Clarion-Ledger from Jackson, Mississippi • Page 43

3 COLLEGE BASEBALL STATE COLLEGE NOTES OUTDOORS- THE CLARION-LEDGER I JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI SUNDAY, APRIL 25, 1993 RICK CLEVELAND Columnist The Clarion-Ledger 'ii Rote y4 jr 4'W X. 1 i Team of Century leaves bitter taste with Gibbs' snub OXFORD Ole Miss announced its football Team of the Century here Saturday. Many Rebel greats weren't on it, and that's understandable. Jake Gibbs wasn't, and that's not. An Ole Miss all-time all-star team without Gibbs is like a Yankees all-star team without Joe DiMaggio.

It's like a BLT without the bacon. In other words, it's not complete. Gibbs played quarterback on teams that won 29 games, lost three and tied one. He was a consensus All-American in 1960 when he finished third in Heisman voting. Sports Illustrated ranked him recently as the eighth-best quarterback of the modern era.

He also played defense. He punted. He may he just may have been the best all-around player in Ole Miss history. About the only thing he didn't do was tackle Billy Cannon on one play. And Gibbs isn't on the team, voted on by fans who must all be under 40 or have seriously deficient memories.

No, I'm not suggesting that Gibbs replace Archie Manning. Put them both on there. Put Jake at defensive back. Put him at punter. Make him the Most Valuable Player.

Hell, say you're running a two-quarterback system on your Team of the Century and put them both there. But put Gibbs somewhere. Former Ole Miss assistant coach Wobble Davidson made a good point when he talked about the Team of the Century concept. "I guess it makes good coffee-shop talk, but I don't put much stock in the validity of it," he said. "It's like trying to compare Robert E.

Lee with (Dwight) Eisenhower or Eisenhower with (Norman) Schwarzkopf. These guys played in different eras, on different fields in different systems. It's like comparing apples and oranges." If Five players and coach John Vaught win spots on elite Ole Miss football squad. By Rusty Hampton Clarion-Ledger Staff Writer OXFORD The 1959 Ole Miss football team is con- sidered one of the best in school history. The Rebels went 10-1 that season, outscored their opponents 329-21 and were later honored as the Southeastern Conference Team of the Decade.

The '59 team was honored here again Saturday when five members and coach John Vaught were named to the Ole Miss Team of the Century, capping a daylong Cen- tennial Celebration that kicked off Ole Miss' Century of Heroes. 1 The 27-member team was announced in a video pre- sentation at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, following the Red-Blue spring game watched by an estimated crowd of 5,000. Named off the '59 team were offensive lineman Marvin Terrell, running back Charlie Flowers, place-kicker Robert Khayat, linebacker Larry Grantham and defensive back Billy Brewer, all of whom played from 1957-59. Vaught compiled a 190-61-12 record as the Rebel coach from 1947-70 and '73. He is the winningest coach in Ole Miss history and has the third-most victories in' SEC history.

Conspicuous by his absence from the Team of the Century was quarterback Jake Gibbs, who led the SEC in passing in '59, and led the Rebels to the national championship in 1960 while finishing third in the Heisman Trophy balloting. Gibbs was beat out at quarterback by Archie Manning, one of the most popular players in the history of Mississippi athletics. It was a banner day for Manning, who finished fourth in Heisman balloting in 1969 and third in '70. Manning also won the quarterback throwing contest earlier in the Rick GuyThe Clarion-Ledger tennial Festival Saturday. Conerly, a member of the Team of the Century, was pitted against other ex-Rebel greats.

Charlie Conerly, Ole Miss quarterback in the mid-1 940s, drops back for a pass during the Ole Miss Football Cen- day in the Grove, a part of the Centennial Celebration festivities. Ole Miss will begin is 100th season of collegiate football this fall. Manning has been honored many times since leaving Oxford. "This is right there at the top," he said. But, Manning added, "you can't pick a team like this without having a lot of great football players left out." The day was not without controversy.

Twenty-nine people held a peaceful protest outside Vaught-Hemingway Stadium prior to the Red-Blue game, calling for the school to ban the playing of Dixie at athletic events. Twenty-seven players were named to the Team of the Century, picked in fan balloting. Centennial Marketing of Birmingham handled the balloting. Kirk Wood of Centennial Marketing said about 4,000 ballots were returned, properly marked. He said players who were within 5 percent of the leader were considered ties and included on the Team of the Century.

