SEC 2013

SECCOVER

SEC 2013 | The Eagle | AggieSports.com | MyAggieNation.com

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4 SEC 2013 | The Eagle | AggieSports.com | MyAggieNation.com

2013

The Eagleaggiesports.com

Publisher Crystal Dupré

EditorKelly Brown

Managing editorDarren BensonProjects editor

Rob ClarkExecutive sports editor

Robert CessnaDesigner

Kim WhiteManziel A to Z Designer

Josh SiegelReporters

Larry BowenDavid CampbellRichard Croome

David HarrisAdvertising director

Ron PrinceDisplay advertising manager

Joanne R. PatranellaCreative services manager

Jim Bob McKown

Check out MyAggieNation.com, our new website dedicated to Texas A&M. You can read all about Aggie traditions and personalities, explore the campus evolution and learn what professors and former students are up to. And you can explore Aggie sports history, including year-by-year analysis of the football team, going all the way back to 1894.

ON THE RADIO Join The Eagle sports crew — Robert Cessna, Robert Premeaux, David Harris, Larry Bowen and David Campbell — each weekday for Aggie Nation. We talk all things A&M, and also national sports issues, along with the daily High School Report. And The Eagle newsroom brings us news and entertainment as well. It’s Monday through Friday from 2 to 4 p.m. on SportsRadio 1150 The Zone.

6 Robert Cessna gives his take on Texas A&M’s highly anticipated season

8 Off season circus continues into fall for Heisman winner Johnny Manziel

14 Kevin Sumlin leads A&M into year two in the Southeastern Conference

16 SEC Past & Present: Legendary players and season previews

18 Alabama: Lee Roy Jordan

20 Arkansas: Bill Montgomery

22 Auburn: Safety Buddy McClinton

24 LSU: Running back Charles Alexander

26 Mississippi State: Linebacker D.D. Lewis

28 Ole Miss: Deuce McAllister

30 Texas A&M: Charlie Krueger

34 Florida: Wide receiver Carlos Alvarez

36 Georgia: Quarterback Eric Zeier

38 Kentucky: Quarterback Tim Couch

40 Missouri: Brock Olivo

42 South Carolina: George Rogers

44 Tennessee: Running back (and coach) Johnny Majors

46 Vanderbilt: Off ensive lineman Will Wolford

48 Where Johnny Manziel’s record-breaking 2012 season ranks in SEC history

50 The preseason All-SEC team

52 The ABCs of Johnny Manziel

54 The SEC All-Name Team, from Mister Cobble to Taz Zettergren

57 Predictions on A&M’s season by Kirk Bohls, Ivan Maisel, Ralph Russo, George Schroeder and Andre Ware

58 An SEC mix tape: Songs for some of the conference’s players, coaches and personalities

60 Fun With Flow Charts: How to drink the Kool-Aid and believe A&M will win the national title

61 Catch Him If You Can: A comic take on Nick Saban plotting to stop Johnny Manziel

INDEX

Kool-Aid and believe A&M will win the national title

Catch Him If You Can: A

Saban plotting to stop

Cover: Eagle photo by Stuart Villanueva

Stuart Villanueva

Photo courtesy of Tennessee

Athletics

Larry Bowen

talk all things A&M, and also national sports

14

44

Editor’s note: SEC 2013, a magazine produced by The Eagle and AggieSports.com, went to print the same week allegations were made public against Johnny Manziel. The claims — that he took money for autographs — initiated an NCAA investigation that at press time remained ongoing. Log on to theeagle.com or AggieSports.com for updates.

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2013

Editor’s note: SEC 2013, a magazine produced by The Eagle and AggieSports.com, went to print the same week allegations were made public against Johnny Manziel. The claims — that he took money for autographs — initiated an NCAA investigation that at press time remained ongoing. Log on to theeagle.com or AggieSports.com for updates.

As good as last year was, Aggies are hopeful it was just the beginning.

Texas A&M has a chance to have the best

season in school history. If A&M beats Alabama on Sept. 14, a national champi-onship becomes a distinct possibility.

Just beating Alabama a second straight year would be gigantic. Some think A&M caught Alabama and the rest of the Southeastern Conference by surprise last season. � e stars aligned for the Aggies and quarterback Johnny Manziel, who went from an unknown redshirt freshman to the Heisman Trophy winner.

Alabama head coach Nick Saban and defensive coordinator Kirby Smart have had time to prepare for Manziel. But if the Ag-gies wake up Sept. 15 at 3-0, to quote former announcer Keith Jackson, “Whoa, Nellie.”

� ere still would be plenty of work to do. A&M has four SEC road games, including a return trip to Ole Miss on Sept. 12. � at’s where this bandwagon got rolling last year, when the Aggies overcame six turnovers and rallied from a 27-17 fourth-quarter de� cit to squeak out a win.

� e Aggies have to play at LSU on Nov. 23. By then, all the young talent Les Miles has to rely on will be experienced enough to stand as a major roadblock. And if the Ag-gies are lucky enough to win the SEC West, there’s still the SEC title game with Georgia, Florida or South Carolina.

You can get giddy thinking about what’s ahead. But caution is in order.

A&M has had more heartache than joy

when � irting with national championships. It was just two years ago that A&M, ranked eighth in the country, blew a 17-point hal� ime lead at home to Oklahoma State, which started a downward spiral to 7-6. And in 1995, coming o� a 10-0-1 season, the Ag-gies were ranked third. Coach R.C. Slocum put a framed picture of Arizona State’s Sun Devil Stadium, the site of the national title game, up in the locker room. � at dream turned into a nightmare in the third game of the season in an ugly 29-21 loss at Colorado. Even worse was 1975, when A&M was ranked No. 2 a� er beating Texas, then got steamrolled by Arkansas in the last week of the regular season.

� ere have been other disappointments. So Aggies of all ages can remember a pos-sible national championship slipping away. Only the most senior among us have experi-enced a national championship run.

It’s hard not to think about past failures. But this team has something the others didn’t: Manziel. He is the nation’s best player. He proved it last season, play a� er play, game a� er game. He helped to beat the game’s best coach with the best team on

the road. He led a team into the country’s best conference and won 11 games, roughly twice as many as predicted. He was the best thing to happen to A&M since the univer-sity admitted women.

Kevin Sumlin was good enough in his � rst season as head coach to earn a $1.1 million raise. � e best thing Sumlin did was change the program’s demeanor. He expect-ed to win, so much that he was downright cocky. His attitude has been contagious, extending outside the locker room.

A&M has designs on being the best in the nation’s best conference. � e Aggies expect to have double-digit win seasons with regularity and prove that last year was not an anomaly. It is what’s expected to be the norm.

� is year can be a huge step in that pro-cess. A&M has the talent. � e schedule is manageable. College football is here for the Aggies’ taking like never before.

� e season, particularly the game on Sept. 14, can’t get here fast enough.

• Robert Cessna’s email is [email protected].

Expectations high for A&M’s encore

Eagle photo by Stuart VillanuevaJohnny Manziel and his teammates had plenty of reason to smile in the 2012 season, as they did after beating SMU on the road, 48-3. The Aggies were undefeated on the road and at neutral locations.

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Media Day at Texas A&M was supposed to be a time for head football coach Kevin Sumlin to showcase the 31 recruits he lured to Aggieland, not to put the � oodlights on Heisman Trophy winner Johnny

Manziel — the star quarterback whom many predict will head to the NFL a� er the upcoming season.

� e focus, however, instead sharpened on the con� dent 20-year-old Manziel, whose o� -the-� eld exploits in the spring and summer months captured national and local headlines.

� ose adventures all were rated PG and didn’t threaten Manziel’s eligibility to play college football. � at’s a distinct change from a sobering accusation made by ESPN on the eve of fall practice, citing three unnamed sources who suggested Manziel took money for signing autographs and putting his signature on football paraphernalia.

With an NCAA inquiry into the matter underway and no dead-line o� ered, A&M’s � rst game against Rice can’t come soon enough.

Just a month earlier, Manziel was telling the press corps at SEC Media Days in Alabama that even when he’s in front of 80,000 fans and a national television audience, the � eld is a sanctuary for him.

“[When] football season comes around, you just put your head down and you work with your teammates,” Manziel told the media in July. “You’re on such a di� erent schedule than being able to go places on the weekend or anything like that. You’re grinding. It’s 14 weeks of really working your butt o� and being with your team-mates and continuing to get better. � at’s what you have to do. O� -the-� eld stu� goes away. You talk with what you do on Saturdays.”

‘Time to get ready’On the � eld last season, Manziel roared, earning the coolest

nickname and the biggest award in college football. Johnny Foot-ball led the Aggies to a stunning 11-2 record in their � rst season as members of the mighty Southeastern Conference.

Circus continues for Manziel

By LARRY BOWEN | [email protected]

2013


edia Day at Texas A&M was supposed to be a time for head football coach Kevin Sumlin to showcase the 31 recruits he lured to Aggieland, not to put the � oodlights on Heisman Trophy winner Johnny

Manziel — the star quarterback whom many predict will head

o� -the-� eld exploits in the spring and summer months captured national and local

� ose adventures all were rated PG and didn’t threaten Manziel’s eligibility to play college football. � at’s a distinct change from a sobering accusation made by ESPN on the eve of fall practice, citing three unnamed sources who suggested Manziel took money for signing autographs and putting his signature on football paraphernalia.

With an NCAA inquiry into the matter underway and no dead-line o� ered, A&M’s � rst game against Rice can’t come soon enough.

Just a month earlier, Manziel was telling the press corps at SEC Media Days in Alabama that even when he’s in front of 80,000 fans and a national television audience, the � eld is a sanctuary for him.

“[When] football season comes around, you just put your head down and you work with your teammates,” Manziel told the media in July. “You’re on such a di� erent schedule than being able to go places on the weekend or anything like that. You’re grinding. It’s 14 weeks of really working your butt o� and being with your team-mates and continuing to get better. � at’s what you have to do. O� -the-� eld stu� goes away. You talk with what you do on Saturdays.”

‘Time to get ready’On the � eld last season, Manziel roared, earning the coolest

nickname and the biggest award in college football. Johnny Foot-ball led the Aggies to a stunning 11-2 record in their � rst season as members of the mighty Southeastern Conference.

Circus continues for Manziel



Eagle photo by Stuart Villanueva

9SEC 2013 | The Eagle | AggieSports.com | MyAggieNation.com

2013

Unprecedented success brought unprecedented attention, and Manziel fanned the � ames of public interest through the o� sea-son with a � ashy lifestyle and a fondness for social media. Since winning the Heisman, the 20-year-old Manziel has been pictured showing o� cash at a casino, holding a bottle of champagne at a nightclub, sitting courtside at an NBA game and partying in vari-ous spots. He has done guest shots with Letterman and Leno, and become friends with NBA star LeBron James and rapper Drake.

Manziel’s midsummer tweet about being in a hurry to leave College Station caused national headlines, as did his appearance at a fraternity party in Austin two weeks before the start of preseason camp.

� ere has never been anything quite like the frenzy involving Manziel. Even the Aggie fans who say “Let Johnny be Johnny” must wonder whether the whirlwind will leave Manziel dizzied as he begins his sophomore season.

Manziel is o� en compared to former Alabama and New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath because of his swagger. Ask Manziel if he’ll be a� ected by what’s happened o� the � eld, and he channels Broadway Joe, who guaranteed the Jets’ shocking victory over Baltimore in Super Bowl III.

“All this stu� that’s gone on will have no e� ect on me going into the season,” Manziel said in July. “I guarantee y’all when August comes, when it’s time to get ready to go and it’s football time, I will be absolutely 115 percent prepared to go.”

Manziel’s teammates backed their man publicly at SEC Media Days.

“First and foremost, I’d like to say Johnny’s a great guy,” defen-sive back Toney Hurd said. “He’s a humble guy. When the season starts, he’ll be ready to go.”

O� ensive tackle Jake Matthews said he wasn’t bothered by Man-ziel’s o� season adventures.

Associated PressThe media crowded around Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel during SEC Media Days in Hoover, Ala., in July.

Continued on Page 11

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“I don’t concern myself with those things,” Matthews said. “I know Johnny’s a great competitor, and I know he’ll be ready when the season comes around.”

‘Out of nowhere’It’s hard to believe there were questions

about whether Manziel was the man for the job going into last season. He competed with the more-experienced Jameill Showers during spring training in 2012 and many observers considered Showers the favorite. Manziel was named the starter during two-a-days.

“He came out of nowhere and took over as one of the leaders of the team,” Mat-thews said.

Manziel’s debut season was stunning. He broke the SEC record for total o� ense with 5,116 yards, smashing the mark set by 2010 Heisman winner Cam Newton, who gained 4,327 at Auburn. Manziel complet-ed 295 of 434 passes for 3,706 yards and 26

touchdowns with nine interceptions.Electrifying outside the pocket, Manziel

ran for 1,410 yards to become the � rst play-er in NCAA history to surpass 5,000 yards in total o� ense and 1,000 yards rushing.

� e Aggies lost their opener against Florida and fell to Louisiana State in October, but � nished strong by winning their � nal six games. � at sizzling stretch included a 29-24 road upset of top-ranked Alabama and a 41-13 thrashing of former Big 12 foe Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl.

Manziel was terri� c in both games. Against Alabama, he completed 24 of 31 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns, including his “Heisman moment” when he bobbled the ball, recovered and found Ryan Swope open in the end zone for a score. Manziel shattered the Cotton Bowl total o� ense record by running for 229 yards and throwing for 287.

� e Cotton Bowl performance should encourage Aggie fans wondering whether Manziel can return to form a� er his tumultuous o� season. � ere were similar

doubts before he lowered the boom on the Sooners, questions about whether his post-Heisman activities would prevent him from focusing on football.

Manziel and A&M beat an Oklahoma team coached by noted defensive mind Bob Stoops, whose sta� had extra time to prepare. Consider it a crack in the founda-tion of the theory that Manziel will be less e� ective this season because coaches such as Alabama’s Nick Saban used the o� season to come up with ways to contain him.

“I think last season, seven or eight games in, somebody had to � gure out that our team and what we were doing was pretty impressive,” Manziel said. “Obviously what we did at the end of the season — to have an 11-2 record, Cotton Bowl champs, and just doing what we did in the SEC — people are probably going to be gunning for us. I’m OK with that. � at’s � ne. � at’s how things go. But we’ll be just as pre-pared. I guarantee that.

“I can’t wait. I love football season and there’s not a greater time than that.”

Continued from Page 9


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Sumlin ‘anxious’ for fall structure

For a coach known for his o� ensive expertise, Kevin Sumlin spent a lot of time this summer on the defensive — talking about the actions of his players, particularly Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel.

A year ago, A&M’s head football coach was answering questions about how his pass-oriented philosophy would hold up in the defensive-minded Southeastern Conference. But the Aggies blazed their way to an 11-2 record. Many of the major components of that o� ense are returning, making A&M a national contender.

Now Sumlin faces questions about o� -the-� eld actions head-ing into the season, including assault charges against Floyd Raven Sr. and Deshazor Everett stemming from an April incident. And Manziel has been under constant scrutiny this summer, particu-larly for the autograph-for-pro� t allegations, leaving the Manning Passing Academy early, and a couple of his tweets that some found o� ensive.

“He’s made poor choices [and] he’s made good choices,” Sumlin said at SEC Media Days in Hoover, Ala., on July 17, just days

a� er Manziel le� the Manning Academy. “Unfortunately, the good choices aren’t the ones that people see.”

Sumlin added that Manziel hasn’t been a distraction for the program, and that players

are largely on their own until they report for fall camp.

“� e o� season is the o� season,” he said. “� ere’s a lot of things

that happen — guys come and go. We got 31 new guys

coming into the program who are just trying to

� gure out their way from the dorm to class

and the weight room. Everybody’s got

some issues. � e way the rules are set up right now as a head coach or the assistant coaches, [we] have very lim-ited access to

By ROBERT CESSNA | [email protected]

Sumlin ‘anxious’ for fall structure

For a coach known for his o� ensive expertise, Kevin Sumlin spent a lot of time this summer on the defensive — talking about the actions of his players, particularly Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel.

A year ago, A&M’s head football coach was answering questions about how his pass-oriented philosophy would hold up in the defensive-minded Southeastern Conference. But the Aggies blazed their way to an 11-2 record. Many of the major components of that o� ense are returning, making A&M a national contender.

Now Sumlin faces questions about o� -the-� eld actions head-ing into the season, including assault charges against Floyd Raven Sr. and Deshazor Everett stemming from an April incident. And Manziel has been under constant scrutiny this summer, particu-larly for the autograph-for-pro� t allegations, leaving the Manning Passing Academy early, and a couple of his tweets that some found o� ensive.

“He’s made poor choices [and] he’s made good choices,” Sumlin said at SEC Media Days in Hoover, Ala., on July 17, just days

a� er Manziel le� the Manning Academy. “Unfortunately, the good choices aren’t the ones that people see.”

Sumlin added that Manziel hasn’t been a distraction for the program, and that players

are largely on their own until they report for fall camp.

“� e o� season is the o� season,” he said. “� ere’s a lot of things

that happen — guys come and go. We got 31 new guys

coming into the program who are just trying to

� gure out their way from the dorm to class

and the weight room. Everybody’s got

some issues. � e way the rules are set up right now as a head coach or the assistant coaches, [we] have very lim-ited access to


2013

SEC 2013 | The Eagle | AggieSports.com | MyAggieNation.com14

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our players to talk about di� erent things. � at’s why I’m anxious to get to [fall camp], where I do have some structure going on for our younger players and for our older players.”

Sumlin’s ability to relate to young players is one of his greatest assets, said ESPN’s Andre Ware, the 1989 Heisman winner.

“He understands the dynamics of pushing players’ buttons in terms of getting the most out of each individual player,” Ware said. “How to coach each individual player is di� erent. He can scream at one player and he’s gotta pat another on the back. He understands how to do that, and that’s what makes him special.”

In Sumlin’s � rst year at A&M, the Aggies � nished � � h in the nation. Expectations are even higher for 2013 with 10 starters re-turning, led by Manziel, along with senior All-American o� ensive tackle Jake Matthews and sophomore wide receiver Mike Evans, who had 82 catches for 1,105 yards in 2012.

“� e excitement level is really, really high,” Sumlin said. “� at’s a good thing.”

A&M also is undertaking a $450 million renovation of Kyle Field, expanding it to seat 102,500. � at would top the SEC and the state of Texas.

“� at is a product of the momentum and the enthusiasm com-ing o� of last year,” Sumlin said.

Sumlin has A&M in position to win a� er Manziel leaves, when-ever that may be. His 2013 recruiting class was ranked ninth in the country by 247 Sports, and A&M has 14 commitments for the

2014 class, which earned a No. 7 ranking heading into August.“He can recruit very, very well,” Ware said. “He’s passionate

about what he does. You look at the players that are coming in. He is a tireless worker. He’s got energy to where he is still in living rooms. He wants to put his handprint on it rather than his coach-ing sta� doing all the work, and he comes in and seals the deal. He is still very much hands-on who is coming to A&M.”

Eagle photo by Stuart VillanuevaTexas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin speaks at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas prior to the 2013 Cotton Bowl. Sumlin led the Aggies to an 11-2 record in his � rst season.

LEE ROY JORDAN PAUL “BEAR” BRYANT

ERIC ZEIER

BUDDY McCLINTON

PHOTO CREDITSBill Montgomery: Arkansas Athletics. Charles Alexander: LSU Sports Information Deuce McAllister: Ole Miss Athletics. Brock Olivo: Missouri Athletics. Buddy McClinton: Auburn Sports Information. Charlie Krueger: Texas A&M Sports Information. George Rogers: South Carolina Athletics. Lee Roy Jordan: Alabama Sports Information. Tim Couch: Kentucky Athletics. Carlos Alvarez: Florida Athletics.Eric Zeier: Georgia Athletics D.D. Lewis: Mississippi State Athletics. Brock Olivo: Missouri Athletics. Johnny Majors: Tennessee Athletics. Will Wolford: Vanderbilt Athletics

Past & Present

Flash back to legendary players and look ahead to the 2013 season

CHARLIE KRUEGER

DEUCE McALLISTER

TIM COUCH


Lee Roy Jordan had a way of stealing the spotlight.He ended his All-American career at Alabama with 31

tackles in the 1963 Orange Bowl, a much-anticipated game between two of the game’s greatest coaches.

� e Sooners were guided by Bud Wilkinson, who already had won three national cham-pionships. Alabama was coached by Paul “Bear” Bryant, who was coming o� his � rst national title.

If that wasn’t enough of a draw, Alabama’s quarterback was sophomore sensation Joe Namath.

“He didn’t hurt us at all,” said Jordan with a laugh. “He wasn’t bad.”

It was big enough that President John F. Kennedy at-tended, taking part in the coin toss with the game captains, including Jordan. � e linebacker dominated the game and helped throttle OU’s high-powered o� ense in Alabama’s 17-0 victory.

“Lee Roy told me he missed some tackles,” Bryant told reporters a� erward. “But I imagine the � lms will show he made a few.”

Jordan � rst earned Bryant’s attention with a monster game during his high school junior season at Excel, a small town in southwest Alabama.

