18A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, October 21, 1999
Left tackle Samuels helps give
Alexander a helping block
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) - Someone
has to get credit for all the yards Shaun
Alexander has run up this season, and the
Alabama tailback is willing to share it.
Or, it could be that Alexander is simply
afraid to rile Chris Samuels, his mammoth
left tackle.
"You run behind him, and he might block
one, two or even three guys himself," said
Alexander, who has 934 yards and 17 touch-
downs. "By the time I get to the line, there's
one dead body on the ground and maybe two
or three badly bruised guys depending on
what kind of mood he's in."
A 6-foot-6, 300-pound senior, Samuels has
started 36 straight games for No. 10 Alabama
and is a semifinalist for the Lombardi Award,
given annually to the top college lineman.
"Chris Samuels, in our opinion, is maybe
the best offensive lineman in college foot-
ball,"said coach Mike DuBose, who often
compares his left tackle to former Crimson
Tide great John Hannah. "We have yet to see
anyone better than him."
For Samuels, the recognition is long over-
due.
"Last year, I thought I should've been up in
the top five, but it didn't work out," he said.
"This year, a lot of people have me No. 1,
others have me second or third. I'm just glad
to be up there."
Samuels anchors the left side of Alabama's
line. Through the Tide's six games this season
(4-0 Southeastern Conference, 5-1), he has
yet to give up a sack or quarterback pressure
from the left side. He also has 33 knockdown
blocks.
"I love him," quarterback Andrew Zow
said. "To have him protecting my blind side, I
knov I don't even have to worry about
defenders getting through to me."
Despite his size, Samuels has surprising
speed, agility and endurance. He played 732
of a possible 744 snaps last season and refus-
es to come out of a game.
"He runs like a linebacker and he blocks
like one, too," left guard Grif' Redmill said.
"He was a good player the last two years, but
he's taken it to a whole new level now. He
covers my mistakes and he makes the entire
line raise our level of play"
And he's also helped Alexander raise his
numbers. In last week's 214-vard perfor-
mance against Mississippi, Alexander gained
most of his yards running off left tackle.
DuBose said Alabama's play-calling grew
predictable as the game went on, but play-
caller Charlie Stubbs said he couldn't go
away from something that was working so
well.
"If we need a crucial few yards, Chris will ...
come to me and say, 'I can dominate this
defender, I will open this hole for you,"' .,,Q,
Stubbs said. "And he's telling the truth."
Samuels, who said the Ole Miss game was
his best this season because he had eight pan- p'w ,
cake blocks, wants the play-calling to be pre-
dictable.
"I'm kind of selfish because I want them
all to be run behind me," he said. "But Shaun AP PHOTO
helps by putting up the numbers lie does. I Alabama's Shaun Alexander has romped to rush for 934 yards and 17 touchdowns so far this season
can't take all the credit." Credit for his great success can also go to his right tackle Chris Samuels
Players arrested for poisoning
Conner wins both races in Cup
MONROE, Mich. (AP) - Two seventh-grade students
have been suspended from their middle school after alleged-
ly spiking the football team's water bottles with a substance
that sickened 18 players.
None of the students who ingested the substance, ammo-
nia nitrate, were seriously ill, but two were taken to the hos-
pital when their symptoms persisted, officials said.
The boys believed to be responsible were on the football
team and have been suspended. The incident is being called
a prank gone bad. But school and law enforcement officials,
as well as the students affected and their parents, are taking
the situation seriously.
"Everyone knows it's serious," Ida Middle School
Principal Sheldon Wiens told The Monroe Evening News
for a report Wednesday. "But there's not been hysteria."
One boy was suspended for 10 days and the other for five
days, officials said. On Tuesday, Monroe County Sheriff's
Deputy Tod O'Lone handed in his report to the Monroe
County prosecutor's office for possible criminal charges.
The players were sickened on Oct. 12 during practice.
The boys, who were on the team at the time, allegedly tore
open the plastic on a product called "Instant Cold Packs"
The packs are filled with ammonia nitrate and water and
are used commonly by athletes to help ease aches and pains.
O'Lone said one boy broke open one of the packs and
spiked the team's water bottles with the ammonium nitrate
while the other boy acted as a lookout. Teammates then
unknowingly drank the poisoned water. Some spit it out
right away, saying that it tasted funny. Others didn't notice,
officials said.
Hours later, the boys who drank the water became sick.
Symptoms included headache, burning throat and vomiting.
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP)
- Dennis Conner, sailing in his
eighth America's Cup, won both of
his races today on the third day of the
America's Cup challenger series.
San Francisco's America True also
had a notable victory after an intense
tacking duel with Hawaii's
Abracadabra 2000.
Killer whales frolicked in
Auckland's inner harbor as northerly
wind on the two challenger courses
further out on Hauraki Gulf
increased from 10 knots in the morn-
ing to more than 20 in the afternoon,
the most consistent breeze in the
competition so far.
In the morning races, Prada
defeated the Spanish challenge by
1:02; Stars and Stripes defeated
Nippon by 1:14; Young America
defeated Le Defi Francais by 2:04;
America True defeated Abracadabra
by 26 seconds; and Young Australia
defeated Fast 2000 by 12 seconds.
In the afternoon, AmericaOne
defeated Le Defi Francais by 1:26;
Nippon defeated Young Australia by
1:52; the Spanish challenge defeated
Abracadabra by 43 seconds Prada
defeated America True by 1:25; and
Stars and Stripes defeated Fast 2000
by 40 seconds.
In a morning of tight racing for all
but the top favorites, America True,
with the only woman skipper of the
nike.comn
competition in Dawn Riley, aiil
Abracadabra 2000 tacked more thap
60 times on the second windward le
before the San Franciscans scripo
over the line for their second N ietO4
of the series.
Conner's Stars and Stripes, with
half the budget and half the num
of boats of his rival, led the S20 n
lion, two-boat Nippon team at ali
four marks in a close race intb
morning, crossing the line more thai
one minute ahead. The San Die
team then beat the struggling SwiA
syndicate in the afternoon.
Nippon had two penalties in its
race against Conner, and bowman
Toshiki Shibata was badly injured, in
the afternoon race when a clip o
spinnaker pole sprang open, send i
the heavy beam crashing down olsh.
head. .N
"He was knocked unconscio4
straight away," skipper Pet'
(ilmour said "it appears he has
broken nose and lost several fe ,
possibly a broken jaw and, wer
hoping, no spinal injuries"
The Italian Prada team aitd
New York Yacht Club's You-
America again had easy sictori
while Australia, with the youngesA
team, smallest budget and oldest
boat, posted its first ictory of the
series, also over the Swiss.
Prada has six victories in as many
starts. Paul Cayard's AmericaOn4
and Ed Baird's Young America also
were perfect, each 5-for-5.
Stars and Stripes finished the day,
with 3 points, tying Abracada
behind the leaders.
In more than 700 races over fqur
months, the II challenger teams
score one point for each victory -iTi
the first of three round-robins, fur
points in the second and nine in the
third.
The winner of a finals serie~s ajiJ
meet Team New Zealand in a best-of-
4 regatta starting in February 0
for sailing's most prized troph e
America's Cup.
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