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Wolves baseball set for improvement in 'O7
By Josh Boatright
Sports Editor
jboatri l @my.westga.edu
As the end of the
Wolves’ basketball
season draws near, an
event in any sports fan’s
neurological calendar is
among us. Football and
basketball have once
again done well in their
respective jobs of keeping
our minds off baseball,
but yes people, rejoice
in knowing that baseball
season has arrived!
Superbowl XLI marks first for black coaches
By Greg Hurd
Guest Writer
theutreofgreg@hotmiil.com
I am usually awake
early enough to watch
“Mike and Mike in the
Morning” on ESPN2.
As 1 was watching it last
Thursday, 1 was surprised
by something mentioned
on the broadcast. Mike
Greenberg had just realized
that no black NFL head
coach had ever led a team
to a Super Bowl, and I
shared his surprise.
Through Sunday’s NFL
conference championship
games, that’s all 1 had
been hearing about. And
now with Lovie Smith’s
Chicago Bears and Tony
Dungy’s Indianapolis Colts
facing off in the Super
Bowl on February 4, it is
guaranteed that we will see
the first black head coach
to win sports’ most envied
trophy. This will come
nearly 17 years after the
first black head coach was
hired in the modern NFL
era. that being Art Shell for
the Los Angeles Raiders in
1990.
With Smith at the helm
in his third season, the Bears
finished the regular season
at 13-3, the best record in
the NFC, and were winners
of their second straight
NFC North division title.
After a first-round playoff
bye, the Bears defeated the
Intramural basketball settles
into Student Campus Center
By Steven Gilley
Guest Writer
wizpnoutck9o2lo@yahoojcom
Fans have always come
out to support their favorite
intramural basketball teams
and this trend was continued
last week as the games were
played in the new Student
Campus Center for the first
time. Playing in anew facility
with two courts allow two
games to be played at once
and a quicker season.
Last year the men’s
intramural basketball
season ended on a high
note as the Trendsetters and
Untouchables faced off in the
championship game. At the
end, the Trendsetters won on
a last second tip in and were
crowned the 2006 Intramural
This Saturday at 1
p.m. the University of
West Georgia baseball
squad will open its first
season as the Wolves as
they play host to Southern
Polytechnic.
The Wolves are
looking to improve on last
season’s disappointing
20-29 (5-16 GSC) record,
the first losing record by
a UWG baseball squad
since 1988 as well as
the first ever under head
coach Doc Fowlkes,
who currently holds an
defending NFC champion
Seattle Seahawks 27-24 in
overtime in the divisional
playoffs. Chicago clinched
their second ever Super
Bowl appearance with a
39-14 victory over
the New Orleans
Saints in the NFC
championship. “I’ll
feel even better to be
the first black coach
to hold up the world
championship trophy,”
Smith said after the
Bears won the NFC
championship.
Lovie Smith
has been in the NFL
as a coach since
1996, beginning as
a linebacker coach
for the Tampa Bay
Buccaneers, then
coached by Dungy. In
2001, he became the
defensive coordinator
for the St. Louis Rams,
which was highlighted
by an appearance in
Super Bowl XXXVI
that same year. In
2004 he was hired
as the Bears head coach.
Following a 5-11 rookie
season, the Bears improved
to 11-5 in 2005, winning
the NFC North division
title. Smith was honored
with the Associated Press
NFL Coach of the Year
award. “A lot of great
coaches have come before
me and they gave me an
opportunity,” Smith said
Champions.
Starting off the 2007
season, the Trendsetters hope
to defend their tide, but the
road is tough as they only
return two key players from
last year’s championship
run. With a roster full of new
faces, they are competing
in the Thursday league and
hope to repeat as intramural
champions.
Playing in the
competitive Wednesday
league, the Untouchables
are returning all of their key
players and showed why they
are an early favorites as they
defeated the highly touted
Fab Five 61-58 in overtime
last week.
The Roc’s string of
intramural championship’s
ended last year when they lost
impressive 16 year career
coaching record of 503-
308.
Although they lost
several key players such
as Tyler Meigs, LaVeasey
Carter, and Adam
Pritchard, the Wolves look
to be led offensively this
season by senior brothers
Alex and Jason Parker.
Jason led the team
last year in homers with
7, was second in RBI
with 29, third in slugging
percentage with .438, and
also third in total bases
of being the first black
coach to make the Super
Bowl. “I hope I can be as
inspirational to others.”
