Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Game 5 VANDERBILT 7 p.m., Sept. 28 Nashville, Tenn. BY KYLE ALMOND THE GAMECOCK Vanderbilt hasn’t had a winning record since 1982, and it has mostly been the doormat of the SEC Eastern Division since then. Coaches have come and gone as the school has looked for the man tf"4, — help end that and Widenhofer' latest ca_ dropped after last season s disappointing z-a record. Bobby Johnson, who was head coach last season for Furman, was hired to take over for Widenhofer, and he is confident that change will finally come for the Commodores. “We feel like we have some very positive things going,” he said. “There’s a new emphasis from the chancellor and the athletic director, improvements over the past few ♦ COMMODORES, SEE PAGE 9 OtJVtJIl old! leihUUlll id&l ytJdl puicill UI fensive squad are returning, and they will be headed by an experienced quarterback in junior Kevin Fant. Fant will be in only his first season as starting quarterback. He spent two seasons as a backup to Wayne Madkin before he took over the starting spot in the final three games of last season. “Fant is a quarterback playing quarter back,” head coach Jackie Sherrill said. “A lot of quarterbacks are mechanical, and Kevin is not.” On the receiving end, MSU boasts one of the best sets of receivers in the SEC. Seniors Terrell Grindle and Donald Lee, joined by junior Justin Jenkins, make up the core o'f the receiving squad. The Bulldogs defense should be tough, as it returns two cornerbacks and two linebackers, including a preseason Butkus Award candidate, Mario Haggan. With Kahlil Nash and Tommy Kelly re turning, Mississippi State has a solid foun dation on which it can build its defensive line. In the secondary, seniors Korey Banks, Demetric Wright and Josh Morgan are back for an other season. Last season, Banks led MSU in inter ceptions and deflected passes. aueii in wdiiL& lu iueub on having a strong defensive squad, which he said is needed in order for a team to be successful in the SEC. “The great defensive teams in this league over the years — Alabama when they won the championship, Tennessee when they won, Florida when they won and in 1999 when we were No. 1 in the nation — defen sively, we all had two defensive fronts,’.’ Sherrill said. With MSU’s strong defensive emphasis, USC’s offense will have to be firing on all cylinders. PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK Cornerback Korey Banks led Mississippi State last season in interceptions and deflected passes. Should the Gamecocks be able to pick apart the defense by mixing up both the running and passing game, the more inex perienced offense of the Bulldogs will have its work cut out for them in order to keep up with USC. Game 6 MISSISSIPPI STATE 1 p.m., Oct. 5 Columbia, S.C. BY ROBIN NURRE THE GAMECOCK After two years of dominating the SEC Western Division, Mississippi State is hop ing to come back into form after an off year in 2001, when it finished at the bottom at the division. The Bulldogs are trying to turn the standings upside down and return to the top spot in their division, and with an ex perienced team of 16 returning starters, they should have a good chance at accom plishing that goal. I Now Leasing Private Bedrooms for Fall 2003. Roommate Matching Available. Don’t Let Someone Else Pick Your Roommate. Look Over Our Roommate Cards and Find Your own. • Free Shuttle to Campus • 24 Hour Fitness Center w/ Free Weights • Resort Style Pool w/ Hot Tub • Free Tanning Bed • 24 Hour Multimedia Center • 24 Hour Game Room w/ Pool Table • Basketball and Sand Volleyball Come see for yourself what everyone is talking about! [ BRAND TsTEW APARTMENT HOMES