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I SB2HH2L SpOrtS Or Seawright, Wilkes deserve more attention I PEP TALK 1 Wfimm As of 11:30 p.m. last night, Clcmson had taken the latest ?lead in the state's continuing battle for bragging rights. Forget the fact that USC swept the Tigers the past weekend on the baseball field. Disregard the Gamecocks' 22-21 football victory last November in Death Valley. Never mind that Carolina has two consensus AllAmnrir*ntic u;ho Hi/ln'i n?? <- K,r;l J ? U>HM > ?>vi ,iviv?.ivu 111 /tuciuaj ? iiri. uiuil until the . . . when '.vas it? Don't ask us what round it was, because wc had to go to press before they had been picked. As Gamecock fans anxiously awaited mention of James Seawright's and Del Wilkes' selection in the National Football League's annual college draft, Clcmson was adding five potential professionals to the pro ranks. Only USC wide receiver Ira Hillary and corncrback l?arl Johnson had been chosen by the ninth round last night. ? Hillary went to the Kansas City Chiefs in the eighth, while ^ ma... r\-1 _-i - - i ? i . .. - ntw v^i icitns sciccicu jonnson in inc ninin. Why did it lake so long, if ever, for the pros to come to their senses? If you take a good look at the first-round selections, you'll notice that most teams went for meat ? something the (iamccocks lacked last season. Because the NFL has stressed the passing game in recent years, teams think size on the line leads to success. What about Wilkes? The offensive guard's 6-3, 266-pound frame seemed big enough for the pros, but his slower speed might have been the deciding factor. If they had wanted speed, they could have taken Scawright. While the All-American linebacker's quickness ^ impressed many pro scouts, his size did not. At 6-3 and 220 ? pounds, teams apparently felt the leader of the "Fire Ant" defense wasn't good enough for the early rounds. Obviously the NFL was not convinced that two firstteam All-Americans who played on a 10-2 team were worthy of early-round selection. Perhaps to be recognized as a quality performer, one needs to attend a football factory like Clcmson. /racy Mixson is the sports editor of The Gamecock. Former major-leagi ^ - Mt- ^V ELLIOT COHEN/Tto Gamecock m Columbia Mats ntanaear St>4 Harralsoii hits fuagooa to tin oatfMd at Capital City Park. Gamecock: Purrv ninb By Awclafd Pr? j Clcmson tacklc William "The > j Refrigerator" Perry was South r j Carolina's one and only first-round h pick in the National Football League's r j draft yesterday. M Perry, a 6-3, 318-pound defensive m tacklc from Aiken, was chosen by the j Chicago Bears. : "It's very possible he could break in j, j sit a (liirlrr " cni/l lim Palmor the t J Bears' director of college scouting. "If he can keep his weight down, we really have an impact player." PERRY WAS SELECTED No. 22 overall in a draft dominated by linemen. A three-time All America and finalist for the l.oinbardi Award, Perry is Clcmson's fourth first-round draft choice in the past four years. "I I Kir. 1/ o Irt. n.nnU < iinun u iwi vi |/vu|;iv ait .l.'lUtlWU wc pickcd him in the first round," Palmer said. "It was a difficult pick. Sometimes you get a pick where you're damned if you do and damned if you don't, but we think wc made the right decision. He's ours and we're proud of him." Bears Coach Mike Ditka said the selection of Perry was a gamble, but one the Bears, 10-6 last season, were wilting to take. "This kid can play football. We know that the other teams arc going to have to worry about how they arc going to play him," Ditka said. Pt'ftRY PI AVI'I) in th? Huh. in January weighing 357 pounds, but | has dropped to 317. | "We arc worried a little about his weight," Palmer said. "Everything we w checked was positive and our coaches tt think he can handle the situation. o We're going to get him to camp and .. dip in the tank to sec what his fat content is, but we think he can play T anywhere from 295 to 310 pounds." ir Perry set an Atlantic Coast Con- h ference career records for sacks with 25 and tackles for loss with 60. The p Tigers finished 7-4 last season. 4i Clemson cornerback Tyrone Davis, a 6-1, 185 lb. native of Athens, Ga., C uer enjoys lead By Ellit CoNin ~ The trim, tanned athelete in the KAmi'c ^*^^..11.. LU. - 11 itivi a unnvim pi MWl Uliy IIUS II IIIIC drive to the Admiration of those ( assembled in the ballpark's stands, as y well as some IS players on the field. It's more than just the gold chain around his neck and the obvious age difference that sets him apart from the other players. The uniform Hud Harrclson is wearing is not that of the major league New York Mets, but that of the Class A to minor league farm team, the Columbia at Mets. There are no George Fosters or tc Dwjght Goodens among the group of fa mostly 18-to 20-year-old big league S< L r nupciuis. fi< Following his managerial debut with the Mets* farm team in Little Falls, N.Y. last year, the former Mets' star m shortstop was invited this spring to tn assume the helm of the Columbia lil team. Accompanied by 14 players a from last