“I never really thought about playing college ball until I was a junior,” he said. “But I had a good growth spurt, and

when one of Coach Bryant’s coaches saw us play another team, I had a better game than the guy they were scouting on the other team. So they come over a� er the game and met my coach and all the players and said they’d be back to watch next year. And they were there every game next year.”

Jordan also played center on o� ense at Alabama, but it was his play at linebacker that made the Cowboys dra� him No. 6 in 1963 and got him inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983. He earned MVP honors in the Bluebonnet Bowl against Texas his sophomore season. In his junior year, Alabama went un-defeated and won the national championship. Alabama capped the season in the Sugar Bowl with a 10-3 victory over Arkansas, and allowed only 25 points that season. Jordan earned second-team All-American honors. � e Tide almost matched that in 1962, going 11-1. Jordan � nished fourth in the voting for the 1962 Heisman Trophy.

“It was a great experience for a kid coming out of a small high school and getting the opportunity to play for Coach Bryant, getting to play on a national championship team and then almost winning another one,” Jordan said. “I don’t think we lost but three games in two years, so we had a pretty good run at it.”

� e run ended with that win over Oklahoma. Jordan had his most memorable game, stopping the run against a team that

had re-shaped the

way college teams moved

the football, splitting its three running backs

farther apart than the Wing T o� ense had. Jordan’s 31 tackles

remain an Orange Bowl record, though he says the style of play at the time — heavy on the

running, light on the defensive substitutions — helped those numbers.

“I played every down [on defense] and they didn’t make me play as much on o� ense as I nor-mally did,” he said. “So they gave me a little rest

and gave me a little more energy just for playing defense that particular game.”

Jordan went on to be an All-Pro player for the Dallas Cowboys from 1963 to 1976. He set the franchise record for tackles with 1,236, and still ranks second on that list behind Darren Woodson, who ended his career in 2003 with 1,350.

Jordan bought Redwood Lumber Co. of Dallas in 1977 and renamed it Lee Roy Jordan Redwood Lumber Co. With facilities in Dallas and Hillsboro, his

Lee Roy Jordan


Gritty linebacker became All-Pro player with Cowboys

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA

#54 | C-LB | 1960-62

most memorable game, stopping the run against a team that had re-shaped the





running, light on the defensive substitutions —


and gave me a little more energy just for playing

Jordan went on to be an All-Pro player for the Dallas Cowboys from 1963 to 1976. He set the franchise record for tackles with 1,236, and still ranks second on that list behind Darren Woodson, who ended his



He ended his All-American career at Alabama with 31 tackles in the 1963 Orange Bowl, a much-anticipated game between two of the game’s greatest coaches.

� e Sooners were

Wilkinson, who already had won three national cham-pionships. Alabama was coached by Paul “Bear” Bryant, who was coming o� his � rst national


“He didn’t hurt us at all,” said Jordan with a laugh. “He

It was big enough that President John F. Kennedy at-tended, taking part in the coin toss with the game captains, including Jordan. � e linebacker dominated the game and helped throttle OU’s high-powered o� ense in Alabama’s

“Lee Roy told me he missed some tackles,” Bryant told reporters a� erward. “But I imagine the � lms will show he



� e run ended with that win over Oklahoma. Jordan had his most memorable game, stopping the run against a team that


tackles in the 1963 Orange Bowl, a much-anticipated game between two of the game’s greatest coaches.

three national cham-pionships. Alabama was coached by Paul “Bear” Bryant, who was coming o� his � rst national


“He didn’t hurt us at all,” said Jordan with a laugh. “He

It was big enough that President John F. Kennedy at-tended, taking part in the coin toss with the game captains, including Jordan. � e linebacker dominated the game and helped throttle OU’s high-powered o� ense in Alabama’s

“Lee Roy told me he missed some tackles,” Bryant told reporters a� erward. “But I imagine the � lms will show he



most memorable game, stopping the run against a team that had re-shaped the





running, light on the defensive substitutions — helped those numbers.


and gave me a little more energy just for playing defense that particular game.”

Jordan went on to be an All-Pro player for the Dallas Cowboys from 1963 to 1976. He set the franchise record for tackles with 1,236, and still ranks second on that list behind Darren Woodson, who ended his career in 2003 with 1,350.



company is one of the largest suppliers of specialty woods in eight states, he says.

� e 72-year-old says Bryant was “very instrumental” in his life, and that he taught his play-ers about loyalty, work ethic and winning on and o� the � eld.

Jordan still carries the banner for his alma mater. He attends several games per season and at-tends alumni functions. And he says the games have been more fun in recent years because of Coach Nick Saban.

“I just have so much respect for Coach Saban because he is teaching the same things anoth-er winning coach had taught me 50 years ago,” Jordan said. “Here he is, teaching young people and young players the same message now about being successful as a person and being successful in life. Just what you can do by working hard, planning, having integrity and supporting your teammates and being loyal to everyone around you. I look at it and say, ‘Hey, that message works today just as well as it did 50 years ago.’”

COACH’S QUOTE“I’m never satisfi ed. I spoke to a bunch of alumni groups today, and they all want me to make a comparison between this year’s team and last year’s team, and the team before that, and the team before that, and the team before that. And I wasn’t happy with any of those teams at this point. If I was happy with them, we wouldn’t have summer conditioning, we would not have fall camp, and we wouldn’t have 30 practices to get ready for our fi rst game

against Virginia Tech. We’d just pack it in and say, ‘All right, let’s go to Atlanta and play the [SEC title] game.’ We’re not there yet.” — Nick Saban after spring drills

PLAYER’S QUOTE

“I’m here to win, I want to win as a team. I want to win national championships. I’m not really worried about individual stuff .” — Quarterback AJ McCarron

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB AJ McCarron, senior (211-314, 2,933 yards, 30 TD, 3 INT) RB T.J. Yeldon, sophomore (175 carries, 1,108 yards, 6.3 avg., 12 TD)WR Amari Cooper, sophomore (59 catches, 1,000 yards, 16.9 avg., 11 TD)OG Anthony Steen, senior (14 starts)OT Cyrus Kouandjio, junior (14 starts)LB C.J. Mosley, senior (team-leading 107 tackles)LB Adrian Hubbard, junior (41 tackles, 7 sacks)CB Deion Belue, senior (40 tackles)S HaHa Clinton-Dix, junior (37 tackles, 5 INT)LB Trey DePriest, sophomore (59 tackles)S Vinnie Sunseri, junior (54 tackles, 20 passes broken up)

LAST YEARAlabama won its third national title in the past four seasons, capped by a 42-14 victory over Notre Dame. The Crimson Tide, 13-1, won its last four games after a 29-24 home loss to Texas A&M. The only close victory was a 32-28 win over Georgia in the SEC championship that ended with Georgia at the Alabama 5-yard line.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

Alabama is 50-0 in the past fi ve seasons when it rushes for at least 150 yards. Texas A&M held the Crimson Tide to 122 yards rush-ing in last year’s 29-24 upset victory.

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Virginia Tech (in Atlanta) Oct. 5 Georgia State Nov. 9 LSU

Sept. 14 at Texas A&M Oct. 12 at Kentucky Nov. 16 at Mississippi State

Sept. 21 Colorado State Oct. 19 Arkansas Nov. 23 Chattanooga

Sept. 28 Ole Miss Oct. 26 Tennessee Nov. 30 at Auburn

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When asked about his legacy in Fayette-ville, former Arkansas quarterback Bill Montgomery has a one-word answer: “Winning.”

Makes sense for a player who led the Hogs to 28 wins in three seasons, all during the golden era of Razorbacks football (1968 to 1970).

Montgomery was highly recruited out of Carrollton north of Dallas. Arkansas coach Frank Broyles’ innovative split-back, two-wide system would feature Montgomery in a unique fashion.

“It was a lot of di� erent styles for the quarterback,” he said. “A lot of option, a lot of sprint-out, play-action, all kinds of move-ment in the back� eld. It lended itself well to someone who could run a little bit, throw a little bit.”

Montgomery led Arkansas to a 10-1 record in 1968 and a Sug-ar Bowl win against Georgia. It set the tone for 1969. Arkansas steamrolled through the � rst nine games of the season, winning each by at least 13 points. � e o� ense was held to less than 30 points just twice. And the defense, ranked No. 1 in the country, had given up just 7.6 points per game.

� en came the Texas game. � e Longhorns were No. 1 and the Razorbacks were ranked second. � e winner would go to the Cotton Bowl and be favored to win the national champion-ship. President Richard Nixon even made the trip to Fayetteville to take in the game. More than half of all television sets in the United States (52.1 percent) were tuned in, according to ABC.

It was dubbed “� e Game of the Century.” “It was a con� uence of many things,” Montgomery said, “and

when you add them all up in a bowl, you end up with the thought of, ‘Wow, what a game.’ It was quite something to play in.”

� e game put Texas’ top-ranked o� ense against Arkansas’ top-ranked defense. � rough three quarters, defense was winning. Arkansas had shut out James Street and the Longhorns’ wishbone attack. Montgomery had led an e� cient attack, resulting in two long scoring drives. But on the � rst play of the fourth quarter, Street sprinted into the end zone for the Longhorns’ � rst score, then dove into the end zone for a two-point conversion. Arkansas led, 14-8.

Montgomery led the Hogs on a 73-yard drive, chewing up precious time and getting Arkansas to within 7 yards of the goal line. Broyles called a pass play on second down, which was nearly intercepted.

“In hindsight, you run the ball and kick the � eld goal,” Mont-gomery said. “And they have to score twice with six minutes le� . When you get inside the 10-yard line, it’s not easy to throw there. � e � eld closes in on you.”

On third down, Broyles called another pass play. Texas de-fensive back Danny Lester jumped the route and picked o� the

pass. It was just the seventh interception of the season for Montgomery.

“I’d give anything to have thrown it up in the stands,” he said.

Street led the Longhorns on a last-gasp drive down the � eld, even converting a 44-yard pass on fourth down near mid� eld. Jim Bertelsen ran for a 2-yard touchdown. � e Longhorns prevailed, 15-14, and went on to win the national championship.

“� at singular game,” Montgomery said, “was clearly the most important sporting event I ever participated in, and it was a crushing defeat for the team, the school and the state.”

Arkansas ended up falling in its bowl game and � nishing the year at 9-2.

During his senior season, Montgomery

led the Razorbacks to another 9-2 � nish. His o� ense ranked third in the coun-try in scoring (36.5 points per game). And Montgomery had his best statistical season, throwing for 1,662 yards

Bill Montgomery

Record-breaking quarterback refl ects on winning ways

UNIVERSITY OF AR� NSAS

#10 | QB | 1968-70


Makes sense for a player who led the Hogs to 28 wins in three seasons, all during the golden era of Razorbacks football


“It was a lot of di� erent styles for the quarterback,” he said. “A lot of option, a lot of sprint-out, play-action, all kinds of move-ment in the back� eld. It lended itself well to someone who could

Montgomery led Arkansas to a 10-1 record in 1968 and a Sug-ar Bowl win against Georgia. It set the tone for 1969. Arkansas steamrolled through the � rst nine games of the season, winning each by at least 13 points. � e o� ense was held to less than 30 points just twice. And the defense, ranked No. 1 in the country,


“It was a con� uence of many things,” Montgomery said, “and when you add them all up in a bowl, you end up with the thought of, ‘Wow, what a game.’ It was quite something to play in.”

pass. It was just the seventh interception of the season for


three seasons, all during the golden era of Razorbacks football


“It was a lot of di� erent styles for the quarterback,” he said. “A lot of option, a lot of sprint-out, play-action, all kinds of move-ment in the back� eld. It lended itself well to someone who could

Montgomery led Arkansas to a 10-1 record in 1968 and a Sug-ar Bowl win against Georgia. It set the tone for 1969. Arkansas steamrolled through the � rst nine games of the season, winning each by at least 13 points. � e o� ense was held to less than 30 points just twice. And the defense, ranked No. 1 in the country,


“It was a con� uence of many things,” Montgomery said, “and when you add them all up in a bowl, you end up with the thought

pass. It was just the seventh interception of the season for Montgomery.

“I’d give anything to have thrown it up in the stands,” he said.

Street led the Longhorns on a last-gasp drive down the � eld, even converting a 44-yard pass on fourth down near mid� eld. Jim Bertelsen ran for a 2-yard touchdown. � e Longhorns prevailed, 15-14, and went on to win the national championship.

“� at singular game,” Montgomery said, “was clearly the most important sporting event I ever participated in, and it was a crushing defeat for the team, the school and the state.”

Arkansas ended up falling in its bowl game and � nishing the year at 9-2.

During his senior season, Montgomery

led the Razorbacks to another 9-2 � nish. His o� ense ranked third in the coun-try in scoring (36.5 points per game). And Montgomery had his best statistical season, throwing for 1,662 yards

By DAVID HARRIS | [email protected]


and 10 touchdowns. He � n-ished his career with an overall record of 28-5. It was the high-est winning percentage (.875) in the school’s history over any three-year period. At the time of his graduation, Montgomery had rewritten the Arkansas record books, leading in career touchdown passes (29), career passing yards (4,590), single-season passing yards (1,662) and single-game passing yards (338).

Montgomery, 64, was inducted into the Arkan-sas Sports Hall Of Fame in 1997. He also is a member of Arkansas’ All-Century Team and Arkansas’ Sports Hall of Honor. He eventually moved back to the Dallas area a� er graduating in 1971. He worked with Morgan Stanley and served as director of Hicks Ac-quisition Co. during a success-ful business career. He retired in 2009.

But that third-down play against Texas still gnaws at him.

“Time moves on,” he said. “But I’ll never get over it.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Louisiana-Lafayette Sept. 28 Texas A&M Nov. 2 Auburn

Sept. 7 Samford Oct. 5 at Florida Nov. 9 at Ole Miss

Sept. 14 Southern Mississippi Oct. 12 South Carolina Nov. 23 Mississippi State

Sept. 21 at Rutgers Oct. 19 at Alabama Nov. 29 at LSU

COACH’S QUOTE“Going into fall, it reminds me a lot of when I took over at Wisconsin. Now, we fi nished that season 12-1, but we started the season ranked like 65th or 68th in the country because everybody thought we lost a lot of good players and had a new coach that they didn’t know a lot about. That same thing now, but we are playing in not just the best conference, but the best division in college football.” — Bret Bielema

PLAYER’S QUOTE“Going through this spring, we learned so much who [Bielema] is as a coach and a person, which is really refreshing to us. This spring we have made some huge steps. I don’t think we are where we need to be, but we have summer and fall camp to get there.” — Center Travis Swanson

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB Brandon Allen, sophomore (21-49, 186 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT)RB Jonathan Williams, sophomore (45 carries, 231 yards)WR Mekale McKay, sophomore (21 rec., 317 yards, 2 TD)DE Chris Smith, senior (9.5 sacks)C Travis Swanson, senior (12 starts)OT David Hurd, senior (11 starts)DE Trey Flowers, junior (6 sacks)WR Javontee Herndon, senior (21 rec., 304 yards, 3 TD)OT Brey Cook, junior (6 starts)CB Will Hines, sophomore (24 tackles, 1 INT)

LAST YEARIn April 2012, coach Bobby Petrino was fi red after reports of an aff air with a member of the athletic department. Former assistant John L. Smith was brought in to take over on an interim basis. The Razorbacks were upset by UL-Monroe, then lost their next three games by a combined score of 145-36. The Hogs went from preseason Top 10 rankings to a disappointing 4-8 season. The Razorbacks lured Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema to Fayetteville.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

The Razor-backs were the SEC’s worst rushing attack last season, av-eraging just 118.7 yards per game.

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AUBURN UNIVERSITY

Auburn found Buddy McClinton late. McClinton found a school that would become like family.

“Candidly, if there was one word that really de-scribed Auburn University and the feeling that you

have about the school, it’s ‘family,’ and I mean that with all my heart,” McClinton said. “What happens is that you are adopted and become a part of a family. I run into people who I haven’t seen in 20 or 30 years and all they want to do is talk about Auburn football. Not just past Auburn glory, but also pres-ent.”

His career at safety still shines brightly among those memories. McClinton holds the Auburn record for career interceptions with 18, a remarkable number considering freshmen could not play, limiting him to three seasons in the Tigers’ secondary.

McClinton attended Montgomery’s Robert E. Lee High School, which was an Alabama powerhouse that has won eight state football titles. He estimates he was 5-foot-8 and 150 pounds, and says not many “big schools” were recruiting him.

“I had grown up an Alabama fan, because my mother was a big Alabama fan,” he says. “But Alabama did not think I was big enough to play.”

McClinton’s high school coach, Tom Jones, was hired as Auburn’s freshman coach. He convinced head coach Shug Jordan to o� er McClinton a schol-arship. McClinton holds the school’s single-season interception mark with nine his senior year, and the

career mark with 18.“I’m amazed that the record still stands, only because you’ve

got � ve years to play four now,” McClinton said. “We had three years on the varsity and only had 10-game schedules. So we played 30 games, and now the kids all play 12 games, plus a pos-sible conference [title] game a� er that — and they have an extra year.”

Pat Sullivan and his star receiver, Terry Beasley, were sopho-mores in McClinton’s senior season. Sullivan was on a path to become Auburn’s � rst Heisman Trophy winner. But the 1969 Auburn Tigers were built on defense. � ey had two shutouts and held two other teams to three points. And they embarrassed one of the top o� enses in college football. Florida boasted the com-bination of quarterback John Reaves and receiver Carlos Alvarez, and the Gators were undefeated and ranked seventh in the nation when they rolled into Auburn. � e Tigers intercepted nine passes — still an NCAA record — in a 38-12 win.

“We just absolutely wore them out,” McClinton said. “� ey didn’t know what hit them. � ey had no idea what happened.”

� e rivalry game with Paul “Bear” Bryant’s Alabama Crimson Tide loomed. � e Tigers had lost to the Tide the previous two years.

“So this was our last chance, and we beat them 49-26,” McClin-ton said. “We scored the most points, the most touchdowns, that had ever been scored on a Bear Bryant team.”

McClinton had to � ght his own teammates for interceptions. When he set Auburn’s single-season record with nine

in 1969, teammate and fellow All-American Larry Willingham had seven. Don Webb, the opposite-side

cornerback who was McClinton’s roommate, had led the team in interceptions the previous year.

“We had a great secondary, and a great line-backer in Mike Kolen and an All-American tackle in David Campbell, so we felt like we could play with anybody,” McClinton said.

� ere could have been even more. NCAA records did not re� ect totals

in bowl games. McClinton had three picko� s, returning one for a touchdown, in a 34-10 Sun Bowl

win over Arizona in 1968, and was named MVP of the game.

“� at Sun Bowl game was huge and they were beating us at hal� ime,” he recalled. “Coach Jordan very rarely raised his voice. He was such a gentleman and so positive, and I’m telling

you, he was so upset with us and read us the riot act. When we hit the � eld, we made a big

comeback in beating them.”McClinton was an All-American

Buddy McClinton

By DAVID CAMPBELL | [email protected]

Star safety still holdsAuburn interception records

#27 | S | 1967-69


heart,” McClinton said. “What happens is that you are adopted and become a part of a family. I run into people who I haven’t seen in 20 or 30 years and all they want to do is talk about Auburn football. Not just past Auburn glory, but also pres-

His career at safety still shines brightly among those memories. McClinton holds the Auburn record for career interceptions with 18, a remarkable number considering freshmen could not play, limiting him to three seasons in the Tigers’ secondary.

McClinton attended Montgomery’s Robert E. Lee High School, which was an Alabama powerhouse that has won eight state football titles. He estimates he was 5-foot-8 and 150 pounds, and says not many “big

“I had grown up an Alabama fan, because my mother was a big Alabama fan,” he says. “But Alabama did not think I was big enough to play.”

McClinton’s high school coach, Tom Jones, was hired as Auburn’s freshman coach. He convinced head coach Shug Jordan to o� er McClinton a schol-arship. McClinton holds the school’s single-season interception mark with nine his senior year, and the

McClinton had to � ght his own teammates for interceptions. When he set Auburn’s single-season record with nine

in 1969, teammate and fellow All-American Larry Willingham had seven. Don Webb, the opposite-side




in bowl games. McClinton had three picko� s, returning one for a touchdown, in a 34-10 Sun Bowl

win over Arizona in 1968, and was named MVP of the game.

“� at Sun Bowl game was huge and they were beating us at hal� ime,” he recalled. “Coach Jordan very rarely raised his voice. He was such a gentleman and so positive, and I’m telling




and become a part of a family. I run into people who I haven’t seen in 20 or 30 years and all they want to do is talk about Auburn football. Not just past Auburn glory, but also pres-

“I had grown up an Alabama fan, because my

Alabama did not think I was big enough to play.”McClinton’s high school coach, Tom Jones, was

hired as Auburn’s freshman coach. He convinced head coach Shug Jordan to o� er McClinton a schol-arship. McClinton holds the school’s single-season interception mark with nine his senior year, and the

When he set Auburn’s single-season record with nine in 1969, teammate and fellow All-American Larry Willingham had seven. Don Webb, the opposite-side




in bowl games. McClinton had

touchdown, in a 34-10 Sun Bowl win over Arizona in 1968, and was

named MVP of the game.“� at Sun Bowl game was huge and they were

beating us at hal� ime,” he recalled. “Coach Jordan very rarely raised his voice. He was such a gentleman and so positive, and I’m telling




defensive back and also earned Academic All-American honors at Auburn. He is now the chairman of the board and CEO of McClinton and Co., which develops shopping centers. His son, David, who played at Auburn in the 1990s, is the company’s president and chief operating o� cer.

