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Pep Tall By Kevin Adams Will Dixon to troubled US The USC Athletic Department has been back on the front page again, inctPoH r\f An thp cnArtc no<to u/Koro it iiuivuw vi vii inv jpviu pagw nuviv 1L belongs. This past Monday, Dick Bestwick stepped down from his post as USC athletic director. King Dixon was named to replace him. Dixon's official title is interim athletic director, but in all probability he will be named full-time athletic director as soon as the proper paperwork is completed. Bestwick was on the job for six months, but health problems caused by stress forced his leave of absence. It has been said that Bestwick had been working as many as 20 hours per day in the Athletic Department. According to a joint statement by Bestwick and USC president James Holderman, "Although Dick Bestwick has performed his duties as athletic director to the complete satisfaction of the university, the condition of his health has made it impossible for him to continue in that position." According to Holderman, "Dick Bestwick has performed his job in an exemplary fashion. He has instituted a responsible drug testing program for our student athletes, greatly strengthened the department's fiscal operations, and made great progress in planning for the future of the university's athletic program, in particular by developing solid, competitive scheduling." Bestwick had been rumored to have differences with USC head foot ball coach Joe Morrison, and it s been said that Bestwick did not have a strong personal relationship with Morrison or head basketball coach George Felton, unlike previous Athletic Director Bob Marcum, who hired both coaches. But from all indications, it appears that health reasons were the primary, if not sole, reason for Bestwick's departure and that there was no cover-up or forced resignation. That would be a change. The USC Athletic Department has had more than its share of problems in the last 10 years or so. Sure, those things are bound to happen in the big business world of college athletics, where, at most schools, winning is everything and the student-athlete suffers. That's not necessarily the case at USC, but the school has had many recent athletic events that make you wonder. Basketball has been the most affected. Legendary head coach Frank McGuire, who led USC to its finest seasons ever, was forced out after the 1979 season. Bill Foster was brought in from Duke to replace McGuire, but was forced out after the 1985-86 season, because he did not bring the success expected of him. After Foster, now the head coach at Northwestern, was let go, it was discovered that basketball players had sold tickets in violation of NCAA rules. There were additional minor violations and the USC men's basketball program was placed on probation for two years. Those sanctions will finally be lifted this March. Perhaps the biggest and most unbelievable controversy of them all involved head women's basketball coach Pam Parsons in the early 1980s. Parsons was accused of having lesbian affairs with several of her players and was forced out in the Pro tennis The fifth annual Columbia Pro Tennis Championships will be held Thursday through Sunday at the Sam Daniel Tennis Stadium on the USC campus. Th<?rp u/ill hp a r>rpcc r>r*nfprpnrp tn day at noon at the Marriott to discuss the tournament, which has a purse of $30,0(X, with all proceeds going to The Killingsworth Children's Home in Columbia. Lawson Duncan, ranked 50th in the world, will replace Johan Kriek, who withdrew. Duncan will be the No. 1 seed in the tournament. The finals are set for 2 p.m. Sunday with an exhibition match set for Sunday at noon. Tickets are $5 and $7, and may be purchased at the gate. Admission will be free to USC students and faculty with valid ID's. USC's Steve Longley plays Mel Purcell at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, while USC's Stephane Surnian plays fifth-seeded Jimmy Brown at 2:30 p.m. Thursday. mg stability C department? midst of the 1981-82 season after an article about the accusations appeared in Sports Illustrated. The basketball problems of the past seemingly have been done away with by the hiring of Felton and women's coach Nancy Wilson, who have both fashioned impeccable win- . ning programs with total regard to the student-athlete. Football has not been left out, either. Former head coach/Athletic Director Jim Carlen was fired after the 1981 season. Richard Bell, a Carlen assistant, was hired to the head post. A year later, Bell was gone after a 4-7 record, supposedly because he refused to fire his assistants, as new Athletic Director Marcum requested. It was widely speculated that Marcum didn't like Bell and that he wanted his own man in charge of the football team. Enter Joe Morrison, admittedly a good choice. Morrison had his own scandal, just last summer. A woman claimed Morrison, a married man, had been having an affair with her for the past several years, going back to the early 1980s when Morrison was at New Mexico. She filed suit against Morrison, claiming he fathered her child and was not adequately supporting the woman and her daughter. Sources say the Morrison affair was common knowledge in the Athletic Department. Then early this year, former Gamecock wide receiver Ryan Bethea was arrested by Columbia police for possession of cocaine and a USC football recruit died