year, Harrelson has helped d( the Mets get off to a 15-4 start. m at | "WE SEEM to be having a little trouble catching Charleston in the in funding*," he said. "We've been playing real good ball so far, and 1 di think we'll be looking reel good when tx the season ends." fc Although more than two decades le have elapsed since he was just another tx aspiring minor leaguer, Harrelson feels at relatively little has changed. ol "The actual playing conditions are pretty much the same," he said. "I so 1 started out making $500 a month. d< Now it's jtrtt a littie bit higher. sc s wait on ed in firs Hillary goes By J? Sitari The 211th player choscn in yesterday's National Football League college draft was a Gamecock. The Kansas City Chiefs selected USC wide receiver Ira Hillary in the 8th round of the draft while team mate corncrback Earl Johnson was pickcd in the 9th round by the New Orleans Saints. Brenda Boatright, public relations manager for the Chiefs, said Hillary was chosen because of-"his good speed, hands and ability." Boatright said the 5-11, 1K5 pound receiver should fit right into Chiefs' head coach John Machovic's pass-oriented game plan. Besides having a chance to make the team as a receiver, probably the Chiefs' strongest position, "Hillary was also chosen to serve as the team's kick return specialist," Boatright said. As for USC players not selected, defensive coordinator Tom Gadd said he felt sorry for the Gamecocks who expected to be drafted. With no USC player drafted by the 7th round, Gadd said, "You hope for the young men's sake they'd get picked up sooner." as pickcd by the New York Giants in ie third round, the 58th selection verall. DAVIS PLAYED in the shadows of erry Kinard and Rod McSwain dur)g the 1983 season before coming into is own last season. Clemson punter Dale Hatcher was icked by the Los Angeles Rams in the iK iU. n.u ?-11 hi i uuiiu, / /in acicvuuii uvciau. Hatcher, a 6-2, 196 lb. native of heraw, is Clemson's all-time leader in ling Columbi "I do imsi being out of a maji jrateM to be back in any kind of i with the 15 years of experience "I think today's kids arc a little illtflli'r In haiwllo Thci/'r? uu/ur? id less afraid of authority than I used ? be. I was scared to death of my ither, my teachers and my coaches. ;are tactics don't really work ef'fecfcly anymore. "BESIDES, THAT'S REALLY not y policy as a manager. I'm pretty uch a low-keyed individual, and I <e to relate to relate to my players on frinnHli/ haolc VtlMI/ L'MJI.7 . I IIV/ IIOVV, 1IIVII JUU IU >, and I have mine. I think that works ore effectively than a military-like mosphere." Harrelson said his doesn't miss playg the game. "I think I was ready to retire when I d," he said. "The playing aspect was :coming a physical and mental grind >r me. I do miss being out of a major ague uniform, but 1 feci grateful to ' any kind of uniform and riirtftfp these kids with the 15 year# ' exiggfepce 1 gained in the majors. /' "to* WhCT M re*di about th* ?larl?c me of the current ballplayer! earn, >es he regret being born 13 years too on ? it draft. ;t round to Chiefs Ira Hillary drafted in 8th round He said he has seen players disappointed because they weren't drafted. "I really don't place much value on the location of an athletes draft position. I'm sure the players arc disaDnointcd. "People in the first round have a better chance," Gadd said. "But at the same time, there's still a lot of teams that have made mistakes drafting people in the first round and there've been people who've been drafted a lot lower than the 7th round that have made it. punting averages with 42.6 yards a punt. He was an honorable mention for the Associated Press All-America team. St. Louis picked Clemson tight end K.D. Dunn in the Sth round, 116th overall. Dunn was an All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection and led the league in touchdown receptions during the 1983 season. The 6-3, 220-lb. Dunn is a native of Dccatur, C)a., a Mets Dr league uniform, but I feel uniform and.. .help these kids I gained in the majors/' Bud HarrelMit Columbia Mats manager "I CERTAINLY DO," he said, "but I don't think any additional money would have made me enjoy playing any more than I did. I really had a lot of fun." While some critic's allege free agency has lessened team comaraderie and transformed the national pastime into a cold, mega-dollar industry where individual capital gain has superceeded the desire of winning, Harrelson disagrees. "1 think it's great for young athletes who have dedicated themselves totally to baseball, and then fincL?}>emielves lost in Umbo. "Ther are lots of problems that go along with the high salaries. I know it's easy for fans who read the papers and hear players complaining t$, Jtitnk, 'Oh, 1 wish I had those ktodir.tff proy.n? * n..? ?i?. ...i.u ?-- t-t vlviii>. uui hiuh| wnii me vig nieney comes the added pressure to iJKrform."- jjp ; HE CITKS Oeorge Foster'f iitUAftI season with the Mets in 1983, whentne Mets were criticized for signing the ex Cincinnati Reds star to a five-year, "Harrelaca." M