Buddy McClinton joined the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in 2006 and was a � nalist for the College Football Hall of Fame this year. He credits the team aspect of football, and equates it to family.

“It didn’t matter whether I was the leading interceptor on the team or not,” McClinton said. “� e bottom line is I was intercepting some of those passes because Larry Will-ingham and Don Webb on each side of me had their guys covered, and he was looking somewhere else to throw it. Or Mike Kolen and David Camp-bell rushing up front hurried the quarterback.

“It’s not an individual thing. It’s all about team.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Washington State Oct. 5 Mississippi Nov. 2 at Arkansas

Sept. 7 Arkansas State Oct. 12 Western Carolina Nov. 9 at Tennessee

Sept. 14 Mississippi State Oct. 19 at Texas A&M Nov. 16 Georgia

Sept. 21 at LSU Oct. 26 Florida Atlantic Nov. 30 Alabama

COACH’S QUOTE“The number one thing that our players have to do for us to be successful this year is get our edge back. That is the mental and physical toughness, the blue-collar, hard-nosed, hit-you-in-the-mouth Auburn football that’s made Auburn great. Worry about your teammate, not worry about yourself. Lose the entitlement issue. History shows if Auburn has their edge, they can compete for championships and win games.” — Gus Malzahn

PLAYER’S QUOTE“We were upset with the way last season ended, but we accept that as motivation. We’re looking forward to fl ipping that season around. Our mindset is to go undefeated. We know what it feels like to have a losing season. We’re encouraging each other. We don’t want to go through what happened last year.” — Auburn running back Tre Mason

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSRB Tre Mason, junior (171 carries, 1,002 yards, 8 TD)QB Kiehl Frazier, junior (62-116, 753 yards, 2 TD, 8 INT)FB Jay Prosch, senior (12 carries, 28 yards, 2 TD, 5 catches, 19 yards)S Justin Garrett, sophomore (6 tackles, 6 assists)WR Trovon Reed, junior (9 catches, 122 yards)WR Quan Bray, junior (14 catches, 94 yards)DE Dee Ford, senior (23 tackles, 11 assists, 6 sacks)TE Brandon Fulse, junior (7 catches, 136 yards, 1 TD)CB Jonathon Mincy, junior (41 tackles, 16 assists, 4 passes defensed)CB Chris Davis, senior (21 tackles, 21 assists, 3 passes defensed)C Reese Dismukes, junior (third year as starter)

LAST YEARAuburn fell to 3-9 and head coach Gene Chizik was fi red after the sea-son. He was replaced by former Tigers’ off ensive coordinator Gus Mal-zahn, who had been the head coach at Arkansas State (10-3 in 2012). Auburn was one of two conference teams that failed to win a Southeast-ern Conference game.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...RB Cameron Artis-Payne rushed for 2,048 yards (7.8 aver-age) and 25 touch-downs in 10 games at California’s Allan Hancock Community College in 2012. As a team, Auburn rushed for 1,781 yards (4.1 average) and 16 touchdowns last season in 12 games.

AggieSports.com


Charles Alexander spent early December in New York, where the former Louisiana State running back was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. It was not where Alexander expected to wind up before

he went to LSU, or for a long time a� er he got there.� e player LSU fans came to call “Alexander the Great” arrived

at Baton Rouge with modest expectations.“I had doubts,” Alexander said. “I was wondering if I could

play, but I � gured at least I could go there and get an education. My goal was to go to LSU, get an education and come back to Galveston and coach high school football. I certainly didn’t think I’d have a career in the NFL.”

Alexander broke the LSU career rushing record, earned All-American honors and became a � rst-round pick in the 1979 NFL Dra� . He played seven seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Now 56, Alexander lives near Houston in Missouri City. He works in sales in the oil and gas industry.

In 1975, Alexander came out of Galveston Ball High School as the state sprint champion in track. His football ability was still raw.

“In high school, I was a big guy that could run fast, but I really didn’t know how to be patient, how to run the football,” Alexan-der said. “I had to develop my style. Eventually, with the help of my running backs coach, Jerry Stovall, I learned.”

Asked about highlights of his LSU career, Alexander � rst mentions his rocky start. In his � rst game as a freshman against Nebraska, Alexander carried the ball eight times for minus-2 yards. A backup to Terry Robiskie, Alexander rushed for 301 yards as a freshman.

But his teammates saw great potential in the 6-foot-1,

220-pounder, who won the 1975 Texas 4A state title in the 100-yard dash with a time of 9.5 seconds.

“We remember him as an incredible physical specimen who could run like the wind,” said � ad Minaldi, a former teammate who roomed with Alexander on road trips. “We knew greatness was certainly a possibility for him.”

Alexander played as a reserve again as a sophomore, then be-came a star during his junior season of 1977. � at year, Alexander set the LSU and Southeastern Conference single-season rushing record with 1,686 yards.

Although his rushing total dipped to 1,172 yards in his senior year, Alexander � nished with 4,035 yards rushing, a school record at the time. He was � � h in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1978.

Alexander credits Stovall for much of his success, saying his position coach joined him for extra work before and a� er practices and encouraged Alexander to play racquetball to improve his footwork.

Stovall, who also made the College Football Hall of Fame as a player for LSU, won the recruiting battle for Alexander over Grant Tea� of Baylor and Bill Yeoman of Houston.

“On National Signing Day, at that time coaches could basically come to your house and camp outside your house,” Alexander said. “When I le� to go to school that morning, I had the UH coach sitting in my driveway and I had Coach Stovall across the street in his car, so I had to make a decision.

“I went to Coach Yeoman and I thanked him for recruiting me, and then I jumped in the car with Coach Stovall and committed to LSU. I think I made a good decision.”

Alexander sometimes wonders about his NFL destination. A� er Cincinnati chose him with the 12th pick in the dra� , Alex-ander became the starting halfback in a running game geared toward 250-pound fullback Pete Johnson.

In seven seasons with the Bengals, Alexander rushed for 2,645 yards. He started for Cincinnati in

Charles Alexander


Texan led SEC in rushing,earned spot in Hall of Fame

LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY

#4 | RB | 1976-78

me, and then I jumped in the car with Coach Stovall and committed to LSU. I think I made a good

Alexander sometimes wonders about his NFL destination. A� er Cincinnati chose him with the 12th pick in the dra� , Alex-ander became

running game geared toward

rushed for 2,645 yards. He started for Cincinnati in


Super Bowl XVI.“I had an adjustment to

make,” Alexander said. “I wasn’t very happy, but I did what I had to do to try to make the team successful. I de� nitely wanted to touch the ball a lot more than I did in Cincinnati. I just tried to do the best I could.

“I’m just like anybody else: I always wondered how my career would have turned out if I had maybe gone to another team.”

Alexander went into the College Football Hall of Fame with a class that included former Texas A&M coach R.C. Slocum, another product of Southeast Texas. � e ceremony at the Waldorf Astoria in New York was a long way from the Golden Triangle.

“� at was a dream come true,” Alexander said. “Go-ing to New York and being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame was something beyond my wildest dreams when I le� the little city of Galveston, Texas. I never thought anything like that would happen.”

COACH’S QUOTE“When you’re the No. 1 team in the country, you tell your team, ‘Listen, you have to earn that. That’s some-thing you get at the end of the year, a compliment to your program, but you really have not earned that posi-tion and will not until the back end.’ A year like this year, where you’re not necessarily picked No. 1, basically there’s a responsibility for us to control the outcome. The fact is our team kind of looks at each game [as] an opportunity to play for victory. It really does not aff ect us really what [anyone] outside of the perimeter of that team room says about them.” — Les Miles

PLAYER’S QUOTE“With the guys we got in the front, no matter what quarter-back we are playing, you have about three seconds to get the ball out, and that’s what we try to accomplish. We make sure to take care of our jobs. If each of us does our job individually, then we will get the play we want.” — Safety Craig Loston

ALSO OF NOTE ...

Les Miles refused to eat any of the sponsor’s product before the Chick-fi l-A Bowl because he has an endorsement deal with Rais-ing Cane’s.

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB Zach Mettenberger, senior (202-352, 2,609 yards, 12 TD)WR Odell Beckham, junior (43 receptions, 713 yards, 2 TD)OT La’El Collins, junior (13 starts)S Craig Loston, senior (55 tackles, 29 unassisted, 3 INT)RB Jeremy Hill, sophomore (142 carries, 755 yards, 12 TD)WR Kadron Boone, senior (26 receptions, 348 yards, 4 TD)LB Lamin Barrow, senior (105 tackles, 52 solo, 7.5 tackles for loss)RB Terrence Magee, junior (9 games, one carry, one reception)S Corey Thompson, sophomore (13 games played, 11 tackles)OT Vadal Alexander, sophomore (9 starts)CB Jalen Mills, sophomore (57 tackles, 2 INT)

LAST YEARLouisiana State went 10-3, including a 6-2 mark in conference games to fi nish tied for second in the SEC West. The Tigers recovered from a 21-17 home loss to top-ranked Alabama in early November to win their last three games of the regular season. LSU lost the Chick-fi l-A Bowl to Clemson, 25-24.

2013 Season Preview

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Texas Christian (in Arlington) Sept. 28 at Georgia Oct. 26 Furman

Sept. 7 Alabama-Birmingham Oct. 5 at Mississippi State Nov. 9 at Alabama

Sept. 14 Kent State Oct. 12 Florida Nov. 23 Texas A&M

Sept. 21 Auburn Oct. 19 at Mississippi Nov. 30 Arkansas

Often Imitated. Never Duplicated.

Good Burgers • Cold Beer

3600 S. College Bryan, TX • 979-846-3306

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26

When D.D. Lewis stands in front of a crowd for a speaking engagement, he can proudly boast of two Super Bowl rings. He is one of eight players in NFL history to have played in

� ve Super Bowls.But the road wasn’t easy. When he looks back,

Lewis said, he feels blessed.“I couldn’t have lived a better life,” he said.Lewis was born the youngest of 14 children

in Knoxville. He said it was dysfunctional, growing up poor in an overcrowded house. � e expectation was for the kids to get through high school, he said, then go to work and provide for the family.

But Lewis’ nephew talked him into going out for the Fulton High School football team. He starred as an all-state linebacker and received a scholarship to play at Mississippi State. One problem, though.

“My mother wanted me to go to work,” he said, “not go to school.”

Lewis said he convinced his mother, and he headed to Starkville. � e coaches grew fond of his style of play.

“They took an immediate liking to my aggression,” he said. “They also liked my technique. I was quick — quicker than I was fast — and I could defend myself

against blockers.”Lewis was a two-way starter (at center and linebacker) during

his debut sophomore season in 1965. And the Bulldogs won their � rst four games, including an upset win over No. 8 Florida and a future Heisman Trophy winner.

“We beat Steve Spurrier,” Lewis recalled. “How cool is that?”In his next 26 collegiate games, Mississippi State went 3-23.

But Lewis led the Bulldogs in tackles during all three of his varsity seasons. He was named All-SEC in 1966 and 1967. And following his senior season, he was selected as a � rst-team All-American and was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. All for a team that � nished 1-9.

Still, NFL teams had their doubts that Lewis was big enough to make it in the pros. He slipped to the sixth round, where the Dallas Cowboys dra� ed him to back up Chuck Howley.

He made his mark in his � rst four years on special teams.“I went nuts on special teams,” he said. “� at’s how veterans

said they made it in the pros, and that helped me.”Howley su� ered an injury during the 1973 season and Lewis

took over the weak side linebacker posi-tion. He started 135 consecutive games — third-most in franchise history. He holds the Cowboys’ record for playing in 27 playo� games.

Lewis said that his best attribute was his consistency.

“I’d like to think that the guys could depend on me,” he said. “� at if they needed me, I’d be there.”

� e � nal play of Lewis’ career just happened to be “� e Catch” in the 1982 NFC Championship Game. He’s the No. 50 you see running toward Joe Montana, as the 49ers

quarterback lets loose one of the most famous throws in NFL

history, caught by Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone.

“It really hurt,” Lewis said, “because you have to see that play a million times a� erward.”

A� er Lewis retired, “� e Catch” couldn’t have been further from his mind, he said. For three

years, Lewis dealt with substance abuse problems. He said it cost him his wife and his children, that he owed

the government thousands of dollars and that the bottom was near. But eventually, a� er three trips to rehab, he got it.

“I had never grown up thinking surrendering would lead to winning,” he said. “But I just surrendered, and that

D.D.Lewis


All-American linebackerplayed in fi ve Super Bowls

MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIVERSITY

#53 | C-LB | 1965-67

hen D.D. Lewis stands in front of a crowd for a speaking engagement, he can proudly boast of two Super Bowl rings. He is one of eight players in NFL history to have played in

But the road wasn’t easy. When he looks back, Lewis said, he feels blessed.

“I couldn’t have lived a better life,” he said.Lewis was born the youngest of 14 children

in Knoxville. He said it was dysfunctional, growing up poor in an overcrowded house. � e expectation was for the kids to get through high school, he said, then go to work and provide for the family.

But Lewis’ nephew talked him into going out for the Fulton High School football team. He starred as an all-state linebacker and received a scholarship to play at Mississippi State. One problem, though.

“My mother wanted me to go to work,” he said, “not go to school.”

Lewis said he convinced his mother, and he headed to Starkville. � e coaches grew fond of his

“They took an immediate liking to my aggression,” he said. “They also liked my technique. I was quick — quicker than I was fast — and I could defend myself

Howley su� ered an injury during the 1973 season and Lewis took over the weak side linebacker posi-

tion. He started 135 consecutive games — third-most in franchise history. He holds the Cowboys’ record for playing in 27 playo� games.

Lewis said that his best attribute was his consistency.

“I’d like to think that the guys could depend on me,” he said. “� at if they needed me, I’d be there.”

� e � nal play of Lewis’ career just happened to be “� e Catch” in the 1982 NFC Championship Game. He’s the No. 50 you see running toward Joe Montana, as the 49ers

quarterback lets loose one of the most famous throws in NFL

history, caught by Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone.

“It really hurt,” Lewis said, “because you have to see that play a million times a� erward.”

A� er Lewis retired, “� e Catch” couldn’t have been further from his mind, he said. For three

years, Lewis dealt with substance abuse problems. He said it cost him his wife and his children, that he owed

the government thousands of dollars and that the bottom was near. But eventually, a� er three trips to rehab, he got it.

“I had never grown up thinking surrendering would lead to winning,” he said. “But I just surrendered, and that


was the point of change. It’s been a miracle in my life. I’ve been clean and sober for almost 28 years and have had the opportunity to help a lot of people.”

Once he was back on his feet, Lewis got into the agriculture business, moving up the ladder at PotashCorp, a national fertilizer company. He went around the country, speaking about battling addic-tion. � e 68-year-old retired in Dallas two years ago.

“Playing football, forming those relationships really helped me to bounce back and be suc-cessful in business,” he said.

His career came full circle when he received the call in 2001 that he would be induct-ed into the College Football Hall of Fame.

“I never thought anything like that would come my way,” he said. “� at ring they gave me, I wear that more than my Super Bowl rings. It’s been a great honor all the way through, being able to repre-sent Mississippi State.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Oklahoma State Oct. 5 LSU Nov. 9 at Texas A&M

Sept. 7 Alcorn State Oct. 12 Bowling Green Nov. 16 Alabama

Sept. 14 at Auburn Oct. 24 Kentucky Nov. 23 at Arkansas

Sept. 21 Troy Nov. 2 at South Carolina Nov. 28 Ole Miss

COACH’S QUOTE“This is the fi rst year we hadn’t won our last game of the season. I do think with a lot of guys here, it is a motivating factor for them coming into spring. They are not pleased with how the last year ended. Sometimes it will put a little bit of a chip on their shoulder. They got a little more ‘umph’ to them out there on the fi eld.”

— Dan Mullen

PLAYER’S QUOTE“The main reason I came to Mississip-pi State was I wanted to help rebuild the program. We’ve done that. We have a brand new football facility. There are expectations from our fans. It’s not good enough to win eight games, go to a bowl game.” — Quarterback Tyler Russell

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSOL Gabe Jackson, senior (two-time All-SEC, 38 career starts)RB LaDarius Perkins, senior (1,061 yards, 8 TD)QB Tyler Russell, senior (231-394, 24 TD, 10 INT)C Dillon Day, junior (22 starts, Rimington Watch List)TE Malcolm Johnson, junior (10 rec., 17.1 avg, 2 TD)LB Benardrick McKinney, sophomore (102 tackles, 4.5 TFL, 8 PBU)DE Denico Autry, senior (42 tackles, 9.5 TFL)SS Nickoe Whitley, senior (88 tackles, 3 INT)P Baker Swedenburg, senior (41.1 avg., 18 punts inside 20)

LAST YEARMississippi State rolled to a 7-0 start before crashing against Alabama and Texas A&M on back-to-back weekends. The Bulldogs fi nished 8-5 overall, 4-4 in the SEC. The Bulldogs fell 30-24 to Northwestern in the TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

A Mullen-led Bulldog team has never lost a game in which it led going into the fourth quarter (28-0), and never won when trailing going into the fourth quarter (0-20).


Some people thought Deuce McAllister made the wrong move going to the University of Mississippi. McAllister had similar doubts when he was dra� ed by the New Orleans

Saints.Looking back, those routes took the star run-

ning back a long way.McAllister is the career rushing

leader for the Rebels and the Saints. He ful� lled his dreams as a kid in the tiny town of Lena, Miss.

“I’ve always thought and dreamed big,” McAllister said. “Growing up, I told people that I wanted to make it to the big leagues.”

Some people in Lena criticized McAllister’s decision to attend Ole Miss, saying the program couldn’t take him where he wanted to go. He was pursued by bigger programs, he says, including Notre Dame, Tennessee and Miami.

“When I decided on Ole Miss, a lot of people frowned on it,” McAllister said. “� ey said that wasn’t the big leagues, not knowing that the SEC was a growing monster. I was happy to be able to go there and make a name for myself.”

McAllister helped Ole Miss make four consecutive bowl games. He rushed for 3,060 yards and set 18 school records.

Statistical marks, particularly in this era of high-powered

o� enses, have become easy targets. McAllister knows this football truth, and treasures other aspects of his four years with the Rebels.

“I was proud of the bond and the relationship I had with my teammates,” McAllister said. “� e records will eventually be broken — that’s life — but the memories and the friendships can never be taken away.”

A� er his senior season, McAllister expected to be taken early in the 2001 NFL Dra� . McAllister was projected to be among the top 10 selections, perhaps in the top � ve.

Instead, he slipped to the 23rd pick, chosen by a New Orleans organization that had given up eight dra� picks, including all of its 1999 selections, to move up and grab Texas running back Ricky Williams at No. 5 that year.

� e slide down the dra� and the presence of Williams caused McAllister to question the pick.

“Slipping to No. 23 was disappointing at the time, but looking back, it couldn’t have worked out any better for me,” he said.

Williams was traded the next year, and McAllister became one of the most popular players in Saints history. He set the New Orleans career rushing record with 6,096 yards and is a member of the Saints Hall of Fame.

“Deuce McAllister was a special guy,” Saints general man-ager Mickey Loomis told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. “I don’t know how you rank players on your all-time list of most important players, but clearly he’s in the top two

or three of all time. I’m biased, because I was a part of the group that dra� ed him, but he’s

exactly what you draw up when you picture someone to represent your organization.”

McAllister spent eight seasons with the Saints before knee injuries ended his

career. He tore the anterior cruciate liga-ment and su� ered microfractures in both

knees, undergoing eight knee surgeries.“I wonder at times what it would

have been like if I didn’t have the major injuries,” McAllister said. “I had to change my game. Early in my career, I

had a lot of 50- and 60-yard runs. In the later part of my career, those runs became

20- and 30-yard runs. Once I got in the open � eld [early in my career], I knew I wouldn’t get caught. A� er the knee surgeries, that kind of changed.”

� e Saints released McAllister before the 2009 season, but they brought him back to the organization as an honorary captain during New Orleans’ run to winning the Super Bowl that season.

Since his retirement from football,

Deuce McAllister


Mississippi star stayed home,won with Rebels and Saints

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI

#22 | RB | 1997-2000


ome people thought Deuce McAllister made the wrong move going to the University of Mississippi. McAllister had similar doubts when he was dra� ed by the New Orleans

Looking back, those routes took the star run-

McAllister is the career rushing leader for the Rebels and the Saints. He ful� lled his dreams as a kid in

“I’ve always thought and dreamed big,” McAllister said. “Growing up, I told people that I wanted to make it

Some people in Lena criticized McAllister’s decision to attend Ole Miss, saying the program couldn’t take him where he wanted to go. He was pursued by bigger programs, he says, including Notre Dame, Tennessee and

“When I decided on Ole Miss, a lot of people frowned on it,” McAllister said. “� ey said that wasn’t the big leagues, not knowing that the SEC was a growing monster. I was happy to be able to go there and make a



Orleans career rushing record with 6,096 yards and is a member of the Saints Hall of Fame.

