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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 10, 1998)
'day • February 10, 1998 ||Pllli* The Battalion Sports Musical coordinators IS Hi; r write nn . -i. .. rshall latest offensive coordinator to jump A&M wagon lalwit leams I hii I'ndir] les 01/ jcomli nga: m Toledo [ICHAH1. IRGUSON |d rts writer With all of the recruiting hysteria and attention fi nally winding down, per haps it’s time to take a look at an issue completely different in na ture that is every bit as important — t :t that Texas A&M has lost yet I , er offensive coordinator. | e :h th( ■ departure of Steve Mar- o North Carolina, the Aggies j t, f ce again looking for an offen- t pj f rordinator -— their fifth in six | With terms such as longevity mtinuity being deemed nec- r for a successful program, l A&M must again fumble I d to fit another piece into their |her pionship puzzle. Whether or i n tis transition will hinder the I’sn Jf the Aggies remains to be j but its continual existence : ; up a question all its own: Wiry I & exas A&M continue to lose of- 1 e coordinators? j the world of head football | es, there are two basic schools ught regarding offensive play limg. The 1 first involves delegating roa. rity and granting the offensive (in inator complete autonomy it comes to play calling. The f d school of thought entails the dive coordinator calling the lope ity of die plays, but doing so f an offensive framework al- set for him. Meanwhile, the coach has the final authority it comes to the actual play that on the field. 1 would venture a guess that ^ the installation of a new coor- or, the offensive philosophy S - ame plan will change about as 1 asbvith the previous four — mch at all. i/fticl die departure of the beloved / Richardson and the opdon of- P the Aggies have been a power running football team. The focus has strayed at times, trying to incorporate a more pro-style offense into the al ready present structure, but it has al ways returned to the one-dimension al running game at the first sign of trouble. It’s not by any means the most exciting strategy to watch, but has obviously been sufficient for Texas A&M’s competition. Then why is it Texas A&M is be coming synonymous with Line backer U and producing All-Ameri can defensive backs, but losing offensive coordinators? With the ulti mate decision regarding play-calling falling in the hands of Head Coach R.C. Slocum, this question becomes even more interesting. Bob Toledo, the current UCLA head coach, was fired following the 1993 season. His replacement, Steve Ensminger, was fired following the dismal 1996 offensive campaign. In these instances, were the coordina tors used as scapegoats, or did they hold the ultimate responsibility for unproductivity in the offense? With the resignation of the next offensive coordinator, Mike Sher man, and the resignation of Steve Marshall, maybe the question has answered itself. Perhaps Sherman and Marshall used this position strictly as a launching pad for their careers, choosing not to wait around for the next sub-par offen sive performance they would un doubtedly shoulder the blame for, deserved or not. For those die-hard Aggies who by now have become completely en raged with the very fabric of this arti cle please realize that I’m not dese crating the Aggies’ coach. Slocum’s record stands by itself. He has been known as a defensive genius since the early ’80s, and upon his promo tion to head coach following die 1988 season, he has led the Aggies to an as tonishing record of83-25-2. However, I am bringing into question two points. First, are the of fensive coordinators ultimately re sponsible for the success or failure of the offense? Second, if they are not, Marshall obviously the responsibility of over riding those calls should be saddled on the head coach, rather than passed off to others. If Texas A&M ever plans on achieving an offensive balance strong enough to compete with the nationally-ranked teams that have given the Aggies constant problems, perhaps they should hire an estab lished offensive coordinator who can revamp the offense. However, in order for diis to occur, he must be al lowed to change the structure and philosophy of the offensive game plan, rather than try to fit new plays and formations into the existing structure — much like fitting a square peg into a round hole. At the moment, the Aggies are in complete contrast to that scenario. When outside coordinators are brought in, they still appear to be running the same offense that has been run for years. For the most part, however, Texas A&M has relied on the promotion of assistants to offensive coordinator. John Mackovic ran his program in a