The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, June 19, 1991, Page 5, Image 5
Press ig
^By PAULA COBB
W Staff Writer
Could someone please give
King Dixon a break?!?
I am absolutely amazed every
time I hear another Gamecock fan
poor-mouthing our athletic director.
If it's not for firing George
Felton, then it is for not publicly
revealing the names and status of
every candidate to replace our departed
basketball coach. The fact
is, King has done a tremendous
^)job, and fans and press alike are
not giving him enough credit
Dixon intended to fire Felton on
May 14. A meeting between the
two, during which Felton was to
be dismissed, had already been
scheduled. Unfortunately, one or
more members of our university's
Board of Trustees leaked the news
to the press. Felton, therefore, became
aware of his fate prior to his
meeting with Dixon. Is this King's
fault? I think not.
The entire episode is somewhat
reminiscent of ex-Clemson football
?poach Danny Ford's firing. People
^vvere outraged. Fans from all parts
of South Carolina labeled Ford's
ouster a BIG mistake. Ford was a
good coach, but he was gone. Now
Felton, who was a ..., well, a
coach, is gone.
Firing a person, coach or otherwise,
is never easy. Or pleasant. I,
like so many others, hate the way
Felton became aware of his fate.
King Dixon, however, is not the
one to blame.
Not only is Dixon being criticized
for the manner in which FelM?n
learned of losing his job, he is
^also being assailed for not revealing
the specific reasons behind
what is essentially a private personel
matter. Dixon investigated
the basketball program's current
state of affairs, with an obvious
emphasis on Felton's performance
as coach. And at this investigation's
conclusion, a decision was
made. Upon apprising Felton of
his dismissal, Dixon had to give
^^elton, and Felton only, his rea fons
for firing him. Funny, but I
sure haven't seen Felton going
public with the details.
By GIL
Staff Wrtl<*
31-29
J j i zjr,
\ That's 31 wins against 29 losses. 1
ova* .500.
Wto would have 'Ihunk" iUn ej
Braves won't win the National Lea
But at the same time, how many Mfc
lieved the "Bad News Braves" wou
tending in June? Not many.
This, I might add, is the one and
With the egfception of George "Who
Spira, anyway?" Steinbrenner's Y
1976-81, forking out the big buc
-.a* _ 1 I
forked. A . 9
Witness this year s editions of til
City Royals and San Francisco Gia
two teams emptied their wallets. ch<
"bS")1rinmntw^nefAnd^gi
Both teams are in last place, injuries
landing. They were both healthy last;
still were pathetic. Actually those ch
insult to pathetic teams.
I You could take a long sh
letting the tap run while y
Message
Softball - Entrie
open Mon. 6/17 a
^ Close Thurs. 6/2C
$10 per team. M<
and Co-Rec team
Summer Intramui
Contact the Office of Campus Re
for more information (#777-5
a 0 Singles & Dout
Tennis - Entries
Mon. 6/17 and Clc
Thurs. 6/20. No e
fee. Men, Womer
*wj ~ ^ Co-Rec divisions.
;nores Di
I don't see Felton going to
court, either, despite past coaches
and athletic directors who felt they
were unjustly fired. King Dixon
handled an uncomfortable situation
as professionally as possible without
jeopardizing Felton's future or
reputation.
I see no reason for the media to
know USC's, and Felton's, business.
Sure, I'm as curious as the
next person, but if George Felton
wanted us to know, he could have
told us. If King Dixon wanted us
to know he would have told us,
with Felton's permission.
Well, this has led to the search
for a new basketball coach which,
by golly, has the fans and media
"King Bashing" again. Call me
dumb, but how many coaches blurt
out to the world that they are interested
in a vacant coaching position.
Imagine their fans' reaction.
Who wants to know their coach is
unhappy where they work, or are
even interested in another job?
That would really boost fan support
the next year! If King Dixon
came running out with a list of
names every time the mail came
in, the applications would be seriously
curtailed. Let's get real,
folks! People, coaches included,
like their privacy.
Coaches such as George
Glymph and Russ Bergman are interested
in taking a step up the career
ladder. For this reason, they
have chosen to make public their
interest in the USC job. Their fans
certainly understand their position.