“Deuce McAllister was a special guy,” Saints general man-ager Mickey Loomis told the “I don’t know how you rank players on your all-time list of most important players, but clearly he’s in the top two





knees, undergoing eight knee surgeries.“I wonder at times what it would







ome people thought Deuce McAllister made the wrong move going to the University of Mississippi. McAllister had similar doubts when he was dra� ed by the New Orleans

Looking back, those routes took the star run-

Miss, saying the program couldn’t take

including Notre Dame, Tennessee and

“When I decided on Ole Miss, a lot of people frowned on it,” McAllister said. “� ey said that wasn’t the big leagues, not knowing that the SEC was a growing monster. I was happy to be able to go there and make a



of the Saints Hall of Fame.“Deuce McAllister was a special guy,” Saints general man-

ager Mickey Loomis told the “I don’t know how you rank players on your all-time list of most important players, but clearly he’s in the top two





knees, undergoing eight knee surgeries.







McAllister has been involved in hurricane relief e� orts and attempts to revitalize the Jack-son, Miss., area. He continues to work with the Catch 22 Foundation, which he started during his Saints career to help youth in the Gulf South region.

In 2004, McAllister donated $1 million to help Ole Miss build an indoor practice facil-ity. Five years later, his Nissan dealership in Jackson, Miss., went bankrupt, earning him a place on un� attering lists of athletes who lost fortunes.

“� at was right when the economy was going down,” McAllister said. “I didn’t have great partners. All they saw was an NFL player that had ‘endless pockets.’ It wasn’t a good deal.

“I’ve been able to bounce back from that ordeal. We’ve been able to do some pretty good things, and we’re still active in the community. I’m OK and my family’s OK. My kids will be � ne. I’ve invested outside of that dealership and have done good.”

SCHEDULEAug. 29 at Vanderbilt Oct. 5 at Auburn Nov. 9 Arkansas

Sept. 7 Southeast Missouri Oct. 12 Texas A&M Nov. 16 Troy

Sept. 14 at Texas Oct. 19 LSU Nov. 23 Missouri

Sept. 28 at Alabama Oct. 26 Idaho Nov. 28 at Mississippi State

COACH’S QUOTE“I started to believe that the guys had bought in and got it after the Alabama game. Certainly, there were some valleys, Vandy and A&M in particular, where your kids gave you so much eff ort. Everything is so magnifi ed when you lose a game like that. I had to give these guys credit and our staff credit, they’re more resilient than myself. They pick me back up. [Last year’s goal] was to make sure our team was competing passionately for this university, and they did that. We’ve proven that we can be competitive, and we’re shorthanded a bit. We’re excited about the process and the next step.” — Hugh Freeze

PLAYER’S QUOTE“It feels good because it lets everyone know that our program is moving in the right direction. We are not where we want to be right now, but we are trying to get there and we are ready to put in more work so we can get better next year.” — Linebacker Mike Marry

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB Bo Wallace, junior (235-368, 2,994 yards, 22 TD)RB Jeff Scott, sophomore (197 carries, 846 yards, 6 TD, 23 receptions)LB Denzel Nkemdiche, sophomore (82 tackles, 13 for loss, 3 INT)FS Cody Prewitt, junior (80 tackles, 44 solo, 2 INT)WR Donte Moncrief, junior (66 receptions, 979 yards, 10 TD)WR Vince Sanders, junior (39 receptions, 504 yards, 4 TD)LG Aaron Morris, junior (13 starts)LT Emmanuel McCray, senior (13 starts)QB Barry Brunetti, senior (23-36 passing, 196 yards, 60-277 rushing)LB Mike Marry, senior (78 tackles, 37 unassisted)CB Charles Sawyer, senior (63 tackles, 44 solo, 8 PBU)

LAST YEARMississippi experienced a resurgence under new head coach Hugh Freeze, fi nishing 7-6 for its fi rst winning season in three years and beating Pittsburgh in the BBVA Compass Bowl. It was the Rebels’ fi rst bowl appearance since the 2009 season. Ole Miss went 3-5 in SEC games, placing fi fth in the SEC West Division.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

Eli Manning holds the Ole Miss record for career passing yards with 10,119, but he doesn’t have the highest game total in school or family history. Archie Manning threw for 436 yards against Alabama in 1969.

TX-COL05 Texas_A&M.indd 1 8/6/13 9:22 AM


TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY

Charlie Krueger was a two-time All-American at Texas A&M. � e legendary Aggie, however, nearly enrolled at Rice.

� e Caldwell native was � at-tered that Owls coach Jess Neely would con-sider him. A&M coach Paul “Bear” Bryant gave him little choice but to sign with Texas A&M.

“� ere had never been anyone from that high school who had gone to college on a football scholarship,” Krueger said. “Bryant was trying to recruit every-body he could. ... He sent [assistant coach] Pat James over there to � nd me, and Pat James wouldn’t leave until I signed.”

Krueger played o� ensive tackle and defensive end for the Aggies, which he calls “an ordeal by � re.” Bryant is among the most beloved � gures in college football history for his success at A&M and his legendary run at Alabama. But Krueger remembers his coach in a more critical manner.

“I remember our � rst meeting,” he says. “Paul Bryant was a man for great drama. Great drama and great psychological pressure. He would put young people under the gun to produce and to pay attention and to work hard.”

Krueger played on Bryant’s most successful Aggie team, which was 9-0-1 in 1956, and on an 8-3

squad in 1957, the year A&M running back John David Crow won the Heisman Trophy.

“We had gone eight games and won eight games,” he said of the ’57 team, “and then we lost to Rice by one point and Texas by two points, and then we played Tennessee in the Gator Bowl and lost that S.O.B. by three points. So, we lost our ass by six points.”

Krueger is still friends with teammates, including Jimmy Wright and Loyd Taylor, both of whom became coaches. Taylor, an all-Southwest Conference halfback, was an assistant coach with the 1967 Aggies when they beat Alabama in the Cotton Bowl. Wright said the Krueger-era team had an unparalleled trio of talent.

“� ere probably are never going to be three players that excelled at the highest level like Jack Pardee, John David [Crow] and Charlie Krueger that were on the same team,” Wright said. “� ey probably didn’t get a lot of publicity or recognition because we were on probation in ’55 and ’56, but those three were really, really something to behold.”

Krueger was the ninth overall pick in the 1958 NFL Dra� (Crow was second), and played for 15 seasons with the San Fran-cisco 49ers. He was named All-Pro three times and was respected as one of the toughest players in the league.

Toward the end of Krueger’s career, Los Angeles Times sports columnist Jim Murray wrote, “Krueger may soon end his profes-sion of handing out contusions and nose bleeds, holding quar-terbacks upside-down till they cough up the football and hitting blocking backs with a forearm that has 24 years of teeth marks

and cleat marks on it to say nothing of pieces of other people’s � esh.”

“I played against a guy named Joe Scibelli with the Rams for many years,” Krueger recalls. “In my 15th year, I knew I was done. We never talked. We fought each other tooth and toenail, and when that last game was over I said, ‘Joe,

I want to shake your hand. I’m going to the house. Joe, you’re getting better and I’m

getting worse.’”Krueger moved into the retail liquor

and wine business a� er retiring from the NFL and worked for 20 years.

� ree years a� er retirement, Krueger says a doctor discovered that his anterior

cruciate ligament was gone. He passed his physicals during his playing

days, but was not informed of his condition by the 49ers, he says.

He continued to play with the aid of cortisone shots and

painkillers. Krueger � led suit against the 49ers and

in 1988 won a $2.36

Charlie Krueger

By DAVID CAMPBELL | [email protected]

Tough-nosed Aggie lineman achieved All-Pro status in NFL

#78 | OT-DE | 1955-57


Texas A&M. � e legendary Aggie, however, nearly


“� ere had never been anyone from that high school who had gone to college on a football scholarship,” Krueger said. “Bryant was trying to recruit every-body he could. ... He sent [assistant coach] Pat James over there to � nd me, and Pat James wouldn’t leave until I

Krueger played o� ensive tackle and defensive end for the Aggies, which he calls “an ordeal by � re.” Bryant is among the most beloved � gures in college football history for his success at A&M and his legendary run at Alabama. But Krueger remembers his coach in a more critical manner.

“I remember our � rst meeting,” he says. “Paul Bryant was a man for great drama. Great drama and great psychological pressure. He would put young people under the gun to produce and to pay attention and to work hard.”


Toward the end of Krueger’s career, Los Angeles Times sports columnist Jim Murray wrote, “Krueger may soon end his profes-sion of handing out contusions and nose bleeds, holding quar-terbacks upside-down till they cough up the football and hitting blocking backs with a forearm that has 24 years of teeth marks

and cleat marks on it to say nothing of pieces of other people’s



Krueger moved into the retail liquor and wine business a� er retiring from the






in 1988 won a $2.36



“� ere had never been anyone from that high school who had gone to college on

coach] Pat James over there to � nd me,

says. “Paul Bryant was a man for great drama. Great drama and great psychological pressure. He would put young people under the gun to produce and to pay attention and to work hard.”


columnist Jim Murray wrote, “Krueger may soon end his profes-sion of handing out contusions and nose bleeds, holding quar-terbacks upside-down till they cough up the football and hitting blocking backs with a forearm that has 24 years of teeth marks

and cleat marks on it to say nothing of pieces of other people’s � esh.”



getting worse.’”Krueger moved into the retail liquor

and wine business a� er retiring from the NFL and worked for 20 years.






in 1988 won a $2.36 Courtesy of Cushing Memorial Library


million decision because of the debilitating damage to his left knee.

“I was the first guy that ever sued the damned league and won, and it took me nine years,” he said. “The last judge wrote an ironclad opinion and they left it alone after that.”

Football took its toll on Krueger’s body. His left leg has bothered him for 40 years, he said, and he has had numerous operations. He says he changes out his over-the-counter drugs to alleviate the pain.

“If you have to process that stuff, it’s going to tell on your kidneys sooner or later,” he said. “Better to get as much use out of your kidneys as you can.”

Krueger lives with his wife of 37 years, Kristin, in Clayton, Calif., 31 miles east of San Fran-cisco on the slopes of Mount Diablo.

“We have a lot of wildlife — deer, turkeys, mountain lions, coyotes,” he said. “It’s a pleasant place to live. If it’s 70 or 75, we have dinner on the patio. It’s just a pretty little town.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Rice Sept. 28 at Arkansas Nov. 2 UT-El Paso

Sept. 7 Sam Houston State Oct. 12 at Mississippi Nov. 9 Mississippi State

Sept. 14 Alabama Oct. 19 Auburn Nov. 23 at LSU

Sept. 21 SMU Oct. 26 Vanderbilt Nov. 30 at Missouri

COACH’S QUOTE“It’s great for our former students, for our fans, for our community to be excited about this football season, to be excited about being in the SEC, to be excited about our schedule next year. But as a team, we have to hit the reset button. We signed 31 new players, 31 guys over the course of the last year that are

really going to come in. Many of them are going to have to help us this season be successful as true freshmen.” — Kevin Sumlin

PLAYER’S QUOTE“Nothing has changed. They understand, the leaders of the team, they’re there for me, texting me and saying, ‘You’re not doing any-thing we’re not doing. We’re working hard, enjoying life.’ I love those guys, wouldn’t be here without them, and their opinion, and my family and my coaches’ opinion, that’s all that matters to me.” — Quarterback Johnny Manziel on his relationship with his teammates

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB Johnny Manziel, sophomore (295-434, 3,706 yards, 26 TD; 201 carries, 1,410 yards, 7.9 avg, 21 TD )RB Ben Malena, senior (138 carries, 826 yards, 5.9 avg, 8 TD)WR Mike Evans, sophomore (82 catches, 1,105 yards, 5 TD)OT Jake Matthews, senior (3-year starter; Outland, Maxwell and Lombardi watch list)OT Cedric Ogbuehi, junior (Lombardi watch list; 2-year starter)CB Deshazor Everett, junior (56 tackles, 31 solo, 2 INT)S Howard Matthews, junior (58 tackles, 34 solo)CB Toney Hurd, senior (67 tackles, 41 solo, 1 INT)LB Donnie Baggs, junior (27 tackles, 17 solos)K Taylor Bertolet, sophomore (13 field goals, 67 extra points)

LAST YEARIn their first season in the Southeastern Con-ference, the Aggies de-feated eventual national champion Alabama and finished with an 11-2 record. Quarterback Johnny Manziel became the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy, and the Aggies defeated Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl, 41-13.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...In 2012, Texas A&M had its first perfect record away from Kyle Field since 1939, when the Aggies won the national champi-onship. A&M was 5-0 in road games and 2-0 in neutral site contests. Kevin Sumlin, who won his last six on the road at Houston, has a personal “away” winning steak of 13 games.

A new website dedicated to telling the stories of Aggieland


Briarcrest at Hwy 6 • Bryan • 979.776.7600 • garlynsheltonbryan.com

We put the excitementback in driving.


Carlos Alvarez’s � rst memory of football is of a game against some members of the Boys Club in North Miami. Alvarez took a pitch around end and scored with ease.

� ere was just one problem.“I had no idea where the goal line was,” he said. “I kept running

until I hit a chain link fence.”Alvarez, 63, grew up in Cuba, and when he was 10, his father

took the family on a ferry to Key West. It was 1960. His father announced that America was their new home.

“When we took the car o� the ferry, he told me and my brothers, ‘You’re never going back. I’m through with Cuba,’” said Al-varez, now 63.

A� er growing up in an environ-ment of violence, where, “instead of baseball cards, [they] had bullet collections,” Alvarez said, he was in a new country with a new language and sporting interests. He only knew baseball. But he said he also knew it was time to broaden his horizons.

“Ultimately, football for me was trying to become an Ameri-can, to � t in as a kid,” he said.

Alvarez said he was blessed with speed, which allowed him to stand out in high school as a running back. He followed both of his older brothers to the University of Florida, where he was told he

could play wide receiver.During his freshman year — freshmen weren’t eligible to play

varsity back then — he developed a rapport with quarterback John Reaves. And when they suited up the following fall on Florida Field, the “super sophs” unleashed an aerial fury on their oppo-nents.

� e Gators opened the season at home against No. 7 Houston. On the game’s third play, Alvarez made his � rst career reception — a 70-yard touchdown. He scored again that day, and the Gators rolled the heavily favored Cougars, 59-34.

� e following week, the team scored 47 points in a victory over Mississippi State, and Alvarez caught 12 passes for 180 yards. From that point on, Alvarez was known as “� e Cuban Comet.”

“I really liked it,” he said. “� e press picked it up a� er I started playing, and then it just caught on.”

Weeks later, Alvarez had his most memorable game: 15 recep-tions for 237 yards in a Gators’ victory over Miami. � e 15 catches remain a single-game school record and the 237 yards mark stood for 33 years.

“I knew in the beginning when we were warming up that some-thing was going to happen in that game,” Alvarez said. “� en the whole evening, we just couldn’t miss. Having all your relatives there and a lot of Cubans up in the stands, it was pretty magical.”

� e 1969 team � nished the season 9-1-1, the best record in school history at the time. And Alvarez was the star of the show.

During a period when the running game was king, he set single-season records for receptions (88), yards (1,329) and touchdown receptions (12). He was also

the only sophomore named as a consensus All-American that season.

“I was named an All-American, and

I still wasn’t yet an American citizen,”

he said with a laugh. (He became an American citizen

later that year, he said.)“I was stunned,” he said of that season’s success. “It’s one of

those things when you don’t know what you’re shooting at. I didn’t even know if I was going to make the team before the season. But

everything just came together perfectly.”Alvarez found out he had played that season with a minor tear

in his knee — acquired when playing basketball in high school. It got worse as time went on, and he says his knee would swell

up whenever he worked out in the o� season. His doctors eventually recognized the problem and scraped the knee, but he said he never felt right.

In his � nal two seasons, he caught a combined 84 passes for 1,224 yards and seven touchdowns.

“I was hobbled by that and it was so painful,” he said. “I

Carlos Alvarez


‘The Cuban Comet’ refl ects on his fast success with Gators

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA

#45 | WR | 1969-71


with ease.� ere was just one problem.“I had no idea where the goal line was,” he said. “I kept running

until I hit a chain link fence.”Alvarez, 63, grew up in Cuba, and when he was 10, his father

took the family on a ferry to Key West. It was 1960. His father announced that America was their new home.

“When we took the car o� the ferry, he told me and my brothers, ‘You’re never going back. I’m through with Cuba,’” said Al-

A� er growing up in an environ-ment of violence, where, “instead of baseball cards, [they] had bullet collections,” Alvarez said, he was in a new country with a new language and sporting interests. He only knew baseball. But he said he also knew it was time to broaden his horizons.



� e 1969 team � nished the season 9-1-1, the best record in school history at the time. And Alvarez was the star of the show.


the only sophomore named as a consensus All-




“I was stunned,” he said of that season’s success. “It’s one of those things when you don’t know what you’re shooting at. I didn’t

even know if I was going to make the team before the season. But

Alvarez found out he had played that season with a minor tear in his knee — acquired when playing basketball in high school.

It got worse as time went on, and he says his knee would swell up whenever he worked out in the o� season. His doctors eventually recognized the problem and scraped the knee,




“I had no idea where the goal line was,” he said. “I kept running until I hit a chain link fence.”

Alvarez, 63, grew up in Cuba, and when he was 10, his father took the family on a ferry to Key West. It was 1960. His father announced that America was their new home.

“When we took the car o� the ferry, he told me and my brothers, ‘You’re never going back. I’m through with

where, “instead of baseball cards, [they] had bullet collections,” Alvarez said, he was in a new country with a new language and sporting interests. He only knew baseball. But he said he also knew it was time to broaden his horizons.




the only sophomore named as a consensus All-American that season.




later that year, he said.)“I was stunned,” he said of that season’s success. “It’s one of

those things when you don’t know what you’re shooting at. I didn’t even know if I was going to make the team before the season. But

everything just came together perfectly.”Alvarez found out he had played that season with a minor tear

in his knee — acquired when playing basketball in high school. It got worse as time went on, and he says his knee would swell

up whenever he worked out in the o� season. His doctors eventually recognized the problem and scraped the knee, but he said he never felt right.




had such hopes a� er my sopho-more year. It was just extremely frustrating.”

Alvarez was dra� ed in 1972 in the 15th round by the Dallas Cowboys but never appeared at Texas Stadium due to those knee ailments.

“At the end of the day, I couldn’t run without my knee swelling up,” he said. “It never came back. It was very frustrat-ing to not play pro football, but it couldn’t be done.”

He went on to get his law degree from Duke and is a prac-ticing lawyer in Tallahassee.

His record of 2,563 career receiving yards still stands at Florida. And in 2011, thanks to that memorable sophomore season, Alvarez became the sixth Florida player inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Alvarez said he is still awed by that � rst touchdown reception against Houston.

“Nine years earlier, I was this kid who didn’t know football or a word of English,” he said. “It was quite the ride to get me there.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Toledo Oct. 5 Arkansas Nov. 9 Vanderbilt

Sept. 7 at Miami Oct. 12 at LSU Nov. 16 at South Carolina

Sept. 21 Tennessee Oct. 19 at Missouri Nov. 23 Georgia Southern

Sept. 28 at Kentucky Nov. 2 Georgia (in Jacksonville) Nov. 30 Florida State

COACH’S QUOTE“We’ve got to improve the effi ciency as far as throw-ing the ball. There are some things that we are going to need to work on, but we can’t get away from who we are. We’re going to be a physical football team. I really believe in order to win this league, you’ve got to be physical. You’ve got to be able to win on the line of scrimmage. You can’t get away from that.” — Will Muschamp

PLAYER’S QUOTE“Last year it was more of hand the ball off on third down, get the conversion. It’s hard to put drives together when you’ve got to hit big plays to score touchdowns, and we’ve got to do that more.” — Quarterback Jeff Driskel

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB Jeff Driskel, junior (156-245, 1,646 yards, 12 TD, 5 INT)RB Matt Jones, sophomore (275 yards, 3 TD)WR Quinton Dunbar, junior (36 rec., 383 yards, 4 TD)CB/WR Loucheiz Purifoy, junior (51 tackles)DL Dominique Easley, senior (4 sacks)P Kyle Christy, junior (45.8 yards/punt)DB Jaylen Watkins, junior (3 interceptions)C Jonotthan Harrison, senior (13 starts)CB Marcus Roberson, junior (23 tackles, 2 INT)FB Trey Burton, senior (17 rec., 164 yards, 3 TD)

LAST YEARFlorida returned to the Top 10 during Will Muschamp’s second season. The Gators won on the road at SEC newbie Texas A&M and upset undefeated LSU, 14-6, behind 146 yards from Mike Gillislee. But the Gators turned the ball over six times in a 17-9 loss to Georgia. The season ended with the Gators being upset by Louisville in the Sugar Bowl. Florida still fi nished 11-2, with the No. 5 defense in the country.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

Florida’s running game accounted for 90 plays of 10 yards or more. The passing game only had 26 plays of 20 yards or more.

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Eric Zeier didn’t need much coaxing when it came to leaving high school early, something rarely heard of in his era.

