The Battalion: November 21, 2016

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Junior running back James White holds the ball over linebacker Josiah Tauaefa in Saturday’s game against UTSA.

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ONE STEP FORWARD

Aggies top UTSA 23-10, pulling in eighth win of roller coaster season

By Heath Clary @Heath_Clary

A

fter suffering demoralizing losses in consecutive weeks leading into Saturday’s game, No. 25 Texas A&M desperately needed to get back to its winning ways.

The Aggies (8-3, 4-3 SEC) did just that against UTSA, defeating the visiting Roadrunners 23-10 in front of 102,502 fans at Kyle Field.

“It was important,” head coach Kevin Sumlin said after the game. “We moved some guys around and finished the game and that was big. Coming back in the short week, with some energy and some confidence was really what we wanted to get done today. I thought for the most part that’s what we did.”

Trayveon Williams rushed for 80 yards and scored a touchdown, Jake Hubenak

completed 19 of 32 passes for 248 yards and a touchdown and Josh Reynolds led the Aggies in receiving with 93 yards and a touchdown on seven catches.

As a team, the Aggies outgained the Roadrunners (5-6, 4-3 CUSA) 431-252.

That drastic yardage difference might suggest a lopsided outcome on the scoreboard, but that was not the case.

A&M jumped out to an early 10-0 lead by scoring on two of its first three drives.

On the Aggies’ opening drive of the game, Hubenak found Reynolds over the middle for a 16-yard touchdown to cap off an eight-play, 83-yard drive.

Two drives later, the Aggies moved the ball down the field again but had to settle for three points. Hubenak completed a pass to Ricky Seals-Jones on a critical third down to keep the drive alive, but after three runs by Williams near the goal line, Daniel LaCamera made a 24-yard field goal.

UTSA quickly responded, though, FOOTBALL ON PG. 4 Leah Kappayil — THE BATTALION

Texas Central hosts design contest for high-speed railway stop in Texas

By Sanna Bhai @bhaisanna Texas Central is progressing toward building the first ever high-speed rail that would go through Dallas, Houston and Brazos Valley by 2023, making it possible to travel between these cities in less than 90 minutes.

To involve the generation that will be the primary users of that rail, Texas Central opened up a competition to design a railway stop to present to a panel of judges to the architecture departments at eight universities — Texas A&M, Prairie View A&M, University of Texas at San Antonio, University of Texas at Arlington, University of Texas, Texas Tech, University of Houston and Rice University.

Rebecca Cowle, Class of 2012 and outreach manager for Texas Central, created the idea to involve college students in this process and spoke to the respective department heads to pitch this project to the students. Involving the students was important to her because they are the future of this project, she said.

“We are so excited to have student input because students are the future ridership base and they are the ones that will grow up with this technology,” Cowle said. “Just like we can’t live without our smartphones, I think this high-speed rail will reach the same height.”

Ralph Hawkins, a judge for the competition, explained the four aspects the judges were looking for in order to score the projects fairly to give them the score they deserve.

“We used score sheets and we looked at creativity, innovativeness, and how they applied technology, in specific, sustainability and then an overall score for each of the projects,” Hawkins said.

“So it was a very objective project overall.”

Maggie Darver, architecture grad student at UT Arlington and competition finalist, completed this project individually, requiring her to do an immense amount of work. As a child, she was exposed to architecture and she said she hopes to one day be the lead architect in her family business of building homes. She said this project provided her with the experience she needed.

“It is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I really liked that it was a part of where I grew up in, Dallas,” Darver said. “My mom inspired me to take part in architecture because when I was six years old, she started building houses and I was the one who was always fascinated by what got her into it. This fascinated me and caught my attention, and it still does to this day.”

Hawkins said he was impressed by the excellent work he was able to review from all the schools.

“I was so impressed with the submissions from the students,” Hawkins said. “Their insights, I’m sure faculty had a lot to do with it as well, but their insight, their fresh approach — I found very exciting. Each submittal was very unique and there was not a lot of duplication. There was great thinking behind each of the teams that I reviewed.”

Cowle said the vision of the high-speed rail is that it is going to be an iconic structure that inspires people to travel. This vision is what they set out to look for in the submissions of the students.

“We view that the future high-speed stations for this project really and truly are going to be iconic structures,” Cowle said.

“We want it to capture that excitement of train travel. We want people to walk into that station and just we wowed by just the inspiration of what a journey can inspire.”

Law to make cyberbullying attacks a misdemeanor

By Alice Corcoran @AliceJ_Corcoran

“David’s Law,” legislation against cyberbullying that would make online attacks a misdemeanor offense, was filed in Austin Nov. 14.

