Newspaper Page Text
14A
JULY 22, 1999
Terrence Trammell:
On the mark and
set for the 2000 Olympics
By Timothy Cox
AUGUSTA FOCUS Sports Writer
nn Dunbar Trammell will
never forget Thanksgiv
ingmorning, 1978. That’s
when her baby boy Terrence
Trammell entered the world.
Twenty years later, Ms.
Trammell is witnessing her once
bubbling child develop intoaworld
class track star with areal chance
to participatein the 2000 Olympic
Games in Sidney, Australia. For
Terrence, who earned two gold
medals at the World University
Gamesin Spain (July 6-13), lifein
the fast lane has not always been
relegated to track’s starting
blocks. A naturally gifted athlete
who embellished talent with com
mitment and hard work,
Terrence’s first trophy happened
when he was eight, during midget
football competitions between
Georgia and Florida. By the time
he had graduated from Southwest
DeKalb High School in Atlantain
1997, Terrence had earned five
track and field rings (including
three state 7-AAAA titles), and
one ring as a defensive back for.
his fighting Panthers in a 14-7
state championship victory over
Parkview High from Gwinnett
County. Terrence’s late-game he
roics led to a pass interception
thwarting a comeback rally by the
opposing team. Some 85 trophies,
medals and too many rings for one
hand later, his mother finds it
ifficult to display all of her son’s
mementoes. “Some of the ones
rom high school are being taken
lown,” she smiled.
While Ms. Trammell is a
Clearwater, S.C. native, her par
:nts, J.B. Dunbar and Eloise
dunbar, still live in the
3urnettown section of Aiken
Jounty. Terrence, who’s embark
ng on his junior year at the Uni
rersity of South Carolina in Co
umbia, makes it a point to visit
iisgrandparent’s“homeaway from
iome,” when he’s on break.
At 6-2, 185 pounds, Terrence is
he prototype high hurdler and
yrobably anythingelse he’d aspire
o be in athletics. Last year, he
rroke Willie Gault’s 16-year-old
ndoor record (7.16) with a time of
’.07 in the 55-meter hurdles. In
“ebruary, he broke his own record
rarnering a 6.94 in the same cat
Former Wolfpack trio continues sport thrills
8y Jimmy Carter
AUGUSTA FOCUS Sports Prowler
eing the Sports Prowler
for the Augusta Focus al
lows me to meet some
xxceptional youthin our area. For
heyear 1998 through 1999, it had
0 be the Greenbrier Wolfpack
rioof Michael and Ashley Hicks
ind Jasmine Houston. For the
999 - 2000 year, Mike will be a
enjor, Ashley a junior and Jas
aine will a freshman at South
Jafplina State Orangeburg.
It peaked my interest as to why
wfie three young people were so
iftgd in the classroom and on the
ports field. Each had received
I¢'prowler’s praise or extolled
[<3y Moly for some remarkable
saps. My friend Marlin Williams
fINEWSChannel 6 Sports said of
like, “He makes some outstand
1g plays on the field. During the
ammer he worked at the Master’s
1 the media building and always
ad a‘How are you sir,’ and ‘Hello
Ir /Williams’ and shake my hand.
cannot compliment him enough
n the way he is as a citizen, anice
oufig man, a well-rounded stu
enf in the classroom, and an
thikte on the field.” All of which
AUGUSTA FOCUS
e ¢ o ; i,fi
5 3 iy on
2 ees ok ¥ s 3 .
¥ s
. St
i o
i oy ¢ L
L 'y g
¥ b o) BT
]i-¢/ : 4 i i’
o”u i‘v o 4 i : ‘;;f;"f;
oo oy e
) ¥ coad | A
SO { . I i
p: Coae 3 . >
]te e | g
‘5 B RSt
s 2 ; pil g 5 e g
& 3 f . Rt 1Y e b 3 i
- Ak L g ¥
N A -. LT N
y o 5 i
3 k. e
? 4 %
. B g
: E R v
4 o = L g;
! , N 4
] = i i R 451
§ P ; i s 5
» Ml ¥ Ly 2 lo i
i La— k|
il Sap » # 1
,fimaw“' , ) 1
p 1o . = R
= ARE Y It
- . s i
4 2 ? f ! £}
§p° £ i i
:3;” g 5 . B ’
3 ! G 4 ‘r’ |
i i 4 g
Terrence Trammell displays his gold medals earned in Spain earlier this month. Photoby Timothy Cox
egory. He’sthe Southeastern Con
ference 110-meter record holder,
breaking hisown barrier thisyear
with a 13.29 mark, according to
: e
7 i
Ann Dunbar Trammell (R) is
proud of her son’s accomplish
ments. (Phcto by Tmothy Cox)
SEC media relations in Birming
ham. While he’s never seen
Renaldo Nehemiah perform,
Terrence is familiar with the leg
e \ [ >
v'%fi ‘;;" Cuid %@ ', - /‘ ) \ & |
. B g . 4 EFf
C A A
* o ". .£E i -
o 34 : A = |
P I N LT e |
3 9»._ - ;.y' e k) w 'l_ g .
