Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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if The University of South Carolina VoL 98, No. 84 • Since 1908 ---MONDAY, APRIL 4, 2005 KATIE KIRKLAND/THE GAMECOCK Sophomore quarterback Blake Mitchell drops back as Steve Spurrier looks on. FUN ’N’ GUN BACKFIRES IN PRACTICE By JONATHAN HILLYARD SPORTS EDITOR Gamecock faithful had been anticipating the debut of new football coach Steve Spurrier’s fun ’n’ gun offense in USC’s first spring scrimmage Saturday. The problem • for Carolina was the offense lacked a whole lot of gun and almost all the fun. In front more than 3,000 people in Williams-Brice Stadium, the Gamecock defense had its way with Spurrier’s offense on numerous occasions. New co-defensive coordinators John Thompson and Tyrone Nix led a unit that sacked USC quarterbacks 13 times in the 92-play scrimmage. “Our quarterbacks liked getting sacked,” Spurrier joked after the scrimmage. “I’ve never seen a bunch of guys that won’t throw the ball away, they won’t step up and fire it, they just sort of say, ‘oh, he got me.’” OFFENSE After an extensive warm-up session, the offense took the field with would-be sixth ^F year senior Mike Rathe at quarterback. Rathe is still awaiting word from the NCAA on whether he will be granted a sixth year of eligibility. He said Saturday word could come any day now. Rathe was not overly impressive under center, cqmpleting just one of his eight pass attempts on the day. He did have a ♦ SCRIMMAGE, page 6 ______ NICOLE COLSON/FOR THE GAMECOCK Carolina Cup fans congregate in Camden on Saturday, braving 40-mph winds at the social event. Blustery day in Camden chills fans By KELLY CAVANAUGH ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR CAMDEN — Chicago is known as “the windy city,” but some at the Carolina Cup this past Saturday could have said Camden deserved the nickname. Hundreds of USC students braved temperatures in the low 60s and winds around 40 mph to attend the Cup, a 72-year old South Carolina horseracing tradition. Leslie Cox, a second-year nursing student, said the Cup was, “not as good as last year because it’s windy and cold.” “But as far as the atmosphere, it’s just as good as last year or better,” she said. Cox said she saw one person injured in the windstorm. “The wind blew the tent up, and it hit a man in the head,” she said. Cox said the man was knocked unconscious, was “bleeding profusely” and that EMS responded. Cox said the weather was “awful,” but that “it wouldn’t be so bad if the wind wasn’t blowing.” “I got sunburned last year,” she added. Christine Gellatly, a second-year electronic-journalism student, agreed. “Oh my gosh, this is terrible,” she said. “The wind is terrible. It would be a eautifiil day if it weren’t for the wind.” • Gellatly said she enjoyed the races Jespite the inclement weather. “I love horseracing, though, so watching the horses has been really fun. I m disappointed that I haven’t gotten to bet jn a horse yet, though.” The Carolina Cup Racing Association has reported the event typically draws more than 70,000 people. “My experience has been good. I’ve ♦ CUP, page 4 Pope leaves legacy of unity • John Paul IPs 26-year papacy included visit to USC campus in 1987 By JON TURNER NEWS EDITOR Pope John Paul II was remembered not only by Catholics on Sunday, but by all the denominations to which he built bridges during his 26-year leadership, the longest in Vatican history. John Paul leaves the Roman Catholic Church a legacy of stern moral guidance, but also an openness unseen in previous centuries of papal leadership. The pontiff visited USC in September 1987, meeting with 27 other religious leaders to discuss Christian unity and the ecumenical movement. “Brothers and sisters, we are divided in many ways in our faith and discipleship,” he said then. “But we are here together today as sons and daughters of the one Father, calling upon the one Lord Jesus Christ, in the love which the same Holy Spirit pours forth into our hearts.” Setting aside about 10 minutes before the conference, John Paul addressed his young USC audience especially. . “It is wonderful to be young. It is wonderful to be young and a student of a university. It is wonderful to be young and a student of the University of South Carolina,” he declared to a cheering throng of about 13,000 USC community members, some atop each other’s shoulders, hoping to catch a glimpse of their famous visitor. John Paul exhorted students from his bully pulpit. “Before you lies the wonderful world of knowledge and the immense challenge of truth. Here you can come to a much greater understanding of yourself and the universe,” he said. “Here in this center of higher education, you must prepare yourselves to make your own contribution to society.” John Paul left an unmistakable ANDREW MEDICHINII/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Thousands of people crowd St. Peter's Square at the Vaticarras they attend a mass for the repose of Pope John Paul M’s soul the steps of St. Peter’s Basilica on Sunday. The Vatican announced that John Paul died at 21:37 local time on Saturday after a long struggle against debilitating illness. He was 84. contribution — conservative, but altruistic — to his own society. Many leaders, including Mikhail Gorbachev, recalling the blaze of nationalism John Paul helped ignite in his Polish homeland, have credited him as much as Ronald Reagan with the fall of Communism. During his tenure he reaffirmed the Roman Catholic Church’s ban on artificial birth control and denounced in-vitro fertilization, abortion, euthanasia, divorce, sex outside marriage, homosexual relations and same-sex unions. In 1944, he appeared on a Nazi blacklist for his activities in a Christian democratic underground in Poland. B’nai B’rith and other organizations testified he helped Jews find refuge from the Nazis. With John Paul at the helm, the Vatican formally recognized Israel in 1993. John Paul was intent on improving relations with Muslims. On a trip to Damascus, Syria, in May 2001, he became the first pope to step into a mosque. He also met with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. John Paul survived a 1981 assassination attempt, but he had suffered increasingly from Parkinson’s and old age before his death Saturday of septic shock and irreversible heart failure. He was 84. The College of Cardinals is expected to choose a new pope within a matter of weeks, but his legacy lies among the bridges he built, unifying faiths and nationalities. Characteristic of the pontiffs style, he responded directly to the cheers of USC’s 1987 student body. “John Paul II, we love you,” they shouted. “It is true. John Paul II, he loves you,” he replied. