Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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■ BROOM Continued from page 17 Championship in 1981. They were on probation (both NCAA and ACC) for a number of years afterward, but they still brag about their ill-begotten championship. Listen, I’ll be the first to admit that we here at Carolina aren’t exactly national football powerhouses, but we’re busy fighting, working and trying to climb our way up the ladder instead of proclaiming our greatness and bragging of our stature in the college football world. We’re still making steps toward the Michigans and the Alabamas and the Notre Dames and the Oklahomas, and we realize that. But don’t ever tell a Clemson fan that Tennessee or Texas or Southern California has anything on them — because they’re Clemson, and they’re “a football school.” The older I get the more I learn about Clemson fans. I’ve learned that no matter how mediocre they get, their heads just keep getting bigger. I’ve learned that apparently a little cheating here and there is no big deal. I’ve learned that if we lose to them in any sport, it’s something to talk trash about, but if they lose to us, they say “it doesn’t matter, we’re a football school.” And on April Fools Day, I learned that a “football school” doesn’t have to actually have a football past, present or even a promising future. Who knew? Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu SEC News & Notes , Augustus wins Naismith Trophy LSU forward Seimone Augustus received the Naismith Trophy on Tuesday, presented each year to the men’s and women’s player of the year. The junior beat out Duke’s Monique Currie, Ohio State’s Jessica Davenport and TCU’s Sandra Irvin. The award will be presented Friday in Atlanta. Augustus was selected by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, a group of journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country. For the first time, fans got to cast their vote, which counted 25 percent. I11"""""""."""""»....... .""" The 6-foot-1 Augustus averaged 20.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, two assists and 1.6 steals this season. She was LSU’s first SEC Player of the Year and first-team All-SEC by coaches and the AP. Augustus was also named both AP first team All America and first-team All America by the United States Basketball Writers Association. In addition to her All-America honors, Augustus was named the NCAA Tournament’s Chattanooga region’s Most Outstanding Player. Baxter earns weekly honors Vanderbilt first baseman Mike Baxter **"* | was named SEC Player of the Week after the Commodores’ first series win against No. 6 Ole Miss in eight years. Baxter was 10-of-l6 from the plate for the week, including 8-of-12 against the Rebels. The junior drove in 10 runs, four coming in the second game of the Mississippi series. His two home runs for the week pushed Baxter to a career-high five home runs on the season. Defensively, Baxter recorded 16 putouts and three assists. He leads the team in nine categories, including hits, batting average, RBIs, runs, home runs, walks, and stolen bases. I KATIE KIRKLANDTTHE GAMECOCK Redshirt freshman running back Albert Ashcraft dices through the defense on his 70-yard touchdown run ii*i Saturday’s scrimmage, USC's first of the spring. Ashcraft is sharing time with senior Daccus Turman during practice. ■ SPRING Continued from page 17 ro each other and upon interception of the pass, the entire defense mobilized as a blocking unit. Other drills on the day included defensive line drills, where misdirections and stunts were used to plug multiple defensive linemen in the same offensive line hole. During the scrimmages Nix and Thompson had a slight leash on the defense, not allowing any jamming at the line or aggressive secondary coverage. The team will practice four times this week, and in order to have the required number of off-days will cancel practice Friday afternoon. THEY SAID IT “I’ve been a little too critical of the quarterbacks. I’ve been too tough on those guys ... playing quarterback nowadays is a tough deal. You’re not going to get perfect protection all the time.” “I’ve been a little too critical of the quarterbacks. I’ve been too tough on those guys... playing quarterback nowadays is a tough deal. You’re not going to get perfect protection all the time.” STEVE SPURRIER use FOOTBALL COACH — Spurrier, after looking at film from last Saturday’s scrimmage. Injury report: Wide receiver Noah Whiteside came down awkwardly from a leaping completion attempt during scrimmage, and rolled his left ankle and injured his wrist. He walked off the field with help from trainers and was kept out of the rest of practice as a precaution. Defensive lineman Charles Silas injured his ankle, stepping on an offensive lineman’s foot. Silas’ injury looked more serious, and he was taken off the field on a golf can. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@givm.sc. edu Gamecock Tournament Challenge Final Top 10 1. Tina Devlin 167 2. Shaum Rourk 167 3• Stephen Zebrak 166 4. Crystal Byrd 161 5. Patrick Kilcogne 158 6. Chris Counts 154 7. Marcus Bigger 154 8. Curtis Jackson 154 9. Brian Buford 149 10. Jeremy Murphy 144 KATIE KIRKLAND/THE GAMECOCK USC’s women’s tennis team defeated USC Aiken on Tuesday. For a recap,'Check the online issue of The Gamecock on Thursday. _1 -1 I _ - ■ I 1 L I