The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, March 02, 2005, Image 1
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2,2005 lMW*^
Summers dismissed from team
By JONATHAN HILLYARD
SPORTS EDITOR
^ USC head coach Steve Spurrier
dismissed former Parade All
American running back Demetris
Summers from the team on
Tuesday, saying that Summers
violated an unspecified athletics
department policy.
“There are certain policies and
rules that our student-athletes
must follow, and, unfortunately,
Demetris chose to violate those,”
Spurrier said. That’s where we are
with this, and we’ll move on from
here.”
The news might seem like d^ja
vu for Carolina fans. In January of
2002, then-coach Lou Holtz
dismiss^ star running back Derek
Watson because of charges
stemming from alleged drug use.
k Watson, who would have been
^ entering his senior season, rushed
for 2,078 yards in his three years at
use.
Associate Athletics Director
Kerry Tharp refused o comment
on why Summers was dismissed.
Summers, a Lexington native
would have been entering his third
season in Columbia in 2005. The
b-foot-1 "inch, 205-pound back was
the Gamecocks’ leading rusher in
each of his first two seasons, totaling
683 yards in his freshman season
and 487 yards as a sophomore.
Summers also led the team’s
running backs in yards per carry
with 5.5 yards per touch. In his
first season at USC, Summers was
named to the AI1-SEC freshman
team, but as a sophomore nagging
injuries left the back without a
100-yard rushing game.
Summers chose USC before
Clemson and Florida after being
South Carolina’s all-time leading
preps rusher at Lexington High
School.
Spurrier, who/ is beginning his
fourth month as USC’s coach, has
already had to deal with two
disciplinary incidents.
Tuesday morning, offensive
lineman Woodly Telfort and
former tight end Brian Brownlee
had their preliminary hearings
after being charged with grand
larceny for their involvements in
the theft of $18,000 worth of
equipment from Williams-Brice
Stadium. Quarterbacks Dondrial
Pinkins and Syvelle Newton,
linebacker Rodriques Wilson and
defensive lineman Freddy Saint
Preaux are set to have hearings this
month for petit larceny.
Summers leaves a vacancy at a
running back position regarded as
a strong point for USC. With
senior Gonzie Gray graduating,
rising junior Cory Boyd will likely
slip into the top spot in the depth
chart. Boyd was the team’s second
leading rusher, gaining 262 yards
in 2004.
Also vying for playing time at
running back will be rising senior
Daccus Turman and freshman
Albert Ashcraft, who was
redshirted this season. Turman
rushed for 185 yards on 3.4 yards
per carry this season. The
Gamecocks also signed Columbia
High School’s Mike Davis, rated
by Rivals.com as South Carolina’s
best running back prospect.
Spurrier mentioned in his
signing day press conference that
Davis would be able to compete
with Summers for the starting job.
Tharp said on Tuesday that
Summers will retain his
scholarship through the semester
and that he hopes the running
back will finish his education.
The announcement comes just
more than two weeks before USC’s
spring practice kicks off on March
21.
Comments on this story? E-mail
gamecocknevis@gwm.sc.edu
Syrian Reform Party leader
talks politics with students
By SYDNEY SMITH
j THE GAMECOCK
Farid Ghadry, president of
the Re orm Party of Syria, spoke
M- av night in the Nursing
j B11'1 ln8 t0 approximately 25
I students about life in Syria and
| surrounding countries, the need
for democracy and the changes
s he 'ee's should occur there.
A native Syrian, Ghadry and
other Syrians started the Reform
Party after the Sept. 11 terrorist
| attac against the U.S. Following
Mondays removal of the pro
1 Syrian government in Lebanon,
| G^a rys Calk Was timely. Just
before speaking at USC, Ghadry,
j a wcll-known speaker,
| I commented on the protests in
SvnaorCNN International.
GhadrX spoke against the
current Syrian government,
criticizing it for its role in
regional politics. He said the
state’s vulnerability was causing
it to overcompensate.
“If Syria had a vibrant
democracy, it wouldn’t be in
Iraq and Lebanon. Our
weakness is driving us to
terrorize,” Ghadry said.
He said he believes that, while
Syrians understand democracy,
they are afraid to enact a
democratic government, because
the governmental reformists and
potential leaders most dangerous
to the regime are in prison.
Ghadry said his goal in
speaking at USC was to educate
students about terrorism and the
need for change in Syria. He said
he hopes that audience members
will spread what they heard by
mi—m»i imi hi mini mill
word of mouth.
Students Defending
Democracy fellow Jeremiah
Bush said he agreed that a
grassroots approach in
promoting democracy could be
best. “Activism stems from
education and awareness and
knowledge,” said Bush, a fourth
year international studies
student. However, not all of the |
audience members agreed with
what Ghadry said about Syria.
Third-year management
student Salah Hibri attended
because of his interest in the
region and in the current events
of the area. Hibri, part-Lebanese
and part-Syrian, has visited the
area often.
