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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 5, 2002)
Sports twc urn I ls e|Big 12 football opens with solid weekend The Battalion Page 1B • Thursday, September 5, 2002 police ec wm shoi an<J i *>i, auilntriiir lo report Ik •ire because■ ? just shovtf ' " ith bulk U'> i Hit nth, ' chance. — William S* johnson's Mem ? '>hcnff said W ilium v Ihc ptHsib: jpoitcc lo i': 1 Johnson v-; m m + m m «» 1*1 Fooibali Fabulous Freshmen Several freshmen in the Big 12 wasted no time getting into the mid dle of the action during season-open ing games last weekend. Missouri quarterback Brad Smith led the Tigers to a 33-20 win over defending Big 10 champion Illinois. Smith passed for 152 yards, rushed for 138 yards and had one touchdown. Mizzou’s win was the first time head coach Gary Pinkel has opened a sea son with a victory. Oklahoma Sate running back Vernand Moreney had a solid first game, tallying 108 yards on 13 carries and two touchdowns against Louisiana State. Oklahoma running back Kejuan Jones had a pair of touchdowns during OLTs route of Tulsa and Texas A&M defensive back Jaxson Appel, a redshirt freshman, was one of six Aggies to intercept a pass against the University of Louisiana - Lafayette. A&M freshman quarterback Reggie McNeaJ also played for the Aggies against ULL, going 2-for-2 passing, good for 28 yards. Big 12 opening strong With its 27-0 win against North Texas, the University of Texas notched its 90th straight season-open ing victory. The Longhorns, the Big 12’s first team to break the 90-win barrier, hold a 90-17-3 record in sea son openers. Oklahoma is second in the confer ence with 82 wins. Both OU and UT scored shutouts in their season openers. A&M is tied with Iowa State for fourth with 77. The Texas Tech Red Raiders are last in the conference, with a 49-26-3 record. Record-holding wide-receivers This season, there are more active players in the conference who already figure in the league’s record book in career catches than in any other sea son. The conference’s active leader in catches is Missouri senior receiver Justin Gage. Gage, a two-sport stand out, has 125 snares with 81 coming in his last 12 contests. OU’s Antwone Savage is the Sooners' career leader in pass recep tions with 115. good enough for eighth on the conference list. Not to be outdone. Oklahoma State’s Rashaun Woods had 90 recep tions in his last 12 games, placing him sixth in the Big I2’s career receiving list and first in Cowboys’ history. Baylor senior receiver Reggie Newhouse leads the school's all-time list with 116 catches. RANDAL FORD* THE BATTALION Texas A&M senior defender Ty Warren pressures the University of Louisiana - Lafayette quarterback Jon Van Cleave. Van Cleave threw 6 interceptions on Saturday at Kyle Field. rad air er ong HlVnafc said iHortfc locumfi* ife a it lent "i' ttr (rug sfiitb of the mi. •ssfulh trt. I o years .i r Irugs aflet :■[ J vaccine ifff' nmunc sysir ter in Aprs. er he had - 11 men. his If U ,|n louiw different strr uld have ib.. clinch thiscss ind the sw “But he t rymous set' md it was' resumed t^ and has a’sp I said. Higgins, golf team go international for season opening tourney By David Morrison THE BATTALION It is a rare occasion to overhear students dis cussing the ins and outs of the Texas A&M men’s golf team. The team doesn't fill a stadium of over 80,000 fans every Saturday, and you won't find updates of its status on the national news. But that could soon change. As the new semester starts, the men’s golf team is bringing out a whole new team. The first recruiting class of head coach J.T. Higgins boasts three National Junior All-Americans, the 2000 Illinois Player of the Year, a first team All- American in David Tasker, and stay-homes Stephen Reed and Tyler Garret. The list of players is Texas A&M’s most impressive in recent memory, according to sev eral members of the team. “We are deep, this is as deep as any A&M team I've seen,” said junior golfer Stephen Reed. Reed knows impressive line-ups don't bring championships. The Aggie golf team members realize they will need to turn their potential into results before they catch the eye of anyone out side of College Station. After what many consider a disappointing spring campaign, the Aggies hope competition within the team will bring success. And Higgins hopes competing for the top spot will bring the best play out of both Stephen Reed and David Tasker, the team’s two captains. “There is always going to be competition. But in this game anybody can beat you on any given day. If we aren’t one and two, we are two and one,” Reed said. While Higgins believes the new recruits will undoubtedly improve the A&M golf team, he is reluctant to expect too much from his young ft We have to figure out just how good we are. Potential is a pretty dangerous word. — J.T. Higgins Men's golf head coach team this season. “We have to figure out just how good we are. Potential is a pretty dangerous word.” Higgins said. The Texas A&M golf team will figure out how good it is this week when it competes in the International Collegiate tournament in St. Andrews, Scotland at the St. Andrews Bay Resort. The event will consist of 18 holes on Friday and 36 on Saturday. It is the first NCAA event ever to be held in Scotland. The team will also be tested throughout the sea son playing in one of the nation’s top conferences. "The Big XII is just a great golf league,” Higgins said. “Last year we had six teams make it to nationals, and there was only thirty teams there, so when you have one-fifth of the field from one conference that speaks volumes.” u n it . Ii.W/><Z./,<>l / t\ vyy / o **7**-X22-2222 xas Hall of Fame Drink responsibly: Always designate a driver O Free soft drinks for designated drivers over 21! COLLEGE NIGHT Thursday. Sent 5 $1.00 U CALL ITS TIL 10 PM 25<fr BAR DRINKS, $2.00 CROWN, AND $1.50 LONGNECKS TIL 11 PM $1.50 CHUGGERS, $2.50 PITCHERS ALL NIGHT ALL LADIES FREE UNTIL 10 LADIES 21 AND UP FREE ALL NIGHT Guys with college ID $1.00 til 10 Friday. Sept 6 GARY P. NUNN $1.50 CHUGGERSAND $Z50 PITCHERSl $1.00 U-call-its and $1.50 longnecks til 10 pm All tickets $8.00 in advance at the Hall, Cavenders, or Baskins or $10.00 at the door *6£*eF_. JOHN CONLEE Saturday. Sect 7 $1.50 CHUGGERS AND $2.50 PITCHERS! . All tickets $10.00 in advance at the Hall, Cavenders, or Baskins or $12.00 at the door