The Battalion
Sports
id ay‘January 23, 1998
. Big Wednesday
ggies prepare for February 4 signing day
By Chris Ferrell
Staff writer
the Texas A&M Football Team comes off
pp irst Big 12 South title, it knows the champi-
o hip was not won overnight. There were
burs upon hours spent in the weight room
o'l on the practice field. There were countless
! i sessions and scouting reports. But even
f ( ore that, the foundation for the title was
o' It over the years through the recruiting ef-
’ of the school.
a ^f the Aggies are to remain at the top of the
® ith and climb towards the upper echelon of
- ege programs, the next two weeks will be
y important.
1 Zoliing off the Big 12 South title and an im-
ssive showing in the Cotton Bowl against
LA, A&M figures to once again compile one
he nation’s top recruiting classes.
The team’s top priority for the ‘98 recruiting
son has been the offensive line where A&M
I lose three of its five starters. All-Big 12
ird Steve McKinney, center Koby Hackradt
left tackle Chris Ruhman must all be re-
ced, which is a major reason the Aggies are
king to sign four lineman, as opposed to one
wo at all other positions.
3 The countdown is rapidly approaching
^tei:
signing day on Feb. 4, and A&M has received
oral commitments from three lineman in
cluding 6-foot-8-inch, 285-pound Chris
Montgomery, a state top-100 player on most
lists. Montgomery is from Euless and played
at the same high school as current A&M line
men Semisi Heimuli and Moses Vakalahi.
A&M has also received oral commitments
from Taylor Whitley a 6-foot-5-inch, 315-
pounder from Sudan and Mike Mahan from
Homer, La., who is also an imposing figure at
6-foot-7-inches, 310 pounds.
Tight end is also an area the Aggies are try
ing to build for the future. All-Big 12 tight end
Derrick Spiller and tight ends Daniel Campbell
and Matt Mahone are all entering their senior
seasons. After they depart, RoDerrick
Broughton, who will be a sophomore next sea
son, will be the only remaining tight end on the
roster after 1998.
For the past two seasons A&M has been the
Big 12’s youngest team. Next season the Ag
gies will return 17 starters going into either
their junior or senior seasons, a number
which makes a strong recruiting class even
more important.
Director of Football Operations Tim Cassidy
said the large number of returning starters
should not scare away any blue chip recruits
who want a chance to play early.
“Typically the top players which we recruit
from are not concerned with depth charts,”
Cassidy said. “The best players like the compe
tition.”
All oral commitments are non-binding. A
player is not obligated to a school until he signs
a national letter of intent, a fact the Aggies have
already experienced this recruiting season. The
Aggies have already lost a player to Tennessee
and Texas All-State running back Victor Ike
changed his commitment from A&M to Texas,
according to a report in yesterday’s Austin-
American Statesman.
exas A&M travels to Lincoln for dual meet
By Colby Mart in
Staff writer
, .The Texas A&M Men’s and
men’s Swimming and Diving
ms are not afraid of good com-
ition. The Aggies have gone to
tlefwith some of the nation’s top
mt already this month, and it
js not get any easier this week-
v gr 1 as the Aggies travel to Lincoln,
rijO., to face the Minnesota Gold-
Gophers and the Nebraska
rnhuskers in a dual meet,
lit:'\lfthree coaches stress winning
as se dual meets is important for
ifidence, but the main focus is
provement.
“We look at it as a funnel effect,
,ere we want to get the feeling of
mpetition, but winning a dual
:et is not our main focus,” Div-
; Coach Kevin Wright said.
The 20th-ranked men’s team de-
ted the 13th-ranked Miami Hur-
mes last Saturday in Miami. The
;ies took first place in 10 of the
wents, including a sweep in the
100-yard breaststroke with Kyle
Maiden taking first, Matt Rice sec
ond and Chris Sandt finishing
third. The Hurricanes won the div
ing events by default because the
Aggie diving team did not compete.
“I have been pleased with our
effort in practice and meets,”
Men’s Coach Mel Nash said. “We
have great leadership and hard
workers from top to bottom.”
Nash said, considering the
competition, he is excited about
how his team has stepped up to
the challenges.
“Nebraska will be swimming in
their home pool, and Minnesota
has some experienced interna
tional swimmers, so it does not get
any easier,” Nash said.
The team will also be swimming
in their best events, which is some
thing that they have not done yet.
The men will probably have to com
pete without Marden, who broke
his hand after the meet in Miami.
The women’s team has also
stood up very well to the early
competition.
