Frogs begin season against Nevada
Football team prepared for season opener under pressure of spotlight

By Danny Horne
sports editor

It’s not news these days to hear someone talk about how hot the weather has been. It’s also not news for the TCU football team to talk about whether senior LaDainian Tomlinson will win the Heisman Trophy or whether the team will go undefeated.

On Saturday, the Frogs get to create new talk as they open the 2000 season against the University of Nevada in Reno.

Head football coach Dennis Franchione said the team is happy to finally get the season underway.
“We’ve been playing against each other now for months,” he said. “We’re tired of that. The team looks forward to finally lining up opposite someone else.”

Nevada has already played its opening game this season, a 36-7 loss at Oregon last Saturday. Franchione said that could give the Wolf Pack an advantage.

“You can look at them having a game under their belt this season as being a possible advantage,” Franchione said. “It just means they’re a little ahead of us in terms of being at game speed.”

Saturday’s game will be both the home and Western Athletic Conference opener for Nevada. Franchione said playing a WAC game as the opener is not always ideal.

“If I had to play a conference game first, I’d rather play it this year than in the two previous years,” he said. “It’s never really a comfortable feeling to play a conference game first because these games have such immediate impact.”

Last week in Oregon, Nevada managed only 103 yards of total offense against the Ducks while their defense yielded 456 total yards.

Davey O’Brien Award candidate David O’Neill completed just eight of his 30 passing attempts for 106 yards and three interceptions. His performance was not indicative of how he has played for Nevada in the past. Last season he threw for 3,402 yards and 20 touchdowns while throwing only seven interceptions.
Tomlinson said the Frogs can’t be concerned with how Nevada played last week.

“We know they’re going to be fired up because of it being the first home game and first WAC game,” Tomlinson said. “We know we can beat these guys, but we can’t go out and try to do too much.

This weekend’s meeting between the Horned Frogs and Wolf Pack will be the first-ever meeting between the schools.

Danny Horne
bravestcu3116@mindspring.com

By Doug Sharkey
skiff staff

Arkansas head coach Alan Kirkup is presently ranked seventh among NCAA women’s soccer coaches in victories. He also has three returning seniors and loads of talent coming off the bench.

Oklahoma State sports an undefeated record from the spring and retains 14 letter-winners from the 1999 season.

TCU women’s soccer team faces both of these challengers as they go on the road this weekend to continue their non-conference schedule. It will be a difficult schedule, TCU head coach David Rubinson said.

Although happy with the Tuesday’s win over Centenary, Rubinson said the team will have to improve on their previous “lethargic” performance against Texas Tech.

“They will both be very difficult games,” said Rubinson. “Arkansas has a very good team, as well as OSU. We’ve got to play at another level this weekend, or it’s going to be a very long weekend.”

Arkansas ended their 1999 season 7-12 overall, 4-4 at home and enters Saturday’s game with a 0-2-1 record. The Lady Razorbacks lost to Colorado College 4-1 and tied Baylor 1-1 before losing to SMU 4-0 last Sunday.

The Frogs will go to Stillwater, Okla. to take on Oklahoma State Sunday. The Cowgirls return eight of last year’s 10 starters, and will have some depth with freshman Joanne Edwards of Liverpool, England, the Cowgirls’ top recruit.

The team’s 1999 Big 12 Conference record was a disappointing 2-8-0, but the spring season was different as the Cowgirls finished 9-0-3.

OSU enters Sunday’s game with a 3-2-0 record. Their only losses so far have been to Tulsa, 5-0 and Mississippi, 3-1.

“This road trip will be a great challenge and a definite growing and learning experience for the Horned Frogs,” Rubinson said. “But after last Tuesday’s performance, the team has definite obstacles to overcome and areas to work on.

“We’ve got to do a better job of attacking in the box,” Rubinson said. “We never created trouble in the box or had enough numbers in the attack.”

Key Match Up

The Horned Frog defense will have its hands full this weekend as Arkansas will use its new talent up front. Although young, the Arkansas offense has already broken in their newcomers, including freshmen forwards Crystal Test and Mandy Komar and midfielder Mary Langston in the first three games. In fact, the only two goals scored by Arkansas were made by Komar and Test.

In contrast to Arkansas’ young attack, OSU has most of last year’s starters returning, including senior defender Julie Harris and midfielders Andi Lute and Mercy Morrical. Edwards, their top recruit this year, has already contributed 14 shots, two goals and one assist.

Undoubtedly, TCU defenders, sophomore Brenda DeRose and seniors Jackie Rodriguez and Christy Filice, will be busy over the next two days.

This weekend should prove to be the toughest two-game stretch the team has seen thus far.

Doug Sharkey
d.h.sharkey@student.tcu.edu

Rifle team shoots higher
Team looking to improve on last year’s season

By Chris Gibson

Nine years ago, the TCU women’s rifle team was preparing for its first season of competition.

Head coach Roger Ivy was scrambling to put together a team with virtually no equipment or players. With more questions than answers, the last thing on his mind was if his team was going to be a contender.

Now Ivy said he’s finally getting some answers as the team prepares for their season opener against the University of Nevada in Reno this weekend.

With eight returning shooters and four new shooters, Ivy said the team is looking to improve last year’s marks.

“We dropped a little in the national standings last year largely due to a decision (about personnel) that I made at the last minute,” he said. “This year the experience of our returnees should help us significantly down the stretch, and I’m hoping that the newcomers will bring some added enthusiasm.

“If we continue to work hard, I see no reason why we can’t be a better team than we were last year,” Ivy said.

Team captain Michelle Parker said even though the team’s make-up has changed, she is confident with its outlook.

