Some athletes bow to pressure, forget good advice
(Editor's Note: This is the second in a series of three stories that will study what it means to be a student athlete at the University of Kansas. Today, how some athletes handle the role of student is
By STEVE BOYCE Kanson Staff Reporter
If you attended classes from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and spent two or three hours of the afternoon running, bainting heads with 240 pound tackles or bainting lap after lap, would you study in the evening?
or if you rode a bus to Lincoln, Neb., Friday afternoon, played a basketball game Saturday night and rode the bus home Sunday, could you pass an examination on Monday?
Those are questions that must be answered by student athletes at the University of Kansas. By accepting scholarships, they accept the pressures and expectations of participation in a sport at a major university.
The athletes have been told since they were
recruited in high school that education comes before sports.
Head Track Coach Bob Timmons says, "Our goal is that anyone who attends KU will come with the idea that he is going to graduate. This is so implemen- tation and I reason one attends college is to get one's degree."
However, when an athlete tries to be both student and athlete, the goins can be rough.
"It's time consuming," says baseball player Rob Ohm of his architecture major, "and I know there are architects who have drawn out—either designed athletics or dropped athletics and continued architecture.
"Road trips are really hard because you have to spend a lot of time in architecture in your studio at Marvin Hall and there's no way you can make that up. You have to do in four days what the other people do in seven days because you don't get back until Sunday, usually late at night.
One of several obstacles to be overcome by the athlete who tries to be a good student is fatigue.
Especially as the athlete works to get into shape in the preseason of his sport, and also while that sport is in season, he may be too tired to study or to concentrate in class.
Senior basketball player Dale Greenlee says, "I definitely puts a load on your studies. All your afternoon is occupied and a lot of times after practice, you just don't feel like studying."
The athlete must sometimes cope with a great deal of pressure, especially in the major sports. To a great extent, the player's successes or failures on court or field determine his status as a human beloit.
"We have games on Tuesdays and you're worthless in class on Tuesday morning." Ohm says. "There's no way you can concentrate in a class because everybody involved in being prepared for the game."
Al Lopes, former KU basketball player who is a third year law student, says of basketball, "It's a game more than anything else, but people have messed up their lives because of that game.
"Aubrey Nash never quite lived up to his high school billing because he made it out to be more than a game and let it bother him too much when he was criticized.
"The press reports it when a person misses a couple of free throws in crucial moments. Then everybody reads the papers and says, 'Hey, this guy misses.' He's just trying to lose him, he loses his confidence and messes on his life."
Otm says some teachers don't like to have athletes in their classes. He says this is probably because some athletes have used excuses to get out of class work.
Basketball player Tommie Smith offers this example of a situation that separates the non-
numeric from the numeric.
"I take my books out of town all the time," he says. "But on the bus, traveling, you may start to read but you can't really concentrate on what you're doing.
"For the Iowa State game Tuesday you had to eat and be in bed by 10, so that cuts out studying."
Wednesday, after the game, you’re tired. You get up early the next day go to classes, come home
"It's more if a dude comes here to play sports or really study.
Nevertheless, Smith plans to graduate in May with a degree in journalism. He has studied enough to earn his degree in four years and proves that some athletes can be successful students.
Lopes says that sometimes people refuse to accept the athlete as just another human being.
"They put you up on a pedestal and you're an ido or something," he says. "But when you come here, you're just a student, like anybody else on campus, but maybe with just some exceptional talents.
"But I guess people have their reasons for putting the athlete above everybody else. After all, he probably lives in the nicest place on campus and he eats the best food on campus."
Some advantages the athlete has over the nonathlete help greatly to offset the difficulties.
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY
See BOOKS Page 3
KANSAN
Polls open today and tomorrow
Vol. 85—No. 89 Wednesday, February 12, 1975
The University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas
Campaign speeches, ads, slogans and other paraphernaill will already have begun to fade into the past when student government leaders today and Thursday.
Although candidates for student body president and vice president are planning to do some campaigning today, most of the candidates have ended their campaigns.
During the two-day election, students will elect a student body president and vice president, 93 Student Senators and 12 class officers. Four teams are seeking the student body presidency, 155 students are running the student body presidency, and 20 students are running for class office.
