SportsMonday, January 10, 2000 - The Michigan Daily - 3B
Aiture
By igk Freeman
114il > orts Editor
:Although Anthony T
ot'ir Helen Gilbert'
nd a number of small
suiggtst that Thomas
bruijifng tailback, will
se iur season.
(Abert, though, de
knows this is a done de-
newspaper reported on
I told (the paper), I
like for him to stay for]
Gilbert said from herI
home yesterday.
Oilbert said the fin
Snomas' and Thomas'a
anti declined to say wha
wOUld be.
She just hopes he'll
degee from the
Kinesiology. Thomas
to disclose
plans today
Michigan's leading rusher this season
with 1,297 yards and also scored 17
homas and his touchdowns, has scheduled an 11 a.m.
won't tip their press conference at Crisler Arena
I signs seem to today.
, Michigan's That the press conference is at Crisler
return for his could in itself be a sign that he may stay,
because Michigan is not in the habit of
nies that she encouraging athletes to leave school
al, as a Detroit early. Or it could mean very little, just
Saturday. as Thomas' appearance in an early-
myself would morning class last week may or may not
his final year," have meant anything either.
Winnfield, La. Either way, Thomas, who didn't
return phone calls from The Michigan
al decision is Daily, has made up his mind.
alone to make, He also has his mother's support,
it that decision no matter if he chooses to play on
Saturdays or Sundays next season.
stay to get his "Whatever decision he makes, I
Division of will stand by him, because he's my
, who was son and I love him," Gilbert said.
T.A
BE RKA
Teeig Off
M needs to play Hokies to
LOUIS BROWN/Dail
Michigan running back Anthony Thomas will announce today whether he will skip
his senior season and declare himself eligible for the NFL draft.
1n of players Volunteering for draft
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - for 193 yard
Tennesse tailback Jamal Lewis, who explosivenes
worked his way back from knee surgery Tennessee
and then struggled with other injuries Grant is also
this season, will forgo his final year of help out hi
ehgibility and enter the NFL draft. mother told'
In addition to leading the Vols with to be publish
816 yards rushing this season, Lewis Tennessee
was fourth on the team with 15 catches back Jamal
resterS ov
By Jon Schwartz
Daily Sports Writer
It's funny how quickly things can change.
Going into this weekend's Virginia Duals, attended by
erepresentatives of Amateur Wrestling News' top 20,
t i No. 7 Michigan wrestling team was favored to win.
By the end, coach Joe McFarland was thrilled to
escape with a third-place showing.
'The trouble started before the Wolverines even left for
tre meet. At the team's last competition, the Midlands
Championships, 133-pounder Joe Warren injured his
le g. As one of the team's veteran leaders, and a recently-
named representative to the National Wrestling Coaches
/ ociation All-Star Classic, Warren's injury was sure
e ffect the team.
!,ut when the Wolverines got down to Hampton, Va.,
' troubles got worse.
'After making it through the first day of competition
with relatively few setbacks against Air Force and
1ndiana, Michigan's problems started early on Saturday.
Going against No. 16 Northern Iowa, the unthinkable
happened when 174-pound Otto Olson, ranked first in
Is, but he lacked the same
ss he had his first two years.
junior free safety Deon
turning pro so that he can
s family financially, his
The Tennessean for a story
hed Sunday.
also is losing junior tail-
Lewis, according to The
Tennessean and The Knoxville News
Sentinel.
Junior offensive guard Cosey
Coleman was expected to follow suit.
GATORs GONE: Florida wide
receivers Darrell Jackson and Travis
Taylor dramatically affected the depth
chart today by forgoing their senior sea-
sons and entering the NFL draft.
The 6-foot, 201-pound Jackson
caught 72 passes for 1,212 yards and
nine touchdowns. The true junior had
seven 100-yard games.
The 6-1, 198-pound Taylor caught 45
passes for 619 yards and nine scores.
Also a true junior, he was the Most
valuable player of the 1999 Orange
Bowl.
rercome injuries at Duals
spice upb/a/i
th the football season over, I
have been at a loss about
what to write. The antics of
Todd Howard, Bennie Joppru and crew
have consumed my life for the last five
months, so the conclusion to the season
nine days ago left me searching for
something to write about.
Due to the habits that I have devel-
oped this season, I decided to peruse
next year's schedule. There was really
no good reason to do this, as I won't be
a student when September rolls around.
But I checked the schedule out any-
way. Unlike most years that I have done
this, all I could do was laugh at
Michigan's nonconference docket.
Bowling Green, Rice and UCLA?
Sounds more like a Sunday morning
trip to Dunkin' Donuts than the start of
a football season for the Wolverines.
Although I did laugh initially at the
mockery that Michigan's football
schedule was, a feeling of hurt washed
over me.
I realize Lloyd Carr has complained
about playing murderous schedules -
both in the Big Ten and in the noncon-
ference seasons - but the measures
taken this season are ridiculous.
