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Gamecock footbaJ K LARRY WILLIAMS Out of Bounds Would you believe it if I told you the following print contains nothing concerning March Madness, Michael Jordan or the annual tractor pull up in Tigertown? Well behold, fans, as I have chosen to write about the fourth biggest thing since sliced bread - Carolina football. SOUTH Carolina football. The team, which is fresh off its first bowl win and taming of the Tigers, is on the gridiron as we speak preparing to add to the foundation left from last year's accomplishments. This week, the Gamecocks ended their third week of drills. A week from Saturday, the squad will conclude its spring practice session with the annual Spring Football Game at Williams-Brice Stadium. Many of us are anxious to'see how the team is doing and if it's ahead of where it was last year. Well, I'm sure coach Brad Scotf s answer to those questions would be "fine" and "yes," respectively. If letter grades were applicable at this point in time, Carolina's would have to register as an INC. That's not a bad analysis, and its not necessarily a good one, either. The problem is that, like in all spring practices, you just can't tell this early in the season for two reasons. 1) The shuffling factor. Coach Scott and company are ex Junior A!!America Slew-A! Urn and iha Lady Qan this washand. Urn finished third March 5 In th ?27. USC Dance Company presents ^ . V? \uu March 23-24,1995 v-m PM # iw/v jk it* Koger Center Tickets available at the Coliseum E 1 Tickets $5 for Students with U and $10 for GeneralAdmissi H Profnmu ?* paid for Jo pan. with student activity tea. People needtamwc VjuB pi~? tK. CaoiiaaProgmn Unionat777-1 at Icon 41 boon prior so the event r lllonl lo b Ulont lo be q Ulonl lo be o If so Peer 1 available i For more informal Rebecca Rio 777-0378 F The Game* i * * U team filling hole: tremely busy switching players, filling holes, seeing who fits better at given positions. Senior Eric Sullivan has been moved to defensive tackle, and Mike Washington moved to the starting nose tackle spot. 2) The incoming freshman factor. With the impressive recruiting class absent until summer, it is hard to figure which players will come in and make immediate impacts. No matter how dominating a player is in high school, you can never tell if that player will come into the SEC and produce early. 3) The best conference in the world factor. No matter how hard the team practices, no matter how many drills it runs, nothing can simulate the aura of game-day SEC football. The only way to truly evaluate this team will be Sept. 2 between the hedges in Athens against the Georgia Bulldogs. There are many pluses and a few minuses with this team (and also a few question marks). Lefs start with the pluses. On Marrh 11 in a twn-hrmr rnntmllpri srrimmatre An thony Wright, the Gamecocks' redshirt freshman quarterback, showed a glimpse into the future of Carolina football. Wright, a 6-foot-2,185 pounder from Vanceboro, N.C., accounted for four touchdowns during the session. He had touchdown tosses of 20 yards each to Zola Davis (remember him?) and Shah Mays. Wright also scrambled for touchdown runs of 10 and 20 yards. Another player by the name of Steve Taneyhill also looked impressive. The senior starter at quarterback threw three touchdown passes ?12 and 25 yards to Joe Troupe and eight yards to Stanley Pritchett. After the scrimmage, coach Scott said he was pleased with his team's effort, but that the offensive line will need to imM k v * tiw 'j? RS* ?t.~20 fiecocks will compete In the Lady Gamecock C::sslc e SunBank Lady Gator Invitational with a score of FR.L5iim^N AN INTER! Graduate-Level Teach* nr >nl J n\ ir -sti/9k1-sp LA Carolii prese Spring 5 come and enjoy tl of USC's talented Koger Saturday, M; \ox Office Stude SC ID General At on Anyone interested in becomii wm hi rvi singers and dancers should comt ujo mU\ 7pm. AudiU Eg. i.? For more information call uild your r< belter leader? port of your Carolina com pick up an application for the Conduct Boqi n the l-building between Burney and Baker tion about the Peer Conduct Board tyan Coleman 544-0344 Peer Conduct Bo cock. Read i A ps* s as spring practic prove fundamentally. "Our offensive line is not playing as well as a unit as it needs to," Scott said. "We may have two or three getting the job done, but as a unit, we're not performing that well." Some areas that need to be looked at are running back, the