They're chasing the American
dream. But it is each candidate's
decision, and his alone, whether or
not to make his interest public.
I was in Five Points this
weekend when I heard the most
disturbing statement of all:
"Things were much better before
Dixon was athletic director." Was
this person born yesterday? Yes,
j: j . _ i * " -
wc uiu go lu oowi games in iootball,
right as our administrators
headed to court in response to the
now infamous steroids scandal that
occured before Dixon arrived.
Has everyone forgotten the
praise they only recently heaped
I the N.L. RBI leader wit
ting average is the leag
Nixon's 359 is the leagi
32. His six swipes in Sui
trly April? ued the all-time record s
te Atlanta ^ Colljns of ^ Ph,|ad
gue West. man Terry Pendleton is
treally be- .31itoboot.
Id be c?- Even R? 0im, whil
lino ? <ll,0U8h 45 P?'1,IS high?
Wig a vm- hit 12 dingers to go aloi
m system. in. Wait ..mil hr. warms
^y- ;'a 30-30 man-one Of OB
s Howard history.That's a long tim
aniens 01 I Lonnic Smith's consi;
68111 * the Braves' cause. Pint t
? cas carried his weight. And
Th! pleasant Miiprise, deservt
xk baotah R'661' hon0fS 18X1 week
ess what? prevented Blauser from v!
: notwiths- The Braves are also tl
Jbs are an ^ight be the most amazit
swings, is to be a very effective com
ower everyday with the wal
ou shave and brush your te
I- I- - /VI .-I -X- * IK ^ ^
=? uy 0Tuafc?ni5 Mined tor a Greene
-j r
i
1
l' A" i
^Is I Tr,P'es
(creation Vo'leyball- |
61. Entries open
1 1 Mon. 6/17 and
>I?S Close Thurs.
open 6/20. No entry
)se fee. Men,
ntry Co-Rec, and
l, and Womens teams.
1 L
Lxon's su
.J'-y '1' * " & la? .*$?'
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USC athletic director King Dixon
on Dixon for his efforts in securing
membership in the prestigious
Southeastern Conference?
Has anyone seen the new Roost?
What about the new practice facility?
And does the dramatically improved
student-athlete GPAs mean
anything? I hope so.
When one person is faced with a
budget, a handful of coaches, hundreds
of athletes and thousands of
fans, and still manages to lure
overwhelming crowds to football,
basketball, baseball, soccer, etc.,
how can he be criticized?
King Dixon has done great
things for our athletic program.
Under his leadership, we have
moved forward. He has set goals
and achieved them, and then set
more goals. Every time we hear
"2001" before a football game, we
h 48 and his .312 bat- Steve A\
|1P?*C CPVPnfh hpct AtlO nnl.i 11 ?>/!<
te's" s^<^Tbe^"batting foe he m
oday's loss to Montreal perhaps ttw
^tom2byEd- Pi^we,
r than last week!), has try Smolu
upl^ememberf GanS SiTa s
ly 13 in major league aheUofac
? folks . ^ ^^ The addn
outsfSto^
S^VtheCaS'801 0 (firaty!) w
tird, that's right, third, traditionally
ational League. That quick fix. C
ig sta^o^all.^onsider- for Manager
It. son would b
ing as one of the best rection. Ban
, 2.37 ERA with only appears to fc
4 strikeouts). Charlie contender,
f 2.89 and has proven But remei
rnl nitchcr. fore. GO BR
fer you might waste by
eth. TURN IT OFFS
r Earth
mm mm mm mm mm wm* mm mm mm mm m
Lunch Sf
Bi
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Comer ofCollege and Main Street k
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should remember what it stands
for. The goals of the university, to
be great in academics and 4
- it 1 * -
amieucs. ?
I heard a story about King Di- J
xon once. A fan went to a North ?
Carolina State football game and ?
ate a bag of roasted peanuts. It
cost fifty cents less than the pea- a
nuts at Williams-Brice Stadium. ?
Also, the peanuts tasted much bet
ter, so he called Dixon up and told J
him about it Dixon looked into the
situation and found out not only
were N.C. State's peanuts less ex- J
pensive, but also more profitable.