He said that, while he found
♦ Please see GHADRY, page 6
Alpine slopes offer
unique experience
By MEGAN MOXIE
THE gamecock
GRENOBLE, France —
Vtftile Pans is the mQSt
c0mrn°n city for vacationing
and studying abroad in France!
Austin Bersinger didn’t want
Paris.
“When thinking about
studying abroad, Grenoble
really stood out because it is in
the proximity of the French and
Italian ps, said Bersinger, a
second-year history and
economics student. “Being the
site of the 1968 Winter
Olympics, the Grenoble area
has some of the best skiing in
the world.
Bersinger only waited two
days after his arrival in
Grenoble before making his
first trip to the French Alps
Ski stations like Chamonix
on M°unt Blanc dot the
surrounding mountains. Buses
rUn daily to 13 ski resorts, and
Bersinger has already visited
IN THIS ISSUE
four of them - Sept Laux, Les
Deux Alpes 3600, La ‘Alpes Da’
Huez and Chamrousse.
Bersinger’s favorite resort so
far is Chamrousse, the site of
the 1968 Winter Olympics and
a hotspot for skiers and
snowboarders alike.
Snowboarders flock to the
terrain park, while the Alpine
track allows skiers to feel like
Olympic stars.
Though he has lived in
Grenoble for only five weeks,
Bersinger has managed to go
snowboarding about 20 times.
Skiing in Europe is considerably
cheaper than in the Unites
States.
Bersinger normally
snowboards with people he has
met through his program and on
the slopes. In a few weeks, his
friends from home will be
coming to visit and ski at the
Three Valleys, the biggest
mountain complex in the world.
♦ Please see ABROAD, page 5
NCAA rules
jeopardize
scholarships
By STEPHEN FASTENAU
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR
New data released by the
NCAA on Monday shows that if
enforcement of stricter academic
guidelines began today, the USC
men’s basketball team would stand
to lose two scholarships.
The organization sent its
Academic Progress Rate data to
every Division I school on Feb. 15,
but it was not made public until
Monday. The data served to warn
institutions of penalties that may
occur in future years if they don’t
score at least 925 on their APRs.
Seven USC teams received
scores that fell below the
minimum, but six of those teams
have an upper confidence
boundary of 925 or above. The
upper confidence boundary is an
adjusted rate based on the small
size of the sample.
In addition to men’s basketball,
baseball, football, soccer, men’s
tennis, and men’s indoor and
♦ Please see NCAA, page 6
Coach Steve Spurrier dismissed former Parade All-American running back Demetris Summers, shown
above, from the football team on Tuesday. In 2004, Summers led USC rushers with 487 yards.
- , .■■■■■■' ■ ■ 111 ‘ i ■■ I - ■■■■ ■■ —■
Professors
trust creed
to insure
integrity
By MARK SIECKMAN
THE GAMECOCK
As the “Road to the Code”
campaign kicks into gear, some
USC professors are calling the
.Carolinian Creed an adequate
deterrent of prospective cheaters.
The “Road to the Code”
campaign hopes for USC to adopt
a traditional academic honor code
on top of the Creed.
But economics professor James
Bradley said he already trusts his
students.
“I don’t think I’ve ever used
the words ‘don’t cheat’ in class,”
he said. “We’re part of the
Carolina community and a vital
part of that is academic honesty
and dealing with truth the best
way you can.”
Bradley lectures to classes of
about 250 without the aid of
teaching assistants, but he is not
discouraged by the size of his
classes during testing, when the
probability of student cheating is
greatest.
“With a class that large, I can’t
♦ Please see CHEATING, page 6
DEAN DIALOGUE
NICK ESARES/THE GAMECOCK
Joel Smith, dean of the Moore School of Buisness, peruses
paperwork in his office at the college.
Smith taking care
of business at USC
By TAYLOR SMITH
STAFF WRITER
Having received some of the
largest donations of any business
school in the nation, USC’s
Darla Moore School of Business
is in unique position: It can take
risks.
With its international
business graduate school ranked
either No. 1 or No. 2
throughout the last 15 years, and
a No. 1 undergraduate
international business program
for the last eight, Dean Joel
Smith believes the risk taken is
paying off.
Smith said the money is being
used wisely, especially in the area
of graduate studies, which has
improved since Smith took
office in 2001.
“We have been able to
♦ Please see BUSINESS, page 5
♦ THE MIX
Johnson releases
third album
Laid-back Hawaiian crooner
strikes gold with his latest
effort, “In Between Dreams.”
Page 9
♦ SPORTS
Gamecocks
to face Terriers
Carolina baseball enters
tonight’s contest
undefeated at 9-0.
Page 9
! INDEX
Comics & Crossword..11
Classifieds...14
Horoscopes.11
Letters to the Editor..8
Online Poll..8
Police Report..2
'f www. aatlygamecock. com ■—»