'day • February 10, 1998
||Pllli* The Battalion
Sports
Musical coordinators
IS Hi;
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rshall latest offensive coordinator to jump A&M wagon
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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
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on f '
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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
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COSC ENDS
MOT MISS It.*.'
ZMHRV EMMtlM