Morgan Engel — THE BATTALION

Construction on the Student Rec Center, which is still underway, is projected to be completed sometime in the Spring 2017 semester.

Rec nearing completion

By Brooklyn Figueiredo @brooklyn_fig

‘David’s Law’ filed in Austin

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CONSTRUCTION

“David’s Law,” legislation which would require schools to have a cyberbullying policy, give students the opportunity to report cyberbullying anonymously and allow schools to investigate bullying off campus, was filed in Austin earlier this month.

The law is named after David Molak, a 16-year-old Alamo Heights resident who took his own life in January this year after consistent cyberbullying, and has been supported widely on campus in large part due to the efforts of David’s brother, Chris Molak, an economics senior.

Chris Molak said the law is important because it will establish a standard wherein cyberbullying becomes a misde-

meanor, hopefully reducing incidents.

“Without a legal precedent for dealing with online aggressors who are repeatedly targeting underage [individuals] with the intent of inflicting emotional pain or distress, a standard determined in court, the behavior will not curb itself out and these incidents will continue to occur to young Americans whose long-term sight on their own lives is crippled by their real and current short term abuse,” Molak said.

“David’s Law” has been opposed by people who believe it is an infringement on the First Amendment. Molak, however, said he believes the right to free speech is not a free pass.

“Free speech is not, and has not been, a free pass to say whatever, whenever…The worst contribution to David’s legacy would be for this standard to be utilized illegitimately or for DAVID’S LAW ON PG. 3

“Finish the Rec,” has become a campus-wide joke, making appearances on Twitter, Facebook and even on College Gameday signs. But after more than two years of construction, the end may finally be in sight this upcoming spring semester.

After a little more than two and a half years of construction, Texas A&M’s Rec Center is one of the top three largest in the country. According to executive director Dennis Corrington, the number of students attending Texas A&M has grown about 47 percent since the center was first opened back in 1995. The average 1.2 million card swipes has been the same since the day it opened, meaning the Rec Center has been full since it opened.

Due to the growing student body, there have been multiple areas of overcrowding including parking, the weight room, basketball courts and the natatorium. The student use of the recreation center has gone from 86 percent of the student body down to only 76 percent. Corrington said this data shows even though the Recreation Center is bursting at the seams with students, less of the total student body is able to use it because of the limited space.

“We have done several surveys of user groups and the message that kept coming back was over crowding in the weight room after 6 p.m. There would be two or three people waiting in line to use the equipment and so many people would go find another place to workout,” said Rick Hall, senior associate director.

The basketball and volleyball intramural sports teams would have to take turns to practice on the limited indoor courts due to the amount REC ON PG. 2

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Elephant Walk to be held Monday Hundreds of seniors, juniors to continue long-standing tradition

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By Brad Morse @BradMorse53 Starting at the Quad and ending at Kyle Field, hundreds of seniors and juniors will walk around campus reminiscing about their time in Aggieland for the annual “Elephant Walk” Monday.

The Elephant Walk, one of Texas A&M’s oldest traditions, began in 1922 when two Aggie Band freshmen played a funeral tune and walked around campus after the Aggies lost their second football game in a row to start the season. The remaining freshmen band members soon followed suit and made the walk after every game that year, which saw the Aggies finish with a 5-4 record.

The tradition picked back up in 1926 when the senior class made the walk around campus a final time to remember their time at the university. The tradition has since evolved, and every year a group of seniors make the walk around campus to remember their time at A&M. It has expanded to include a junior “E-Walk,” where the junior class sends off the seniors.

The name “Elephant Walk” comes from the seniors resembling dying elephants, who walk around the places where they have memories. The se-

niors’ time at A&M is drawing to a close and this tradition is meant to act as a parallel to the elephants.

“Elephant Walk is a time of remembrance,” said Claire Wimberly, senior class president. “As we walk around campus, we stop at and pass by wellknown locations, maybe from the building where you took your first class as a freshman, to the building where you’re taking your upper-level classes preparing you for your future career.”

Maintaining the original E-Walk tradition, the Aggie Band plays a funeral walk while the senior reminisce.

“As we walk to the funeral march played by Aggie Band members, we recognize that our time on campus is coming to a close. It reminds us that we have to make the most of every moment we have left here in Aggieland,” Wimberly said.

Last year, the Class of 2016 turned out over 1,300 seniors to participate in the walk, which was the highest number in several years.

“We hope to at least match that, but [we] think we will see an increase in numbers,” said communication senior and director of the senior Elephant Walk Albert Saenz.

Saenz attributes the increased turnout to the marketing of the event.

