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■ SGA wants to see end of homecoming title - 3
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1995 • ATHENS, GEORGIA • VOLUME
■ INSIDE
• New ‘Ace Ventura'
an embarrassing
enjoyment
• Lithuanians lose to
Landers’ Ladies
103, ISSUE 41
Weather
Tfflday
Tomorrow
WL
High • S3
tow • 47
HIgb - 43
Low • 98
Bowl dreams shaky
after Auburn loss
By NOjtM WOOD
Staff Writer
Like the demise of the fabled
Sanford Stadium hedges, Georgia’s
last stand between the hedges waW
heartbreaking. ^
Following 1 *! 37-31 loss to the No.
21-rankea Auburn Tigers on a
frigid Saturday night, the Dogs (5-
5 overall, 3-5 SEC) are left with one
final game, against arch-nemesis
Georgia Tech (6-4) on Thanksgiving
Day, to prove that they are worthy
of a postseason bowl invitation.
Georgia has another off-week to
ponder what went wrong against
the Tigers. As thousands of fans
tore the hedges to shreds in the
closing seconds of Saturday’s loss.
Georgia knew they would have to
look forward to the contest against
the Jackets to salvage the season.
After defeating N.C. State 27-19
on Saturday, the Jackets will look
to lock up a bowl berth with a vic
tory over the Dogs.
Georgia’s best opportunity for a
bowl berth probably lies in the
hands of the Poulan/Weedeater
Independence Bowl selection com
mittee. The Independence Bowl,
which takes place in Shreveport,
La., on Dec. 29, will match up two
at large teams. However, the Dogs
must defeat Georgia Tech to gain
the minimum NCAA-required
number of victories (six) over
Division I-A opponents to receive a
bowl bid.
Auburn (7-3, 4-3) jumped out to
a quick 13-0 lead with 3:09 remain
ing in the first quarter. Yet,
Georgia would respond with some
offensive fireworks of its own before
the end of the first half.
With only 3:25 left in the first
half, and Georgia trailing 20-7,
sophomore quarterback Hines
Ward, playing with a tight brace on
his broken right wrist, led Georgia
on a 67-yard drive. The scoring
drive was culminated by an 11-yard
touchdown flight by Ward, who was
hit at the goal line by two Auburn
defenders and flew head over heels
into the end zone to make the half
time margin 20-14 in favor of the
Tigers.
The game would remain a clas
sic battle between the oldest rivals
in the SEC until the final seconds.
With Georgia trailing 37-31 in the
fourth quarter with 6:22 remain
ing, Georgia head coach Ray Goff
elected to go for the touchdown on
fourth-and-8 from the Auburn 10-
yard line. Ward’s pass sailed over
senior flanker Brice Hunter’s out
stretched hand and fell incomplete.
“I’ve still got to prove that I can
play quarterback,” said Ward, who
passed for 278 yards, a touchdown
and an interception on 16-of-32
passing. “I’ve started three times,
and I haven’t come out with a win
yet. It’s kind of frustrating to be the
starter and not have a win. In a
way, I feel like I lost the game. I
know I should have hit Brice on
that pass.”
Perhaps the most pivotal play of
the game occurred in the closing
minutes. As the Tigers drove down
the field with just over two minutes
remaining, they faced a fourth-and-
1 from their own 42-yard line.
Auburn lined up for a punt, but the
Bulldogs were forced to call a time
out because they couldn’t get their
punt return team on the field in
time. Following the time-out,
Auburn decided to go for the first
down and backup quarterback
Dameyune Craig sneaked for a 2-
yard gain and the first down.
Auburn ran the clock down to 12
seconds, and Georgia could not go
92 yards for a game-saving score
when they gained possession.
“For me, being a senior, it was a
game that I really wanted to go out
and win," senior defensive end
Phillip Daniels said. “I’m not going
to have another chance to play
between these hedges."
Above right: Georgia’s
Brice Hunter, defended by
Auburn’s Larry Melton (28),
reaches for a deep pass
from quarterback Hines
Ward. Right: A fan leaves
Sanford Stadium after the
season’s last game. Along
with others, he scrambled
for roots from the famous
wall of hedges, which will
be torn down for the '96
Olympics.
Banner flies, but
not without debate
By ANDREW HEALAN
Staff Writer
If crowd reaction is any indica
tion, it may be University President
Charles Knapp that should be con
cerned about his job instead of Ray
Goff.
At Saturday’s football game, a
banner flew over the stadium short
ly after kickoff, reading “ITS NOT
DURHAM OR GOFF ITS KNAPP."
Jill Vaughn, a junior from
Augusta, said there was “lots of
applause” in the section in which
she was sitting.
However, Vaughn said she dis
agrees with the banner.
“Lots of people think that by low
ering our standards we can get bet
ter players,” she said. “They blame
Knapp for raising the standards and
hurting our athletic program. But I
don’t think this is true. Notre Dame
and Penn State have great teams
almost every year.”
David Black, a junior from
Valdosta, said he didn’t notice a
reaction from the crowd. Black said
the banner was missing the point.
“It is ludicrous to blame problems
with the football team on Knapp,” he
said.
John McCormick, a freshman
from Brooklet, said the crowd
response seemed very positive
toward the banner.
“People were pointing and laugh
ing,” he said. “There was lots of
cheering.”
McCormick said he felt the
administration has held back the
athletic department.