similar fashion at the University of Texas. With basically an unlimited budget granted to him to hire a top defensive coordinator after the 1996 season, he chose to promote from within his organization. This eventu ally led to a Texas team that struggled with its weakest opponents last sea son and to Mackovic’s firing. This is the only comparison I will ever make to the University of Texas, but it shows that responsibility can even tually catch up to the top. R.C. Slocum is the head coach of the Texas A&M football team, and a tremendously successful head coach at that. As the head coach, he has the right and authority to run whatever sort of program he sees fit, including delegating authority concerning the offensive philosophy. However, if he reserves the final authority regarding the play calling, he should also re serve the final criticism. —Michael Ferguson is a senior business management major Kzarus he' 'mm ,vi tinued from Page 7 trite ; 12 courts will allow two . matches to take place si- aneously, and it should 2 room for almost 1,500 spec- 1-. s. It has already been cho- |) ia fo host next year’s Big 12 ipionships. mr ~ Florida’s Finest Florida is a hotbed for junior tennis, thanks to countless tennis academies and prestigious com petitions like the Orange Bowl In ternational Tennis Champi onships. Fortunately for the Aggies, two of Florida’s finest ju nior tennis players, Rafael de Mesa and Shuon Madden, opted to come to Texas A&M. National Rankings The men’s team is currently ranked 33rd in the nation, and the women are No. 38. Individually, senior Carlos Tori is No. 66, and freshman Rafael de Mesa is No. 37. De Mesa’s ranking has steadi ly climbed since he won several big matches in the fall, including a 6-2, 6-1 victory over University of Texas’ No. 1 player Paul Martin. ■2 J Are You Sick and Waiting? on f ' CALL FIRST <& Reduce Your Wait make an appointment at A. P. Beutel Health Center: Call our Appointment Line at 845-6111, on Monday-Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. After hours, call Dial-A-Nurse at 845-2822. cte; wmwLmMT AMBULANCE SERVICE Ambulance service is available 24 hours for on-campus emergencies by calling 9-911 from a campus phone. Student Health Services If]': A.r. Beu/el Health Center Division of Student Affairs Texas A&M University Accredited by Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care, Inc. Health Center Hours 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday-Friday www.tamu.edu/shs Better Ingredients. Better Pizza. Tuesday Nite: Beat the Clock Time You Call is the Price You Pay! (from 6 p.m. - 8 p.m.) On a Large 1 Topping Pizza Tips are appreciated College Station Northgate Bryan 764-7272 846-3600 268-7272 1100 Harvey Rd. 601 University 3414 East 29th St It’s Time ;ain I 'w 4r"Y‘ §§~Jf ffigj -» dCTfi IB . € ¥***£*ir 1H 5111^ li February 16-19 Schedule of Events: 16 , h : Evening Reception @ The Hilton, 7 p.m. 17 , h : Company Booths; Evening Reception @ Pebble Creek Country Club. 7 p.m. 18 th : Company Booths; Evening Reception @ Briarcrest Country Club, 7 p.m. 19 ,h : Company Booths Ar Dress in business attire when speaking with companies at their booths At Prepare and bring resumes. Resume help? Contact the Career Center: 845-5139 'k Inquire about the appropriate attire for receptions when purchasing tickets to the reception Have questions on how to get the most out of Career Fairs? Attend the Career Fair Networking Seminar on February 12. at 7 p.m.. in Wehner 159. http://wehner.tamu.edu/BSC Companies attending the Career Fair and their corresponding days will be posted in the Battalion each day of the Career Fair. Wp.OP CARESR lA . V MAJORS IHUr- . ^ * s-.so-4.-oo c TT Company ABB Lummus Global ABB Vetco Gray Alcatel ARGO Cryovac Decibel Products Eastman Entergy Flowtronex International Fluor Daniel, Inc. Fujitsu Halliburton Hewlett-Packard - Convex Inter-National Research Institute International Paper Lockheed Martin Vought Marathon Oil Metrowerks Corporation Midas Rex, L.P. Nokia Nordstrom Valves, Inc. Pratt & Whitney Eagle Services Printpack, Inc. Siecor Solutia Inc. SGS-Thomson Southdown, Inc. Stewart & Stevenson Tellepsen Corporation Majors CEEN CHEN ELEN PHYS MEEN CPSC CSEN ELEN INEN MEEN ELEN MEEN CHEN ELEN MEEN INEN MECH MEEN TELE CHEN CVEN ELEN MEEN CHEN ELEC ELEN MECH MEEN CECN CEEN CPSC ELEN FINC MGMT ACCT CPSC ELEN ENTC AGEN CPSC ELEN INEN MEEN PETE CEEN CPSC ELEN MEEN CPSC CECN CHEN ELEN MEEN AERO CPSC ELEN MEEN CHEN CVEN ELEN INEN MEEN CECN CEEN CPSC ELEN BIEN MEEN ELEN INEN MEEN ENTC INEN LBAR MEEN MKTG INEN MEEN CHEN MEEN CHEM CHEN ELEN INEN MEEN CHEN ELEN MEEN CHEN CPSC ELEN MEEN CHEN ELEN MEEN ELEN MEEN COSC ENDS MOT MISS It.*.' ZMHRV EMMtlM