The Rice Thresher, Vol. 93, No. 9, Ed. 1 Friday, October 21, 2005 Page: 12 of 20
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Page 12
THE RICE THRESHER
Friday, October 21, 2005
Stephen
Whitfield
"THRESHER SPORTS/commentary
Rice-UH soccer fans
show levels of passion
There are four levels of fandom at any sporting event.
The first level consists of people who really don't care
a whole lot about the sport they're watching, or about
sports in general. These "fans" come to a game because
everyone else is doing so. You'll usually find these
people only at a season-opener or a playoff game. You
may see a lot of them rooting for the Houston Astros
in October.
Level two of fans is no different from level one, except
they have a vested personal interest in the game. By
that, 1 mean level two fans have a
friend or significant other playing
in the contest who they want to
cheer on; otherwise they would
have no reason to attend.
The fans who make up level
three follow the action very in-
tently —almost too intently. They
do not talk much during the game
because they're so focused, and
when they do say something,
it is usually a comment about
strategy or formations.
Finally, someone on level four
epitomizes the word "fanatic." He stands up for the entire
game, screaming out his support and constantly thinking
of catchy, cruel things to say in front of the opposing
bench. This person may be inebriated or shirtless. You
know these fans. I know these fans. They make the game
more enjoyable for everybody.
Friday's Rice-Houston soccer game gave a perfect
example of all four levels of fandom and of how a dedi-
cated level four fan can inspire each of them.
For the first eight or nine minutes of the game, the
crowd had about as much energy as a boring lecturer.
Of the 1,087 people in attendance, only about 20 or 30
seemed to be paying attention to the proceedings on the
field, and half of them were Cougar fans. 1 surmised the
stadium was full of level one fans. It would make sense
for these fans to attend a game against UH, since the
Cougars are our cross-town rivals. About seven people,
who looked like level two or three fans, stood on the
front row behind the Owl bench.
Early on, the real action took place at the other end
of the stands, behind UH's bench. 1 saw about 10 rowdy
fans dressed in red, cheering loudly, and assumed they
were Cougar supporters. Behind them was an equal
number of Rice fans trying to drown out the UH fans
with their own cheers. TTiey were all definitely level four
fans. One of them may have already been drunk by the
start of the game; it was difficult to tell. However, after a
fourth-minute goal put the Cougars up 1-0 there wasn't
much cheering to be done, since each Rice statement
was met by a retort of "look at the score" or something
of that nature.
One person in that group of Rice fans, whom I'll call
"Superfan," walked over to the seats behind the Rice
bench and implored us all to get on our feet and cheer,
screaming, "If you still have a voice by the end of this
half, then you're not cheering loud enough!" The over-
all mood of the crowd changed at that moment. Some
fans sitting a few rows behind me stood up, moved
to the front row and started cheering to their hearts'
content — maybe not as full-on level fours, but certainly
as twos or threes.
Everyone was into the game the rest of the way, and
Superfan was leading the charge. He made sure the
crowd didn't get too passive and always came up with
something catchy to say at the appropriate moments,
like saying "Houston cheats" after every Cougar foul.
Superfan was a true level four fan. I couldn't quite
comprehend the hold he possessed over some of the
crowd. Late in the second half, I noticed a group of
young girls sitting under Superfan, devising some very
catchy cheers of their own. They looked like level four
fans in the making.
Stephen Whitfield is a Sid Richardson college sophomore and
comports editor.
Volleyball extends win streak to four
Rice hosts Central Florida tonight, C-USA leader Marshall on Sunday
by Matt McCabe
THRESHER EDITORIAL STAFF
After suffering its first 3-0 loss at
home since Oct. 23, 2003, the volleyball
team rebounded with a four-match win-
ning streak, including two gutsy, five-set
victories over Conference USAopponents
Southern Methodist University and Uni-
versity of Central Florida.
"After the rough homestand, we
knew we had to win," freshman out-
side hitter Karyn Morgan said. "What
better place to do it than on the road?
We wanted to win in other people's
houses."
Rice (13-4,4-2 C-USA) will face a crucial
portion of its schedule over the next two
weeks, with five consecutive matches at
home. After yesterday's match against
UAB (12-4, 3-3), the Owls take on East
Carolina (12-8, 3-4) tonight at 7 p.m. The
weekend will culminate with Rice squar-
ing of f against conference leader Marshall
(14-5,6-1), which is led by outside hitter
Kelly-Anne Billingy, the C-USA preseason
player of the year.
"We have three matches in our en-
vironment, in our comfort zone," head
coach Genny Volpe said. 'This is kind of
a turning point in the conference. A lot of
teams are one match away from getting
into first or second."
At the halfway point of the confer-
ence season, the team's newcomers
have begun to understand their vital
roles on the team.
"I think a lot of us have realized
what a big part of the team we are and
that we need to pick it up," freshman
middle blocker Jessica Holderness
said. "There is kind of a sense that we
TAYLOR JOHNSON/THRESHEF
Junior middle blocker Tessa Kuykendall goes up for a kill in Rice's 3-2 win over SMU Oct.
