATER, Okla. — In a
season where turnovers have
led to its heartbreaking demise,
the Texas A&M Football Team fi
nally used a giveaway to its ad
vantage Saturday.
Trailing Oklahoma State Univer
sity 13-10 at the start of the third
quarter, the Aggies reversed their
fortunes when senior linebacker
Keith Mitchell snagged his first ca
reer interception and sprinted into
the end zone. From
there, A&M rolled to
a 38-19 victory be
fore a Lewis Field
crowd of 41,250.
The play turned
the tide for a
squad that has
struggled to find
any positive mo
mentum all sea
son. Following a
Branndon Stewart
fumble at the Ag-
fcie 34-yard line
[that set up a Cow
boy field goal to
Weak a 10-10 tie
at the end of the
first half, Mitchell’s game
breaking play could not have
come at a better time for the
Aggies.
A&M Flead Coach R.C. Slocum
said he told the team at halftime
not to let the negatives carry over
into the rest of the game.
“It was very disappointing,
but we had to grab hold of the
situation,” Slocum said. “We
talked at halftime about being
positive and opportunistic
when opportunities present
,, ,i ’ r themselves. I’m delighted that
..1-^1 (our team came out in the sec-
sions in the and half and did the things
;sion topics needed to win the ballgame.”
o — How to Opportunity came knocking
and “Corps w hen Cowboy quarterback
Tone’ Jones attempted to lob a
ounselor for screen pass over Mitchell’s
mp, said the head. The Aggie linebacker
;re meant to
ecurities.
other moms
oblems and
to keep your
"It’s just an
notlier.”
Camp con-
ue on Satur-
e Leslie, for-
esident, as a
;, the moms
?nd with an-
id camp skit
“I’m delighted
that our team
came out in the
second half and
did the things
needed to win
the ballgame.”
R.C. Slocum
A&M Head Coach
leaped into the air for the inter
ception behind the line of
scrimmage and carried it 42
yards into the end zone, giving
the Aggies the lead for good.
Mitchell said the touchdown
interception tipped the scales in
A&M’s favor.
“We needed a big play like
that, and it was a blessing to get
[the interception],” Mitchell
said. “It has been my intention
that when my team needs a big
play, that I can make one for
them. We’ve been having bad
things happen to
us all year long.
It’s about time
something went
our way.”
A&M turned
things around
from there. After
totaling only 93
yards in the first
half, the Aggies ran
43 plays for 275
yards and three
touchdowns.
Freshman quar
terback Randy Mc-
Cown was inserted
into the lineup 3:37
into the third quarter. In his sec
ond series at the helm, McCown
connected with senior wideout
Albert Connell down the right
sideline for 47 yards. The play set
up a 7-yard touchdown run by
sophomore running back D’An-
dre “Tiki” Hardeman.
In the meantime, the Wreck
ing Crew limited the Cowboys to
131 yards and six points in the fi
nal two quarters.
With A&M ahead 24-13 late in
the third, Cowboy fullback Brian
Akins rushed 35 yards into the Ag
gies’ end zone. After failing to
complete the two-point conver
sion, OSU stood within five points
of the A&M lead.
However, A&M’s defense kept
the Cowboys off the scdreboard
from then on, while the offense
grounded out two more touch-
Rogge Heflin, Speclai. to the Battalion
A&M junior quarterback Branndon Stewart is pressured by Cowboy
defenders. Stewart was sacked three times for a loss of 18 yards.
downs on the strength of Harde
man, who finished with 109 yards
on 18 carries and three touch
downs for the day.
Senior noseguard Edward
Jasper said Hardeman’s 94-yard,
three-touchdown second half
performance helped set the
tone for the rest of the game.
“When they started going
Tiki left and Tiki right, that was
hard on the (OSU) defense,”
Jasper said. . f
Hardeman’s 1-yard surge into
the end zone with 11:04 left in the
game capped a 61-yard drive by
the Aggies and gave A&M a com
manding 31-19 lead.
Junior linebacker Phillip Mey
ers forced OSU to fumble on the
first play of its following posses
sion, and freshman safety Bran
don Jennings recovered the ball at
the OSU 43-yard line. Four plays
later, Hardeman rumbled 35
yards into the end zone, provid
ing the final margin.
Sophomore linebacker Dat
Nguyen’s third pick of the season
set up an early A&M scoring dri
ve. Branndon Stewart’s quarter
back sneak gave the Aggies a 7-0
lead 3:21 into the first quarter.
