The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, August 23, 2000, Image 11

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    Wednesday, August 23,2(0
Wednesday, August 23, 2000
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Slocum looks
for solution to
D-line injuries
Bv Jason Lincoln
The Battalion
R.C. Slocum entered 2000 with a
lot of worries and a lot of questions.
Who would be the starting quarter
back? How would A&M maintain a
healthy and effective offensive line?
Would free safety Michael Jameson
be able to makeup for the lack of ex
perience in the secondary?
If there was one position Slocum
could be comfortable with, it was the
defensive line. Not anymore.
In a single week the D-line has
gone from the most solid position to
the biggest worry for the A&M
coaching staff. A line that was 2-3
deep after the spring has dropped to
one deep in less than a week.
It started innocently as senior
defensive end Rocky Bernard
dropped to the ground during
some no-contact drills on Aug. 15.
Slocum thought he had merely
tripped. Instead it would be his last
drill of the season as he was car
ried off the field with a torn ACL.
Bernard’s knee injury was just the
start.
Nose guard Ron Edwards and
back-up end Ty Warren would follow
with minor injuries that should not
cause them to miss the season open
er against Notre Dame, but warrant
holding them out of practice.
Before all of this, the Aggies suf
fered the biggest loss of all when
back-up end Terry Nichols died in a
car crash in El Paso early this summer.
“This is a tough time for us,”
Slocum said. "We just have to push
through.”
The effects of the injuries extend
far beyond the defensive line. The
line was the foundation for the
Wrecking Crew defense, which re
turned eight starters, including all
three linesmen and all four lineback
ers. Of the starting line, only Bernard
has remained injury-free.
“I thought we would be strong
enough up front to compensate for
the lack of experience in our defen
sive secondary,” Slocum said. “We
were two deep on the line, now
there’s none.”
A&M's defensive style just mag
nifies the effect of the injuries. The
Aggies use a three-man line. With
the injuries, it means there is no cov
er for the multiple injuries A&M is
facing now. The line is as thin as it
can get and the Aggies cannot rotate
a linebacker in to make up the dif
ference.
Slocum will likely be forced to pull
in one of his freshman linemen to
compensate for the injuries and try to
restore some of the depth that A&M
began the offseason with. His likely
choice is Linnis Smith, who Slocum
feels could be ready as a pass rusher
in a few short weeks. Meanwhile War
ren and Edwards will attempt for a
speedy return to re-establish the line.
Until then the Aggies will focu on
closing out their final two days of
two-a-day workouts injury free and,
hopefully, be rid of the injury plague
for the remainder of the season.
Sports
THE BATTALION
Aggies host defending NCAA soccer champions
A&M looks to Central Florida, No. 1 North Carolina for first victories in 2000 season
By Jason Lincoln
The Battalion
Texas A&M soccer has arrived.
There was little doubt about
the caliber of the program be
fore. A Big 12 Championship, a
string of NCAA tourney berths
and one of the winningest
coaches in Division I soccer
serve as proof to that. This pre
season’s No. 11 ranking is fur
ther evidence.
But for the true indicator of the
caliber of Aggie soccer, one only
needs to look to the schedule.
A&M kicks off the 2000 season
at home with a two-game week
end highlighted by top-ranked,
defending national champion
North Carolina. The Aggies will
face the Tarheels Sunday after a
Friday opener against the Central
Florida Knights.
“Both teams find ways to win
games, and that is a very diffi
cult intangible to play against,”
A&M coach G. Guerrieri said.
“They are both very athletic and
fast, not to mention their confi
dence. They are going to push us
the whole game, and that is
something we need.”
North Carolina marks the
first of seven Top 25 opponents
on A&M's 20-game schedule,
and the most challenging. In 20
seasons of NCAA women’s soc
cer, North Carolina has won 16
national titles.
“Needless to say, it’s awe
some to get a defending national
champion at home,” said senior
forward Nicky Thrasher. “This
weekend will be a big challenge
for us, but we’ve had good prepa
ration. Now its time to play.”
This season marks the first
time the Aggies get to face soc
cer’s aristocracy with the Twelfth
Man at their backs. The previous
matches between the two all hap
pened on neutral territory and re
sulted in A&M losses.
“Playing them in front of the
Twelfth Man may give us some
levity, but the fact is they are still
No. 1, still the defending nation
al champions and still a dynasty
in every sense of the word,”
Guerrieri said. “Plus they are the
most talented team in the country
and one of the best coached
teams in the world. It is going to
be a true test for us.”
North Carolina marks the
See Soccer on Page 12.
FILE PHOTO/Th e Battalion
Heather Ragsdale looks to be a key offensive
contributor in A&M's tough schedule.
A Passing Grade
Mark Farris gets starting nod for season opener
By Blaine Dionne
The Battalion
Coach R. C. Slocum announced Monday that sophomore
Mark Farris will be the starting quarterback when the Ag
gies head to South Bend, Ind., to open their season at
Notre Dame on Sept. 2.
According to Slocum, the decision was made to
give the first-string offense as many snaps
as possible with one quarterback, instead
of platooning Farris with sophomore
Vance Smith and freshman Colby Freeman
like the team has done since the spring.