The candidates for president and vice president are: Lewis Gregory, Wichita senior, and Tedde Tasehoff, Wichita sophomore; Barbara O'Brien, Brenner Springs junior, and Steve McMurray, Norton junior; Ed Rolfs, junction City junior, and Kevin Wheeler, junction City junior, Paul Sherbo, Colorado Springs junior, and Gerald Long, Kansas City Kan.,Junior.
Polls will be open today only from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Watkinson Scholarship Hall, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Nairmuth Hall.
A student may vote only for the candidates running for Senate seats from the student's school or college and only for class officers to represent the student's class. All students may vote for student body president and vice president.
Students must show their KU identification cards and registration cards below.
Between 50 and 75 student volunteers are working on the election, Joyce Hudson, chairman of the Senate Elections Committee said Tuesday.
Votes will be counted Thursday night and posted in the Big Eight Room of the Kansas
Two years ago, votes were tabulated by counsel, but this year the votes will be counted.
Debaters sharpen minds, tongues
"We think it will be quicker than the computer and should be about $1,200"
"we could do that."
Poll will be open Thursday only from 1 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Pearson Scholarship Hall, from 1 a.m. to 1 p.m., Smith and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Oliver.
Polls will be open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.f. today and Thursday at Alpha Kappa Lambda, Alpha Delta Pi, Sigma Kappa, Kappa Alpha Theta, in jobbies of McColm, and Lewis halls, in the cafeteria of Gertude Sr. Pearson Hall.
Polls will be on campus from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and Thursday in Summerfield Hall, Wescoe Hall and the Kansas Union.
Presidential salute By Staff Photographer GEORGE MILLENNER III
On his arrival at Cedar Crest, the Kansas governor's mansion, President Gerald R. Ford gave a quick salute to nearby newmen before hurrying inside to escape the cold. The president met with Gov. Robert F. Bennett and other Midwest governors. See story and more pictures page 12.
By DANHAWTHORNE
Kansan Staff Reporter
Houston junior, finished fourth in the same tournament.
The teams of Prentice and Snow, Rowland and Cross won first place "swirling" awards Oct. 1 at tournaments at the University of Washington and the University of Northern Colorado.
See DEBATE Page 5
Some people might think arguing is a senseless waste of time, but arguing persuasively is a highly competitive and entwined affair. I am about 30 University of Kansas students.
Rowland and Cross also took six place out of 120 teams at Northwestern University Feb. 8, second place out of 60 teams at Stanford and third place out of 88 teams at the University of Southern Carolina.
A swing award is given to the team whose combined score is the highest for two specified tournaments. Two first place teams receive a single tournament and two tournaments and KU teams won both.
"I generally spend about 40 hours a week, in a nontournament week, doing research and developing teaching material. Turon junior, says, "Debate is stimulating, enjoyable and informative for me and it provides an academically competitive atmosphere that you couldn't find anywhere."
The students, members of the KU Debate square spend many hours perfecting their abilities.
The efforts of debaters at KU have often been rewarded.
Donn Parson, debate coach, in January received the Distinguished Coaching Award for 1975. The award was presented by the University of Utah. Cohorts were judged on their ability to debate program and a coach's general contribution to forensics. Parson said.
KU debates consistently have placed high in tournaments this year. Robin Rowland, Lawrence sophomore, and Frank Cross, Lawrence sophomore, won a tournament of about 60 teams Feb. 1 at Baylor University. Prentice and Phil Snow.
"Any time that you can finish first or second in a tournament of over 50 teams, you're rewarded."
Ford flays Congress on economy, energy
By RICHARD PAXSON
Kansan Staff Reporter
TOPEKA-President Gerald R. Ford criticized Congress for not acting on his economic and energy plans and announced that he would not visit for $15 during his visit to Toonek Tuesday.
Ford, who spoke at midday to a joint session of the Kansas Legislature and answered questions at an evening press conference, maligned Congress for its failure to adopt his recommendations on immigration and national security and revitalizing the economy.
“At least it’s a program,” he said. “If there is a better program, Congress should come up with it. I will not tolerate delay. I will stop the inaction. The crisis is far too serious.”
At both the legislative address and the press conference, Ford held his 167-page report on economic and energy recommendations in one hand and in the other hand that the United States of representatives suspending his authority to impose import tariffs on foreign oil.
"I say with sadness that Congress has been working on a four-page bill to suspend the federal pension system."
Prof fined for aiding false claim
Donald Bushell, associate professor of human development, pleaded no contest Tuesday to a Class C misdemeanor charge in connection with his activities while director of the Wooddawn Elementary School Follow Through program.