Oklahoma running back
David Thompson’s 5-yard
touchdown run with 1:53 left in
the first evened the score.
Thompson, the fourth-leading
rusher in the nation (138.6
yards a game), was held to 43
yards on 25 carries.
A&M and OSU swapped field
goals before Stewart was sacked
and fumbled the ball, setting
up another Cowboy field goal,
this time a 32-yard Tim Sydnes
chip shot as time ran out in the
first half.
McCown said in a season
marred with games that fell
apart for the Aggies, it was en
couraging to see their efforts
produce a win.
“It was a big win for us,” Mc
Cown said. “We’ve struggled this
season, but today everything
came together. We had some
great momentum.”
Texas A&M 38, OSU 19
A&M 7
OSU 7
3 14 14
6 6 0
— 38
— 19
A&M
OSU
First Downs
19
16
Rushes-yards
48-210
34-121
Passing yards
158
199
Comp-att-int
10-24-0
17-35-3
Return yards
42
10
Punts-avg.
7-38
6-48
Fumbles-lost
1-1
2-1
Penalties-yards 5-39
1-6
Time of possession 30:46
29:14
Rogge Heflin, Special to the Battalion
Sophomore running back D'Andre Hardeman breaks away for a 35-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
McCown vacates bench to lead Aggies
By Dennis Ramirez
The Battalion
STILLWATER, Okla. — “Let his
will be done ... ,” was part of the
prayer A&M redshirt freshman
quarterback Randy McCown said
to himself before entering Satur
day’s game in the third quarter
with the Texas A&M Football
Team holding a slim 17-13 lead
over Oklahoma State University.
Senior outside linebacker Keith
Mitchell had just recorded his first
ever interception and touchdown
return, providing McCown with a
four-point lead as he replaced start
ing quarterback Branndon Stewart
with 11:23 left in the quarter.
After an unsuccessful first series,
McCown passed for 108 yards the
remamder of the contest, as the of
fense racked up 167 rushing yards,
21 points and no turnovers to take
control of the game.
Prior to the game, Head
Coach R.C. Slocum said Mc
Cown would probably see play
ing time, and the first-year sig
nal-caller was ready to play.
“As the backup quarterback,
I’m always ready to go in and do
whatever the team needs me to
do,” McCown said. “I have to be
ready to step up and perform.
Going in there I just said a prayer
and left everything up to Him.
“All I wanted to do is execute
plays. I get plenty of reps in prac
tice, and so when I get the oppor
tunity, I have to perform.”
And perform he did. McCown
energized an A&M offense that
had only rushed for 43 yards,
passed for 50 yards and put 10
points up on the board before he
entered the game.
Slocum said McCown’s lead
ership and chemistry may have
proved to be a winning combi
nation, but there is no quarter
back controversy.
“I played Randy McCown and
we had some good things hap
pen, but that doesn’t mean that
we have a quarterback controver
sy or that we’ve made a monu
mental change,” Slocum said. “I
started the game with Stewart,
but at the same time I had said
that I wouldn’t hesitate to put in
other quarterbacks to get a look
at them before spring training.”
McCown proved adept at
throwing deep downfield, con
necting on passes of. 47 and 24
yards to senior wide receiver Al
bert Connell and sophomore
tight end Derrick Spiller, re
spectively. At the same time, he
dismissed rumors he did not
have enough speed to be a top
quarterback.
“I run a 4.8 (40-yard dash), but if
someone is chasing me down, I’ll
run a 4.5 or 4.6 easy,” McCown said.
“As for the passes, I basically just
put it out there and let them make
the play. Albert Connell is a great
player and he made me look good.”
Displaying mobility and
quickness in the third quarter,
McCown scrambled out of the
pocket twice for 13 yards,
breaking two tackles and turn
ing a potential big loss into a
gain in one instance.
McCown also offered a boost
of confidence to the team.
Sophomore tailback D’Andre
Hardeman rushed for 94 yards in
the second half, compared to just
15 yards in the first half.
“It is something good for the
team when a guy can step up and
get the job done,” Mitchell said.
“For now, we will have to wait and
see what happens and hope for
the best. We got some good mo
mentum today.”
Slocum said thedeam will re
evaluate its quarterbacks’ perfor
mance this week, and then make
any decisions regarding changing
the lineup.