Not only that, the peanuts DID
taste better. Well, the next home *
game, there was a new brand of
peanuts on sale at Williams-Brice.
Who said King Dixon wasn't a good
man?
rery has been up and down, but he's
irs old. Sandy Koufax turned 26 bede
his mark, so don't count young
out just yet And Pete Smith, he's
most vital cog. If he can continue to
11 as he has thus far, he WILL be the
urter in the game.
oltz has been a puzzle. Still, he's
tter in the second half of the season
his 1989 AH-Star season). Why not
as a closer? Remember Dave RighSiTtut
?^m??umn thfe"4 ~ I
loser.
ion of Terry Pendleton, Sid Bream
lways a pitiful infield in the past
only Brave to play in every game
season, has been nothing short of
at shortstop. Pendleton, of course,
iold-Glover at the hot corner.
>x deserves a salute for not doing
hat other Braves' managers have
done: empty the farm system for a
of the Year.
as a twenty-year Braves fen, that f
ibly not their year. But a .500 sea- >
ring front office blunders, Atlanta
IftIMM#! r^JHH I
DUUVLE ^JTI
>ecial! I
I
I
ay one menu item
st 2nd menu item j
1/2 price I
with student ID. |
Valid M-F until 2 p.m. |
I
lappy Hour M-F 4-7 pm
imp. Buffet Thurs. & Fri.
-25-91^ J -
Fastest man in NFL will be
in Columbia wearing war paint
good football will get your tickRich
Tavlor etS ear,y' U's goin8 10 ^ a ^
npir ayior mendous evening of football, so
L . don't miss out!
JP ChiD Shots -Quoting Pete Vecsey of USA
' V Today here, "Where was the first
...Washington Redskin corner- Placef Michael Jordan planned to
back Darrell Green has rightly ?? after,e!T,mIf.his P" .
reclaimed his title as the "NFL's 'onshlP? To D,sney World? 10
Fastest Man". Green beat defend- y lL
ing champion Ron Brown of the ...On the subject of the Bulls,
Raiders this past Saturday in the has Scottie Pippen emerged as a
60-yard final, but only by a whi- bonafide superstar, or what?!?
sker. Both men were clocked in Incredible as it may seem, Pip6.17
seconds, with Green break- pen enrolled at tiny Central Arking
the tape an instant before ansas to be the basketball team's
Brown. The title was Green's manager. He was so impressive
fourth since the competition be- while working out with the team
gan six years ago. The question during the preseason, the
is, where was "Prime Time"? school's coach wisely offered
...Speaking of Green and the him a scholarship. As they say,
Redskins, I'm getting major ex- the rest is history,
cited about the August 24 JetsRedskins
NFL preseason game at ...Sorry to see The National
Williams-Brice. The mighty sports daily go under last week.
'Skins are probably the most po- The paper was a blessing to
pular pro football team in the sports nuts like myself, but a
Columbia area (sorry Atlanta), weak economy proved to be its
and I hope ALL of you who love undoing. Damn shame.
1991 All-NBA Teams j
v ?
T,rSt Team
F Karl Malo^ftJtah Charles Barkley, ffriladelphia
> C David Robinson, San Antonio %
; G Michdbi:Jordan, Chic^^^xMagQjphnson, Los An|eles
jlPII I if I 1
1 Second Team! I
} 'X Xvlvlvl-iv^'! wM \VA -X ^
> F I>pipihi^iK| WijBns, A|fanta Chris Mullin, Golden State
J-York I
G Kevin JfMiisnn ?:
I #
S:ySfSSSSSS89ftS^aS^^
F James Worthy, Los Angples).^ Etej^ar& King, Washington
C Hakeen^P^iwcdi^ Houston *
G John Stockton, Utah JC Je&Dumars, Detroit
=> ' V
I IB
H ^f|gj pres?nts
-MSm
41 L#J N =1*! J
Friday, June 21 * 8PM |
All ages * Tickets $7 I
On sale NOW at Manifest Disks & Tapes,
at the door-night of show,
OR charge Visa/MC/American Express
723-1075
KOcrid IPnOa??
1000 King St. * Charleston