Sports
The Battalion
Page I B • Thursday, April 10, 2003
Aggies ready for annual scrimmage
By Troy Miller
THE BATTALION
The Texas A&M football team
will conclude its first spring
under Head Coach Dennis
Franchione Saturday when the
team is split into two sides for the
annual Maroon and White Game
at 2 p.m. at Kyle Field.
Franchione hopes to see
40,000 attending the intra-squad
game between the Maroon team
and the White team.
"The enthusiasm of our fans
has been super,” Franchione said.
“Our fans and our supporters’
excitement has been really gen
uine and really refreshing and
fun to see."
Two Aggie fans, former
President George Bush and his
wife Barbara, visited the team to
lend their support after
Tuesday’s practice.
“You’ve got a great coach in
Coach Fran,” Bush said. “You do
a lot for this school. We’re proud
to be a part of the Aggie family.”
The Maroon and White game
is the first chance Aggie fans have
at seeing the changes Franchione
and his coaching staff have
brought to the Aggie football
team. Junior Dustin Long and
sophomore Reggie McNeal will
split quarterback duties between
the two teams.
Fans will also be able to see
some Aggie youngsters who
could make significant impacts in
the fall, such as redshirt freshman
running back Courtney Lewis.
Lewis gained 87 yards on 12 car
ries in the Aggies’ scrimmage
April 5.
“Courtney Lewis is a young
man who continues to catch
everyone’s eyes,” Franchione
said. “He makes people miss and
turns what looks like a negative
play into a positive gain. He has
an exciting future.”
Junior Jason Carter will be
unveiled as an A-back, a special
multi-purpose position in the
offense created by Franchione.
Carter is moving to A-back from
quarterback and will line-up at
tailback as well as wide receiver,
depending on the offensive set.
“We felt like we had to have
(Carter) involved in our 22 best
football players,” Franchione
said. “A-back is a multi-pur
pose position. He can play at
three or four different locations
in our offense.”
New defensive coordinator
Carl Torbush will unveil his 4-3
defensive scheme, a change from
the 3-4 defense run under former
Head Coach R.C. Slocum.
Torbush’s defense at Alabama
in the 2002 season ranked third in
the nation by giving up just
257.31 yards per game.
Plenty of festivities will sur
round the Maroon and White
Game. The Fighting Texas Aggie
Band will perform at halftime
and five fans will be chosen to
compete in a halftime field goal
kicking competition for Aggie
football prizes. Players and
coaches will sign autographs
from 9:30-11a.m. in the
Memorial Student Center.
Students are admitted for free
with a valid student I.D., and
kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
ALISSA HOLLIMON • THE BATTALION
Junior Dustin Long leads A&M at quarterback in the game against Texas
last season. Long will help “draft” a team for Saturday's scrimmage.
Women’s tennis team to meet Rice
By Blake Kimzey
THE BATTALION
When the No. 30 Texas A&M women’s tennis team
squares off against Rice University tonight in Houston,
visions of the old Southwest Conference rivalry will take
center stage. When the SWC dissolved. Rice was annexed
into the Western Athletic Conference while A&M merged
into the Big 12.
Even with new conference allegiances that have taken
the two schools in different directions, the traditional match
between the Owls (8-11) and the Aggies (13-8, 6-2 Big 12)
has not gone by the wayside. When the two teams meet
tonight at the Jake Hess Tennis Stadium on the Owls’ home
turf, things will have a familiar feel.
“When we get together to play, it is a true Texas rival
ry,” said Rice Head Coach Roger White. “We’ve proba
bly played over 25 times against each other, and both
schools are always up and excited to face off. We have
struggled this year as a young team and have underper
formed, I’d say, but we will be up to the challenge and
we’ll be looking forward to it.”
After enjoying a two-week home stand, the Aggies will
look to overcome the intense atmosphere at Rice. A&M is
hitting the road after completing a seven-match home stand
in which it went 5-2, and is coming off a hard-fought 4-3
setback to No. 14 South Alabama.
Meanwhile, the Owls have lost two in a row and are
looking to rebound tonight against A&M in their final home
match of the season. Freshmen netters Blair DiSesa and
Lauren Archer, who have both been dominant this season,
lead Rice into tonight’s match up. Archer has racked up a
20-11 mark in singles play, including a combined 12-6 dual
record at courts No. 1 and No. 2.
Rice Assistant Coach Julie Scott Thu said her team is
See Rice on page 3B
Ags host A&M Invitational
By Marcus White
THE BATTALION
The Texas A&M men’s and women’s
track and field teams will host the A&M
Invitational Saturday at the Frank G.
Anderson Track and Field Complex. The
meet marks the Aggies’ fourth event of the
2003 outdoor campaign.
Thanks to a newly extended outdoor
season, the Aggies have been able to
experiment with different line ups to
achieve maximum effort in each event.
A&M Head Coach Ted Nelson has been
especially fond of tweaking the men’s
400-meter relay team, adding different
runners in each of the team’s last three
outdoor meets. Nelson said this week will
be no different.
“The NCAA schedule changes have
everyone trying new things and working
things out,” he said. “We’re really going
into this season blind. We have to
approach it differently than in years past.”
University of Texas Head Coach
Bubba Thornton agreed with Nelson, say
ing that the prolonged schedule gives
more time to prepare for the NCAA
meets.
“The new schedule definitely has its
ups and downs,” Thornton said. “We’ll
have more time to practice, but we are
going to have to rest some athletes
because they can’t run every week.”
The goal remains the same for both
teams: to prepare for Big 12 and NCAA
competition.
“We’re looking ahead to preparing a
team for the conference meet,” Nelson
said. “That’s our main goal.”
The Aggies will again rely on strong
performances from one of the NCAA’s
best field crews. Last week, several A&M
athletes shined at the 76th annual Texas
Relays in Austin, none more than shot
putter Ronny Jimenez. The junior
Venezuelan native’s throw of 60-6 3/4
captured an Aggie gold medal in the
event. A&M had not finished first in the
shot put at the Texas Relays in 17 years.
“Ronny’s effort in the shot was quite a
feat. Winning the Texas Relay is a very big
deal,” Nelson said. “We are expecting
See Track on page 3B
SOUTHGATE ★PARENT'S WEEKEND