“The most important thing for
our team (members) is to gain
confidence in themselves, and
they do this by competing against
“The most important
thing for our team
(members ) is to gain
confidence in themselves,
and they do this by com^
peting against tough tal
ent and doing well.”
DON WAGNER
WOMEN’S SWIM COACH
tough talent and doing well,”
Women’s Coach Don Wagner said.
In the women’s last meet, Stacie
Karnes won the 200-yard freestyle
with a time of 1 minute, 49.59 sec
onds, which was a season-best for
A&M. Kelly Bolton aced the com
petition in the 100-freestyle with
51.42 seconds and Tracy Evans had
a season-best 4:52.22 to win the
500-freestyle.
“I’m excited with the effort of
our team,” Wagner said.
Wagner said he felt his team
measured up very well with both
Nebraska and Minnesota and is up
for the challenge.
The diving team will be at a dis
advantage in Lincoln because
platform diving, the Aggies' strong
point, is not an event included in
dual meets, but Wright said the
meet is important nonetheless.
“The dual meets are just part of
the process of getting to where we
need to be,” Wright said.
The main focus for the swim
ming and diving teams these
next few weeks will be to improve
as individuals in each event.
These meets will be used as step
ping stones to the teams’ nation
al title hopes.
from staff and wire reports
Sykora earns All
Stacy Sykora, the 5-foot-10-inch
junior outside hitter on the Texas
A&M Volleyball Team, was named
to the Volleyball All-American hon
orable mention team.
This is Sykora’s second All-
American honor handed to her this
season. In December she was
named to the American Volleyball
Coaches Association All-American
second team.
Sykora, from Burleson, lead the
Aggies to a No. 13 final ranking,
the highest in school history, and a
-American honor
26-8 record.
Sykora was named to the NCAA
East Regional All-Tournament Team
after posting career highs in kills
with 28 and digs with 25 in the Ag
gies' five-set, season-ending loss to
No. 5 BYU in the semifinals of the
NCAA Championship East Regional.
Sykora joined Demetria Sance
from Texas, Fiona Nepo and Lisa
Reitsma from Nebraska and
Patrice Arrington from Oklahoma
as the Big 12 representatives on
the team.
Sports Briefs
from staff and wire reports
Cowboys’ Jones meets with Seifert
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Dallas owner
Jerry Jones said he met with former
San Francisco 49ers coach George
Seifert for several hours Thursday
to discuss the Cowboys’ head
coaching vacancy.
“We probably spent three hours
talking today,” said Jones, in town
for the Super Bowl. “George and I
spent a lot of time on the competi
tion committee together, so we
know each other pretty well.”
Seifert is the first known candidate
to interview for the position, which
came open when Barry Switzer re
signed Jan. 9. The Cowboys are com
ing off a 6-10 season that was their
worst since going 1-15 in 1989.
Jones has been uncharacteristi
cally tight-lipped about the search
for a replacement. He reportedly
has a short list of between three
and six candidates.
One of the others is Green Bay of
fensive coordinator Sherman Lewis,
whom Jones can’t speak with until af
ter Sunday’s game. On Thursday,
Jones said he will interview Lewis on
Sunday night or Monday, depending
on Lewis’ schedule.
Lewis has been the Packers’ of
fensive coordinator since the 1993
season.. He was their receivers
coach the previous season, and he
spent the nine years before that as
a position coach in San Francisco.
“It has been my intent all along to
visit with him,” Jones told The Dallas
Morning News. “I would point out
what happened in Green Bay this
season as a logical reason for why I
would want to talk to him.”
The Packers drubbed the Cow
boys 45-17 in November, beginning
a winning streak that has led them
to their second straight Super Bowl.
Dallas missed the playoffs this sea
son for the first time since 1990.
Another apparent candidate for
the job is former UCLA coach Ter
ry Donahue. Although Jones has
n’t confirmed meeting with Don
ahue, the ex-coach’s agent, Bob
Rosen, told the Fort Worth Star-
Telegram the pair met Saturday
through Tuesday.
Other reported candidates in
clude Broncos offensive coordina
tor Gary Kubiak and former Cow
boys defensive coordinator Butch
Davis, the head coach at the Uni
versity of Miami.
Jones also is believed to be in
terested in hiring Minnesota offen
sive coordinator Brian Billick for the
same job in Dallas.
The Vikings blocked Jones
from speaking with Billick by pro
moting him, but Billick reportedly
is considering quitting, which
would allow him to freely negoti
ate with any team.
Jones’ interest in Billick was
piqued by another former 49ers
coach, Bill Walsh, who recently
wrote a book with Billick.
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