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FRIDAY
February 16, 2001
Vol. 108, No. 106 | Athens, Georgia
Thunderstorms.
High 73 | Low 50 | Saturday 59
ONLINE: www.redandblack.com
An independent student newspaper serving the University of Georgia community
ESTABLISHED 1893, INDEPENDENT 1980
BITTERSWEET
the lowdown on “Sweet
November. ” PAGE 5
Gym Dogs rolling with high hopes
KENDRA WAYCUILIS | The Red « Buck
▲ Freshman Cory Fritzinger is
expected to compete in every
event.
By GENTRY ESTES
gestes@randb.cora
When No. 4 Georgia takes the floor
with No. 2 Alabama before a packed
house at Coleman Coliseum in
Tuscaloosa, Ala., tonight, it will assume
an unfamiliar role. The Gym Dogs are
heavy underdogs.
Georgia, which has won two of the
last three national championships,
would appear to be no match this year
for the rival Crimson Tide — on paper,
that is.
Alabama (10-1-1) has accumulated an
average score of 196.608, a full half-point
better than the 196.104 the Gym Dogs
(10-0-1) tote. In fact, Georgia’s high
score on the year, last week's 196.675
against Michigan, is only slightly better
than the Tide’s average. Alabama’s
top score, meanwhile, is a whopping
197.35.
Throw in an elbow iryury to sideline
all-around performer Sierra Sapunar,
more than 10,000 screaming Alabama
fans, and an opponent that Tide coach
Sarah Patterson (who has three NCAA
titles) has called, “the best she’s ever
coached,” and the Gym Dogs have a
tough road ahead.
“This is as intense as it gets,” Georgia
coach Suzanne Yoculan said. “I can’t
stand going over there. We don’t look for
ward to going over there, but it’s just
one of those dreaded evils.”
Despite the obvious disadvantages,
the Gym Dogs have several reason for
hope.
No. 1 Three of Georgia’s freshmen
experienced the Alabama atmosphere at
the Super Six in January. The only blem
ish on the Gym Dogs’ competition
record occurred when the Tide tied them
to open the season.
Georgia led Alabama through most of
that meet, until three uneven bars falls
in the third rotation put the Tide in the
driver’s seat.
With four freshmen competing on the
fickle balance beam, Georgia turned in a
clutch 48.9 to close with a tie. Even after
the dramatic finish, the Gym Dogs
couldn’t help but feel they let one get
away.
“Since I’ve been here, we’ve always
struggled in our first meet,” senior
Kathleen Shrieves said. “We kind of do
feel like it slipped away. I think it
was very disappointing, but at the
same time, it was a relief that we didn’t
lose.”
No. 2 The Gym Dogs seem to be a
step away from a breakout meet. Their
average is the nation’s fourth best, even
though they’ve counted a fall in every
meet but one.
And the mistakes haven’t been likely
ones. For instance, the nation’s No. 2
gymnast, Kristi Lichey, fell twice against
Michigan.
Factor in her typically high marks and
Georgia would have broken the 197-
point barrier.
“If you add back our falls, we would
have a 197 four times right now, so the
potential is there,” Yoculan said. “I
believe our team is better (than
Alabama). I believe we have four people
who can score higher scores than
they do. I think we have more 9.9s and
9.95s.”
Many of those possible 9.9-plus scores
emanate from Georgia’s bevy of high-
level freshmen. While Sapunar is a no-go,
Cory Fritzinger and Marline Stephens
both steadily have improved and are
expected to compete in all-around
tonight.
In an ironic twist, most of the six Gym
Dog freshmen were heavily recruited by
Alabama, adding yet another facet to the
bitter rivalry.
“Alabama wanted our freshmen,”
Yoculan said. “We got 'em. The fact that
they chose Georgia over Alabama makes
it a little more personal.”
As if more motivation were needed,
word got back to Georgia’s camp last
week that the favored Tide gymnasts
were doing a little trash talking of their
own.
“We’ve heard rumors that they’ve
been talking about when we go there
how much they’re going to kick our
butts, and we’re not going to let that
happen,” said Fritzinger. “We need to
shut them up.”
Jammer to play
Georgia Theatre
By DAVID KROSS
dkross@randb.com
Hey “Freaks,” if you want to get a
good “Buzz,” come get “Spun” at the
Georgia Theatre tonight with master
jemmer Keller Williams.