That's why there were five offensive linemen, plus a center, three running backs; five linebackers and five defensive backs. Of the 27 players, 15 were All-Americans. They ranged from defensive lineman Bruiser Kinard, a 1937 All-American to offensive lineman Everett Lindsay, a 1992 All-American. Pos. Name Years DL Bruiser Kinard '35-37 DL Kelvin Pritchett '88-90 DL Ben Williams 72-75 LB Tony Bennett '86-89 LB Kenny Dill '61-63 LB Larry Grantham '57-59 LB JeffHerrod '84-87 LB Freddie Nunn '81-84 DB Billy Brewer '57-59 DB Glenn Cannon '67-69 DB Chris Mitchell '87-90 DB Jimmy Patton '52-54 DB Todd Sandroni '87-90 Jim Miller '76-79 Pos.

Name Year Floyd Franks '68-70 Barney Poole "42; '47-48 OL Jim Dunaway '60-62 OL Gene Hickerson '55-57 OL Stan Hindman '63-65 OL Everett Lindsay '89-92 OL Marvin Terrell '57-59 Daw8onPruett '87-90 QB Archie Manning '68-70 RB Charlie Conerly '42; '46-47 RB JohnDottley '47-50 RB Charlie Flowers '57-59 PK Robert Khayat '57-59 tit -Player Bios, 7D John Vaught He's right. Maybe the Team.of the Century does make for good coffee-shop talk. Without Gibbs, my coffee's bitter. Stories abounded this special day Otherwise, Saturday's nostalgia-filled events here went off without a hitch. The morning began gray and dreary.

The clouds parted and the sun appeared at just the moment Archie Manning and John Vaught appeared on stage in The Grove to be interviewed by present and former Ole Miss announcers. Those interviews with former players and coaches were perhaps the day's highlight. Many stories were told and not all involved football. Allen Brown, another first-team All-American who didn't make the Team of the Century, told about one of his first days at Ole Miss. He and four fellow freshmen were playing Rook, using a cot as a card table.

In walked Johnny Brewer, a former Rebel All-American, then with the Cleveland Browns and back for a visit. Brewer was quite the outdoorsman. He was wearing waders and a headlight and carrying a sack. Brewer walked to the cot, emptied the sack and hollered, "Hey freshmen, clean these." Out came several snakes. Brewer then walked out the door, but not before turning off the lights.

Someone heard all the hollering and commotion, opened the door and turned on the lights. There were four freshmen standing one-legged on the headboard of twin bed. Brown, himself, was standing on the sink. "I'm telling you four ballerinas would have had a hard time doing what four 250-pound linemen were doing," Brown said. The ball is snapped to Archie-Activities also included a passing competition for former quarterbacks.

Naturally, Manning won it. In the first round of the competition, Manning hit a target 50 yards away square in the hands. The crowd went wild. Manning threw last in the final round. His competition all had tried for the more difficult targets with a higher point value, and had missed most of their throws.

Manning only needed a few points to win, so he picked out the shorter, 20-yard target and nailed it four times to clinch the victory before missing twice at the 50-yard target. On another day, another person at another school, might have been accused of taking the easy way out Not Manning, not here. Said one spectator, "Just goes to show how smart Archie is." I Little-known Morris steps up, 4D NFL could phone Holmes early I i If most draft experts are right, the Tylertown native won't have to wait long today. Holmes has been projected as a first-round pick. Most draft analysis have him going to ei-ther the Houston 12,708 jam Dudy Noble for MSU-Auburn game Bulldog baseball outdraws spring football game.

The Clarion-Ledger STARK VILLE Mississippi State baseball once again was the highlight of Super Bulldog Weekend. A crowd of 12,708 showed up at Dudy Noble Field Saturday and watched the Bulldogs split with Auburn. It was the fourth-largest home crowd ever. The Bulldogs and Tigers play a single game today at 2 p.m. In Saturday's spring football game, the alumni team beat the varsity 7-0 in a half of football played before 8,432 fans.

