l idnesday • July 22,1998
The Battalion
PORTS
tom top to bottom
pily of New York Mets first-round selection establishes
'exas-based memorial scholarship fund for Juliette Tyner
By Robert Hollier
Staff Writer
n June 2,1998, Jason Tyner
and his family seemed to
be on top of the world.
'net was selected as the 21st pick
the first round of the Major
Baseball Amateur Draft by
eNew York Mets, and he was
I rn into the national spotlight.
ner, considered by many to be
pot the most prolific hitters in
ixas A&M baseball history, was
ady to sign with the Mets and be-
Ihis professional baseball career.
It seemed life could not be bet-
r for him and his family.
Unfortunately, life has its ups
pSowns, and just 14 days after
'net was drafted by the Mets,
jgedv struck. His mother, Juli-
Tyner, lost a long battle
itst cancer.
St.; "It has been an incredible month
all of us," Richard Tyner, Jason's
said. "One day we're as
and as happy as we can be,
e next day we're as low as we
as a family.
It was a tough battle for her.
efought it (the cancer) for five-
dralf years and she never gave
>. She was an inspiration for all of
pid tor anyone."
After experiencing a roller
coaster of emotions, the future be
gan to look bright again for Tyner
when he signed a major league
contract with the Mets on July 6.
tt This award will
be given to any athlete
who exhibits the quali
ties she (Juliette) had.”
— Richard Tyner
Jason Tyner’s father
Tyner officially began his pro
fessional career Saturday, July 11,
on Class A St. Lucie in Florida. In
his first game, he went 1-5 with
two runs scored.
With the passing of his mother,
Jason and his family and friends
came up with an idea to keep her
memory alive and to remind peo
ple of her courage and strength.
With the help of donations from
friends and colleagues, the Tyner
family formed the Juliette Tyner
Memorial Scholarship Fund. The
scholarship will be awarded to one
baseball player and one softball
player going to college each year.
"This scholarship will be
awarded to any athlete in the two
sports going to any university in
Texas," Richard Tyner said. "Many
people have made pledges and we
will pick a committee to raise
some more money.
"This award will be given to any
athlete who exhibits the qualities
she (Juliette) had. She was a leader,
and she fought hard to the end, and
that's what we want in the athletes
we award the scholarships to."
Tyner said athletics are impor
tant, but education and discipline
are also paramount to success.
"We've always stressed three
things in our kids: education, disci
pline and athletics in that order.
When you get a good education, you
learn discipline and to be a success
ful athlete, you have to be smart and
disciplined. That's what we want in
the athletes we select and that's how
she would have wanted it."
The scholarship will be award
ed every year on June 16, the day
Juliette Tyner passed away.
Each year, the Tyners and their
friends will host a one-day baseball
and softball camp.
The camp will be held either at
Lamar University or West Brook
■AA
®Sg
Photo By Brandon Boi.lom/ The Battalion
Centerfielder Jason Tyner, drafted 22nd by the New York Mets in the first round, skipped his final year of
college eligibility at Texas A&M to play for the Mets’ Class A team in St. Lucie, Fla.
High School in Beaumont. All of
the proceeds from the camp also
will go to the scholarship fund.
"I know she would have want
ed to see Jason play pro ball,"
Richard Tyner said, "but now she's
got some peace and Jason is doing
what she wanted him to do —
playing baseball and having fun."
ills makes comeback under Gailey
ran:
/ICHITA FALLS, Texas (AP) — It's the
Irth quarter of the Super Bowl in Phoenix,
January, 1996, the Dallas Cowboys against the
p>burgh Steelers.
The Cowboys were being hurt by Pitts-
Jgh's Ernie Mills, who had eight catches for
lyards and 79 yards on kickoff returns. He
vas someone very dangerous.
■Then Mills went down with a torn interior
[date ligament of the left knee and the Cow
l's went on to win 27-17.
[Ywo-and-a-half years later guess who is the
ing candidate for the No. 2 receiver spot op
hite Michael Irvin?
It's kind of ironic isn't it?" Mills said, sweat
?ping off his nose on another 100-degree
la\ at Midwestern State University. "Who
vould have ever thought I'd end up playing
Jthe Dallas Cowboys?"
Jr who would have ever thought Mills and
femer Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Chan
jley, the Cowboys' new coach, would wind up
Bthesame team together again.
tills tried to come back during the 1996 reg-
iilir season for the Steelers and his old moves
it weren't there. He caught only seven passes
for 92 yards.
He signed with the Carolina Panthers as a free
agent for the 1997 season after it became appar
ent the Steelers weren't in
terested. He started but
couldn't produce and was
deactivated several times.
He finished with 11 catch
es for 127 yards.
"I just never fully recov
ered from the knee injury
at Pittsburgh and I thought
I was ready to go at Caroli
na but it was like they nev
er had confidence in me,"
Mills said. "But it's worked
Airman
out. Now I get a second chance with Chan.'
Mills has been dazzling in training camp, us
ing his knowledge of Gailey's pass routes to
hookup with quarterback Troy Aikman. Aikman
loves what he sees in Mills.