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocknews@gam.sc. edit Officials do not know who set traps By TAYLOR SMITH STAFF WHITER % Russell House officials say they don’t know who has set rattraps around USC’s student union. Carmela Carr, director of the Russell House University Union, said she was not aware of any campaign to eradicate rats in her building, nor did she have any knowledge of past problems with the rodents. She said the traps just appeared one day. “That’s news to me if we have rats,” Carr said. “I didn’t know that.” Tom Knowles, assistant director of landscaping and environmental services, has jurisdiction over pest control for the USC campus, with the exception of the Russell House, which manages its pest problems through Sodexho Food Services. He said the black boxes placed just outside the entrances are rattraps provided by a contract Sodexho has with Terminix. “We use a number of things to deal with rats. We mostly use (that model) because they draw them in and can’t get out,” Knowles said. “But there are times when we use other traps depending on their feeding habits.” Knowles, whose department deals with pest issues around campus, said USC was not dealing with a rat infestation. The Sodexho operations manager could not be reached for comment. Brittany Ramp, a first-year history student and employee at the Russell House information desk, said the traps were discouraging, but the problem is understandable. “Because a lot of people around the Russell House just throw away food, I guess I would understand why they are here,” Ramp said. “It makes sense.” Ramp said she hasn’t been informed of the problem by employers, but said she is leery of leaving the doors open during the start of the spring and summer months. “I am pretty sure that if students were seeing rats, they wouldn’t come here,” Ramp said. First-year elementary education student Rebekah Winn said she hates anything that crawls, and that she’s especially worried about creatures that crawl where she eats. She said the rattraps are drawing attention to a problem that might drive students away from the campus hub. “I wouldn’t make it such an obvious problem,” Winn said. “It tarnishes the reputation of the Russell House.” The Grand Market Place and the Carolina Diner, both located on campus and managed by Sodexho, received low NICK ESARES/THE GAMECOCK Large traps, like those used by Terminix to catch rats, are located around the Russell House exterior. ratings from the Department of Health and Environmental Control in September but reopened shortly afterward with high ♦ TRAPS, page 4 Denim Day to promote rape awareness Dy L. HININC LUVCLL FOR THE GAMECOCK In recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, USC’s Office for Sexual Health and Violence Prevention has launched the university’s first Denim Day Campaign. Representatives for USC’s Office for Sexual Health and Violence Prevention will hand out stickers with denim-like backgrounds that say, “There is no excuse and never an invitation to rape,” in front of the Russell House from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today. Juliette Muellner, program director for the Office for Sexual Health and Violence Prevention, said Denim Day is an international protest in response to the Italian Supreme Court’s overruling of a rape' conviction in 1999. An Italian woman was raped, and when the case went to trial, the jury found her assailant guilty. NICK ESARES/THE GAMECOCK Posters hanging in the Russell House second floor promote Denim Day. “The Supreme Court overturned the ruling, saying the woman had been wearing jeans at the time, and there was no way a woman wearing jeans could have been raped because they are too difficult to take off so she had to have been willingly involved,” Muellner said. Rachel Citron, a graduate student and intern in uuciai wurn, coorainatea tne event. “We need to recognize that women are raped when wearing everything from business suits to pajamas,” Citron said. “In recognizing Denim Day, we are able to help students recognize that rape is not about what a woman wears. It is about power and control.” Muellner agrees. ‘I always thought, particularly on a college campus where so many people wear jeans, that Denim Day is an amazing way to talk about this issue and this myth that we have that it always matters what the woman is wearing,” Muellner said. Muellner also asks students to wear jeans. “We’re encouraging people to wear jeans as a statement,” Muellner said. “I know South Carolina is hot, so people ♦ AWARENESS, page 4 THIS ISSUE ♦ THE MIX Graphic novel takes cinematic leap “Sin City," Frank Miller’s black-and white comic-book saga, makes a stylish transition into theaters. Page 10 -,-t ♦ SPORTS A look back at a championship season The Gamecock Sports staff recaps USC’s basketball team’s highs and lows during the 2004-05 campaign. Page 12 INDEX Comics & Crossword..11 Classifieds.. 14 Horoscopes. 11 Letters to the Editor.. 8 Online Poll..8 Police Report..2 —a—t... ■ -wwiv.dailygamecock.com-*-■