Be sure not to get caught in the
“Loop,” and don’t forget to “Breathe” ...
and while album-title puns may grow old,
chances are you won’t tire of Williams’
unique brand of rock.
Virginia-born solo artist Williams
returns to Athens tonight as he embarks
on a tour in support of his newest release,
the live album “Loop.”
The torn- begins on the Atlantic coast,
goes through the deep South, the Gulf
states, the Rockies and concludes in the
Pacific Northwest. Tour dates stretch
from February to April, enabling Williams
to shower countless cities with his cre
ative and friendly groove.
Williams, who lived in Colorado before
he began to tour extensively in 1997, is by
mathematics a solo artist; however, his
performances are not typical of a soloist.
In fact, walk in to a Keller show with eyes
wide shut and ears wide open — you’d
probably think there were three or four
musicians on stage.
He plays a Guild 10-string guitar,
which is in standard tuning but does not
include the higher-octave low and high E
strings. His guitar style is strong in that
he merges advanced Leo Kottke and
Michael Hedges-like technical approach
es with intelligent Charlie Hunter-style
musicianship.
“(Hedges) is a huge influence on what
I do,” Williams said. “I don’t know what
direction I’d be in now if he hadn’t been
alive.”
Williams also has a phrase sampler,
which allows him to sample guitar, bass
and vocal parts and play over them as
KELLER WILLIAMS
When & Where: 11 tonight at the Georgia
Theatre
Tickets: $7 in advance, $9 at the door
Information: 549-9918
he pleases.
To make things even more interesting,
Williams is a master of a unique vocal
technique known as the “mouth flugel.”
He uses his mouth to create the tones of
a horn, playing various melodies
with a sweet sound reminiscent of a
flugelhom.
“My grandfather used to do it,”
Williams said. “I think my approach used
to sound like a trumpet, then a flugel
hom, and now close to a trombone, since
I’m getting older and my voice is getting
lower.”
In addition to his solo work, Williams
has performed with various artists
including Ani DiFranco, David Grisman,
Col. Bruce Hampton, and The String
Cheese Incident, with whom he shares a
close relationship.
Once a fan, Williams was soon opening
for the band. As time passed and as SCI
grew in popularity, so did Williams.
“I’m really happy to be getting the
reaction that I’m getting now,” Williams
said. “Whether it’s going to be in a big
place or a little place, I’m going to be
playing music.”
For Williams, music is a way of life. He
truly doesn’t seem himself doing any
thing else.
“What I like to do when I go to a show
is forget about everything but what’s
happening at the show,” Williams said. “I
like people to be swept away and forget
about their problems.”
Batter Up!
STEPHEN JONES The Rid * Black
▲ Darryl Blaze warms up alongside Doc Brooks before the first inning
of the scrimmage Thursday afternoon. Season preview, Page 6
Deputy
attorney
general at
University
By ANGIE HERRINGTON
news@randb.com
Not every law student can say they
were taught by the country’s deputy
attorney general.
Larry D.
Thompson, the
conservative
Republican cho
sen Wednesday to
be U.S. Attorney
General John
Ashcroft’s deputy,
also is an adjunct
professor at the
University’s
School of Law this
semester.
Thompson
teaches Corporate
Crime
Investigations, a seminar course that
meets once a week.
Josh Moore, a third-year law stu
dent from Statesboro, is one of 12 stu
dents in the class that meets in a
boardroom in Dean Rusk Hall.
“Sometimes school is too theoret
ic, too academic, but (Thompson’s)
class is an excellent blend of the prac
tical and academic,” he said.
Thompson made no mention oi
his pending nomination to the class
until a student brought the newspa
per article to class and asked him
about it, Moore said.
“He was very humble about it and
kind of played it off,” he said. “He’s so
modest you wouldn’t ever know.”
Paul Kurtz, associate law school
dean, said Thompson assured him he
would continue teaching the course.
“We may have to use some techno
logical sophistication to do that,” he
said. “I will be consulting with him
very soon to determine exactly what
we will be doing.”
Moore said Thompson had recent
ly told his students he was going to
take a “three-month sabbatical” from
his practice at Atlanta’s King &
Spalding law firm beginning this
week, though he’d still teach his class.