Mike Malone, assistant Douglas County Attorney, said, in a statement released by the county attorney's office, that Bushell was acquitted of the charge of abetting the presentation of a false claim.
The charge against Bustell was a result of that investigation into the Woodiaw program. The program was discontinued last sorting.
A University of Kansas auditor program last summer, subsequently turned over to the Kansas Attorney General's office for investigation, showed that $3,000 had been falsely claimed on travel vouchers.
The Woodawra program, working in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Education, used behavior analysis techniques to develop programs for use by Follow Through schools nationwide. The national program was started in 1987 to help disadvantaged children who were having trouble with work in kindergarten through third grade.
Malone said there were other charges that could have been brought against Bushell, but that the county attorney's office thought that a conviction on one charge be just as effective as a conviction on several.
"The main interest we have in this is to stop this kind of activity." Malone said. "One conviction will effectuate the same result."
Malone didn't say whether plea bargaining was involved in the decision to go to trial.
Additional charges may be brought on Thursday against other persons involved in the incident. He said the extent of the additional charges and who would be responsible were still under study by the county attorney's office.
said. "We need action, I hope Congress will absorb what it is doing and work with it."
"The funds are needed and can be put to immediate use," Ford said. "They can help an industry that has been one of the hardest hit."
Ford said he was releasing $2 billion in impounded federal highway funds at the airport, where he met with officials during the last two days in visits to Atlanta, Houston and Topeka. Many of the governors told him that matching state funds would be enabled if the federal funds were released, be said.
The purpose of releasing the funds, he said, was to produce 125,000 to 140,000 new jobs in the construction industry, to improve highway safety and to complete key infrastructure projects. As a part of the released money would be used to further develop urban mass transit.
States must be willing to begin construction by June 30 to qualify for the funds, because
Ford said Congressional inaction on his energy proposals was making the farm states more and more dependent on an international energy cartel.
"Costs, profits and production are all now at the energy of a foreign force." he said.
He said farmers would save an estimated $360 million if his recommended increase from 7 per cent to 12 per cent in the investment tax credit was adopted.
at the mercy of a freedom co., he said.
A program of rebates to farmers to compensate them for increased petroleum costs is being considered, Ford said.
The Southern and Midwestern governors with whom he has met on this trip generally have been supportive of his economic and business interests, which they now better understand the plans.
"They had mixed emotions," he said,
"but basically they summed it up."
Ford said some of the governors had objected to proposed ceilings on pay increases for federal employees and limits on wages in some government retirement plans.
"I will not let American agriculture run out of gas." Ford said.
"But they preferred this program to a four-page step backward," he said, making reference to the House bill on oil import tariffs. No governor endorsed Congress's effort to bear many governances calling for gas barriers or arbitrary allocations or quotas.
The only part of his energy program about which he has had second thoughts as a result of his consultations with the goverment, is that he should fund the midfall profits of oil companies, Ford said.
He said he found "some justification" for the argument that the oil companies should be allowed to reinvest their excess profits in other industries, such as sources of petroleum products. But he declined to say he would modify his energy recommendations to allow such a re-investment.
Ford refused to predict what the unemployment rate would be at the end of the year, but said that AFL-CIO President George Meany "pulled" figure out of the air when he predicted Sunday that the unemployment rate may soon rise to 10 percent.
In response to questions at the news conference, Ford said:
"I see no prospects for any appointment, because of his health." Ford said.
"—It is my judgment that unless progress is made, there is a very serious prospect of another war in the Middle East, which if it were successful, would be the possibility of another oil embargo."
$300 million is the minimum he could recommend for military aid to South Vietnam.
- If Secretary of State Henry Kissinger returns from his current negotiations in the Middle East with encouraging news, he will step forward to mediate a step-by-step peace agreement.
-It is unlikely that former President Richard M. Nixon will be appointed soon to any government post, including the U.S. ambassador to China.
"The $300 million would give to South Vietnam the opportunity to defend itself against aggression," Ford said. "Anything less makes its defense less effective."
Handicapped map
By Staff Photographer DON PIERCE
Finding time between editions of a geology publication he edits, Roger Williams prepares a campus map showing which buildings are accessible to the handicapped. Williams, a member of the University Committee for the Architectually Handicapped, will be visiting students trying to open KU up to more handicapped students and faculty. See story page 5