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mmmmm onvwhmmbt Former Go To Sluggish ij?|jMHgflM :x wgmgs^gSs^^, |||k:>' Patriot stilng saf e^tkk Sanford Dedicated. Or Just P . J^igip pisp|ipigifp:i 8 ": V "^SPl If Jim Corbett/Asst. Sports Emtor Imagine a man who rises with the sun to run 10-15 miles each morning ? rain or shine ? every day. Imagine a man who, after he runs, goes to his job and works with learning impaired children, helping them overcome their handicaps. Think of a man who coaches these kids ? soccer in the fall and basketball in the winter ? after he leaves the classroom, and then goes home to trudge over it i __ _ r Ai-i.- n*. ? _. . ine roaas 01 ^oiumoia again. Consider a man who competes in races that cover 50, 100, sometimes 125 miles on a single Saturday and then drives all night to run a similar race hundreds of miles away on Sunday. And reports to work on time Monday morning. IMAGINE A MAN who wants to be the greatest champion his sport has ever known, in an athletic endeavor that receives as much publicity as polo. rf v. "!omc s?n mecock Gh New Englan By TOM COYNE I I The recent cold weather that has hit New England has sent the Patriots into their annual December slump prematurely. < But strong defensive play by former Gamecock Hick Sanford ] has begun to heat up what began to look like a long cold ' winter in the north. Injuries to the Pats defensive line has placed an enormous ; load on the secondary, which before their dismal start was i considered one of the best in the league. With All-Pro middle linebacker Steve Nelson out, the Patriots have called upon ] QanfnrH onH fran oofatu Tim Pn" ~~' UHM I1VV UUIVVJ A llil A" VA IV |/A^XV U|l IIIU^U U1 UIC 51UCIV. ] "This season has been rough for us but I think I'm playing | the best football of my life," Sanford said. SANFORD POINTS to the fact that the secondary has four of the top five tacklers on the team to illustrate the team's defensive woes. Sanford is fourth on the team in tackles with 36 and third in interceptions. "I think losing Steve (Nelson) was a crucial blow, but we're a good enough team to come back from that," the strong safety said. "Some of the veterans have stood up and spoken to the team and it has really helped. There's a new 1 feeling on the team." ] Sanford graduated from USC in 1978 and was the first ' Gamecock ever to be drafted in the NFL's first round. His i first season was uneventful. Sanford managed to get in some games but he was unable to break the starting lineup except 1 for play on special teams. ] His break came last year when All-Pro cornerback Mike Haynes sat out the first six games over a contract dispute. Although a safety, the Patriots put Sanford into the starting corner role when rookie Roland James got off to a poor start. THAT WAS a poor year for me," said the Rock Hill native. "1 wasn't comfortable being shuttled back and forth It is not a fantasy man, but a USC graduate student named r>?.. i tr i ? i ? - ? i rmy ivruiewiizz. rvroiewicz is a zo-year-oia uiira-marainoner who runs races far more gruelling than the much-publicized marathon and trains harder and longer than most professional athletes. For nothing. Krolewicz traveled to Chicago for the Road Runners Club national championships on Oct. 4 and returned home with a third-place finish in the 100 kilometers and a fourth-place showing in the 50-mile run. "I did a little worse than I would have liked to have done and a little better than I could have expected," the father of three said. The high winds along the shores of Lake Michigan made the run all the more difficult for the runners in the field, which included 50-mile world record holder Barney Klecker. Krolewicz recorded a time of 7:28:21 in the 100-km run and a respectable 50-mile time of 5:46:05. Both times were not near his Dersonal bests. but considering the wind conditions nnd a nagging knee injury, Krolewicz was glad to finish as well as he did. "I FEEL like the cat who got the canary and got out the back door," Krolewicz said. jj "I feel very pleased overall," Krolewicz said about his Chicago performance. "I'm happy to be the winner in the 2028 age group. I'm a national champion," he added. Almost all champion ultra-marathoners are in their early thirties to late forties age area because of the special endurance and training needed to run an ultra-marathon. So I according to Krolewicz, his best is ahead of him. mc Krotewicz, page 7 | * tiQanSO0M0HHHSMKttSWti0IMBI9HHaonBMBBnaKBHHnHM?aHMEMHMMasH)s^ res Spark ? id Defense From corner and safety. It's a lot easier playing one position fniHn/t 4-^v nil ?1!// . m a umii vising w iviuciuua au uie uiuerciu coverages 01 iwo positions." Sanford went into the Patriots' training camp at Bryant College with a couple of goals for this year, one of which he tias already achieved ? the starting strong safety spot beside | rim Fox. Sanford also hoped to go the the Super and Pro Bowls, and although skeptical fans in New England have all but given up, Sanford sees both goals as obtainable. "If you look around the league there are a lot of teams with losses, so I think we're definitftlv still in it WpVp iimt ttnina tn have to go out there and beat some teams and make our own breaks/' Sanford said. "We started the season off against some tough teams and the breaks just seemed to go against us. 'IT'S UP to us, and we have the talent to turn this season around." Sanford's last goal ? to be an All-Pro ? is not quite as f important. "It's more important to be recognized around the league as a good player than to make it as an All-Pro. The way the /oting is set up now if you have a lot of friends around the league you have a better chance of making it," Sanford said. "I'd like to make it but as long as my coaches and I are satisfied with my play that is fine with me." Sanford said he is still a Gamecock fan and tries to watch the games whenever USC is on TV, but he has not seen them play lately, aside from the first quarter of the Pitt game. "I try to keep in touch with some of the guys 1 used to play with but it's hard when you spend half the year traveling around and playing football." f As the Patriots come back from their injuries, Sanford said the team will improve more and more. He has not yet made his reservations to be in Detriot for the Super Bowl, but he does plan for his season to carry over into the play-offs. Freshman Kessler Paces Women's Golf Team By TRACY HELMS his first-year standout who . sport* iditof picked up six strokes during , ,, the final round to edge North a The USC women's golf Carolina's Page Marsh by ? team, backed by freshman one shot .<she pl ^ with Kandi Kessler s strong great poise. Once she gets showing, placed her putting down she'll be Sunday in the Lady Kat verv hard to hf?at " Invitational tournament. Improved play by exKessler, a Charlottesville, perienced players on the Va. native who has been squad also excited Foster. USC's medalist in all four "I'm especially pleased tournaments this season, with the play of Lynn Stiffler recorded a 74-81-73-228 total and Robin Abare," he said, to capture the Lexington, Ky. event's individual crown and stiffler, team medalist help propel the Lady throughout most of last Gamecocks to a third-place season, fired a 223 total, finish while Abare, USC's top finisher in last year's USC posted a three-day national tournament, scored total of 928, topped only by 234. North Carolina's 908 scoring and host Kentucky's 924. "We need for Lynn and Ohio State placed fourth, Robin to play well and set finishing 20 strokes behind examples for our freshUSC. men," Foster said. ^ "Nobody in the tour- The Lady Gamecocks nament hit the ball as good travel to Gainesville, Fla. as Kandi," USC Head Golf Oct. 30 for their next event, Coach Bobby Foster said of The Lady Gator Invitational.