8. The Owls will host UCF tonight at 7 p.m. and Marshall Sunday at 1 p.m.
know we need to win. It's not really
pressure — it's kind of a drive to win."
After the disheartening loss at home
to Tulsa Oct. 7, Rice came out firing on
all cylinders, winning the first two sets of
its Oct. 8 match against SMU (8-11,4-3).
The Mustangs battled back to even the
match at two games each before the ()wls
took control in the fifth set, never trailing
en route to winning the game 15-10 and
the match 3-2. Sophomore libero Yvette
Kirk led the team with 31 digs, tying for
the second most in a match in Rice his-
see VOLLEYBALL, page 15
Football to play resurgent Navy team
by Adam Tabkain
THRESHER STAFF
The football team will conclude its
four-year series with the United States
Naval Academy at 5 p.m. Saturday at
Rice Stadium, after the scheduled Sept.
24 meeting between the teams was post-
poned due to Hurricane Rita.
Rice (0-5,0-3 Conference USA) is one
of the five teams in NCAA Division I-A
without a win, and Navy (3-2) has won
all three of its games in October. Head
coach Ken Hatfield said Navy is a much
different team now than it would have
been Sept. 24 when the Midshipmen
were still winless.
"Both of us are very similar in a lot
of things we do," Hatfield said. "They've
got more confidence now, naturally, by
winning."
The Midshipmen and the Owls are two
of the three remaining teams — along
with Air Force—that run an option-based
offense. Rice's rushing attack has aver-
aged 206 yards per game but has fallen
well short of expectations, Navy is fourth
in the nation with 267 yards per game on
the ground.
After facing several potent passing
attacks in recent weeks, the shift to de-
fending the option is a demanding one,
even for a team that runs the option.
Charlie Rizzo was promoted from
linebackers coach to defensive coordi-
nator after a 41-28 loss to East Carolina
University Oct. 8. replacing Roger
Hinshaw, who is now safeties coach.
Rizzo had an immediate impact in his
first game as the players mirrored his
intensity.
But in order for Rice to have a suc-
cessful outing against Navy, the defense
must turn the corner. Currently, Rice is
worst in the nation in scoring defense
and fourth-worst in total defense, and
through five games, the Owls have
forced just two turnovers. No other
team in Division I-A has forced fewer
than five.
With the defense's inability thus far
to create turnovers for the offense, Rice
has continued to rely on ball control
to give itself scoring opportunities.
Fullbacks have always been a large
part of Hatfield's option offense, and
the tandem of junior Andrew Cates and
sophomore John Wall have combined to
average 63.6 rushing yards per game.
Cates, the starter, said he and Wall are
supportive of each other.
"We just help each other out," Cates
said. "It's not really a competition per
se. I'm happy for him when he scores
or has a good run."
Hatfield said he hopes sophomore
center David Perkins, junior running
back Mike Falco and senior running
back Thomas Lott will return to game
action Saturday. All three have battled
injuries this year, and only Perkins has
seen any playing time this season. Their
places in the starting lineup have been
temporarily filled by freshman center
Austin Wilkinson and freshman running
back Tommy Henderson.
"One of the guys who has played
as well as anyone on this team is
Tommy Henderson," Hatfield said.
"You see some of the catches he has
made — he is really a gifted athlete.
He has good running skills, but he has
great hands."
Senior placekicker Brennan Ixindry
has been another bright spot for the
Owls. With 166 career points scored,
I,andry is an extra point away from
tying Derek Crabtree (Jones 02) for
third all-time at Rice and for first among
kickers.
Hatfield said he hopes Rice fans
remain positive.
"You hurt for (the team)
because ... you want them to have
some great experiences," Hatfield said.
"They'll remember the people who
encouraged them, because anybody
can say something negative — that's
always the easy thing to do. ... You ap-
preciate the people who can appreciate
the things (the players] are getting done
rather than what they're not."
0WL00K - THE WEEK IN SPORTS
Friday 10/21 7 p.m.
7 p.m.
Saturday 10/22 5 p.m.
Sunday 10/23
10 a.m.
1 p.m.
1 p.m.
Soccer vs. Tulane (Rice Track/Soccer Stadium)
Volleyball vs. East Carolina (Autry Court)
Football vs. Navy (Rice Stadium)
Game rescheduled from Sept. 24 due to Hurricane Rita
Swimming vs. North Texas (Rice Pool)
Soccer vs. UTEP (Rice Track/Soccer Stadium)
Volleyball vs. Marshall (Autry Court)
BY THE NUMBERS
The last time a former Rice athlete played in the World Series was
1990
when Norm Charlton, who played at Rice from 1982 to 1984, pitched for the Cincinnati Reds. The
Reds swept thervdefending champion Oakland Athletics 40 to capture the title. Lance Berkman,
a first baseman at Rice from 1995 to 1997, will play in the World Series this year after his Hous-
ton Astros defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 4-2 in the National League Championship Series.
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Obermeyer, Amber. The Rice Thresher, Vol. 93, No. 9, Ed. 1 Friday, October 21, 2005, newspaper, October 21, 2005; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth443146/m1/12/?q=%22%22~1: accessed June 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.