“I actually committed to Georgia on a Sunday,” Zeier said, “and I got a call later that night telling me, ‘You qualify [to en-roll now], do you want to do it?’ I took about 15 minutes, thought about it and said, ‘Yes, I do.’ I was in school two days later.”

Zeier, who played two seasons at Marietta High School in Georgia a� er two years at Heidelberg American High School in Germany, had originally planned on attending summer school at Georgia to acclimate himself to college as soon as he could, but the opportunity allowed him to take it one step further in January 1991. He became one of the � rst celebrated high school players to graduate ahead of his class and go through a spring practice at a university, which is now a more-common scenario.

“I never imagined when I did it, it would happen to the extent that it has happened today,” Zeier said. “I never did it to set any kind of trend. Really did it because I was looking toward my future. I wanted to give myself every opportunity to integrate myself into college life, give myself every opportunity to integrate with my new teammates and to prepare myself to play if the op-portunity did arise.”

Zeier’s visions didn’t go without their rewards. He was on the � eld one month into his freshman season, directing the Bulldogs to a big win over Clemson. � e 6-foot-1, 210-pounder never re-linquished the quarterback job a� er his debut, starting 41 games, 26 of which Georgia won.

� e 27-12 victory over nonconference foe Clemson is the day that stands out most for Zeier.

“I have one or two a year, but my freshman year we played

Clemson at home, at night, and no one thought we would win that game,” Zeier said. “We were coming o� a year where Georgia struggled some. � e stadium was electric. It was actually the night the [Atlanta] Braves clinched the division title in baseball for the � rst time for a long time, so all that excitement spilled over into our game. It was a just a phenomenal day.”

Zeier threw for a school-record 544 yards against Southern Mississippi as a junior. For his career, he passed for 11,153 yards, which at the time was a team and SEC record. His total was third in the NCAA when he le� in 1994 as an All-American. (He now ranks 38th in career passing yards.)

� e record was helped by his number of starts, but was also a result of the style the Bulldogs played under Ray Go� , who was in his third year at Georgia when Zeier arrived.

“I just think it was a shi� in philosophy and I happened to be the quarterback there at the time.” Zeier said. “Georgia, prior to me getting there, was really dominated by running backs. It was a great running back university going back to Herschel Walker. I could rattle o� names before and a� er Herschel.”

Since Zeier, quarterbacks at Georgia have had an equally im-pressive run. Mike Bobo, the Bulldogs’ current o� ensive coordina-tor, followed Zeier. � en came David Greene, who broke Zeier’s passing yards record, and D.J. Shockley, both of whom went to the NFL. Matthew Sta� ord became the � rst pick in the 2009 NFL Dra� . Aaron Murray, who is poised to shatter Greene’s passing yards mark, turned down going pro a� er last season to return for his senior season at Georgia.

Zeier played for six years in the NFL a� er being dra� ed in the third round by the Cleve-land Browns. He started 12 games, completing 56 percent of his passes for 3,520 yards, with 16 touchdowns and 15 in-terceptions while with the Browns, Baltimore Ravens and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

� e numbers paled in com-parison to his stats at Georgia — 877 of 1,461 at-tempts

Eric Zeier

By RICHARD CROOME | [email protected]

Record-breaking quarterbacknow a Georgia radio analyst

UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA

#10 | QB | 1991-94

passing yards record, and D.J. Shockley, both of whom went to the NFL. Matthew Sta� ord became the � rst pick in the 2009 NFL Dra� . Aaron Murray, who is poised to shatter Greene’s passing yards mark, turned down going pro a� er last season to return for his senior season at Georgia.



pick in the 2009 NFL Dra� . Aaron Murray, who is poised to shatter Greene’s passing yards mark, turned down going pro a� er last season to return for his senior season at Georgia.




for 67 touchdowns and 37 in-terceptions. He held 67 school records and 18 SEC marks.

Zeier, who lives in At-lanta, has a good pulse on the present-day Bulldogs. He has been the Georgia football color commentator on the radio since 2007. He started that career with a bang as well, tak-ing the microphone for the � rst time in the Bulldogs’ overtime victory that year at Alabama.

“� at one is tough to beat when it’s your � rst one,” Zeier said. “Another game was the black-out game, where we wore black jerseys and everybody in the stands wore their black as well, and we played Auburn. � e stadium was electric.

“It’s pretty unique that one of the � rst games I played in was one of the most memo-rable, and the � rst game I called is most memorable,” Zeier said. “It’s just the way it worked out. I could bring up a number of games on both ends — broadcasting and playing — but those are two that just pop out.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 at Clemson Oct. 5 at Tennessee Nov. 9 Appalachian State

Sept. 7 South Carolina Oct. 12 Missouri Nov. 16 at Auburn

Sept. 21 North Texas Oct. 19 at Vanderbilt Nov. 23 Kentucky

Sept. 28 LSU Nov. 2 Florida Nov. 30 at Georgia Tech

COACH’S QUOTE“The fact that we’re in the type of league that is so rugged that people understand even if a team has one loss, they might be worthy of an opportunity to play for a national championship, that’s exciting to be part of that type of league.” — Mark Richt

PLAYER’S QUOTE“I came back to win some championships, to help lead this team, and that’s all that’s on my list right now. I’m not here for me.” — Senior quarterback Aaron Murray

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB Aaron Murray, senior (249-388, 36 TD, 10 INT)CB Damian Swann, junior (53 tackles, 2 sacks, 4 INT)OLB Jordan Jenkins, sophomore (31 tackles, 8 TFL, 5 sacks)WR Malcolm Mitchell, junior (40 rec., 950 yards, 22.6 avg, 9 TD)RB Keith Marshall, sophomore (759 yards rushing, 6.5 avg, 8 TD)RB Todd Gurley, sophomore (1,385 yards rushing, 6.2 avg, 17 TD)OG Chris Brurnette, senior (24 career starts)ILB Amarlo Herrera, junior (70 tackles, 3 TFL)

LAST YEARGeorgia (12-2, 7-1) arguably came a play away from the national championship game, losing to Alabama 32-28 after coming up 5 yards short in the SEC title game. Georgia’s shortcoming was giving up 353 yards rushing (7 per carry) to the Crimson Tide. The Bulldogs dispatched Nebraska 45-31 in the Capital One Bowl.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...Freshmen running backs Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall, who wear Nos. 3 and 4, both averaged more than 6 yards a carry and combined for 2,144 yards and 25 touch-downs. Legendary 1980 Heisman winner Herschel Walker wore No. 34, and his best average per carry for a season was 6.0 in his freshman campaign.

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38

Tim Couch had entertained the thought of transferring.� ings weren’t going as planned a� er his freshman

season at the University of Kentucky. His coach, Bill Curry, wasn’t using the pocket-passing quarterback.

And when he was used, it was in the option o� ense.“� at was ugly to watch,” Couch said.It wasn’t what he had in mind when he decided to attend Ken-

tucky, in hopes of reviving a stagnant program. Couch said he chose Kentucky in 1995 because it was home.

“Kentucky had just won one game [in 1994],” he said. “And I wanted to stay home and help my home state.”

When he arrived in Lexington, Couch was already regarded as a star. From the small town of Hyden, with a population of less than 400, Couch had earned national attention. He led Les-lie County to the state semi� nals his senior year. Couch � nished with national records for career passing yards (12,901) and touchdowns (133), and was named the Gatorade Player of the Year.

But during his freshman season, Couch started two games and threw only 84 passes. Curry was � red a� er going 26-52 during his seven seasons. Kentucky hired Hal Mumme from Valdosta State, who was known as the innovator of an o� ense he dubbed the “Air Raid.” During his � rst meeting with Couch, he convinced the quarterback that the of-fense would revolve around his talents.

“I was sold immediately,” Couch said.

Mumme and o� ensive coordinator Mike Leach implemented a system that paid immediate dividends. Kentucky � nished 5-6 in 1996 but reinvigorated an apathetic fan base. � e Wildcats beat Alabama in an overtime thriller for the � rst time in 75 years. And Couch quarterbacked the No. 6 o� ense in the country. He led the nation in passing yards (3,884) and completion percentage (66.4). He � nished second in touchdowns (37) and in total o� ense (341.7 yards per game). � e Wildcats’ o� ense broke or tied 15 SEC records.

“It gave me a very similar look to what I did in high school,” Couch said of the o� ense. “It gave me the opportunity to do what I could do. We were one of the only teams to be doing that style. We were really throwing it 50, 60 times a game. It was a quarterback’s dream.”

In the second year under Mumme, the Wildcats sold out every home game, � nished the season at 7-4 and made the school’s � rst New Year’s Day bowl game in 47 years. Couch was a � rst-team All-American and threw for 4,275 yards and 36 touchdowns. He also became the � rst Heisman � nalist from Kentucky in 41 years, � nishing fourth.

“I was just thrilled to be part of turning the program around,” Couch said.

Following his junior season, Couch entered the NFL Dra� . � e expansion Cleveland Browns used the � rst pick of the ’99 dra� — and the � rst pick of the restored

franchise — on the gunslinging quarterback. And though he took pride in being the No. 1 pick, Couch said being on an

expansion roster meant a lot of bumps in the road.“When you’re in it, you think completely di� erent,”

Couch said. “But when you get removed from it, you realize: � at was almost an impossible situation to be

successful in.”Couch, just 20 at the time, was told he would

back up Ty Detmer for a season so he could adjust to the pro game. But the Browns were

humiliated 43-0 by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the season opener. Detmer was benched.

Enter Couch. He went 2-13 as the starter and was sacked 56 times in 15 games (an NFL record at

the time). He su� ered the � rst of many injuries, an ankle sprain, that forced him to miss the � nale.

“I wish I had the opportunity to sit and learn that � rst year,” he said. “I wasn’t ready.”

During his second season, Couch made early strides and was among the league leaders in completion percentage. But he

broke his thumb during practice and was shelved for the rest of a 3-13 campaign.

And in year four, Couch led the Browns to seven wins in their � nal 11 games. Cleveland was headed to the play-

o� s. But Couch broke his leg during the season � nale

Tim Couch


Kentucky native helped makeWildcats’ program a winner

UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY

#2 | QB | 1996-98

im Couch had entertained the thought of transferring.� ings weren’t going as planned a� er his freshman

season at the University of Kentucky. His coach, Bill Curry, wasn’t using the pocket-passing quarterback.

And when he was used, it was in the option o� ense.“� at was ugly to watch,” Couch said.It wasn’t what he had in mind when he decided to attend Ken-

tucky, in hopes of reviving a stagnant program. Couch said he chose Kentucky in 1995 because it was home.

“Kentucky had just won one game [in 1994],” he said. “And I wanted to stay home and help my home


But during his freshman season, Couch started two games and threw only 84 passes. Curry was � red a� er going 26-52 during his seven seasons. Kentucky hired Hal Mumme from Valdosta State, who was known as the innovator of an o� ense he dubbed the “Air Raid.” During his � rst meeting with Couch, he convinced the quarterback that the of-fense would revolve around his talents.

“I was sold immediately,” Couch said.

� nishing fourth.“I was just thrilled to be part of turning the program around,”

Couch said.Following his junior season, Couch entered the NFL

Dra� . � e expansion Cleveland Browns used the � rst pick of the ’99 dra� — and the � rst pick of the restored




successful in.”Couch, just 20 at the time, was told he would










� ings weren’t going as planned a� er his freshman season at the University of Kentucky. His coach, Bill Curry, wasn’t using the pocket-passing quarterback.

And when he was used, it was in the option o� ense.

It wasn’t what he had in mind when he decided to attend Ken-tucky, in hopes of reviving a stagnant program. Couch said he chose Kentucky in 1995 because it was home.

“Kentucky had just won one game [in 1994],” he said. “And I wanted to stay home and help my home


Couch said.Following his junior season, Couch entered the NFL

Dra� . � e expansion Cleveland Browns used the � rst pick of the ’99 dra� — and the � rst pick of the restored




successful in.”











and watched as the Browns fell in the wild-card round.

“It was the way my career had been going,” he said. “I had really big highs and really big lows. Every time I would play well, something would happen.”

Following another losing season, Couch’s days in Cleve-land came to an end. He caught on with Green Bay, but needed reconstructive arm surgery. � at essentially ended his career.

“� ere is obviously a little bit of disappointment,” he said. “I felt I could play better and I didn’t do it every week, which is partly my fault and partly being on the bad team.”

Couch, now married with two kids, moved back to Lexington, where he is adored for choosing to stay home and play with the Wildcats. He is a broadcaster for Fox Sports South.

“Kentucky fans are unbeliev-able,” he said. “� ey treat me like I played there last year. � ey remember me because I turned down every other o� er when it wasn’t a popular choice. It’s a decision I’ll never regret.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Western Kentucky (in Nashville) Oct. 5 at South Carolina Nov. 9 Missouri

Sept. 7 Miami (OH) Oct. 12 Alabama Nov. 16 at Vanderbilt

Sept. 14 Louisville Oct. 24 at Mississippi State Nov. 23 at Georgia

Sept. 28 Florida Nov. 2 Alabama State Nov. 30 Tennessee

COACH’S QUOTE“We’re here every day working and recruiting and developing our players to win. ... I under-stand the obstacles that lie ahead. I understand the challenges as much as anybody. But again, that doesn’t mean that I’m just going to accept losing to anybody. We’re going to develop and we’re going to recruit and we’re going to play to win.” — Mark Stoops

PLAYER’S QUOTE“I had butterfl ies today knowing there was going to be this many people here for the spring game. That’s big. That’s big to the University of Kentucky. That’s big to the state of Kentucky.” — Quarterback Jalen Whitlow on the Wildcats’ spring practice attendance of 50,831

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB Jalen Whitlow, sophomore (87-161, 801 yards, 3 TD)RB Raymond Sanders III, senior (669 yards, 5 TD)RB Jonathan George, senior (504 yards, 4 TD)DT Donte Rumph, senior (26 tackles, 4 sacks)LB Avery Williamson, senior (102 tackles, 3 sacks)CB J.D. Harmon, sophomore (2 INT)P Landon Foster, sophomore (42.9 yds/punt)S Ashely Lowery, junior (43 tackles, 1 INT)DE Alvin Lucas, junior (91 tackles, 6.5 sacks)LB Miles Simpson, junior (70 tackles, 1 sack)

LAST YEARThe Wildcats were upset early in the season by Western Kentucky, and then things spiraled out of control. Kentucky went 0-8 in SEC play, including games to Arkansas, Florida and Vanderbilt by a combined score of 127-7. The Wildcats fi nished 2-10. Joker Phillips’ tenure ended, and Kentucky hired Florida State defen-sive coordinator Mark Stoops — the brother of Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops — as its head coach.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

Kentucky’s 2013 spring game attendance was 50,831. The 2012 spring game attendance was 4,500.

It’s always game on for Stuart Villanueva, a Bryan-College Station Eagle award-winning photojournalist who shoots Texas A&M football like no one else.Don’t miss the 2002 Aggie graduate’s

slideshows from each game. You’ll find them online at:theeagle.com · aggiesports.com · MyAggieNation.com


Brock Olivo had heard the stories about NFL legends such as Jerry Rice and Walter Payton using hills to train in the o� season. So he went out in the heat of the summer to scout his own.

� e Missouri freshman running back found a steep hill on the outskirts of Columbia, Mo. He didn’t notice that there was a trash dump at the base or that the surface was covered by weeds. Instead, he saw how daunting it was.

“It was about 40 yards long, but it was such an incline you could stand at the bottom and reach out and almost touch the thing,” Olivo said.

He woke his buddies at 5 a.m. one summer day. � ey went out and weed-whacked the overgrown area. From that point on, it became known as “� e Hill.”

“Once our strength sta� got wind of it, they’d take us there,” he said. “It became part of the regimen.”

Olivo’s father, cousin and uncle had all played in the NFL, so that was his goal as a kid in St. Louis. But, he said, he wasn’t blessed with their talent.

“� ey were all superior athletes — bigger, faster and stronger than I was,” he said. “My goal was to be a running back. I was told I couldn’t do that because I was too slow, too small. I took that as fuel and turned it into a positive.”

He rushed for 5,030 yards and 70 touchdowns at St. Francis Bor-gia Regional High School. He led his team to a 1993 state champi-

onship as a senior and was named the state’s player of the year.� ose numbers helped Olivo get recruiting attention from

prominent college programs. But he saw his home state school struggling. � e Tigers had just completed their 11th consecutive losing season and were the doormat of the Big Eight.

Olivo said it was the perfect � t.“It was a pride thing,” he said. “When new coach Larry Smith

and assistant Curtis Jones sat in my living room when I was a senior, I would have run through my living room wall that night. � e decision was easy.”

� e Tigers went 3-8 during Olivo’s freshman season in 1994, but the running back led the team with 614 yards and � ve touch-downs. In the next two seasons, Olivo rushed for a combined 1,734 yards and 11 touchdowns.

In his senior season, Missouri split its � rst six games, heading into the meat of the Big 12 schedule. Led by dual-threat quarter-back Corby Jones and Olivo, the Tigers beat Texas, upset No. 12 Oklahoma State on the road and defeated favored Colorado in Boulder.

� at sixth win guaranteed Missouri its � rst bowl bid since 1983. Olivo said he still remembers the � ight back to Columbia.

“� at was one of the greatest feelings I’ve ever felt,” he said. “As we were descending upon Columbia Regional Airport, we could see hundreds of people because we had solidi� ed a bowl berth.

� at’s when it hit us. We did it.”Olivo � nished as Missouri’s all-time leader with 3,026 rushing yards and 27 touchdowns. He was

also awarded the Mosi Tatupu Special Teams Player of the Year

Award, becoming the � rst Mis-souri player to earn a national honor.

“Frankly, I loved special teams because it was di� erent

from everything else,” he said. “And when we were climbing

the ladder, it took everything we had. We needed every advantage

and that was getting our 11 best football players to play on special teams.”

� at attitude translated to the NFL. Olivo went un-dra� ed, but caught on with the Detroit Lions. Olivo played � ve seasons, was named special teams captain and led the team in special-teams tackles twice. And

then he retired.“I walked away at the peak of my career,” he said.

“But most importantly, I was healthy, and I wanted to do other things, try some new things.”

He traveled to Italy and coached an Italian profes-sional team, helping to spread the game he loves. He then

Brock Olivo


‘Proud, local kid’ helped turn Missouri’s fortunes

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI

#27 | RB | 1994-97

such as Jerry Rice and Walter Payton using hills to train in the o� season. So he went out in the heat of the summer to scout his own.

� e Missouri freshman running back found a steep hill on the outskirts of Columbia, Mo. He didn’t notice that there was a trash dump at the base or that the surface

“It was about 40 yards long, but it was such an incline you could stand

almost touch the thing,” Olivo said.He woke his buddies at 5 a.m. one

summer day. � ey went out and weed-whacked the overgrown area. From that point on, it became known as “� e Hill.”

“Once our strength sta� got wind of it, they’d take us there,” he said. “It became part of the

Olivo’s father, cousin and uncle had all played in the NFL, so that was his goal as a kid in St. Louis. But, he said, he wasn’t

“� ey were all superior athletes — bigger, faster and stronger than I was,” he said. “My goal was to be a running back. I was told I couldn’t do that because I was too slow, too small. I took that as

He rushed for 5,030 yards and 70 touchdowns at St. Francis Bor-gia Regional High School. He led his team to a 1993 state champi-

“� at was one of the greatest feelings I’ve ever felt,” he said. “As we were descending upon Columbia Regional Airport, we could see hundreds of people because we had solidi� ed a bowl berth.



Award, becoming the � rst Mis-souri player to earn a national honor.

teams because it was di� erent from everything else,” he said. “And when we were climbing




“I walked away at the peak of my career,” he said. “But most importantly, I was healthy, and I wanted to do other things, try some new things.”

He traveled to Italy and coached an Italian profes-sional team, helping to spread the game he loves. He then

in the o� season. So he went out in the heat of the summer to scout his own.

� e Missouri freshman running back found a steep hill on the outskirts of Columbia, Mo. He didn’t notice that there was a trash

summer day. � ey went out and weed-whacked the overgrown area. From that point on, it became known as “� e Hill.”

“Once our strength sta� got wind of it, they’d take us there,” he said. “It became part of the

Olivo’s father, cousin and uncle had all played in the NFL, so that was his goal as a kid in St. Louis. But, he said, he wasn’t

“� ey were all superior athletes — bigger, faster and stronger than I was,” he said. “My goal was to be a running back. I was told I couldn’t do that because I was too slow, too small. I took that as

He rushed for 5,030 yards and 70 touchdowns at St. Francis Bor-

we were descending upon Columbia Regional Airport, we could see hundreds of people because we had solidi� ed a bowl berth.



Award, becoming the � rst Mis-

teams because it was di� erent from everything else,” he said. “And when we were climbing




then he retired.“I walked away at the peak of my career,” he said.

“But most importantly, I was healthy, and I wanted to do other things, try some new things.”

He traveled to Italy and coached an Italian profes-


worked as a program manager and assistant political liaison in Washington, D.C., which gave him an interest in politics. In 2008, he ran for Congress as a Republican in Missouri, but lost in the primaries.