“Around campus, you see the wooden elephants and the tombstones. We made an effort to get the word out,” Saenz said.

The tradition is also being changed from previous years, where live elephants would be on campus. This year’s walk will reintroduce a part of the tradition that has been absent for the last five years, according to Haley Pocock, political science and history junior and director of the junior Elephant Walk.

“We are really trying to get it back to its original somber tone,” Pocock said. “The walk will end with the seniors taking a lap around the inside of Kyle Field, which we hope encourages people to come out.”

Saenz echoed Pocock’s statement.

“It’s very ceremonial, and it’s exciting for these students who have never been on the actual field,” Saenz said.

Due to construction, inside access to Kyle Field has been limited to the public.

The Elephant Walk committee will be selling T-shirts, and the money raised will go to the seniors’ class gift to the university. The gift was voted on during last spring’s Student Government elections and will be announced at the end of the walk.

The walk, which takes place Nov. 21, starts at the Quad and will begin at 6:17 p.m. for seniors and 6:18 p.m. for juniors. All that is required for participation is to show up. Additional information can be found on the event’s Facebook and Twitter pages, both @AggieElephantWalk.

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Morgan Engel — THE BATTALION

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of teams and regular students occupying them. Many events are hosted in the natatorium, which often leaves the A&M swim team, students and swimming classes with the outdoor pool if the weather is permissible.

Because of these complaints, the school decided an expansion was necessary.

“Below the new terrace area is the new strength and conditioning room, which is now a little over 32,000 square feet,” Hall said. “They have done substantial completion but through that process you develop a punch list which are all the things that haven’t been done or need to be improved, repaired or replaced.”

The Rec Center is able to spend about $3 million on new loans every year. With that budget, combined with the student body fees and the amount of money from a previous loan, the construction was able to begin without raising student fees. After construction, the Recreation Center will be 417,000 square feet.

“We didn’t want to ask the students for any more money to do this. We were able to [start new construction] because we paid off one of the loans. We were able to build this and remodel the facility at a cost of about $55 million,” Corrington said.

The other larger areas, which were added based on the demands, include a brand new eight-lane lap pool and two basketball court gymnasium that can be converted into two volleyball courts or one soccer court. Additionally, two new fitness class rooms with a glass wall and patios looking out onto Olsen Field were constructed.

New ideas were also included in the con-

struction, such as a separate heavy bag room for boxers that has four heavy bags and three speed bags. A large meeting or activity room is also available for functions and banquets as well as multiple event rooms, mainly focused on providing student organizations spaces to meet.

“Ever since the Reed building was removed, students only had the few meeting rooms in the MSC as an option to meet in with their organizations,” Hall said. “Now we hope this new construction will provide plenty of more options for them.”

The construction began in April 2014, focusing on the swim and mechanical aspects.

About $8 million worth of pool updates were completed in four months. $1.6 million was spent on all the lighting components, installing LED and high efficient lighting. A second entrance will be added to the rec center, featuring a biometric entry system so students will simply be able to enter the Recreation Center just by scanning their hand.

Hall said some of the major renovations will go unnoticed such as the entirely new roof, new air conditioning system, concrete floor, lighting and paint. Throughout the whole project, keeping the Rec Center open and accessible for students was one of Hall’s number one priorities.

“I feel that the construction has taken a while. But if the resulting [Recreation] Center’s facilities are a major improvement, I’m perfectly okay with that,” economics junior Zach Morrow said. “The construction itself never conflicted with my ability to use the current Rec Center, and although it can get quote crowded, I could always find times to go.”

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Volunteers deliver Thanksgiving food to less fortunate for 33rd year in B-CS

By Emily Bost @EmmyBost

Volunteers from the Bryan-College Station community will congregate in the early hours of the morning Thanksgiving Day to take part in the 33rd annual “Thanksgiving in the Brazos Valley.”

Epicures Catering first partnered with A&M Chartwells in 2014 to host the event with help from hundreds of local volunteers, donors and the Brazos Valley Food Bank, to distribute Thanksgiving meals to less fortunate members of the community.

Meal preparation will begin around 4 a.m.

Nov. 24 by 10 workers and two to three chefs in Duncan Dining Hall, the largest kitchen in Brazos Valley. Volunteers will begin arriving around 8 a.m. to complete meal preparation, packaging and the hand-delivery of around 1,200 meals by lunch time.

“We assemble a whole line of service in Duncan Dining Hall,” said Marc Cruz, Chartwells senior executive chef. “We pass down trays, cook turkeys, sweet potatoes, green beans, cornbread and sweet potatoes. We open up the back of Duncan’s loading dock and set up a table and have a delivery system that covers the whole Bryan-College Station area of people who requested meals for that day.”