"He's been the leader of our receiving corps,"
Aikman said. "He has been very consistent. In fact,
I'm learning a lot about our new offense from him."
Asked what he's seeing in Mills, Gailey said
"He reminds me of exactly what we left at Pitts
burgh and that's good enough for me.
Gailey remembers 1995 when Mills had 39
catches for 679 yards and eight touchdowns on a
run-oriented team that made it to that Super Bowl.
Mills said he hopes he can take some of the
double-teaming heat off Michael Irvin.
"Maybe with me being in there Michael can
get a few more one-on-one situations," Mills
said. "If I produce I think he will. I can't do the
things Michael can do but I think I can really
help this team."
Watching the seven-on-seven passing drills at
Midwestern State University and Mills' worth
becomes obvious.
Here he is cutting over the middle for a per
fect slant pass from Aikman. There he is selling
the inside move and cutting outside to get open
for an out route bullet from Aikman.
"It's great to catch balls Aikman throws,"
Mills said. "The ball gets right to you in perfect
position and it's easy to catch.He hits you right
on the break."
And the way Mills looks at it after the last two
years it's time he got a few good breaks.
"It's still a little weird to see that star on my
helmet," Mills said.
NBA Players, executives
begin lockout negotiations
iite of first Aggie exhibition game could
:hange, says one basketball staff member
By Katie Mish
Staff writer
The Texas A&:M Men's Basketball
m might not open its 1998-1999 season
Reed Arena as expected, according to
new basketball schedule.
G. Rollie White Coliseum is is sched-
:d to host the Aggies' home opener, an
hibition game against the Australian
-Stars.
Kevin Hurley, a member of the bas-
tball department staff, said the game
\eduled for G. Rollie is not the official
irt of the season since the game is for
hibition purposes only.
Hurley said there is a conflict with an-
jjther event in Reed Arena on Nov. 8, but
lesaid the game might moved from G.
ie back to Reed Arena.
I have a gut feeling that the exhibi-
|pn game will change its location," Hur-
k said, "and open in Reed Arena as
jreviously planned."
| The Aggies ended last season with a
8me against Baylor in G. Rollie. A&M
pon their only conference game of the
|hson by beating the Bears 80-75 before
j278 fans. A "Turn Out the Lights" con-
!st was held and the game was billed as
jie last game in the coliseum .
Hurley said that is why he thinks the
^me will be moved to Reed Arena.
"It will be changed," Hurley said.
The athletics director and other mem-
?rs of the sports staff are taking steps to
lange it."
Athletics Director Wally Groff could
otbe reached for comment.
Regardless of the location of the ex-
ibition game, the Aggies will play in
eed Arena on Nov. 13, their official
season opener, against the University of
North Texas.
The other exhibition game for the
Aggies will be against the California
All-Stars on Nov. 17.
1998 Mens Basketball Schedule
Date
Opponent
Time
11/8
EXHIBITION GAME
(G. Rollie White)
7:00
PM
11/13
NORTH TEXAS
7:00
PM
11/17
CALIFORNIA ALL-STARS
EXHIBITION GAME
7:00
PM
11/19
at Stephen F. Austin
7:00
PM
11/21
CENTENARY
2:30
PM
11/28
at Oral Roberts
7:00
PM
12/1
ALABAMA
7:00
PM
12/3
at Sam Houston State
7:00
PM
12/6
LAMAR
7:30
PM
12/9
TULANE
7:00
PM
12/19
ARIZONA STATE
8:30
PM
12/28
at Southern
7:00
PM
1/2
*at Kansas
TBA
1/6
*OKLAHOMA STATE
TBA
1/9
*MISS0URI
TBA
1/13
*at TX Tech
TBA
1/16
*I0WA STATE
TBA
1/23
*at Baylor
TBA
1/27
*TEXAS TECH
TBA
1/30
*at Oklahoma State
TBA
2/3
*at Texas
TBA
2/6
*BAYLOR
TBA
2/10
*KANSAS STATE
TBA
2/13
*at Oklahoma
TBA
2/17
*at Colorado
TBA
2/20
*TEXAS
TBA
2/24
*OKLAHOMA
TBA
2/27
*at Nebraska
TBA
3/4 thru 3/7 Phillips 66
TBA
Big 12 Tournament
Festma members ordered to
buy own drugs, doctor says
PARIS (AP) — The Tour de France drug scandal took
another turn Tuesday when the doctor for the ousted Fes-
tina team charged that riders were ordered by the team
manager to pay for illegal substances.
"The riders were obliged to put part of their win
bonuses into a 'black box' fund to huy banned sub
stances," Arsene Ryckaert, lawyer for team doctor Eric
Ryckaert, told the Le Parisian newspaper. "These prod
ucts, like regular drugs, were held at Festina's head
quarters in Lyon."
Team manager Bruno Roussel was in charge of the sys
tem and riders decided what substances they wanted to
take, Arsene Ryckaert said.
Ryckaert said that his client, no relation, did not pre
scribe or administer banned substances, and was called
in only if riders had problems after taking drugs.
The drug scandal has rocked the Tour de France since
customs officers found illegal substances in the car of the
trainer of Festina's top rider, Richard Virenque.