Come on, why the hell is Michigan
playing Bowling Green? The Falcons
are a cupcake in a conference filled
with shelves of confectionery delights,
the Mid-American Conference.
Bowling Green hasn't had a winning
season since I have been in school. The.
Falcons - who are the true Dirty Birds
simply because they play like poop -
even lost to Akron by 30 points earlier
this season.
So after the Wolverines obliterate
Bowling Green 87-8 - I'm sure even
the Falcon starters can get a touchdown
on the Michigan freshmen redshirt
walkons - Rice comes into Michigan
Stadium again.
I can see why Rice would be wel-
comed back to Ann Arbor. The Owls
did combine with the Wolverines to pro-
vide one of the more exciting games in
recent Michigan history this past season.
I'm sure Rice was just feeling out
Michigan in its 37-3 loss this past season
so they could pull the upset when Sept. 9
rolls around. Honestly, how can a team
not cross midfield - even by accident
- until three minutes are left in the
game? You know those tricky Owls were
plotting something.
his class and Michigan's other member of the NWCA
All-Star Classic, went down with a knee injury against
Northern Iowa's Randy Pugh.
While a healthy Olson could not have salvaged the
round for the Wolverines, a 25-16 loss to Northern Iowa,
the tournament's runner-up to No. 12 Edinboro, his
injury certainly made things more difficult.
In the consolation and third-place rounds, Olson's
absence was evident. While Michigan won both match-
es, it was disconcerting for the Wolverines to be without
their captain.
"We couldn't wrestle him in the last two matches,"
McFarland said. "We were giving them six points."
Also, with Warren's absence added to the mix, the
coach could barely rest during the two-day tournament.
He was constantly having to move his men around and
put people in weight classes where they might not have
belonged.
But considering the injuries, McFarland was very
pleased with the outcome.
"With the kind of competition that we faced, our guys
showed a lot of character," McFarland said. "All the
Z00OO schedule
guys did great."
The two most obvious examples were 184-pound
Andy Hrovat and heavyweight Matt Brink.
"Both of those guys had a nice tournament,"
McFarland said. "They were both moving well and
being aggressive."
For Hrovat, the undefeated performance locked up
the 184-pound spot, for which he had been competing
all season with Joe DeGain. DeGain will compete in the
197-pound class, a move that the coach described as the
"best thing for the team:'
Brink also went through the Duals without losing,
including a major decision in the first round.
But with the Big Ten season looming in two weeks,
the team must address its biggest problem - having its
two stars cheering on the sidelines.
Olson will have an MRI taken this week, but is
extremely doubtful for the two meets this weekend,
home against Pennsylvania and at Central Michigan.
Warren, who spent the weekend rehabbing his leg
instead ofjoining the team, may be ready but that is still
unknown.
Sorry, they weren't. They just simply
suck. Michigan will win that game 67-
2, as Hayden Epstein will punt the ball
backward out of the end zone out of
pure boredom.
After that hard-fought trouncing, the
Wolverines travel to UCLA to play
Cade McNown and John Wooden.
I know, UCLA has had a few teams
make it to the Rose Bowl and lose to
Wisconsin recently. But the Bruins were.
4-7 this season, about equal to Indiana's
output.
And besides, UCLA's main color is
pastel blue, which is gross. Any football
team that wears colors that an interior
decorator would love is not a threat.
After I let out all of this rage, I hap-
pened to have a copy of the Newark
Star-Ledger in my hand. I really have
no clue how this happened, as I don't
live in New Jersey and I never have had
a desire to visit the Garden State. But I
had the Star-Ledger in my hand, so I
flipped through it.
As I was reading this fine paper, I
saw that Michigan had agreed to play in
the Kickoff Classic. This gave me
excitement, as I started to envision the
Wolverines knocking boots with a
major power in the Jersey Swamps.
But that excitement turned to dis
gust again once I read that the
Wolverines turned down a matchup
with No. 2 Virginia Tech. Instead,
Michigan was looking to proposition
*Boston College, the same gaggle of
fools that lost 62-28 to a less-than-
competent Colorado team in the
Insight.com Bowl.
I think its safe to say that the student
body would be excited with a matchup
with the Hokies. If Michigan somehow
could have gotten past that perennial
juggernaut Illinois this season, there
would have been a lot of debate on who
would have played in the Sugar Bowl
this season.
Basically, the Kickoff Classic could
showcase Virginia Tech as a bunch of
turkeys - if the Wolverines grow the
spine necessary to schedule the game of
that magnitude.
Michigan has never ducked a tough
football game. Let's hope that it doesn't
start this season.
- T' Berka would love to trade fo
Michael Vick, but that's slightly illegal
undercurrent NCAA rules. He can be
reached at bekat(ajunich.edu."
Since teams may not appear in"the
Classic twice in a four-year period,
Miami (Fla.), Florida State, Texas A&
and Syracuse are not possible opponents
for Michigan's first Kickoff Classic.
Southern Cal, which played in the 1996
Classic, is technically eligible, but has
already slated a high-profile opener with
Colorado at the L.A. Coliseum.