At that point, he said it was time to get back into football. He is now in South Carolina, coaching running backs at FCS program Coastal Carolina.

“It’s a passion of mine,” he said. “I get up every day and I go to teach a game to young men. And oh yeah, it’s a job, too. I wouldn’t want to do anything else.”

Olivo said he still loves to return to Missouri to see a pro-gram that has improved since he le� in 1997. � ere he sees seven jerseys that have been retired, including his No. 27.

“I was a proud, local kid that wore those colors with honor,” he said. “And I sold out and le� everything, everything on that football � eld, on Faurot Field every time I stepped on it, for Mizzou and my team-mates.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Murray State Oct. 5 at Vanderbilt Nov. 2 Tennessee

Sept. 7 Toledo Oct. 12 at Georgia Nov. 9 at Kentucky

Sept. 21 at Indiana Oct. 19 Florida Nov. 23 at Ole Miss

Sept. 28 Arkansas State Oct. 26 South Carolina Nov. 30 Texas A&M

COACH’S QUOTE“I’m making some changes as far as practice. Two years, back-to-back, the most injuries we’ve ever had. I have to get my football team to September healthy, so we are going to do some things diff erent to try and do that. I know some of that is luck, but we’re going to try some things diff erent.” — Gary Pinkel

PLAYER’S QUOTE“We’ve been going down to College Station for a couple of years, so it will be good for them to come up and get a taste of Faurot [Field].” — Linebacker Andrew Wilson on this year’s Texas A&M game.

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSQB James Franklin, senior (139-234, 10 TD, 7 INT) RB Henry Josey, junior (1,168 yards, 8.1 avg, 9 TD in 2011)WR Dorial Green-Beckham, sophomore (28 rec., 395 yards, 5 TD)WR Marcus Lucas, senior (46 rec, 509 yards, 3 TD)OL Evan Boehm, sophomore (12 starts, Rimington Watch List)DT Kony Ealy, junior (37 tackles, 10 TFL, 3.5 sacks)CB EJ Gaines, senior (74 tackles, 7 TFL, 1 INT)PK Andrew Baggett, sophomore (14 of 20 FGs)PR/TB Marcus Murphy, junior (13.9 avg. punt return, 252 yards rush, 5.5 avg.)

LAST YEARAfter moving into the SEC along with Texas A&M, Missouri (5-7, 2-6) missed going to a bowl game for the fi rst time since the 2004 season. The Tigers were hit with key injuries. Quarterback James Franklin missed four games, and running back Henry Josey missed the entire season with a knee injury.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

Of the 60 total starts on the off ensive line, only 23 were made by the person projected to start at that position because of injuries.

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42

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA

George Rogers says he shares credit for his climb to the top of the mountain, but he accepts sole responsibility for his plunge into a hellish hole.

Rogers won the 1980 Heisman Trophy while playing running back for the University of South Carolina. � e only Heisman winner in school history, Rogers went on to play in the National Football League, where he developed a fondness for cocaine that nearly ruined his life.

Now 54, Rogers has returned to the university to work in public relations and fundraising. He serves as CEO and president of the George Rogers Foundation, which he formed to provide � nancial assistance to � rst-generation college students from North and South Carolina.

“In your life, you better have done something besides run with a football,” Rogers said. “You better help somebody else.”

Nobody who’s worn the Gamecocks’ garnet and black ran the ball better than Rogers, although Marcus Lattimore was drawing comparisons last year before a season-ending injury. Rogers’ career rushing total of 5,204 yards is almost 2,000 more than any other USC player.

And then there’s the Heisman. Rogers won the trophy a� er leading the country in rushing with 1,781 yards, over Pittsburgh defensive end Hugh Green and Georgia’s freshman phenom Herschel Walker. � ere are bene� ts to being a school’s only Heis-man winner, as Texas A&M’s

John David Crow was from 1957 until Johnny Manziel won last year.

“I’m still recognized, even a� er my professional career,” Rogers said. “I’m the only Heisman Trophy winner from the University of South Carolina, but I look at it as a team honor more than an individual. � ose guys in front of me made me look good.

“It didn’t matter how many yards I had, those guys would come and tell me they’d do better next week. Our defense pushed to get the ball back to us. We were a team, and that’s what it takes to win the Heisman Trophy.”

� e guys up front that season included tight end Willie Scott, who was a � rst-round dra� pick of the Kansas City Chiefs and played eight seasons in the NFL. Scott and Rogers are still friends, meeting o� en on the bene� t golf tournament circuit. Scott is a regular participant in the tourney to bene� t Rogers’ foundation.

“It was a pleasure blocking for George,” Scott said. “Nobody cared who got the glory. We played together. We blocked for each other. We ran a two-tight-end o� ense that was ugly, but it worked.

“We just lined up and went George le� , George right, George up the middle. It was a grand time in Columbia.”

Rogers’ path to the top of the college football world began as one of � ve children raised by his divorced mother in inner-city Atlanta. When Rogers accepted the Heisman, his father was in prison for murder.

Rogers was the � rst pick in the 1981 dra� , selected by the New Orleans Saints. He led the league in rushing and was the NFL Of-fensive Rookie of the Year.

But o� the � eld, Rogers stumbled. He was implicated in a drug scandal involving Saints players. He admitted to buying more than $10,000 worth of cocaine during his rookie year.

Rogers made the Pro Bowl in 1981 and again with the Wash-ington Redskins in 1987, when he won a Super Bowl ring. Rogers

retired a� er the 1987 season, citing nagging injuries. In seven NFL seasons, he rushed for 7,176 yards and

scored 54 touchdowns.Drug problems followed Rogers when he

returned to South Carolina as a fundraiser. Two months a� er he was hired in 1990, Rogers was arrested on cocaine charges. He was allowed to enter a pretrial intervention program and avoid

jail by performing community service.“Other kids would come up to my kids and tell them that their

dad won the Heisman Trophy, but he did drugs,” Rogers said. “I felt real bad about that. I was a young man who hadn’t seen the greater part of life and I was just looking

out for myself, being sel� sh.

George Rogers


Heisman winner looks backat success, redemption

#38 | RB | 1977-80

“In your life, you better have done something besides run with a football,” Rogers said. “You better help somebody else.”

Nobody who’s worn the Gamecocks’ garnet and black ran the ball better than Rogers, although Marcus Lattimore was drawing comparisons last year before a season-ending injury. Rogers’ career rushing total of 5,204 yards is almost 2,000 more than any

And then there’s the Heisman. Rogers won the trophy a� er leading the country in rushing with 1,781 yards, over Pittsburgh defensive end Hugh Green and Georgia’s





dad won the Heisman Trophy, but he did drugs,” Rogers said. “I felt real bad about that. I was a young man who hadn’t seen the greater part

out for myself, being sel� sh.

retired a� er the 1987 season, citing nagging injuries. In “In your life, you better have done something besides run

with a football,” Rogers said. “You better help somebody else.”Nobody who’s worn the Gamecocks’ garnet and black ran

the ball better than Rogers, although Marcus Lattimore was drawing comparisons last year before a season-ending injury. Rogers’ career rushing total of 5,204 yards is almost 2,000 more than any

And then there’s the Heisman. Rogers won the trophy a� er leading the country in rushing with 1,781 yards, over Pittsburgh defensive





dad won the Heisman Trophy, but he did drugs,” Rogers


“You live and you learn, and that’s the way I overcame it. I realized that I had kids who looked up to me. I had to shape up or ship out.”

Rogers said he received treat-ment at a drug rehabilitation center “to � nd ways to stay away from drugs. I found out if you mess with those kind of people, that’s exactly what you’re going to get. It cost me money to � nd that out.

“All these things I brought on myself,” he said. “Nobody else brought them on me. But I be-lieve in God, and I believe he’s been with me through the hard times and the good times. I’m trying to give back and show my appreciation, because I could have been a statistic. I could have died from using.”

Among those Rogers credits with helping him survive those dark days are members of the Heisman Trust and former teammates such as Scott.

“He has come through this thing,” Scott said. “� e ups and downs. � at’s what life’s all about.”

SCHEDULEAug. 29 North Carolina Oct. 5 Kentucky Nov. 2 Mississippi State

Sept. 7 at Georgia Oct. 12 at Arkansas Nov. 16 Florida

Sept. 14 Vanderbilt Oct. 19 at Tennessee Nov. 23 Coastal Carolina

Sept. 28 at Central Florida Oct. 26 at Missouri Nov. 30 Clemson

COACH’S QUOTE“We know we’re not favored to win it, but we think we’re going to have a team capable, capable if everything works out, [if] some guys really come around, get a break or two. That’s something we’ve not done at South Carolina, is won a conference championship, and we have hopes to do it. We’re going to try our best to see if we can make it happen this year. It won’t be easy, of course. We may fall fl at on our face, but that’s what we’re going to try to do, try to win the conference.” — Steve Spurrier

PLAYER’S QUOTE“I think we can be as good as we want to be. Coming in behind guys like Melvin Ingram, you really start to catch on. They went out with the attitude that they wanted to win and not settle for being an average team. I think our goals for next year should be higher than what we did last season.” — Defensive end Jadeveon Clowney

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSDE Jadeveon Clowney, junior (54 tackles, 40 solo, 23.5 for loss)QB Connor Shaw, senior (154-228-7 passing, 1,956 yards, 17 TD)WR Bruce Ellington, junior (40 receptions, 600 yards, 7 TDs)SS Brison Williams, junior (52 tackles, 43 solo, 2 INT)OT Brandon Shell, sophomore (9 starts, freshman all-SEC)OG Ronald Patrick, senior (13 starts)CB Victor Hampton, junior (40 tackles, 23 solo, 6 PBU, 1 INT)OT Corey Robinson, junior (nine starts)P Tyler Hull, junior (54 punts, 39.4 average, 12 inside 20)DT Kelcy Quarles, junior (38 tackles, 23 solo)CB Jimmy Legree, senior (44 tackles, 35 unassisted, 3 INT)

LAST YEARSouth Carolina went 11-2, matching the school record for victories that was set the previous season. The Gamecocks defeated Michigan 33-28 in the Outback Bowl. South Carolina was 6-2 in confer-ence and fi nished third in the SEC East behind Florida and Georgia. The losses were back-to-back on the road against Top 10 teams LSU and Florida.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

South Carolina has a solid 66-37 record in eight seasons under Steve Spurrier, but during that time the Game-cocks are 4-6 in games on artifi cial turf.

Tune In to1150 AM

Monday - Friday2pm-4pm

44

Tennessee’s Butch Jones has plenty of work to do. He’s the program’s fourth coach in six years. � e Volun-teers have had only one winning season in the last � ve and are coming o� back-to-back 1-7 e� orts in the

Southeastern Conference.Despite the challenge, Tennessee great

Johnny Majors believes Jones is the man to rebuild the program.

“He’s got what it takes,” Majors said. � at’s good news for fans. If any-

one knows what it takes to revive a program,

it’s the 78-year-old Majors. He turned around Iowa State and took the Cy-clones to their � rst

bowl game in 1971. � en he turned down-

trodden Pittsburgh into a national cham-pion, capping a 12-0 season in 1976.

Back home that year, the Vols didn’t go to a bowl game for the second straight season. � ey made a pitch to their former star tailback and

safety, who had been the Southeastern Conference’s most valu-able player in 1955 and ’56, and � nished second in the Heisman voting in ’56. Pitt had a potential top-ranked team returning.

“I can tell you that Tennessee would have been the only job I would have considered at that time,” Majors said. “If Southern Cal or Ohio State or Notre Dame — three of the greatest jobs in America — had o� ered me a job, I would not have taken it.”

Tennessee was di� erent. It was home. And the Vols had � n-ished eighth in the SEC in 1976, their worst � nish since 1962. He accepted the challenge, taking over the Tennessee program in 1977.

� e turnaround was slow at � rst. Tennessee had one winning season in Majors’ � rst four years. � en the Volunteers made seven straight bowl trips from 1981 to 1987. � e best three-season span of his career was from 1989 to 1991, going 29-6-2 with three New Year’s Day bowl appearances.

Despite that, Majors said he was “pushed out the door” in the 1992 season and replaced by longtime assistant Phillip Fulmer. Majors remains bitter about those responsible for his exit.

“� at was not a normal thing that happened, the way I was let go here, not with that many wins,” he said. “I worked for the wrong people at the top.”

Majors returned to Pittsburgh, going 12-32 in four seasons, then served as special assistant to the athletic director until 2007, when he retired and moved back to Knoxville. His impressive coaching tree includes Jimmy Johnson, Larry Lacewell and Jackie Sherrill, who were on his � rst sta� at Iowa State. Sherrill was also an assistant at Pittsburgh, and took over when Majors le� for Tennessee. Others who worked for Majors: Joe Avezzano, Dave Campo, Dom Capers, Jon Gruden, Kevin Steele, Dave Wannst-edt and Ron Zook.

Majors credits his knack for turning programs around to his father. Shirley Majors was 108-24-2 at the high school level in Tennessee, coaching Lynchburg and nearby Huntland, where he coached all � ve of his sons. � e school led the state in scoring three straight years with Johnny at tailback. Shirley Majors even-tually went to Sewanee, where he become the school’s winningest coach, going 93-74-5 in 21 seasons.

By the time he was a high school senior, Johnny was heavily re-cruited. Kentucky’s Paul “Bear” Bryant was the � rst to send him a letter during his junior season.

“I still got that letter somewhere,” Majors said.Majors eventually zeroed in on Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Auburn,

Georgia, West Point and Alabama. � e Vols were appealing because they were running the single-wing o� ense, the same he played in high school. He also loved Tennessee’s bright orange uniforms and the horseshoe stadium, which at the time had about 50,000 seats.

� e night before he was supposed to sign, he was still torn. His mother made things simple.

Johnny Majors


Coaching great took pridein rebuilding college programs

UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE

#45 | TB-S | 1954-56

Tennessee’s Butch Jones has plenty of work to do. He’s the program’s fourth coach in six years. � e Volun-teers have had only one winning season in the last � ve and are coming o� back-to-back 1-7 e� orts in the









44










“She said, ‘John, I know you’re having a tough time making a decision where to go,’” Majors recalled. “‘I’d like to see you stay close to home and stay in the state.’”

“Well, hell, that made the de-cision for me,” said Majors.

But at 5-foot-10 and 150 pounds, Majors was uncer-tain about playing major col-lege football. He got knocked around in practice for a few days, but at the � rst scrim-mage, he broke tackles as the scout team quarterback. Ten-nessee coaching legend Robert Neyland, who had recently retired and was sitting in the stands, stopped the action and asked someone to identify No. 15.

A� erward, Majors ran all the way to the local drugstore to call home.

“I called collect,” Majors said. “My dad answered. I said, ‘Daddy, they miss tackles in college, just like they did in high school.’

“� at was one of the greatest days of my life.”

SCHEDULEAug. 31 Austin Peay Sept. 28 South Alabama Nov. 2 at Missouri

Sept. 7 Western Kentucky Oct. 5 Georgia Nov. 9 Auburn

Sept. 14 at Oregon Oct. 19 South Carolina Nov. 23 Vanderbilt

Sept. 21 at Florida Oct. 26 at Alabama Nov. 30 at Kentucky

COACH’S QUOTE“The message is loud and clear: There is no other place in the country like Tennessee. All you have to do is look at the evidence — the success of the program, the leadership from our administration, the fan base and our coaching staff . We are going to attract the right players to come play football here at Tennessee. Why would you not want to come here? You see the environment, the chance to build something special.” — Butch Jones

PLAYER’S QUOTE“Really, it’s all about bringing that old Tennessee back. Whoever we’re going to face this year is going to know we are going in there to beat them. We are going to have a swagger about us that I think we lost over the past couple of years, and we’re getting it back.” — Off ensive lineman Mack Crowder

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSLT Antonio Richardson, sophomore (12 starts)C James Stone, senior (12 starts)OG Zach Fulton, senior (11 starts)OT Ja’Wuan James, senior (12 starts)RB Rajion Neal, senior (156 carries, 708 yards, 4.5, 5 TDs)DL Daniel McCullers, senior (39 tackles)DL Maurice Couch, senior (38 tackles)LB Jacques Smith, senior (33 tackles, 7 TFL)LB A.J. Johnson, junior (team-leading 138 tackles, 8.5 TFL)LB Curt Maggitt, junior (30 tackles, 5 TFL)DB Justin Coleman, junior (59 tackles)DB Byron Moore, senior (86 tackles, 5 int.) DB LaDarrell McNeil, sophomore (58 tackles)

LAST YEARTennessee passed its way to 434 points, but that didn’t stop the Vols from having their third straight losing season for the fi rst time since 1909-1911. The Vols fi nished 5-7, and were 1-7 in Southeastern Conference play for a second straight season. Coach Derek Dooley was fi red. Tennessee hired Butch Jones from Cincinnati.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

Tennessee had 485 passing plays last year, but allowed the quarterback to be sacked only eight times, tops in the Southeastern Conference.

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Former Vanderbilt o� ensive tackle Will Wolford has come full circle. He’s in his � rst season as head football coach at Louisville’s St. Xavier High School, where more than three decades ago he started to develop a love for the

game.“For me, living in Louisville, there’s nowhere I’d rather

coach than St. X High School, and to have the opportu-nity to be the head coach is truly a blessing,” Wolford said. “And I think only people who are St. X grads and live in Louisville really understand that, because a lot of people question why I do it. But there’s nothing else I’d rather do. It’s fantastic.”

� e 49-year-old Wolford is Vanderbilt’s only o� ensive lineman to be a � rst-round NFL pick, taken by the Bu� alo Bills in 1986. He played in three Super Bowls with the Bills, was a three-time Pro Bowler, and in 1993, while with the Indianapolis Colts, was the game’s highest-paid o� ensive lineman.

He’ll graciously talk about those ac-complishments, but he’s more focused on St. Xavier’s rivalry game against Trinity, the three-time defending Class 6A state champ that has won 10 state titles since 2000. St. Xavier has won 12 state championships, the last in 2009. Trinity beat St. Xavier twice last year — 34-7 in the regular season and then 15-14 in the playo� s.

Wolford was a star at St. Xavier, an all-male school of 1,500. Now it’s his job to make sure the 100 freshmen trying out for the team learn the game the way he did.

“It’s quite an undertaking, but when you grow up in Louisville and are raised the way I was raised, the way my wife’s family was raised, it’s a big deal to say, ‘I’m a St. X graduate,’” Wolford said. “And it almost carries more weight than anything I’ve done.”

Like many boys in Louisville, Wolford was hoping to attend Notre Dame. It seemed a possible destination for a 240-pound rising defensive line star, but Wolford broke his right leg during his junior season, then got viral meningitis and lost 30 pounds right before his senior season.

Notre Dame no longer had an interest in Wolford, but Vander-bilt did. More importantly, his girlfriend and future wife, Mary Jude Craven, who attended Louisville’s Sacred Heart Academy, was headed to Vandy.

Vanderbilt moved him to the o� ensive line, and he started three seasons at le� guard and the � nal year at right tackle, blossom-ing under the pro-style attack of head coach George MacIntyre. Vanderbilt had only one winning season while Wolford was there, going 8-4 his freshman season.

“I remember a school that had a lot working against it as far as recruiting and battling in the SEC,” Wolford said. “[But] we were able to win eight games and almost got to the Sugar Bowl. � at was a pretty special time.”

� e 6-foot-6, 275-pound Wolford earned the nickname “� e Tractor” from MacIntyre. He was voted into the Vanderbilt Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010, the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in 2007, and was named the school’s Legends of the SEC player in

2001. Wolford’s good fortune continued at the next level. He

joined the Bu� alo Bills just as the organization hired Marv Levy as head coach and signed

quarterback Jim Kelly a� er the USFL folded. Wolford played in the Bills’

� rst three Super Bowls before leaving for the Colts.

Fi� een years a� er his NFL career ended, Wolford still has a

knack for being at the right place at the right time. He was working as a radio analyst for the Colts when Mike Glaser, who was St. Xavier’s head coach for 31 seasons,

stepped down. Wolford got the job, and brought in former Louisville

quarterback Browning Nagle as his o� en-sive coordinator. Nagle’s son, B.J., is a senior

quarterback who transferred from Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis.

Wolford says he emphasizes the basics in working with his team.

“For example, an o� ensive lineman can

Will Wolford


Vandy legend returns hometo coach his high school team

VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY

#69 | OT | 1982-85


“For me, living in Louisville, there’s nowhere I’d rather coach than St. X High School, and to have the opportu-nity to be the head coach is truly a blessing,” Wolford said. “And I think only people who are St. X grads and live in Louisville really understand that, because a lot of people question why I do it. But there’s nothing

� e 49-year-old Wolford is Vanderbilt’s only o� ensive lineman to be a � rst-round NFL pick, taken by the Bu� alo Bills in 1986. He played in three Super Bowls with the Bills, was a three-time Pro Bowler, and in 1993, while with the Indianapolis Colts, was the game’s highest-paid o� ensive lineman.