Py ’N w;‘t'fi;, li -l
1..0 N b L 'i 4:".! i
[} ! } :"4 ."
Former Greenbrier athletes. Ashley Hicks, Mike Hicks and
Jasmine Houston. Digitalimaging by Jimmy Carter.
I do agree.
Mike said his successis wanting
to be the best in everything that
he does, to work harder so no one
can out do him. He developed this
attitude as he grew up, watching
others be the best on the football
field and in the classroom, at what
they achieved, and got a mind set
taking it to another level. His
Sports
endary hurdler’s accomplish
ments. He also respects forerun
ners like Jesse Owens and Carl
Lewis. .
“When Nehemiah was my age,
hebroke the 110-meter hurdles at
13 secondsflat,” said a knowledge
able Terrence, who also realizes
that speed combined with power,
often results in NFL contracts,
like it did for former Oakland
Raiders Nehemiah and Gault. “It’s
something I wouldn’t mind doing
before my athletic career has
ended,” he explained. Terrence
also gets encouragement running
against pioneers like Roger King
dom, the high hurdler who copped
Olympic gold during the 1984
Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
This year already, Terrence said
he has whipped the 36-year-old
Kingdom in two meets. Terrence
also credits his coach at USC,
Curtis Frye and ‘96 Olympic gold
medalist Allen Johnson for inspir
ing him to be one of the premier
hurdlersinthe SEC and an Olym
pic hopeful.
intensity on the football field is
unsurpassed. To this day, I have
never seen Mike sit on the bench
when he’s off the field between
plays. Hesaid that’s because foot
ball is a game of emotion, and you
have to be able to be focused, and
notletit get the best of you. “If you
show too much emotion, you are
letting your right hand know what
Although his mother and father
(Leonard Trammell) aredivorced,
Terrence is appreciative of both
parent’s efforts to rear him to this
pointin life. “He was an energetic
child. I'm just happy he’s always
had something to do. Always had
apurpose,” Ms. Trammell reflects.
Her oldest.son, Travis Trammell,
also played football at Southwest
DeKalb and currently attends
Harvard medical school in Cam
bridge, Mass. as a nurse and pro
spective physician.
Terrence is a business major
whoenjoys varieties of musicfrom
the Goodie Mob to The Isley Broth
ers. He’s also spiritually sound,
and is a member of The Greater
Travelers Rest Baptist Church in
Atlanta. His family’s church home
is Old Storm Baptist Church in
Clearwater, where Rev. Nathaniel
Irvinis pastor. While he’s already
been on CBS and ESPN in na
tional meets, sky’s still the limit
for young Terrence and hopefully,
Olympic gold is his to keep next
summer.
your left hand is thinking and I
want to surprise my opponent. I
do not want them to know what
I’'m going to do. I want to bring
surprises to the field.”
Mikebecame a Greenbrier quar
terback in his tenth grade year,
winning the job over two others.
To date, he’s 17 - 3 in two years,
starting every game. In his senior
year, he wants to play to gain
moreinsight on the positions. Not
only is Mike an athlete on the
gridiron, he also has a love for the
round ball on the hard wood as a
point guard.
Theother side of the Hicks equa
tion is sister Ashley. She’s short
in stature, but do not get in her
way on the soccer field; she like a
sleek Corvette on a highway full
of 18 wheelers. When you think
you have her blocked in, she finds
a way around you and heads for
the goal. Ashley credits that abil
ity to her intense desire to win,
with a real passion for the game.
When you’re out there playing
and doing something you love to
do, all your efforts of helping your
team win are on completing that
goal, it’s an adrenalin rush.
See WOLFPACK, page 15A
Albany State edges out
Tuskegee in coaches
\pre-season football poll
On July 9-10, the head football
coaches in the SIAC convened at
the Marriott at Gwinnett Place
Hotel during the SIAC’s Annual
Summer Workshop.
The coaches gave their predicted
order of finish for the final SIAC
football campaign of this century
and topping the list was Albany
State University who nudged out
Tuskegee University.