defensive line and the secondary. Ohvirmslv tViA rtannrtnrA nf imn-mnn mnnincr hark Rran don Bennett should be a major loss for the team come fall; however, it might not be so bad, as the coaching staff is doing its best to compensate for the loss. With Mike Reddick being the only returning tailback who received any sort of playing time last year, other players are getting an opportunity. Receiver Corey Bridges is being looked at, and bruising fullback Stanley Pritchett also is being considered for the job. The coaching staff is looking forward to Jucos and some true freshmen to challenge for some playing time this summer. And perhaps to be hit most hard by graduation this May will be the defensive line. With Chris Rumph, Stacy Evans and David Turnipseed going, Carolina will lose the heart and soul of its defense. If s difficult to forget the torment the three caused Nealon Greene and the Clemson Tigers in Death Valley this past fall. Trying to plug the holes will be players such as Eric Sullivan and Mike Washington. The two will likely provide key senior leadership for the squad this year. Redshirt sophomore Robert Smith and junior Quinn Brodie will man the defensive end positions, but sophs Jody Caldwell and Sylvester Miller (Heathwood Hall) also are seeing some action. The secondary will be hurt by the loss of head hunter Tony Watkins, who was surely one of the most vicious hitters in BASEBALL JAar. 24 at Alabama* Mar, 25 at Alabama1" * Mar, 26 at Alabama* MEN'S GOLF f^&?'24-26 at SoutHeasterr* Mvitationajl! ..... (Montgomery, AL) WOMEN'SGOLF Mar, 24-26 LADY GAMECOCK CLASSIC SOFTBALL Mar. 24-26 USC ROUND ROBIN % MEN'S SWIMMING I' M&r. 23-25 ait NCAA Swimming and DMr (indianapoiis, IN) P SOP\\OMp\HLS I zr, ESTED IN sr Certification Programs! * CALL 777-6732 | ta Alive :nts the >how '95 QIQQI le sights and sounds pop singing group! Center arch 25 7:30 fg ;nts: $4 - J| imission: $8 og a pari of USCs finest group of i lb McMaster College, Room 310 at iV A11 on date is April 4. J nee Dr. Richard Conant 777-3125 (SSI Pro; II The $ ^ Acad *sume? free ?n WVVIIIV 9 MONDAY at 8:00 FREE F( munilu? u Life is lik what you rd contact ard 777-2832 # t_ _ _ _ _ All prograr V II U _ needing sp< 7 J " Office at 7' e comes to close USC history. Not to mention that Watkins led the team in tackles for three straight years. Something tells me, however, that Carolina's secondary could really emerge as a strength for this year's squad. Senior Ron Nealy will provide experience at the comerback spot. At the other corner is redshirt freshman Jeff Kilgore. Sophomore Ben Washington is primed to become a superior impact player at the free safety spot, while junior Chris Abrams currently holds the starting job. Sophomore Lee Wiggins, who had two interceptions in the scrimmage, is showing definite improvement. Senior speed demon Reggie Richardson underwent reconstructive knee surgery a few weeks ago, but should come back as good as ever. Avfnw\ ia o nloimr wrV?n oV?nnl^ molra on imma_ m tuiu i i ccuiaii io a niiw oiiuuiu rnaxvc an liuuicr diate impact in the secondary this year. A true freshman from Orangeburg, Freeman was ranked with the best coming out of high school; however, his grades needed improving, and he had to sit out this past year. Add Freeman to the mix, and you've got yourself a fine secondary hungry to redeem itself for last year's play. In a nutshell, there you have it, a not-so-complete analysis of this year's football team. If my opinion means anything, I think the squad looks 100 percent better than last year's squad did at this time. Last year, we wondered if the team could do it. This year, we, the players and coaches KNOW it can. And guess what. Only 160 days left till Athens. Can you wait? Mar. 26 ait Georgia Tech WOMEN'S TENNIS - v LOUISIANA STATE*, t s Mar. 25 UTAH . TRACK AND FIELp^I!^ Mar. 24-21 a#Mabama Relays (Tuscaloosa, AL) ^ - ? 'y t \ ^ ^ Ghwjiionsftps Puppet Regime presents... kiSJ " I J^l programs paid for in part,with student activity fees. People ding special assistance for disabilities, please contct the Carolina gram Union at 777-7130 at least 48 hours prior to the event.. Jecond Annual emy Awards Party the GOLDEN SPUR MARCH 27 pm 50D DOOR PRIZES BIG SCREEN e the Oscars, Forrest: You never know 're gonna get... A ? ** * * * * ?! # I \ 19 1 *4 ns paid for, in part, with student activity fees. People ecial assistance for disabilities, please contact the CPU 77-7130 at least 48 hours in advance.