after swallowing crack on a Washington, D.C. street to avoid arrest by approaching police officers. An investigation into the.,! drug-testing program at USC revealed negligence in the testing of athletes. Marcum was fired in the wake and Bestwick took his place. Meanwhile, USC's vaults have = been depleted with settlements to McGuire, Parsons, Bell, Foster, etc. Marcum also has plans to file suit against the university. Is Dixon the man to finally bring some much-needed integrity and stability to the Roundhouse? Time will tell. Personally, I'm impressed. He has a strong handshake and he looks you in the eye. He doesn't evade questions and he's got some good ideas of what he wants to do with the USC program. Like Bestwick, he believes in the studentathlete, but he also gets along well with others, which seemed to be somewhat of a problem for Bestwick. You have to have a strong relationship with your staff to get things done. More than that, though, Dixon has a love for this university that outsiders like Bestwick or Marcum didn't possess. And it wasn't their fault. It's just that Bestwick and Marcum never wore a Gamecock uniform. Dixon did. He also attended classes at USC and graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1959. Dixon's intense feelings for USC are apparent when he talks about his plans and expectations for the future of the Athletic Department. You don't have to have that kind of love for a university to be a successful athletic director. But it sure does help. hits USC First round pairings No. 1 Lawson Duncan Bye Derek Tarr Jay Lapiaus Mel Purcell Steve Longley (USC) No. 4 Jimmy Arias Bye No. 3 Jim Courier Bye No. 5 Jimmy Brown Stephane Surnian (USC) Brett Garnett Howard Herr No. 2 Tim Wilkinson Bye i b r y ? ?i DANA PURSER/The Gamecock Winning serve i ?,4. r ki??. di?:?? r??..??ior**7 #? itivirv i^auj uaiiivv u\. rv i V3iiiuaii uuisiut uuici iiiaiut i^uuguvi ij >jv? ? vj iv vnv/Charlotte in a volleyball match earlier this season. USC was in Hattiesburg, Miss., this weekend and swept the University of New Orleans and Southern Mississippi. The Lady Gamecocks have won four consecutive matches and are now 11-7. USC's next match is at 7 p.m. tonight at the College of Charleston. Chaos SCtfEE/V JACKETS?CAPS "Anything Textile" 791Come By Our 1 36 State Street . . . Just across Gervais St Southern Womens Services Inc. 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"We could have had a group of in- 1 dividuals who hung their heads a lit- r tle bit or had their tail between their legs, and not come out in the second nan ana piayea ine way we aia, head coach Joe Morrison said Monday at his weekly press conference. "I told the team after the game that I thought they showed a tremendous amount of character in themselves, and a lot of faith and confidence in themselves and each other." There are many aspects of the game that were not, to say the least, in top form for USC. The team's running game netted no yards on 27 carries, and quarterback Todd Ellis threw five interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns. Apparently, there will be no major changes in the Gamecock offense in order to boost their running game. "I guess it's that old story, we'il just go back to work," Morrison said. "It seems (after looking at the films) that we're only a step away. It's an area of concern but not something we're going to get carried away with." Of course, some of the problem with the running game is because of the health of running back Harold Green. Green, the Gamecocks leading rusher, has been hampered all season by a foot injury. Injuries also hit USC last week as Ellis and wide receiver/punt returner Carl Piatt were both hurt. Ellis suf -VI COCKS! ^ PI rn^pmrm w "SPECIAI 5638 For Fraterr New Location IA/1 , West Columbia . Bridge, 5 min from (JSC mmstmmm C^f ^XECit Ch\ S j| For Mom f / | D*d Hp | FOR INFORMATION: ( i \ ? I 'Sis?; mmmmma mmmammmmsmm I . ^ t SUNGLASSES BY \ BAUSCH & LOMB Trie worlds '>nes: sunglasses"* Reg. Price $56.40 for glasses $12.00 for Ray-Ban t-shirt $68.40 ABSOLUTELY NEVEf SUNGLASSES & ' 5 Pts. Next to Groucho's 8 256-3507 Owned and operated by S.C.'s I ST004 -All Major Brands-D llPASS l am m* w SAM Mi T>ELi ! r 170 Buy One Foot Long J j And Get One Foot i I (offer good with ! I 990~G i | Buy one Gyro and ge (offer good with ] 1124 Taylor St. Betw | Main St. OPEN MON. SA se shows ered a mild concussion late in the ^ame and spent the night in the lospital, but will play Saturday tgainst Georgia Tech. Piatt undervent surgery on his hand Sunday and s expected to be out for about two veeks. Morrison said he is concerned with hp ftpnrcria Tprh Hpfpnsp hut it is a )ig game like every other game. Kickoff at Georgia Tech will be at p.m. AP Top Twenty 1. Miami, Fla. 2. UCLA 3. Southern Cal 4. Notre Dame 5. Florida State 6. West Virginia 7- Nebraska 8. South Carolina 9. Oklahoma 10. Oklahoma State 11. Clemson 12. Auburn 13. Georgia 14. Wyoming 15. Michigan 16. Washington 17. Arkansas 18. Indiana 19. L3U 20. Florida r ? i . DISCOUNTS" iltiQs & Sororities lolesale 3 ' i?tma? ^ift I \ \ Boy Friend \ Girl Friend P :ike i }t. 1 Box 352 tVilliston, SC. 29853 1-800-868-4438 1 > SALE PRICE!! $34.20 (while quantities last) \ UNDERSOLD! rHINGS, INC. i Outlet Pointe Mall. 772 9798 Largest Ray Ban Distributor icpnnntorl RdVn? IJbUUIlfcWM ww /w TOW! 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