Head Coach Hampton Smith and
the Golden Rams of Albany Uni
versity have won five SIAC grid
iron titles in the 1990’5. They won
five straight titles from 1993-1997.
The team that stopped another
SIAC football title from floating
into Albany, Georgia via Flint
River was Tuskegee University.
Head Coach Rick Comedy and his
Golden Tigers of Tuskegee Uni
versity put the nation’s winningest
black college football program back
on the map last season. They cap
tured their 18% SIAC Football
Championship last season and it
was the first outright crown won
by TU since 1974. They tied for 1%
place in 1987 and 1991. Albany
S.C. State adds soccer and
golf programs for women
ORANGEBURG, S.C.
The number of collegiate sports
offered for women at South Caro
lina State University will increase
to 10 this season with the addition
of soccer and golf.
‘ The implementation of the new
programs is a part of the
‘institution’s continuing effort to
provide more scholarship oppor
tunities for women, and to satisfy
requirements under Title IX and
gender equity, according to Dr.
Tim Autry, Bulldog athletics di
rector. The soccer program will
offer 9.5 scholarships, with 4.5
being available for golf.
Coaches have already been ap
pointed for both sports. Former
SCSU track standout Sonia King
will coach the soccer program,
while Crystal Nixon will direct
Local powerlifters
shine in competition
Several members of the Python
Power Team of Augusta, Georgia
fared quite well in the “Power-
Mania 5" Powerlifting Champion
ships held recently in Augusta.
Results were as follows:
Ladies
— 105+1b class - Lachandra
Watson: 155 b squat, 90 1b bench
and 200 1b deadlift.
— 123 1b class - Sandra “Cocoa”
Watson: 190 1b squat, 80 1b bench
and 205 1b deadlift.
Men
—l6slbclass(l7-19)- Terrence
“Terminator” Newberry,
Hephzibah High School: 350 1b
squat, 225 lb bench and 450 lb
deadlift. Best Teenage Lifter
Award.
—1651 b class (novice)- Marvin
FOCUS your employment "
ads here to find quality
workers! Call Augusta Focus .
at (706) 724-7855t0
arrange your ads.
o
Statewent9-2(5-ISlAC)andbarely
missed out on making a SIAC:
record sixth straight appearance:
in the NCAA Division II Playoffs.
Tuskegee went 10-2 (6-0 SIAC)-
and defeated CIAA foe Livingstone -
College in the 2" Annual Pioneer
Bowl at the end of the 1999 cam
pßae . S i
Both Albany State and Tuskegee
garnered the three first place votes
a piece, but the Golden Rams
mustered 74 total points compared
to 71 for the Golden Tigers. Fol
lowing ASU and TU, in the pre
season poll was Fort Valley State
University and Kentucky State
University. The FVSU Wildcats,
ateam thatrepresent the SIACin
the NCAA Division II Playoffs in
1998 and was a touchdown away
from the national semi finals, col
lected 64 points and one first place
vote. The KSU Thoroughbreds,
winners of the Inaugural Pioneer
Bowl in 1997, received 59 points
and one first place vote. Rounding
out the upper half of the 10-team
pre-season pollis Savannah State
University with 42 points.
the golf team. Both positions are
part-time.
The soccer team will begin in
tercollegiate competition this fall
with a 12-match schedule. The
slate calls for only one home
match, Sept. 19, against Howard.
The SCSU women open the sea
son August 29 against South Ala
bama in Charleston.
Golf, whose scheduleis currently
incomplete, will begin competing
during the spring of 2000.
Other sports offered for women
at the university include basket
ball cross country,indoor and out
door track, volleyball, softball,
tennis and bowling.
Seven sports are available for
men — football, basketball, golf,
cross country, indoor and outdoor
track, and tennis.
“Big Red” Judd: 425 1b squat, 320
Ibbench and 455 1b deadlift. Best
Deadlifter and Best Lifter Award.
— 220 1b class (open) - Isaac
“Warrior” Scott: 460 Ibbench press.
Biggest Bench Press Award.
—2421 b class (novice) - Damon
“Road Dawg” Hitt: 450 Ib squat,
275 1b bench and 425 1b deadlift.
— Super heavyweight (40-46) -
Jeremiah “Jukebox” Smith: 4051 b
bench press.
- The team was coached ‘by Tee
“Skinny Man” Meyers. All Py
thons finished in first place.
Next contest will be at the Geor
gia Games, either the bench press
or deadlift, on July 25, in Evans,
Ga.
Formoreinformation, call (706)
790-3806 or e-mail
pythongym@aol.com.