He’ll graciously talk about those ac-complishments, but he’s more focused on St. Xavier’s rivalry game against Trinity, the three-time defending Class 6A state champ that has won 10 state titles since 2000. St. Xavier has won 12 state championships, the last in 2009. Trinity beat St. Xavier twice last year — 34-7 in the regular season and then 15-14


Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010, the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in 2007, and was named the school’s Legends of the SEC player in

Wolford’s good fortune continued at the next level. He joined the Bu� alo Bills just as the organization

hired Marv Levy as head coach and signed quarterback Jim Kelly a� er the USFL

folded. Wolford played in the Bills’ � rst three Super Bowls before leaving for the Colts.

Fi� een years a� er his NFL career ended, Wolford still has a

knack for being at the right place at the right time. He was working as a radio analyst for the Colts when Mike Glaser, who was St. Xavier’s head coach for 31 seasons,







“For me, living in Louisville, there’s nowhere I’d rather coach than St. X High School, and to have the opportu-nity to be the head coach is truly a blessing,” Wolford said. “And I think only people who are St. X grads and live in Louisville really understand that, because a lot of people question why I do it. But there’s nothing

that has won 10 state titles since 2000. St. Xavier has won 12 state championships, the last in 2009. Trinity beat St. Xavier twice last year — 34-7 in the regular season and then 15-14


in 2007, and was named the school’s Legends of the SEC player in 2001.

Wolford’s good fortune continued at the next level. He joined the Bu� alo Bills just as the organization

hired Marv Levy as head coach and signed quarterback Jim Kelly a� er the USFL

folded. Wolford played in the Bills’ � rst three Super Bowls before leaving for the Colts.

career ended, Wolford still has a knack for being at the right place

at the right time. He was working as a radio analyst for the Colts when Mike Glaser, who was St. Xavier’s head coach for 31 seasons,







block anybody if he uses the proper technique and funda-mentals,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if that guy is bigger, faster, stronger and quicker than him. He can still perform and do his job if he learns it the right way.”

Vanderbilt, meanwhile, is on the upswing. Coach James Franklin has taken the Com-modores to back-to-back bowl games, reviving a program that had lost 16 of its last 17 SEC games before he arrived. And he signed the nation’s 19th-ranked class in February, according to Rivals.com.

“� ere’s no doubt his personality is contagious and a lot of people have caught on,” Wolford said. “And it’s fun to see a program that’s a lot like what Stanford has done on the West Coast. Vanderbilt is not supposed to be very good, espe-cially in the mighty SEC, which it is tough, no question about it. I love SEC football. And not only is Vanderbilt competing, it is winning, competing against a lot of good programs.”

SCHEDULEAug. 29 Ole Miss Sept. 28 Alabama-Birmingham Nov. 9 at Florida

Sept. 7 Austin Peay Oct. 5 Missouri Nov. 16 Kentucky

Sept. 14 at South Carolina Oct. 19 Georgia Nov. 23 at Tennessee

Sept. 21 at Massachusetts Oct. 26 Texas A&M Nov. 30 Wake Forest

COACH’S QUOTE“I’m glad you asked me about [the season opener against] Ole Miss. That’s our focus. That’s all we’re going to be talking about until then. I think the people that have been covering Vanderbilt football for a long time here in Nashville, [know] it’s night and day compared to my fi rst year, and obviously years before we got here.” — James Franklin.

PLAYER’S QUOTE“This is my team. I think it’s my team, but I’m going to let Coach Franklin make that decision [on who starts]. But I’m going to keep working hard, setting an example and doing what I have to do for the rest of these 100 guys.” — Senior quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels

KEY RETURNING PLAYERSWR Jordan Matthews, senior (94 catches, 1,323 yards, 8 TD) WR Chris Boyd, junior (50 catches, 774 yards, 5 TD)OT Wesley Johnson, senior (13 starts)CB Andre Hal, senior (48 tackles, 14 PBU)DE Walker May, senior (41 tackles, 10.5 TFL)DE Kyle Woestmann, junior (22 tackles, 6 sacks)LB Chase Garnham, senior (84 tackles, 7 sacks)LB Karl Butler, senior (51 tackles, 11.5 TFL)S Kenny Ladler, senior (team-high 90 tackles)S Javon Marshall, senior (80 tackles)PK Carey Spear, senior (school-record 20 fi eld goals)

LAST YEARVanderbilt was 9-4 and went to a bowl game for the second straight season (for the fi rst time in school history). The Commodores ended the season with a seven-game winning streak, including a 38-24 victory over North Carolina State in the Music City Bowl.

2013 Season Preview

ALSO OF NOTE ...

In the last two seasons, Vanderbilt won four Southeastern Conference games by at least 23 points. In the previous 54 seasons, Vandy had won only four SEC games by at least 23 points.




2013

Johnny Manziel’s remarkable 2012 sea-son was one for the record books, but it took a few weeks before grabbing national headlines.

It all changed during the Aggies’ 58-10 throttling of Arkansas. Manziel threw for 453 yards and ran for 104 yards. His 557 total yards eclipsed Archie Manning’s 43-year-old SEC record (540 yards) for total o� ense in a game.

Manziel made his mark in other SEC categories, and he was the sixth SEC quar-terback to win the Heisman Trophy (Steve Spurrier, Pat Sullivan, Danny Wuer� el, Tim Tebow and Cam Newton).

Spurrier set an SEC record in 1966, when he threw for 2,012 yards for the Gators.

Sullivan (Auburn) led the nation with 2,856 total yards and an NCAA record 8.57 yards per play. But that was a di� erent

era, and those numbers now don’t even reach the top 20 in their

respective categories. Wuer� el, playing for Spurrier at Florida, was the � rst quarterback to

reap the bene� ts of a pass-happy o� ense. Spurrier implemented the “fun ‘n’ gun,” and Wuer� el — a

four-year starter — rewrote the SEC record book. During his Heisman Trophy season in 1996, Wuer� el led the nation with 39 touchdown passes and an e� ciency rating of 170.6. And he set an SEC record, throwing for 3,625 yards — a record that has since fallen outside the top 10.

Tebow, Newton and Manziel all won the Heisman with their ability to beat teams with their arms and legs. During Tebow’s memorable 2007 season, he set the SEC single-season records for rushing touchdowns (23) and total touchdowns (55). He became the � rst player in NCAA

history to have more than 20 rushing and passing touchdowns in a season.

Newton nearly matched him in 2010, while leading the Tigers to a national cham-pionship. He led the SEC in rushing with 1,473 yards and � nished second nationally in passing e� ciency with a 182.05 mark, which broke the SEC single-season record. He also accounted for 51 touchdowns and set the SEC record with 4,327 yards of total o� ense.

But of the six Heisman Trophy winners and all the other

Manziel’s year among SEC’s bestBy DAVID HARRIS | [email protected]

Manziel made his mark in other SEC categories, and he was the sixth SEC quar-terback to win the Heisman Trophy (Steve Spurrier, Pat Sullivan, Danny Wuer� el, Tim Tebow and Cam Newton).







Tebow, Newton and Manziel all won the Heisman with their ability to beat teams with their arms and legs. During Tebow’s memorable 2007 season, he set the SEC single-season records for rushing touchdowns

He became the � rst

o� ense.categories, and he was the sixth SEC quar-terback to win the Heisman Trophy (Steve Spurrier, Pat Sullivan, Danny Wuer� el, Tim Tebow and Cam Newton).







Tebow, Newton and Manziel all won the Heisman with their ability to beat teams with their arms and legs. During Tebow’s memorable 2007 season, he set the SEC single-season records for rushing touchdowns

But of the six Heisman Trophy winners and all the other

categories, and he was the sixth SEC quar-terback to win the Heisman Trophy (Steve Spurrier, Pat Sullivan, Danny Wuer� el, Tim Tebow and Cam Newton).


Sullivan (Auburn) led the nation


with 2,856 total yards and an NCAA record 8.57 yards per play. But that was a di� erent






categories, and he was the sixth SEC quar-categories, and he was the sixth SEC quar-terback to win the Heisman Trophy (Steve Spurrier, Pat Sullivan, Danny Wuer� el, Tim Tebow and Cam Newton).








STEVE SPURRIER

TIM TEBOW

JOHNNY MANZIEL

Courtesy of The Gainesville Sun

Cour

tesy

of Th

e Gain

esvil

le Su

n

Eagle photo by Stuart Villanueva

SEC 2013 | The Eagle | AggieSports.com | MyAggieNation.com48


2013

legendary SEC quarterbacks — Joe Namath, Fran Tarkenton, Peyton Manning, Eli Man-ning, Tim Couch and more — Manziel’s 2012 season was arguably the most impres-sive one.

Manziel shattered Newton’s total o� ense

mark with 5,116 yards, and did so with one fewer game. Manziel matched Tebow, becoming only the second player in NCAA history to throw and run for at least 20 touchdowns. He broke his own record for total o� ense in a game when he torched

Louisiana Tech for 576 yards in a road vic-tory. And he became the � rst SEC quarter-back to throw for 3,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a season.

Here’s a look at how Manziel’s year ranks with the SEC best.

1 Tim Tebow, Florida (2007) 23

2 Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M (2012) 21

2 Trent Richardson, Alabama (2011) 21

4 Cam Newton, Auburn (2010) 20

5 Shaun Alexander, Alabama (1999) 19

1 Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M (2012) 393.5

2 Tim Couch, Kentucky (1998) 377.4

3 Rex Grossman, Florida (2001) 354.2

4 Jared Lorenzen, Kentucky (2000) 347.9

5 Tim Couch, Kentucky (1998) 341.7

1 Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M (2012) 5,116-7,261 (70.45 percent)

2 Tim Tebow, Florida (2007) 4,181-5,943 (70.35 percent)

3 Tim Couch, Kentucky (1998) 4,151-6,348 (65.3 percent)

4 Cam Newton, Auburn (2010) 4,327-6,989 (61.9 percent)

5 Rex Grossman, Florida (1998)

3,904-6,503 (60 percent)

Touchdowns Rushing

Total Off ense

Yards Per Game

Most Yards Accounted For

SEC QUARTERBACK RECORDS

(1999)

Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M (2012)

Tim Couch, Kentucky (1998)

Rex Grossman, Florida (2001)

Jared Lorenzen, Kentucky (2000)

Tim Couch, Kentucky (1998)

Total Off ense

Yards Per Game

393.5

377.4

354.2

347.9

341.7

393.5

377.4

354.2

347.9

341.7

3,904-6,503 (60 percent) 19

3,904-6,503 (60 percent) 19


393.5

377.4

354.2

347.9

341.7

Florida (1998)

Passing Yards


2 Cam Newton, Auburn (2010) 51

3 Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M (2012) 47


5 Danny Wuerff el, Florida (1996) 41

1 Tim Couch, Kentucky (1998)

4,275


3,896

3 Aaron Murray, Georgia (2012)

3,893

4 Tim Couch, Kentucky (1997)

3,884

5 Ryan Mallett, Arkansas (2010)

3,869

6 Peyton Manning, Tennessee (1997)

3,819

7 Andre Woodson, Kentucky (2007)

3,709

8 Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M (2012)

3,706

9 Jared Lorenzen, Kentucky (2000)

3,687

10 Tyler Wilson, Arkansas (2011)

3,638

1 Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M (2012) 5,116

2 Cam Newton, Auburn (2010) 4,327

3 Tim Tebow, Florida (2007) 4,181

4 Tim Couch, Kentucky (1998) 4,151

5 Rex Grossman, Florida (2001) 3,904

Total Touchdowns

PEYTON MANNING

CAM NEWTONAssociated Press

Tennessee Athletics


2013

� e preseason Media Days All-Southeastern Conference Football Team

2013 All-SEC Team

LB: Lamin Barrow, LSU DB: Damian Swann, Georgia DB: Andre Hal, Vanderbilt DB: Marcus Roberson, Florida DB: Vinnie Sunseri, Alabama

Special teamsP: Cody Mandell, Alabama PK: Cody Parkey, Auburn RS: Bruce Ellington, South Carolina AP: Odell Beckham Jr., LSU

THIRD TEAMOff enseQB: Aaron Murray, Georgia RB: *Matt Jones, Florida RB: *Jeff Scott, Ole Miss RB: *Alfred Blue, LSU WR: Malcolm Mitchell, Georgia WR: Jarvis Landry, LSU TE: Brian Vogler, Alabama OL: La’el Collins, LSU OL: Josh Williford, LSU OL: Wesley Johnson, Vanderbilt OL: *A.J. Cann, South Carolina OL: *Zach Fulton, Tennessee C: *James Stone, Tennessee C: *Jonotthan Harrison, Florida

DefenseL: Garrison Smith, Georgia L: Daniel McCullers, Ten-nessee L: Alvin Dupree, Kentucky L: C.J. Johnson, Ole Miss LB: Ronald Powell, Florida LB: Tahj Jones, LSU LB: *Trey DePriest, Alabama LB: *Avery Williamson, Kentucky DB: E.J. Gaines, Missouri DB: Charles Sawyer, Ole Miss DB: Jalen Mills, LSU DB: Chris Davis, Auburn

Special Teams P: Steven Clark, Auburn PK: Zach Hocker, Arkansas RS: Andre Debose, Florida AP: Loucheiz Purifoy, Florida

*-Ties

FIRST TEAM SECOND TEAMOff ense

QB AJ McCarron, Alabama

RB Tre Mason, Auburn *LaDarius Perkins, Mississippi State *Keith Marshall, Georgia

WR Donte Moncrief, Ole MissMike Evans, Texas A&M

TE Rory Anderson, South Carolina

OL Antonio Richard-son, Tennessee Jon Halapio, Florida Chris Burnette, Georgia Ja’Wuan James, Tennessee

C Reese Dismukes, Auburn

Special teamsP Cody Mandell, Alabama PK Cody Parkey, Auburn RS Bruce Ellington, South

Carolina AP Odell Beckham Jr., LSU

DefenseDL Xzavier Dickson,

Alabama Ed Stinson, Alabama Dee Ford, Auburn Jeoff rey Pagan, Alabama

LB Adrian Hubbard, Alabama Jordan Jenkins, Georgia Lamin Barrow, LSU

DB Damian Swann, Georgia Andre Hal, Vanderbilt Marcus Roberson, Florida Vinnie Sunseri, Alabama

Off enseQB Johnny Manziel,

Texas A&M

RB T.J. Yeldon, Alabama Todd Gurley, Georgia

WR Amari Cooper, AlabamaJordan Matthews, Vanderbilt

TE Arthur Lynch, Georgia

OL Cyrus Kouandjio, AlabamaJake Matthews, Texas A&MAnthony Steen, Alabama Gabe Jackson, Mississippi State

C Travis Swanson, Arkansas

DefenseDL Jadeveon Clowney,

South Carolina Dominique Easley, Florida Anthony Johnson, LSU Chris Smith, Arkansas

LB C.J. Mosley, Alabama A.J. Johnson, Tennessee Denzel Nkemdiche, Ole Miss

DB HaHa Clinton-Dix, AlabamaCraig Loston, LSU Loucheiz Purifoy, Florida Deion Belue, Alabama

Special teamsP Kyle Christy,

Florida PK Carey Spear,

Vanderbilt RS Odell Beckham

Jr., LSU AP Bruce Ellington,

South Carolina

� e preseason Media Days All-Southeastern Conference Football Team

2013 All-SEC T

QB

RB

WR

TE

OL

C

2013 All-SEC TP: Cody Mandell, Alabama

RS: Bruce Ellington, South

AP: Odell Beckham Jr., LSU

QB: Aaron Murray, Georgia

OL: *Zach Fulton, Tennessee C: *James Stone, Tennessee

L: Garrison Smith, Georgia

QB

RB

WR

TE

OL

C

Special teamsP Kyle Christy,

Florida PK Carey Spear,

Vanderbilt RS Odell Beckham

Jr., LSU AP Bruce Ellington,

South Carolina

*-Ties

JADEVEON CLOWNEY

Associated Press

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2013

A | All-AmericanManziel became A&M’s fi rst quarterback to earn All-American honors with his record-breaking 2012 season.

H | HeismanManziel’s magical year made him the second Ag-gie to win the coveted trophy (John David Crow, 1957). And the media circus kicked into high gear afterward.

B | BaseballTh e former high school baseball player threw out the fi rst pitch for the Texas Rangers and San Diego Padres this summer.

I| InternetManziel leaned on online courses at A&M to avoid post-Heisman campus distractions.

C | CelebrityManziel has hobnobbed with the likes of Jay Leno, David Letterman, Megan Fox, the bearded Duck Dynasty crew, Justin Timberlake, Jessica Biel, Bun B, James Harden, LeBron James and many more.

J | JamesManziel rooted for the Miami Heat and star LeBron James in the NBA Finals against the Spurs, despite Ker-rville’s proximity to San Antonio.

K | KerrvilleManziel’s senior-season stats at Kerrville Tivy: 3,609 passing yards, 1,674 rushing yards and 77 touchdowns.

D | DrakeManziel said a highlight of his off season was his trip to Toronto to meet the rap star.

E | EvansA&M’s breakout receiver Mike Evans was Manziel’s go-to guy for much of 2012, and arguably saved the game against Ole Miss with his 32-yard third-down catch in the Aggies’ come-from-behind win.

G | GraciousAs in, “Oh my gracious! How about that!?” Th at was CBS broadcaster Verne Lundquist’s reaction after Manziel’s ridiculous bobble-turned-touchdown against Alabama.

A through ZJOHNNY MANZIEL

To show how much of a surprise Johnny Manziel was in 2012: His name did not appear in our SEC magazine previewing A&M’s fi rst season in the conference.Th is year’s a little diff erent. So we went alphabetical on Manziel

and his rise to fame as the face of Aggie football. — Rob Clark

F| FiddleManziel jumped onstage during a 2012 concert by Randy Rogers Band at Hurricane Harry’s and showed off his fi ddle skills. Rogers later joked on the Aggie Nation radio program that Manziel earned a D-minus grade for his performance.

A20132013

A


2013

L | Louisiana TechOne of Manziel’s top plays happened against the Bulldogs, even though it didn’t count. After an ap-parent Christine Michael fumble, Bulldog defender Chip Hester picked up the ball and started running. Manziel tackled him and caused a fumble. Bulldog linebacker Mike Schrang scooped up the loose ball, but Manziel also tackled him. Th e old “two-tackles-and-one-forced-fumble” one-play stat for a quarter-back, had the refs not called the play dead.

A through ZJOHNNY MANZIEL

P | PATOne of the few blunders in Manziel’s Heisman campaign was a badly booted extra point attempt in a blowout win over Sam Houston State.

Q | QuicknessA&M’s fast-paced off ense was a perfect fi t for Man-ziel. A&M averaged 83.5 off ensive plays per game, ranking eighth in the country.

R | RossleyTom Rossley, assistant for former coach Mike Sher-man, is credited with recruiting Manziel.

S | Scooby-DooManziel earned chuckles with his Halloween costume of the cartoon canine.

T | TwitterSocial media turned up the glare on Manziel, especial-ly his tweets about leaving College Station and “please walk a day in my shoes.”

U | University of TexasTh e Longhorns reportedly could have had Manziel, but only considered him as a defensive back. Nice move, Mack.

V | VictoriesManziel’s play helped Sumlin win more regular-sea-son games than any other A&M coach in his debut season. Dana X. Bible and R.C. Slocum each won eight. Sumlin won 10.

W | Whit� eldManziel credits George Whitfi eld’s summer guidance for helping him get the starting quarterback job in 2012. He trained with Whitfi eld again this summer.

X | eXtraordinaryOK, that’s a stretch, but our lovely coff ee-table book — Extraordinary: Texas A&M’s Inaugural Season in the SEC — is available for purchase at Th e Eagle and pedimentbooks.com.

Y | Yee Yee!Manziel has retweeted the trademark exuberant phrase by A&M grad and singer-songwrit-er Granger Smith, and appeared in Smith’s video for Silverado Bench Seat.

Z | Zig-zagAs in Manziel’s crazy runs, especially his touchdown scampers against SMU, Arkansas, Louisiana Tech, Auburn, Ole Miss and Oklahoma.

M | McCarronAlabama quarterback AJ McCarron became Man-ziel’s pal in 2012, and they roomed together at the much-discussed Manning Passing Academy in July.

N | NewtonManziel’s touchdown celebra-tion — pretending to rip his jersey to reveal a Superman logo — was patterned after Cam Newton’s during his Heisman-winning season at Auburn.

O | OregonManziel originally committed to the Ducks, but later switched when A&M came calling.

er Granger Smith, and appeared in Silverado Bench Seat.Silverado Bench Seat.Silverado Bench Seat

much-discussed Manning Passing Academy in July.


2013

The SEC record books are loaded with great names, from Nacho Albergamo to Andrew Zow. We dug into this year’s media guides to de-termine the 2013 All-Name Team.

But � rst, some random observations.We almost had an All-Fish-Name Team: Patrick

Fish (South Carolina), Darreon Herring (Vander-bilt), Hameet Gill (Missouri), Justin Bass (Texas A&M) and Walker Sturgeon (Ole Miss).

� e in� uence of former LSU basketball star Shaquille O’Neal is obvious, with Shaq Roland (South Carolina), Shaquille Love (Kentucky), Shaquille Fluker (Georgia) and Shaquille Wiggins (also Georgia).

Fans of beloved actor Jimmy Stewart will be glad to know there’s a Vanderbilt player with that name. Other famous names on SEC rosters: novelist James Baldwin (Missis-sippi State), Bobby Hill from King of the Hill

(Ole Miss), old-school talk-show host Mike Douglas (Kentucky), South Park’s Trey Parker (A&M) and Texas coach Mack Brown (Florida).