Each delivery driver is assigned a limited number of meals to deliver, as strengthening community ties and engaging in conversation

is an important part of the event, said Courtney Bryant, Chartwells director of marketing and guest experience.

“We want people to have an opportunity to spend time with those they make the deliveries to,” Bryant said. “It makes them feel like someone truly cares about them and we’re not just dropping off a meal. We’re taking the time to have a conversation.”

Danny Morrison, owner of Epicures Catering, came up with the idea of delivering Thanksgiving meals to community members in need in 1983, originally under a different name.

“It is really special knowing that we can provide meals for families that don’t have them,” Bryant said. “Those families can gather around a dinner table and share a meal and hopefully feel like they’re valued community members.”

Morrison’s original program included payment for the service, but after visiting with a particular family and listening to their testament as to what barriers kept them from producing their own meal independently, he discontinued charging for the delivery and meals, evolving into today’s Thanksgiving in the Brazos Valley.

Morrison said the event is an opportunity for him to give back to his community who has helped sustain his business in the Bryan-College Station area for more than 30 years.

“The community comes together and does this. It’s not [Epicures Catering’s] project, it’s Bryan-College Station’s,” Morrison said. “It’s a wonderful thing and I should feel so fortunate to have tied myself into Texas A&M.”

COURTESY

Thanksgiving in the Brazos Valley has been a yearly occurrence for more than three decades.

DAVID’S LAW CONTINUED

Economics senior Chris Molak has been advocating for “David’s Law” after his brother committed suicide due to consistent cyberbullying.

FILE

insignificant altercations,” Molak said.

The fight for the passage of “David’s Law” in Texas legislature is led by State Senator José Menéndez.

“We have to draw a line,” Menéndez said. “This has to stop and so that is why we are doing this. So we can find some relief for the kids being bullied and tell the bullies ‘You are not going to get away with it.’”

House Representative Ina Minjarez has also worked closely with the Molak family to champion the fight for “David’s Law.”

”With technology, children are being cyberbullied 24 hours a day,” Minjarez said. “We owe it to the youth of Texas to take action on their behalf.”

Molak said he has appreciated the efforts of Menéndez and Minjarez as well as everyone else who has showed public support of the law.

“Having supporters contact state senators and representatives actually makes a notable difference in spreading David’s story and proceeding with the bipartisan legislation,” Molak said. “Working with intelligent and dedicated groups and individuals on the other side of the political aisle has reinstalled my hope for a better, more productive America.”

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Junior defensive end Myles Garrett recorded a season-high 4.5 sacks Saturday against UTSA.

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going 75 yards on the ensuing drive to cut A&M’s lead to 10-7. Quarterback Jared Johnson, who replaced Dalton Sturm early in the first quarter, appeared to find his rhythm on the drive by completing three passes of at least 10 yards.

LaCamera made two more field goals before halftime to extend the Aggies’ advantage to 16-7, but arguably the most pivotal play of the game came in the third quarter. After Hubenak completed a 37-yard pass to SealsJones on third-and-16, Williams found daylight off the right side and was off to the races.

The freshman running back sprinted 47 yards to the house for his first run of over 15 yards since the Tennessee game Oct. 8.

“That was very big,” Hubenak said. “The offensive line did a great job opening a hole for him and that’s what that kid does. He makes plays, he’s got breakaway speed. It was a great run.”

Meanwhile, the Aggie defense stopped the run, something the unit hadn’t done the past two weeks. UTSA ended the game with a paltry 48 rushing yards.

“After the last few weeks and the things we’ve been through, it feels good to hold

them to that many yards,” said freshman defensive back Larry Pryor. “Hopefully we can continue to do that.”

All-American defensive end Myles Garrett, who has been battling injuries recently and said he hasn’t been close to fully healthy, broke out in a big way against the Roadrunners. Garrett recorded 4.5 sacks — surpassing his season total entering the game — and said he was happy to get back on track.

“It was great to finally be able to move and get off close to how I wanted to,” Garrett said. “I just demonstrated at what level I can play at when I’m close to being healthy.”

Pryor said he wasn’t surprised by Garrett’s breakout performance.

“He smiles every day,” Pryor said. “You see him come out and work hard, so seeing what he did today didn’t really surprise me.”

With the win the Aggies will now begin preparation for their Thanksgiving Day matchup against LSU, who lost 16-10 to Florida on Saturday. The game is slated to begin at 6:30 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN. “We’re extremely excited about it,” Hubenak said. “Obviously it’s a quick turnaround. We’re excited for the challenge we have ahead of us, and ready to try and go get a win.”

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