This intended time off, however,
will now be filled with the obligations
of his new position, Moore said.
“He said in class the opportunity
was too good to turn down,” he said.
Moore said his teacher is “extreme
ly personable” and likes to take time
to talk and connect to his students.
“I’m very pleased with his nomina
tion because I think he will serve with
class and dignity,” he said.
Thompson was Georgia’s first
black U.S. attorney and also coun
seled Justice Clarence Thomas during
Thomas’s U.S. Supreme Court confir
mation hearings.
Cathy Pharr, law school communi
cations director, said the law school is
excited Thompson takes his commit
ment to his class so seriously.
“We’re thrilled with the opportuni
ty to have our students learn from the
second-in-command of the Justice
Department,” she said.
Thompson was unavailable for
comment Thursday because he was
on a plane returning to Atlanta from
San Francisco, his secretary told The
THOMPSON
Courtesy or Atlanta Journal-
Constitution
Red & Black.
Vance, Smith “want to start a dialogue with students’
SCHEDULE OF PROFILES
Editor’s Note: This is the sixth
part of an eight-part series of
features profiling the candi
dates for Student Government
Association president and vice-
president. Elections will be held
Feb. 21-22.
By DENA LEVITZ
dlevitz@randb.com
Fear is one reason Haylee
Vance said she and Allie Smith
decided to run for Student
Government Association presi
dent and vice president.
“We were afraid if we didn’t
run together, students’ concerns
wouldn’t be addressed by the
other candidates,” said Vance, a
junior from Marietta, noting that
student input is the glue which
holds their campaign together.
► Richard Butler, Susan Maples —
Friday, Feb. 9
► Asma Anwar, Lisa Timmons —
Monday, Feb. 12
► George Azih, Aaron Tullar —
Tuesday, Feb. 13
► Lhoris Wilson, Trapper Key —
Wednesday, Feb. 14
► Chuck Richardson, Dixon Greenwood —
Thursday, Feb. 15
► Haylee Vance, Allie Smith —
Friday, Feb. 16
>• Timothy Chen, Taylor Hunt —
Monday, Feb. 19
>• Tundb Ezekiel, Daniel Carnegie —
Tuesday, Feb. 20
Candidates create an agenda
when they run for office, said
Smith, a junior from Dalton, but
they also need to have a “mecha
nism to gauge what students
want to see changed.”
That’s why the two plan to
distribute a monthly newsletter
to students to keep them
informed about SGA’s efforts.
“A lot of times after the elec
tions are over, you never hear
from the SGA president and vice
president again,” Smith said.
“But we want to start a dialogue
with students.”
The pair also wants to be
accessible to students so that
students can hold them account
able for what they do in office,
Vance said.
“It’s not just about saying to
the student body, ‘This is what
we’re doing,’ ” she said. “There
needs to be interaction, so they
feel comfortable talking to us
person-to-person.”
One program they plan to ini
tiate for this purpose is “Pizza
with the Prez” — an open forum
for students to meet with Vance
and Smith. They also plan to
hold town hall meetings with stu
dents and SGA members and
“Dining with the Dean” — a once-
a-semester chance for students
to talk with deans in their college
over lunch.
The issues in their “We ARE
Listening” campaign are relevant
to all students and can be done,
Smith said.
“We are not going to promise
that we’ll get all students football
tickets or completely fix parking,”
she said.
Instead, they promise to make
31 specific changes to eight
aspects of University life, includ
ing easing freshmen and transfer
students’ transitions to the
University and cutting down on
waste around campus.
In the academic realm, the
pair plans to create an online
course syllabus handbook which
Vance said will help students
avoid the “mess of drop-add.”
“People change their schedules
during drop-add because they
don’t know what to expect from a
class,” she said. “But
students could use the hand-book
to decide what courses to take.”
Another issue they will target
is diversity, which Vance said is a
problem because minority stu
dents don’t want to come to the
University.
To combat this, they plan to
form a “Hunter-Holmes recruit
ment team” and add a special
welcome day for minority stu
dents during Welcome Week.
SGA
2001
VANCE SMITH
INSIDE TODAY | News: 2 | Opinions: 4 | Variety: 3 | Sports: 6 | Crossword: 5
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