� ree teams have potential confusion: Missouri has two players named Mitch Hall — no relation — who both play on

the o� ensive line. South Carolina has Gerald Dixon and Gerald Dixon Jr., both on the defensive line (the

former is the younger half-brother of the latter). And A&M has twins Tyrell and Tyrone Taylor, both part of the linebacking corps.

From the extra “z” department: Xzavier Ward (Georgia) and Xzavier Dickson (Ala-

bama).And we spotted lots of � rst names end-

ing in “ius,” or close to it. � is year’s crew includes Latevius (Vanderbilt), I’Tavius (Ole Miss), Dontavis (Tennessee), Quin-tavius (Ole Miss), Quantavius (LSU), Quadarias (Ole Miss), Maquedius (LSU), Octavius (Florida), Rantavious (Georgia) and Montravious (Auburn).

Great names pepper SEC rostershe SEC record books are loaded with great names, from Nacho Albergamo to Andrew Zow. We dug into this year’s media guides to de-termine the 2013 All-Name Team.

But � rst, some random observations.We almost had an All-Fish-Name Team: Patrick

Fish (South Carolina), Darreon Herring (Vander-bilt), Hameet Gill (Missouri), Justin Bass (Texas A&M) and Walker Sturgeon (Ole Miss).

� e in� uence of former LSU basketball star Shaquille O’Neal is obvious, with Shaq Roland (South Carolina), Shaquille Love (Kentucky), Shaquille Fluker (Georgia) and Shaquille

Fans of beloved actor Jimmy Stewart will be glad to know there’s a Vanderbilt player with that name. Other famous names on SEC rosters: novelist James Baldwin (Missis-

King of the Hill

(Ole Miss), old-school talk-show host Mike Douglas (Kentucky), ’s Trey Parker (A&M) and Texas coach Mack Brown






ing in “ius,” or close to it. � is year’s crew includes Latevius (Vanderbilt), I’Tavius (Ole Miss), Dontavis (Tennessee), Quin-tavius (Ole Miss), Quantavius (LSU), Quadarias (Ole Miss), Maquedius (LSU), Octavius (Florida), Rantavious (Georgia) and Montravious (Auburn).

he SEC record books are loaded with great names, from Nacho Albergamo to Andrew Zow. We dug

We almost had an All-Fish-Name Team: Patrick Fish (South Carolina), Darreon Herring (Vander-bilt), Hameet Gill (Missouri), Justin Bass (Texas

Shaquille O’Neal is obvious, with Shaq Roland

(Ole Miss), old-school talk-show host Mike Douglas (Kentucky), South Park’s Trey Parker (A&M) and Texas coach Mack Brown (Florida).






ing in “ius,” or close to it. � is year’s crew includes Latevius (Vanderbilt), I’Tavius (Ole Miss), Dontavis (Tennessee), Quin-tavius (Ole Miss), Quantavius (LSU), Quadarias (Ole Miss), Maquedius (LSU), Octavius (Florida), Rantavious

By ROB CLARK | [email protected]

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ciate

d Pres

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2013

Here are our 20 selections for this year’s All-Name Team. Some are real names, some nicknames, but all are exactly how they are listed in the teams’ media guides.

Mister Cobble (DT, Kentucky)1 HaHa Clinton-Dix (DB, Alabama)11Pig Howard (WR, Tennessee)2 David Priddy (DB, Tennessee)12Chief Brown (DB, Ole Miss) 3 Will Sport (OG, South Carolina)13Ego Ferguson (DT, LSU)4 Ray Ray Smith (LB, Ole Miss)14Max Strong (K, Kentucky)5 Pancho � omas (LB, Kentucky)15Zach Hocker (K, Arkansas)6 Gimel President (DE, Auburn)16Chandler Shakespeare (RB, Auburn) 7 Jake Star (TE, Georgia) 17Trip � urman (OL, Florida) 8 Curt Maggitt (LB, Tennessee)18Tip McKenzie (WR, Vanderbilt) 9 Paris Head (S, Vanderbilt)19Cassanova McKinzy (LB, Auburn)10 Taz Zettergren (TE, Ole Miss)20

SEC All-Name Team

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2013

Expert predictions for A&M’s year

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A&M

I will be shocked if the Aggies don’t have one of the fi ve best off enses in all of college football. I see no drop-off and perhaps even an improvement if Kevin Sumlin fi nds a receiver to replace the reliable Ryan Swope. A&M defi nitely enters the year as one of the favorites to win it all, and eight home games without Georgia, South Carolina and Florida on the schedule is a huge help. My biggest fears are a defense that breaks down at times without the singular presence of a dominant player like Damontre Moore and an erratic kicking game.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A&MI think it will be an exciting season like last season. I think the sky’s the limit. If they win that game on Sept. 14 it would not surprise me if they are in a position late in the season to go unbeaten.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A&MI have two questions about A&M. One is the same question everyone else has, and that’s Manziel’s ability to maintain his focus when everything else around him is going haywire. And I think what’s more germane to the foot-ball fi eld is replacing the senior leadership on defense as well as the senior play on defense — that is my biggest football question.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A&MA year ago, the question was whether the Aggies could possibly com-pete in the mighty SEC. Given their struggles for most of the previous decade in the Big 12 South, it was understandable, if undoubtedly insulting. That’s all gone now. Now, people wonder if Kevin Sumlin’s bunch can take the next step and contend for the BCS title. That’s a very, very big step. It’s certainly possible — if Texas A&M beats Alabama Sept. 14 at Kyle Field, look out — but it’s also possible the Ag-gies could slip a bit from ‘12. With Johnny Manziel, it feels like anything could happen. But it’s also hard to overlook signifi cant losses on the off ensive line and in the defensive front seven, both of which could increase the diffi culty factor. I expect the Aggies to contend for the SEC West title. The schedule is not especially diffi cult — A&M misses the top three SEC East teams and has a pillowy soft nonconference schedule. A run at a crystal football, though, is a tall order, considering the biggest obstacle is college football’s current dynasty.

WHAT TO EXPECT

FROM A&MA slight step back mostly because of the defense that was only so-so last year and I can’t see getting better. The Ag-gies won’t beat Alabama or LSU, and hesitantly I’ll say they get upset at Ole Miss or Missouri. All that said, I would not be shocked if Texas A&M went 12-0.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM JOHNNY MANZIELThe season can’t get here soon enough for Manziel. He has more problems in the off season than he does the season, but the fi eld should be his comfort zone. I don’t buy all the nonsense that teams will be better prepared for him the second time around. Didn’t Oklahoma have all the scouting reports after 12 games? I do think defenses will try to better con-tain him with a more deliberate and an outside pass rush and try to force him to win more games throwing. But he can. I see very little drop-off in his game, and I expect him to be in the Heisman race to the very end. But I do think this will be his fi nal college season.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM JOHNNY MANZIEL

I think Johnny will have a comparable statistical year, but maybe in a little diff erent way — maybe not the rushing yards, but the passing yards defi nitely will go up. That will make for an even more exciting year, seeing what he’ll do with his arm rather than run-ning around, making plays with his legs all the time. That 5,000-yard passing season is still out there. Everybody who has played in that off ense – Kliff Kingsbury, B.J. Symons, Case Keenum – they all threw for 5,000.


I think he has a very diffi cult task before him, because he’s not only measured against him-self, but the expectations that have been built up around him. Combined, that’s a Herculean task that would be diffi cult for anyone, much less a 20-year-old who’s being forced to deal with being in the middle of the American celebrity machine.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM JOHNNY MANZIELJohnny Football could have exactly the same statistics and very similar impact as 2012, and it would be seen as a letdown. That’s unfair, but

it’s just the way of things. He (and A&M) are no longer a fresh, new, completely unexpected story line. I expect Manziel to be very,

very good again, perhaps better than he was last season — it’s an old football truism that quarterbacks grow the most

between their fi rst and second years as a starter — and yet, he might not have the same stats,

and A&M might not have the same record. If Texas A&M doesn’t achieve the same

(or better) results as 2012, Manziel’s performance won’t resonate as

much. But if he leads the Aggies past the Crimson Tide again,

and they keep rolling from there? You could be

looking at a two-time Heisman winner,

and a berth in the BCS champion-ship game.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM

JOHNNY MANZIEL

Huge numbers — again. The system works and his gift for improvisation and ability to make something out of nothing makes this off ense un-stoppable for the majority of A&M’s opponents. My guess is he’ll run for less yards and throw for more as teams become hyper-aware of his scrambling.

Kirk BohlsAustin American-Statesman

George SchroederUSA Today

TOP 7 IN SEC WEST

Texas A&M; Alabama; LSU; Arkansas; Ole Miss; Auburn; Mississippi State

TOP 7 IN SEC WEST Alabama; Texas A&M; LSU; Ole Miss; Mississippi State; Auburn; Arkansas

TOP 7 IN SEC WEST Alabama; LSU; Texas A&M; Ole Miss; Mississippi State; Auburn; Arkansas

TOP 7 IN SEC WEST Alabama; Texas A&M; LSU; Auburn; Ole Miss; Arkansas; Mississippi State

TOP 7 IN SEC WEST

Alabama; LSU; Texas A&M; Auburn; Ole Miss; Mississippi State; ArkansasTOP 3 IN

SEC EASTGeorgia; South Carolina; Florida

TOP 3 IN SEC EASTSouth Carolina; Georgia; Florida

TOP 3 IN SEC EASTGeorgia; South Carolina; Florida

TOP 3 IN SEC EASTSouth Carolina; Florida; Georgia

TOP 3 IN SEC EAST

South Carolina; Georgia; Florida

TOP 3 IN HEISMAN RACEAJ McCarron; Braxton Miller; Johnny Manziel

TOP 3 IN HEISMAN RACE

Jadeveon Clowney; Johnny Manziel; Marcus Mariota


Jadeveon Clowney; Marcus Mariota; Teddy Bridgewater


Braxton Miller; Jadeveon Clowney; Johnny Manziel TOP 3 IN

HEISMAN RACETajh Boyd; Braxton Miller; Jadeveon Clowney

TEXAS A&M’S REGULAR-SEASON RECORD

12-0

TEXAS A&M’S REGULAR-SEASON

RECORD 11-1

TEXAS A&M’S REGULAR-SEASON

RECORD 9-3

TEXAS A&M’S REGULAR-SEASON RECORD 10-2

TEXAS A&M’S REGULAR-

SEASON RECORD 9-3

Ralph Russo

Associated Press

Carolina and Florida on the schedule is a huge help. My biggest fears

dominant player like Damontre Moore and an erratic kicking game.

the top three SEC East teams and has a pillowy soft nonconference schedule. A run at a crystal football, though, is a tall order, considering the biggest obstacle is college football’s current dynasty.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM JOHNNY MANZIELThe season can’t get here soon enough for Manziel. He has more problems in the off season than he does the season, but the fi eld should be his comfort zone. I don’t buy all the nonsense that teams will be better prepared for him the second time around. Didn’t Oklahoma have all the scouting reports after 12 games? I do think defenses will try to better con-








and they keep rolling from there? You could be

looking at a two-time Heisman winner,

Jadeveon Clowney; Johnny Manziel

TEXAS A&M’S REGULAR-SEASON RECORD10-2

schedule. A run at a crystal football, though, is a tall order, considering the biggest obstacle is college football’s current dynasty.








and they keep rolling from

Damontre Moore and an

schedule. A run at a crystal football, though, is a tall order, considering


Manziel. He has more problems in the off season than he does the season, but the fi eld should be his comfort zone. I don’t buy all the nonsense that teams will be better prepared for him the second time around. Didn’t Oklahoma have

Johnny Manziel

Damontre Moore and an

schedule. A run at a crystal football, though, is a tall order, considering the biggest obstacle is college football’s current dynasty.


Manziel. He has more problems in the off season than he does the season, but the fi eld should be his comfort zone. I don’t buy all the nonsense that teams will be better prepared for him the second time around. Didn’t Oklahoma have








Texas A&M will go 12-0

in the regular season.

KIR

K BOHLS

Ivan MaiselESPN

Andre WareESPN, 1989 Heisman Trophy winner


2013

Baseball has the right idea: playing hand-picked songs for each batter who comes to the plate, and for pitch-ers entering the game.

If only football would adopt that idea. Any time a player or coach does something of signi� cance, good or bad, blast an appropriate song. And whenever a talking head opines on TV too long, turn up the music.

Here’s a mix tape of sorts — a few suggestions for SEC players, coaches and pundits.

Johnny ManzielFame by David Bowie: He can’t escape

the spotlight o� the � eld, so let’s hope he feels at home on it.

Lyrics: “Fame makes a man take things over/Fame lets him loose, hard to swal-low/Fame puts you there where things are hollow/... Fame, it’s not your brain, it’s just the � ame/� at burns your change to keep you insane.”

Nick Saban� e Payback by James Brown: � e Alabama coach is surely eager

to deliver a payback punch to the Aggies on Sept. 14 at Kyle Field. James Brown’s lyrics — basically just screaming random angry

words about how ticked o� he is — seems like it � ts.Lyrics: “Got to pay back!/Revenge!/I’m mad!/� e big

payback!”

Mike SliveI’m Bad by LL Cool J: � e SEC commish is among college football’s most powerful men. We half-expected

him to enter his SEC Media Days address with this song, then � nish by dropping the mic and walking o� .

Lyrics: “I’m the pinnacle, that means I reign supreme/And I’m notorious I’ll crush you like a jellybean/I’m bad.”

Mark MayInstant Karma by John Lennon: � e ESPN com-

mentator has been among Manziel’s harshest critics for o� -the-� eld actions. And then it was revealed that

Songs for SEC players, personalitiesBy ROB CLARK | [email protected]

aseball has the right idea: playing hand-picked songs for each batter who comes to the plate, and for pitch-


Here’s a mix tape of sorts — a few suggestions

He can’t escape the spotlight o� the � eld, so let’s hope he

“Fame makes a man take things

low/Fame puts you there where things are hollow/... Fame, it’s not your brain, it’s just the � ame/� at burns your change to keep you insane.”

to deliver a payback punch to the Aggies on Sept. 14 at Kyle Field. James Brown’s lyrics — basically just screaming random angry

words about how ticked o� he is — seems like it � ts.“Got to pay back!/Revenge!/I’m mad!/� e big

I’m Bad by LL Cool J: I’m Bad by LL Cool J: I’m Badcollege football’s most powerful men. We half-expected


Lyrics: “I’m the pinnacle, that means I reign supreme/And I’m notorious I’ll crush you like a jellybean/I’m bad.”

Instant Karmamentator has been among Manziel’s harshest critics

for o� -the-� eld actions. And then it was revealed that

each batter who comes to the plate, and for pitch-


Here’s a mix tape of sorts — a few suggestions

hollow/... Fame, it’s not your brain, it’s just the � ame/� at burns your change to keep you insane.”

James Brown’s lyrics — basically just screaming random angry words about how ticked o� he is — seems like it � ts.

Lyrics: “Got to pay back!/Revenge!/I’m mad!/� e big payback!”

I’m Badcollege football’s most powerful men. We half-expected


supreme/And I’m notorious I’ll crush you like a jellybean/I’m bad.”

mentator has been among Manziel’s harshest critics for o� -the-� eld actions. And then it was revealed that

LL COOL JAssociated Press

At Texas A&M our students and faculty succeed on every “playing field.”We are committed to a culture of excellence in teaching, research, and service

and to an environment of respect where all Aggies Commit to Learning for a Lifetime.


2013

May had some troubles with the law in his college days. Whoops!Lyrics: “Instant karma’s gonna get you/Gonna knock you o� your

feet/Better recognize your brothers/Everyone you meet/Why in the world are we here?/Surely not to live in pain and fear/Why on earth are you there?/When you’re everywhere/Come and get your share.”

Kevin SumlinCool by � e Time: � e ’80s funk workout � ts

the Texas A&M coach’s swagger. Too bad Kli� Kingsbury, his partner-in-cool, isn’t around to hold up a big mirror during the game, just like � e Time’s Jerome Benton did for singer Morris Day.

Lyrics: “When I look into the mirror/It just tells me something I already know/I’m so cool/Honey, baby, can’t you see?/Girl, I’m so cool/Ain’t nobody bad like me.”

Paul FinebaumMy Stupid Mouth by John Mayer: � e

radio host who recently joined ESPN is also regarded by some as a professional troll. He certainly played that role during SEC Media Days, with his relentless criticism of Manziel.

Lyrics: “Oh, it’s another social casualty/Score one more for me/How could I forget?/Mama said, ‘� ink before speaking’/No � lter in my head/Oh, what’s a boy to do/I guess he better � nd one soon.”

AJ McCarronIs She Really Going Out With Him? by Joe Jackson:

� at’s what goes through our head whenever we see the Alabama quarterback’s model girlfriend, Katherine Webb. � at

and Brent Musberger biting his palm, Lenny-and-Squiggy style. Lyrics: “Is she really going out with him?/Is she really gonna take him home tonight?/Is she really going out with

him?/’Cause if my eyes don’t deceive me there’s something going wrong around here.”

Will MuschampFancy by Reba McEntire: � ere’s no logical reason

for this. We just pictured the Florida coach (and former Texas defensive coordinator) singing it at karaoke night

— all sassy-like — and we wished it were so.Lyrics: “It sounded like somebody else that was talkin’/

Askin’ ‘Mama what do I do?’/She said, ‘Just be nice to the gentlemen, Fancy, they’ll be nice to you’/She said, ‘Here’s

your one chance, Fancy, don’t let me down.’”your one chance, Fancy, don’t let me down.’”

world are we here?/Surely not to live in pain and fear/Why on earth are you there?/When you’re everywhere/Come and get your share.”

Kevin Sumlin� e ’80s funk workout � ts

the Texas A&M coach’s swagger. Too bad Kli� Kingsbury, his partner-in-cool, isn’t around to hold up a big mirror during the game, just like � e Time’s Jerome Benton did for singer Morris Day.

“When I look into the mirror/It just tells me something I already know/I’m so cool/Honey, baby, can’t you see?/Girl, I’m so cool/Ain’t nobody bad like me.”

Paul Finebaum by John Mayer: � e

radio host who recently joined ESPN is also regarded by some as a professional troll. He certainly played that role during SEC Media Days, with his relentless criticism of Manziel.

Is She Really Going Out With Him? � at’s what goes through our head whenever we see the

Alabama quarterback’s model girlfriend, Katherine Webb. � at and Brent Musberger biting his palm, Lenny-and-Squiggy style.

“Is she really going out with him?/Is she really gonna take him home tonight?/Is she really going out with


Fancy by Reba McEntire:for this. We just pictured the Florida coach (and former

Texas defensive coordinator) singing it at karaoke night — all sassy-like — and we wished it were so.

Lyrics: “It sounded like somebody else that was talkin’/Askin’ ‘Mama what do I do?’/She said, ‘Just be nice to the gentlemen, Fancy, they’ll be nice to you’/She said, ‘Here’s

your one chance, Fancy, don’t let me down.’”

world are we here?/Surely not to live in pain and fear/Why on earth are you there?/When you’re everywhere/Come and get your share.”

� e ’80s funk workout � ts the Texas A&M coach’s swagger. Too bad Kli� Kingsbury, his partner-in-cool, isn’t around to hold up a big mirror during the game, just like � e Time’s Jerome Benton did for singer Morris Day.

Is She Really Going Out With Him? � at’s what goes through our head whenever we see the

Alabama quarterback’s model girlfriend, Katherine Webb. � at and Brent Musberger biting his palm, Lenny-and-Squiggy style.

Lyrics: “Is she really going out with him?/Is she really gonna take him home tonight?/Is she really going out with


for this. We just pictured the Florida coach (and former Texas defensive coordinator) singing it at karaoke night

— all sassy-like — and we wished it were so.Lyrics:

Askin’ ‘Mama what do I do?’/She said, ‘Just be nice to the gentlemen, Fancy, they’ll be nice to you’/She said, ‘Here’s

your one chance, Fancy, don’t let me down.’”

JOHN MAYER

Associated Press

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HOW TO DRINK THE KOOL-AID AND BELIEVE TEXAS A&M WILL WIN

THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPAre you an optimist?

Why do you have to bring up

old, painful memories?

Fun With Flow Charts

Do you have Battered Aggie

Syndrome?

Do you need a cure for that?

I’m just realistic

Did you believe A&M’s title buzz in

’75 and ’95?

We have Johnny Manziel and Kevin

Sumlin now.

Will A&M be better without Luke Joeckel, Ryan Swope

and Damontre Moore?

And A&M will beat Alabama?

Wow! A&M beats Alabama two

years in a row!

Are you thirsty for a maroon, powdered

flavored drink?

But Alabama and LSU lost even more. And there

hasn’t been a 3-peat national champ since the ’30s.

So Alabama’s chances are debatable.

Oh yeah! Drink up, Aggie. A&M will win

the national championship!

Realism has no place in

rooting for Aggie football!

Yes

Yes

OK, so?

Yes

YesOK, so?

YesYes

I know,

right?

Of course you are

No

No

No

No

No

By Rob Clark


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SEC 2013