“We’re less than two weeks away from the
opener, and it’s important to our team to get some
continuity to our offense,” Slocum said. “We
picked Mark because of his overall performance
in spring training and summer camp.”
Senior wide receiver Chris Taylor, last sea
son’s team leader in receptions, receiving yards
and receiving touchdowns, agreed with
Slocum’s decision to select a quarterback now
instead of later.
“I think it’s good that the coaches named
Mark as our quarterback,’’fTaylor said. “The
offense needs that, so we can get our timing
down with one guy.”
Farris was first off the bench last year, go
ing 6-of-16 for 53 yards in five games as a
backup to departed senior Randy McCown.
He also took care of the holding on kick
placements.
“My job is still the same,” Farris said. “I
do the very best 1 can on the field and let
the coaches decide who starts. We’ve (the three quarter
backs) had great competition since the spring, and we will
continue to compete. That competition has helped each of
us improve.”
Farris has taken a different path from most of his team
mates. After passing for 1,831 yards and 21 touchdowns and
Colby Freeman
Mark Farris
garnering District 24-4A MVP honors as a senior at Angle-
ton High School in 1994, he was the only quarterback re
cruited by A&M in the same class that produced former Ag
gie standouts Dat Nguyen, Dan Campbell and Rich
Coady.
Farris signed a letter of intent with A&M that
spring, but the Pittsburgh Pirates made him their
No. 1 draft pick, and he signed a profession
al baseball contract.
After five seasons with the Pirates, Far
ris advanced to the AA level and was con
sidered a top prospect by their organization.
But like Josh Booty of LSU and Chris Weinke
of Florida State, Farris was drawn by the gridiron
to leave the diamond and return to Aggieland.
Slocum said the 26-year-old Farris is best suit
ed to the Aggies’ current situation.
“We feel like, right now, with all the things we
would like to do with our offense, he gives us the
best chance. But it was close, very close with the
other guys.”
The “other guys” Slocum was referring to were
Smith and Freeman.
Smith, a 6’4” prototypical drop-back passer with
a howitzer for an arm, shared mop-up duties with
Farris last year, producing marginally better num
bers. He was 5-of-14 for 86 yards with one touch
down and one interception while seeing action in
t five games.
Freeman, who is more of a Michael Vick-type
quarterback — mobile in and out of the pocket with
a good arm, redshirted last year and was relegated
to scout squad duty. Freeman, however, was heavily
recruited as a consensus All-American out of Brownwood
High School two years ago and has received just as much
attention as the other two.
In other words, Farris’job is anything but secure. There
is plenty of talent waiting in the wing§ to fill in if he
should flounder.
Vance Smith
STIil CITY
Spring 1994
Signs letter
of intent
with nam
Signs baseball
contract with
Pittsburgh
Pirates
Spent fiue
seasons with
Pirates,
advanced to
nn level
Returned to Ram
fori 999
football
season
A&M soccer wins
big in European tour
By Jason Lincoln
The Battalion
Seven games, three na
tional champions and a
Dutch national team
equaled an invaluable head
start for Texas A&M soccer
in 2000. The Aggies won six
of seven games in a Euro
pean tour that included
some of the world’s best
women’s soccer teams.
Due to NCAA rules, the
opportunity for a full-fledged
preseason only comes along
once every four years, but the
timing could not be better for
the Aggies, who are entering
the season on the threshold of
the Top 10. The combination
of seven seniors, eight juniors
and the European tour give
A&M the ingredients to live
up to its No. 11 ranking.
The Aggies will need
them all as they play five Top
10 opponents in their 20-
game season.
“This year’s team has the
potential to be the best team
A&M has ever had,” said
A&M coach G. Guerrieri.
“But we also have the tough
est schedule we’ve ever had.”
The tour was even more
valuable since A&M gained
experience playing top-level
competition before the sea
son even began. The seven-
game advance gives A&M
the equivalent of a third of a
season in game experience
over their opponents. Plus,
the Aggies have learned how
to win the big games and how
they can be beat by top-cal
iber opponents.
“We’re much closer to
midseason form now,” Guer
rieri said. “The game is the
best teacher. It’s one thing to
line up and play against your
own teammates... but it’s an
other thing to go out there
and play against someone
trying to beat you.”
A&M opened the over
seas stretch playing top-cal
iber offense and finding the
net often. The first match in
England ended in a 4-1 Aggie
win over the Milwall Li
oness. Sophomore midfield
er Andrea Starns scored two
goals, which, along with
scores from senior forward
Nicky Thrasher and junior
midfielder Michelle Royal,
set the pace for A&M’s new,
high-power offense.
A&M scored 29 goals in
the seven games, failing only
FILE PHOTO/The Battalion
Alison Peters looks to
make her senior season the
best yet, using A&M's Eu
ropean tour as a catalyst.
once to score three goals in a
match.
Highlighting the tour were
wins over three national
champion teams. In the sec
ond match, A&M blanked the
defending English Football
Association Cup Champions
Arsenal, 5-0. From there the
Aggies also upset the German
national champions, the Duis
burg Football Club, 7-1.
A&M ended the tour with a
2-1 win over the Aalst Foot
ball Club, which is the de
fending Belgian League and
Belgian Cup Champion.
A&M’s only blemish on
the tour came against the
Dutch national champions in
a 4-3 loss.
See Europe on Page 12.
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