“We don’t have a quarterback
controversy,” Slocum said.
“What we will do is go into
practice this week and then we
can make a decision as to what
happens,” Slocum said. “For
now, I am very pleased and con
fident with the outcome. We are
just going to take things one
week at a time.”
Rogge Heflin, Special to the Battalion
Redshirt freshman Randy McCown completed 5 of 11 passes for
108 yards with no interceptions.
Aggie Soccer clinches fourth Post Oak Classic title
E
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By Nicki Smith
The Battalion
The sixth-ranked Texas A&M Soccer Team put an
end to its regular season play this weekend while
hosting the Post Oak Mall Classic at the Aggie Soc
cer Complex, but to say that the team went out with
a bang would be an understatement.
Not only did the Aggies take first place in the
tournament for the fourth year in a row, but they
increased their overall record to 18-2, while main
taining a perfect record at home.
The Aggies hosted the ninth-ranked University
of North Carolina-Greensboro, the 20th-ranked
University of Massachusetts and 15th-ranked
George Mason University. A&M Head Coach G.
Guerrieri said all three teams played extremely well.
“There was a terrific level of play everyone got
to see this weekend,” Guerrieri said. “All four of
the games were very entertaining and we all got
to see a wide variety of styles with each of the
teams that played.”
In first-round action Friday, the Aggies took on
North Carolina-Greensboro after Massachusetts
defeated George Mason 2-0 in an earlier game.
Less than 25 minutes into the A&M-UNCG
game, junior forward Bryn Blalack scored off a
penalty kick from senior forward Yvette Okler’s at
tempt 15 yards out from the goal.
It would be the only goal either team would score in
the first half. In the second half, it was all Blalack as she
scored her second unassisted goal at the 36:05 mark.
Blalack would be the only player to score in the
game, which put the Aggies up 2-0 over the Lady
Spartans and into the championship game against
the UMass Minutewomen.
Guerrieri said the the win, which marked the
Aggies second against top 10 teams, was a great
result for the Aggies.
“It was great for us to be able to beat another
top 10 team this close to the end of the season,”
Guerrieri said. “These challenges are exactly
what we look forward to.”
Blalack said because the Aggies lost their first
contest against the Spartans a year ago, they knew
they had to improve this time around.
“I think they played about the same,” Blalack
said. “We improved the way we played and we
came out this weekend knowing every game was
going to be tough. I think we showed them we can
play with top level teams.”
Guerrieri said he expected Massachusetts to be
the Aggie’s toughest home opponent.
“This game made for a terrific championship
game for this tournament,” Guerrieri said. “Typi
cally, teams for the East Coast don’t play a quick
game, but more of a physical and direct game.
“We were expecting UMass to be organized de
fensively and for their goalie, Danielle Dion, to
make spectacular saves.”
“This was the game we were looking for to head
us into the Big 12 Championships.”
Blalack sparked the Aggie offensive attack
again with 29:24 left in the first half as she took a
cross from Okler.
Blalack attributed the three goals she scored this
weekend to her teammates.
“This team is phenomenal,” Blalack said. “I am sur
rounded by the best players in the nation and I just
happened to be in the right place at the right time.”
Senior forward Kristen Koop continued the of
fensive attack at she headed in a goal off a corner
kick from senior midfielder Tania Castillejos, which
was then headed off Blalack.
The only other goal scored in the game came
with only 35 seconds left as freshman midfielder
Julie Pinkerton blasted in the ball in front of a
wide-open goal.
The 3-0 final score was the Aggies’ second shut
out of the weekend, and their 10th on the season. It
was also the Aggies’ 17th straight win at home.
Guerrieri said UMass did not give the Aggies any
easy opportunities.
“All of our goals were quality goals,” Guerrieri
said. “The first half was one of our better halves we
have played, and this was a great experience for us
leading into the Big 12 Finals and NCAA Champi-
Ryan Rogers, The Battalion
Senior forward Kristen Koop scores against
Massachusetts in the championship game Sunday.
onships. We now have beaten teams that are better
than we will face all season.”
Aggies nominated to the All-Tournament
team included Koop, Okler and sophomore de
fender Emily Elias.
Blalack took home MVP Offensive honors and
freshman goalkeeper Melanie Wilson won MVP
Defensive honors.
The Aggies will resume play Nov. 7-10 in St. Louis,
Mo., for the Big 12 Conference Championships.
3 ages.