The Festina team was thrown out of the race Saturday
and police in Lille are holding Ryckaert and Roussel.
It also was reported Tuesday that French customs of
ficials found the drug EPO in the car of officials of the
Dutch TVM team in March. EPO is the same substance
allegedly used by Festina.
The Internationa] Union of Cycling, the sport's gov
erning body, has asked the Dutch cycling federation to in
vestigate and tour organizers have threatened to expel the
TVM team if it is proved riders took the drug.
"If the inquiry finds that rules have been broken, the
case would go to the courts. But first we need proof that
someone has done something wrong," Anne-Laure Mas
son, the union's anti-drug coordinator, said.
TVM, a Dutch transport insurance company, told the
Dutch news agency ANP that a third party might be in
volved in the latest accusations.
"The case has been closed for four months. Festina gets
caught and this suddenly surfaces again. I find it strange,"
Ad Bos, director of TVM, told ANP.
Hein Verbruggen, president of the cycling union, ac
knowledges that his sport is struggling to discover how
many cyclists are using illegal substances.
NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA
and locked-out players agree on one
thing: It's time to start talking again.
Commissioner David Stern and
players' union director
Billy Hunter met Tues
day and agreed to re
sume collective bar
gaining. Negotiations
have been stalled since
June 22.
They plan to speak
Friday to set a date.
"It was a very cor
dial meeting that did
n't focus on the specifics of our ne
gotiation," Hunter said through a
spokesperson. "Instead, we talked
more generally about the desire on
both our parts to resume bargain
ing. I let David know that my ulti
mate goal remains reaching an
agreement that both sides can live
with as soon as possible."
The sides probably won't schedule
talks before the end of this month.
Stern has plans to take vacation next
week, and deputy commissioner
Russ Granik is in Europe with the U.S.
world championship team.
Stern and Granik attended the
nine negotiating sessions before
the lockout, but both do not nec
essarily have to be there when
talks resume.
Tuesday's development may have
been a positive sign since Hunter had
indicated a day earlier there was no
need to resume discussions unless ei
ther side would show a willingness to
move off its current position.
The sides remain far apart on fun
damental economic issues related to
divvying up the pile of money known
as basketball-related income, or BRI.
Owners had planned to devote
between 48 and 52 percent of that
money to player salaries under the
last labor agreement, but the num
ber rose to 57 percent — about $950
million — for the 1997-98 season.
In proposals exchanged before
the July 1 imposition of the lockout,
the NBA was asking for a "hard"
salary cap tied to no more than 50
percent of BRI. The union proposed
a reduction in future salary cap
growth if BRI hit 63 percent.
Stern has been demanding "cost
certainty" in a new deal, while the
players say they should not be re
sponsible for protecting owners
from themselves.
Other issues that have been dis
cussed but not yet resolved include
changes to the rookie wage scale, in
creased minimum salaries for veter
ans, player discipline and modifica
tions to the drug agreement
Curiously, neither side has yet
proposed a luxury tax, such as the
one used in baseball, as a way of de
terring high payrolls. During labor
talks in 1995, a luxury tax on over-
the-cap teams was agreed to before
being stricken from the final deal.
On Monday, Hunter said owners
had proposed a "reverse luxury tax"
under which players would give
back a portion of their salaries if the
BRI percentage went too high.
That idea was part of one of the
four proposals made by the league,
all of which were rejected by the
players. The union made one pro
posal early in April that was turned
down by the owners.
Hunter said he was unsure
which side would make the next
formal proposal.
Cowboys’ scrimmage may lose money
EL PASO (AP) — Slow ticket sales
for the Dallas Cowboys' scrimmage,
which sold out the Sun Bowl in its in
augural year, have raised the possi
bility that this year's game might not
reach the break-even point.
Unless another 10,000 tickets are
sold in the next two weeks, event
guarantors could be left picking up
part of the tab for the Aug. 6 game.
"This would be the first year we
would have to draw on that letter
of credit," Wes Jurey, president of
the Greater El Paso Chamber of
Commerce, said.
Jurey said he is still optimistic the
game will continue to pay for itself,
as it did in the summers of 1996,
when a sellout crowd of 51,118 was
in attendance, and 1997, when more
than 40,000 were sold.
He is hoping a trend of sales
picking up in the final weeks will
continue.
Only some 21,000 tickets have
been sold. Organizers said they must
sell more than 30,000 to reach the
break-even point of about $700,000.
But even reaching that point,
would mean little or nothing for
the game's charity, the United
Way. The 1996 game delivered a
profit of $205,500, which was
matched dollar for dollar by a local
charitable foundation.
The 1997 event raised $71,500,
an amount also matched by the
Border Fund.
Scrimmage committee members
believed that this year's Dallas op
ponent, the Oakland Raiders, might
mean another sellout. That goal
seems unlikely, however.
"I'm worried as a guarantor, but
I'm even more worried as chairper
son of the United Way," Martini De-
Groat, Southwestern Bell general
manager, said. "You would think
the third year would be easier. But
it seems to be tougher."
Event chair Larry Peterson said
there are bigger worries than the
guarantors having to pay up, be
cause they knew the risks involved.