“It is going to be a little different because we lost a few people, but I think we will do fine,” Parker said. “If we all keep practicing and working hard, then we should have a great season.”

Ivy said one of his biggest obstacles early in the season is spending a large amount of time working with the new shooters.

“We have only had about two or three girls that came to TCU with any shooting experience,” Ivy said. “It does put us at a disadvantage because I have to spend all of my time training the freshmen and sophomores, and I don’t get to spend a lot of time working with the older shooters.”

They continue the season Sept. 23, when they will travel to the University of Mississippi.

By Kelly Morris
skiff staff

After surviving seven qualifying rounds in the triple digit Texas heat, the top five men’s golfers are getting ready to tee it up against 14 other teams in the third annual Ridges/Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate Invitational in Johnson City, Tenn., Sept. 9 and 10.

The men’s team, in order of team ranking, is: redshirt freshman Adam Rubinson, junior Andy Doeden, sophomore Jamie Kellam and seniors Aaron Hickman and Scott Volpitto. As a whole, the team is currently ranked 13th, according to the MasterCard Collegiate Preseason Rankings. Junior Bret Guetz will participate individually, but is not included with the team’s rankings.

Doeden was announced this week as one of the Top 25 golfers in the nation.

Because the team has played in this tournament since its beginning two years ago, TCU head coach Bill Montigel said he and his team are hoping their experience, mental readiness and strong play in the off-season will lift them to their first victory of the 2000-2001 season.

“All the players have a chance of doing well,” Montigel said. “After going through the tiring, gruesome qualifying rounds, the players are mentally prepared for the tournament to come.”

After Rubinson’s Fort Worth Men’s City Golf Championship win this past weekend, Montigel said he hopes his good play will continue into the weekend.

With its fast greens and tight fairways, the scenic Ridges Golf and Country Club could be a true test for the team.

“The course really sets up well for us,” Rubinson said. “It has the best greens. If we make our putts and keep the ball in the fairway, we will score well.”

To help adjust to the different playing conditions, the Frogs will play a practice round today. They will play 36 holes on Saturday and 18 holes on Sunday. With the temperatures predicted to be in the mid to lower 80s, the players are looking forward to the slightly cooler climate.

“When you’re playing 36 holes on a really hot day, the heat wears on you,” Volpitto said. “The cooler weather will be nice, but at this stage, its just the way you play golf.

“If you have a positive attitude and have a good feeling about the week ahead, the weather shouldn’t be a factor.”

Kelly Morris
k.l.morris@student.tcu.edu

Behind the muscles
Strength coach builds unity in the weight room

By Danny Horne
sports editor

If you look out the window of the Walsh Complex, you see the towering bleachers and freshly cut green grass of Amon Carter Stadium where TCU has played some of the best college football Fort Worth has seen in decades.

It’s a wonder how any athlete could workout at the Walsh Complex and not feel motivated to get better. Senior tailback LaDainian Tomlinson said Amon Carter is not the only motivating force around that part of campus.

“He’s shown everyone how to push themselves to their fullest potential,” Tomlinson said. “His impact is something we’ve needed here for a while.”

“He” is Ben Pollard, TCU’s head strength and conditioning coach.

Pollard came to TCU from Sam Houston State in 1998 and was promoted to his current position in 1999. Perhaps not coincidentally, just before Pollard arrived, TCU was 1-10. Two years later, the Frogs have two bowl victories and a Top 25 ranking.

Head coach Dennis Franchione said TCU had four players in 1998 who could bench press 400 pounds.
“At this point, we now have 51 guys who can bench press 400 pounds,” he said.

Pollard said he’s not interested in taking credit for the program’s turnaround.

“I’m simply on the same page with what Franchione and his staff want to do,” he said. “Our success is because of the structure of the system here, not because of anything any individual has done.

“It makes a difference with the athletes if they know the coaching staff is backing up what I’m trying to teach.”

Pollard said when he arrived at TCU two years ago he saw a weightlifting facility that was not conducive to improving the athletes.

“It makes a big difference in the mind set of an athlete,” Pollard said. “If you don’t have pride in your facility, and there isn’t a conducive atmosphere to improvement, then there’s a chance your work ethic will suffer.”

Discipline and work ethic, Pollard said, are two important keys to the recent success of the TCU football program.

“I define discipline as knowing what you’re responsible for and doing it in a timely manner,” Pollard said. “As a team, we have to have the trust that everyone will do what needs to be done to make the team better.
“That’s discipline.”

Pollard is a firm believer in seeing the performance and drive and desire in the weight room translated to drive and desire on the field, which equals victories on Saturday.

“I definitely thought it would make a difference if we just demanded more of the players,” Pollard said. “We felt that if they saw positive results — whether it be by getting stronger or by winning football games — then we knew they would put their trust in us.”

Offensive line coach Jim Bob Helduser said there was a particular psychology to the weight room.
“Players gain confidence in two ways,” he said. “They get it from becoming physically stronger, and they get it from having a great work ethic. If they feel they’re outworking the opponent in (the weight room), then they will not want to let that work go to waste when they are on the field.”

Tomlinson would attest to that.

“Our whole focus is changed,” Tomlinson said. “We’ve begun to take pride in details like weight lifting and doing the things off the field that are needed to get better.”

While Pollard would never take the credit for a turnaround of the TCU football program, he can take some credit for bringing this team closer together.

“I think team unity is extremely important,” Pollard said. “I won’t take full credit, but if I have contributed in that capacity, then I am happy.

“I didn’t come here to make better weight lifters — just better athletes.”

Danny Horne
bravestcu3116@mindspring.com

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