“I think whoever paid to have
that banner flown has a valid point,"
he said.
Tom Jackson, director of public
information for the University, said
there was no official reaction to the
banner.
Pi
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Fans take home bits
of stadium’s roots
By BETH MACFADYEN
Staff Writer
Georgia fans didn’t leave Sanford Stadium with a win
Saturday night, but thousands carried 66 years worth of tradi
tion in their hands as they exited the gates.
The famed hedges, placed in the stadium when it first
opened in 1929, were hand-trimmed and at times even uproot
ed by fans and players alike. Saturday’s game against Auburn
was the last game to be played between the original hedges.
The hedges will officially be removed in the spring to make
way for Olympic soccer finals and semifinals, which will be held
next summer in Sanford Stadium. The hedges will be replaced
by 3-year-old sprigs of the original hedges, which will be plant
ed before the first home game next fall.
The plucking of the hedges began before kickoff, as students
made their pilgrimages from the stands to field level.
By the beginning of the second quarter, the hedges in front
of the student section were practically bare. Instead of pom
poms, students waved pieces of the hedges during the game.
When the horn sounded signaling the end of the game, the
hedges on the north and south sides of the stadium were mere
skeletons of the bushes they had been only hours earlier.
Dawn Wilson, a sophomore from Warner Robins, said she
thinks the trimming of the hedges was a show of school spirit.
“I did it because of all of the excitement and everything,"
Wilson said. “You always hear people talking about the hedges,
and I think it was all just a part of the moment and of being a
student here.”
Jayme O’Guin, a junior from Lakeland, said he not only
wanted a piece of the hedges for a souvenir, but he also hopes
to be able to have his own hedges.
“The part I took was about 5 feet tall, just about as tall as I
am,” O’Guin said. “I got the roots and everything, so I’m going
to try to replant them.”
Many people, including O’Guin, got a surprise as the hedges
were tom down.
“I never knew there was a fence inside th^hedges until they
started ripping them up," O’Guin said. “There’s a fence there
that’s about 4 feet tall."
Tamara Shlagor, a freshman from Canton, said she didn’t
think about taking a piece of the hedges before she did it.
“Before the game, I didn't even know we could do it," Shlagor
said. “I just took a little twig, and I guess I’m going to save it."
Athletics Director Vince Dooley could not be reached for
comment Sunday about the hedge damage.
Rose brings his circus of friends to Athens
By NICKI HENDRIX
Staff Writer
PERFORMANCE PREVIEW
that we can do the show here.
There’s so much enthusiasm.”
Ticket sale a good start
for basketball season
Hide your children, buy a case of
Pepto Bismol and lock up anything
that could be considered edible
because “MC from hell” Jim Rose
brings his Monsters of Danger and
Women of Wonder tour to the
Georgia Theatre tonight.
Rose grew up next to the
Phoenix fairgrounds where he min
gled with circus performers. What
began as a fascination with the
bizarre became a vocation, and now
Rose is a ringmaster in his own
right, hawking acts that range
from terrifying to repulsive.
Rose’s troupe appeared at
Lollapalooza and opened for Nine
Inch Nails. The circus also did a
solo tour, during which many of the
dates, Athens included, sold out.
Rose and his twisted compan
ions recently appeared in the
Halloween episode of “The X Files,”
and Rose just released a book,
“Freak Like Me,” that details his
life and work and includes a how
to section.
“The explanation section was
put there to show the professional
ism required to do my job,” Rose
said, “(It’s) not necessarily to
encourage anyone to try it. Don’t
try this at home."
Rose has more “thrills, chills
and doctor bills" in store for
tonight’s visit. Favorites Mr. Lifto,
who lifts heavy objects with his
body piercings, and The Enigma,
who’ll eat anything, will appear.
The troupe plays chainsaw foot
ball, a contortionist shoves his body
through a tennis racket, and a man
balances a lawnmower on his chin
while the audience throws heads of
lettuce.
“We’re going to turn the stage
into salad,” Rose said.
After the show, the circus will
sign copies of “Freak Like Me.”
“We love Athens,” Rose said.
“We literally take a cut in pay so
THE LOWDOWN
Jim Rose said, “your ticket Is
good for a seat, but you'll only
use the edge.” Bring your Iron
stomach and enthusiasm to the
Georgia Theatre, where his cir
cus disgusts and excites audi
ences tonight. Doors open at 8.
Please see “Freak Like Me”
review on page 6.
By ROB KITCHEL
Staff Writer
Men’s basketball season tickets
go on sale this morning in front of
the Tate Student Center. Like
everything else related to basketball
under new head coach Tubby Smith,
it will be an event.
Players and coaches who will be
on-hand from noon to 1 p.m. each
day. The players and coaches will be
meeting fans and signing auto
graphs to keep fan interest high.
The tickets will be on sale
Monday thru Friday from 8:30 a.m.
to 4 p.m. each day. The tickets are
$13 for 13 home games, including
contests against Georgia Tech,
Kentucky, Arkansas and Florida
Free T-shirts will be given to the
first 2,000 fans that purchase tick
ets.
The athletic promotions depart
ment said it expects tickets to go fast
because of Smith’s up-tempo style of
play.
The team’s two exhibition games
against the Australian National
team and Marathon Basketball will
be free for all students, but once the
season starts, all games will require
students to pay for tickets.
Those interested in going to early
games are encouraged to buy a sea
son ticket plan to ensure their seats.