In last season's Kickoff Classic,
Miami (Fla.) defeated Ohio State, 23-12.
Each team received a payout of at least
$650,000.
The 2002 game will mark the end of
the Kickoff Classic, since the NCAA has
voted to abolish early-season "bowl
games.' The first Classic was in 1983
The last time Michigan started its
season earlier than normal was the 1995
Pigskin Classic at Michigan Stadium.
Quarterback Scott Dreisbach passed for
372 yards and brought the Wolverines
back from a 17-0 fourth-quarter deficit.
Michigan defeated Virginia, 18-17, in
Carr's first game as head coach.
'M' gymnast Vetere takes routine overseas
Dan Dingersofl
Ialy Spans Xwrter
Riding on the bullet train across the
Jpanese countryside and touring the
ancient Nagoya Castle are not the most
typical activities in the days leading up to
final exams. But one Michigan athlete
was traveling Asia instead of visiting the
,jan December, sophomore gymnast
Scott Vetere traveled to Nagoya, Japan to
jnpete in the Chunichi Cup. The inter-
national competition featured many of
the top gymnasts in the world amongst
the 13 competitors, including five of the
wop 10. Although Vetere was not ranked
as highly as some of his competition, he
finished 1 lth in the all-around competi-
tion while qualifying for five event finals.
- Vetere was selected to compete based
Po his No. 12 ranking on the U.S. nation-
team. He was invited after some of the
gher-ranked Americans declined
because of injuries and fatigue.
The schedule that was set for the trip
Aid not give Vetere the best chance to
'succeed in his first international compe-
tition as a member of the senior national
team. Because of class schedules, and
the lengthy 14-hour flight, Vetere could
not maintain a standard gymnast's sched-
ule. Michigan coach Kurt Golder, who
accompanied Vetere on the trip, recom-
mends four days of rest for a trip of that
length to adjust to the time difference.
The duo arrived in Japan the day before
the competition, Dec. 10, only allowing
for a light warm-up.
Although international competitions
are very important for gymnasts to
improve, they are not always possible for
college students because of class sched-
ules. Vetere was able to make this trip
because it came before finals and was
over a weekend.
"The reason that we thought it would
be okay was because of the timing and
because of the long flight," Golder said.
"Fourteen hours stuck in one place
makes a perfect environment to study,
and is probably longer than he would
have if he had stayed here"
With jetlag, class stresses, and a
world-class group of competitors, the
prospects of Vetere being extremely suc-
cessful in the meet were not great. Vetere
showed that he belonged, though, in that
class by excelling and qualifying for five
event finals, only missing in his weakest
event, the high bar.
"For him to make five event finals
with only one day of preparation was
really a great performance," Golder said.
Vetere's highest placing in the first day
was sixth, which he achieved in both the
floor exercise and parallel bars. His floor
exercise was particularly impressive.
"Our floors use a four-inch spring cov-
ered by plywood, then two inches of foam
and then the carpet on top. It is a very
springy surface that we use in the United
States," Golder said. "The area in Japan
was equivalent to rolling out a wrestling
mat, that is a significant difference. Scott
went out there, it was his first event, com-
peting under the worst conditions, and he
nailed the routine. It was good to see him
handle that situation, and it set the, tone
for the rest of the competition."
Vetere's 11th place finish in the all-
around competition was mostly a result
of his poor high bar performance, which
kept him from a top-five finish.
On the second day of competition, in
the event finals, the conditions finally
began to affect Vetere, and he was not
able to perform at the same level that he
did the day before. He failed to match
any of the scores that he posted in the all-
around competition.
"I didn't really feel anything negative
until Sunday, and the fatigue finally got
to me,"Vetere said.
The trip was a resounding success
though, measured by Vetere and Golder.
It was an impressive showing, and will
help him in both future international
competitions and collegiate competition.
"It should give him a lot of confi-
dence, seeing that he can compete with
those guys," Golder said.
"It was a really great experience,"
Vetere said. "It was frustrating because I
wasn't quite at the level of the guys I was
competing against, but it will inspire me.
I think that I can use this to help myself
and my teammates to make us work
harder'.
CLASSIC
Continued from Page 1B
before facing UCLA in Pasadena.
Last fall, Michigan coach Lloyd Carr
criticized Notre Dame for sneaking
unranked Kansas into its schedule
before the Irish faced No. 7 Michigan in
the Wolverines' opener on Sept. 5.
Despite early appearances, it seems
Michigan will again go without a
"warmup" game to start the season, and
instead opt for a nationally-televised
contest at Giants Stadium. According to
BCS rankings, Michigan competed with
the second-hardest schedule in the
NCAA last season, second only to
Alabama, which Michigan defeated in
the Orange Bowl.
With the Kickoff Classic in East
Ratherford, N.J., Michigan conceivably
seeks to draw from its heavy East Coast
alumni base, and also hopes to increase
visibility to East Coast recruiting
prospects.
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