Varsity quarterback Todd Jordan threw for 192 yards and two touchdowns as the No. 1 offense played against the No. 2 defense. MSU offense needs receivers, 4D J' i "From our standpoint, Lester is one of the top three offensive linemen in the draft," said Brian Ranson, Holmes' Atlanta-based agent. "He is physically ready to make an impact.

He can play either guard or tackle." South Carolina offensive tackle Ernest Dye, who played two years at Itawamba Community College and Alabama defensive tackle John Cope-land, who played at Hinds Community College, are also expected to be first-round selections. Memphis State wide receiver Russell Copeland of Tupelo and Ole Miss offensive tackle Everett Lindsay are expected to go in either the second or third Some nine Mississippi State players are expected to be drafted between the fourth and eighth rounds. See DRAFT, 2D The Jackson State lineman is projected as a first-round pick. By Derrick Mahone Clarion-Ledger Staff Writer For the past four years Lester Holmes has been Jackson State offensive line coach Carl Roberts' prize pupil. Today when the NFL draft begins, Roberts will be anxiously awaiting to see what the future holds for Holmes.

"I'm most definitely nervous," said Holmes, a 6-foot-3, 280-pounder. "You never know what is going to happen. I just going to sit back and wait." The draft begins this morning at 11 and will be televised live on ESPN. The first four rounds will be held today and the last four on Monday. Holmes Oilers with the No.

19 pick or Phoenix Cardinals with the No. 20 pick. The Minnesota Vikings, who have the No. 21 pick, are also interested. A JSU player hasn't been selected in the first round since 1975 when two were picked, Walter Payton and Robert Brazile.

TV TODAY NOTEWORTHY BY THE NUMBERS THE HOT CORNER It's tedious television at its best. The annual NFL Draft airs at 1 1 a.m. on ESPN, but hosts Chris "King of the Nicknames" Berman, Tom Jackson and Joe Theisman never met dead air they couldn't fill. Ole Miss' Ed Odom helped the Rebels finish third in the men's 1 relay during Saturday's Penn Relays. Georgia Tech won in 3:04.26 as anchor Derek Mills ran down Ole Miss and Ohio State in the stretch with a 45.2-second quarter.

Ohio State held on for second in 3:04.96. Mississippi State's Kenny Roberts was fifth in the 100-meter dash in 10.67 seconds. 4 4 mi The Clarion-Ledger won two honorable mention awards in the annual Associated Press Sports Editors writing contest. Sports editor Donald Dodd was awarded an honorable mention for column writing in the under 150,000 circulation category. Twenty writers nationwide were honored, including a Top 10 and 10 honorable mentions.

The Clarion-Ledger special edition Football '92 a preview of the 1 992 football season also got an honorable mention in the under 150,000 circulation category. The APSE contest was judged by a panel comprised of member newspapers. Orioles 6 Royals 5 Indians 10 Athletics 3 Tigers 17 Twins 1 Angels 8 Red Sox 5 Yankees 1 Manners 0 National League Braves 11 Cardinals 0 Reds 15 Cubs 5 Marlins 2 Rockies 1 Expos 6 Giants 1 Padres 5 Mets3 Phillies 7... Dodgers 3 Astros 8 Pirates 4 Texas Leauge Arkansas 6... Jackson 3 Tulsa 3 Shreveport 0 State Colleges Miss.

State 4-1 Auburn 2-6 Alabama 3-2 Ole Miss 2-6 USM 13 NC-Chariotte 1 Jackson State 4-8 Alcorn State 3-4 Miss. Valley State 1-5 Jacksonville St. 9-3 Delta State 7-6 Livingston Miss. College 9-1 Mobile 2-2 Belhaven 1-1 Wm. Carey 5-16 0-1 MillsapslO Trinity 2 American League Blue Jays 10 White Sox 4 Rangers 15 Brewers 4 Odom H's the final day of the NBA regular season, and the New York Knicks meet the Chicago Bulls in likely preview of the Eastern Conference finals at 11:30 a.m.

on WLBT (Channel 3). New York holds a 2-1 season edge. Listings, 9D Mississippi College's hopes for the Gulf South baseball playoffs are dashed by Livingston. 3D The Atlanta Braves rev up their offense and pound the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

6D 17-.