If it weren’t for
a late Marlin Jackson
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Photos courtesy takingdownwords.com. iaipeittmes.com
Tony Dungy (left) and Lovie Smith (right) are the first black coaches in
NFL history to lead a team to the Super Bowl. On February 4th, only
one will be the first to to win.
interception, Super Bowl
XLI would have been a
rematch of Super XX, in
which the Chicago Bears
destroyed the New England
Patriots 46-10, led by the
legendary “46” defense.
Instead, Tony Dungy and
Peyton Manning will make
their first appearances in
the big game after a 38-34
comeback win in the AFC
to the eventual champions, the
Trendsetters. However, their
dynasty remains in tact as
they return most of their key
players and look to maintain
their reign in the Wednesday
league.
Another dynasty ended
last season as the Fastbreak
were upset by the Locos in
the women’s championship
game. However, the
Fastbreak are still favorites
to win, returning key players
and adding new additions to
their roster.
The women games are
played on Mondays and the
men’s intramural games are
played on Tuesday-Thursday
in the Student Campus
Center. Admission is free
with a student id and the
games begin at spm.
Sports
with 60.
Alex was second on
the team in doubles with
8, fourth in walks with 10,
and also fourth in on base
percentage with .326.
Pitchingwise, the
Wolves return two of
their top three starters
from last year. Senior Jim
McGowan and sophomore
Jason Moore combined
for a 5.35 earned run
average and a .302
opposing batting average
in 2006. Moore led the
team in pitching starts
championship.
The Colts had finished
the season with a 12-4
record and their fourth AFC
South title in a row. As the
number three seed in the
playoffs, the Colts defeated
the Kansas City Chiefs 23-
8 in the Wild Card game,
and upset the number two
seed Baltimore Ravens 15-
6 in the divisional playoffs.
Despite trailing 21-3 in the
first half against the Patriots,
the Colts rallied behind
Peyton Manning, as they
erased the largest deficit in
conference championship
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with 11 and McGowan
was second with 10.
Moore was second on the
team in strikeouts with 43
and McGowan was third
with 38. Each tallied four
wins.
The Wolves open
the season with nineteen
consecutive home games
and 33 of their first 37
games are at Cole Field
on the UW'G campus.
Only three of these are
conference games, all
versus North Alabama.
No matter how the
game history. On being
the first black head coaches
to lead a team to the Super
Bowl, Tony Dungy said, “It
means a lot. I’m very proud
to be representing African-
Americans. I’m very
proud of Lovie.”
Tony Dungy has
been in the NFL for 30
years as a player and
coach. He played for
the Pittsburgh Steelers
for two seasons,
including the 1978
team that won Super
Bowl XIII. He also
played for the San
Francisco 49ers before
retiring in 1979. From
1981 to 1988, he was
a defensive backs
coach and defensive
coordinator for the
Steelers before being
hired as the Kansas
City Chiefs defensive
backs coach in 1989.
From 1992, to 1995,
he was the defensive
coordinator for the
Minnesota Vikings.
In 1996 he
accepted his first head
coaching position with the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
In his second season, the
team won its first playoff
game in 17 seasons. The
team advanced to the NFC
championship in 1999 but
lost to the eventual Super
Bowl champion St. Louis
Rams.
The Bucs fired Dungy
It
season plays out, it is
almost impossible to have
a worse season than last
year’s. UWG finished
last in the GSC with the
5-16 conference mark
while Southern Arkansas
won the conference with a
40-18 (16-7 GSC) record.
UWG finished the season
losing 16 of their last 20
games.
So dress warmly and
come out to Cole 'Field
this Saturday to support
your 2007 UWG Wolves
baseball squad.
in 2002 and coincidentally
the team went on to w in the
Super Bowl the following
season. After being hired
by the Colts in 2002 the
team has reached the
playoffs every season, but
until now they have failed
to reach the Super Bowl.
Those disappointments
included two losses to the
Patriots.
While Smith and
Dungy are the first black
coaches to appear in a
Super Bowl, here are some
other first in the history
of the big game involving
African Americans:
First to score a TD:
Herb Adderley, Packers,
SB II (also first defensive
touchdown in SB history)
First rushing TD: Matt
Snell, Jets, SB Hi
First receiving TD:
Otis Taylor, Chiefs, SB IV
First player to win
MVP honors: Franco
Harris, Steelers, SB IX
First defensive player
towinMVPhonors: Harvey
Martin (along with Randy
White), Cowboys, SB XII
First quarterback to
start a Super Bowl: Doug
Williams, Redskins, SB
XXII (also named MVP of
the game)