news for you texas Heat energy crisis AUSTIN — The Texas electric grid managers are appealing to the public again to shut off their lights or any other nonessential consumers of electricity. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas is making the appeal each afternoon this week as record afternoon heat breeds record demand for electricity. ERCOT initiated what it calls Energy Emergency Level 1 at 2:50 p.m. Wednesday after reserve generating capacity for the grid fell below 2,300 megawatts.
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thebattalion ● thursday,
august 4, 2011
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It was a lot of fun to finally see these guys that you’ve heard so much about and see what kind of players they are. I liked our intensity, our effort. Our guys really had the right attitude teamwise tonight, being unselfish and being excited to play.”
At the
— Men’s basketball Head Coach Billy Kennedy
helm
Connie Thompson The Battalion Kelli Flanagan, class of 2006, died in a car accident on Jan. 23. To honor her memory, Flanagan’s family set up an endowed Texas A&M University scholarship. The Kelli Marie Flanagan Memorial Scholarship will benefit countless deserving students, said Stephen A. Holditch, head of A&M’s Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering. Holditch also said that Flanagan’s department is honored that her family and friends have chosen to remember her with this perpetual scholarship. “After the first day or two, I thought of doing the scholarship,” said Judy Flanagan, Kelli’s mother. “I called my sister-in-law, who’s an Aggie, and asked her to get it started. Anadarko also asked if they could help.” Kelli came from a family of Aggies that included her sister, aunt, uncle, cousins and grandfather. “She grew up going to Aggie football games and was very loyal to Texas A&M,” Judy said. Kelli graduated with a degree in petroleum engineering and worked on Anadarko’s Petroleum Corp.’s internship recruitment team. Judy said that she believes the endowed scholarship, which will assist Aggie petroleum engineering majors, is a fitting tribute to her daughter because she received a Society of Petroleum Engineers scholarship as an undergraduate. “I want the scholarship to help other students afford college,” Judy said. “I also hope it makes young people aware of the opportunities in petroleum engineering and furthers that industry.”
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sports A&M to play in 2K classic NEW YORK — Texas A&M will face Mississippi State and Arizona will play St. John’s in the semifinals of the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer. The four schools will serve as regional hosts for the 12-team tournament that will culminate with the semifinals set for Nov. 17 at Madison Square Garden. The third-place and championship games will be Nov. 18. The bracket for the early rounds and subregionals will be announced at a later date. All 12 teams are guaranteed to play four games.
nation &world Mother punches baby BOSTON — A mother accused of punching her toddler son in the mouth on a city bus and shouting expletives at him was surrounded by a “hostile” crowd of passengers until police arrived, authorities said Wednesday. Erica Ryan pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Roxbury District Court to a charge of assault and battery on a child causing injury. Prosecutors requested bail be set at $25,000; a judge set bail at $500 and ordered Ryan to stay away from the boy. Associated Press
Family creates memorial scholarship
sports
Von Miller and Jerrod Johnson sign with NFL teams after the winning 9-4 season with the Aggies. AGGIE ATHLETICS
Coach Kennedy running drills with the 2011 - 2012 Aggie basketball team in preparation of the season.
Men’s team to take on international opponents on 10-day Eurotrip Adrian O’Hanlon III The Battalion In his first attempt to piece together a title contender at Texas A&M, men’s basketball head coach Billy Kennedy tipped off the 2011-2012 season with a two-hour practice in preparation for the team’s upcoming European Tour. The Aggies had a two-hour workout inside the Cox-McFerrin center July 27, the first of 10 practices allowed before the team’s 10-day visit to Switzerland and France starting on Aug. 8. It was the first workout for the Aggies under Kennedy. “We had good energy,” Kennedy said. “It was a lot of fun to finally see these guys that you’ve heard so much about and see what kind of players they are. I liked our intensity, our effort. Our guys really had the right attitude team-wise tonight, being unselfish and being excited to play.” Kennedy said the first workout served to introduce the players to his system and brush up on FIBA rules and regulations before the Aggies depart for their first foreign tour since 2003 when the team visited Italy. Basketball will be played but the trip will mainly serve to build a team atmosphere and acquaint the Aggies to their new head coach’s style and system against teams in-
cluding the Swiss National Team. Kennedy has proven successful as a defensive-minded coach with a half-court offense, compiling a record of 107-53 at Murray State and leading the Racers to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Now in his first year at the helm for A&M, Kennedy has the foundation in place with David Loubeau returning for his senior year and Khris Middleton returning as the team’s top-scorer from last season. Middleton may not make the trip with his teammates as he is attempting to make the USA Basketball World University Games Team. Freshmen Jamal Branch, Jordan Green and Grant Jolly had their first taste of Aggie hoops in the workout and will join the rest of the team on the trip. Rounding out A&M’s roster are seniors Dash Harris, Alex Baird and Jarod Jahns, juniors Ray Turner and Naji Hibbert (will wear No. 2 this season), redshirt junior Elston Turner, sophomores Kourtney Roberson and Keith Davis, Blake McDonald (will wear 12) and redshirt freshman Daniel Alexander (will wear 20). The team departs on Monday, Aug. 8 and will also visit Lake Lucerne, Mount Pilatus, the River Seine, the Eiffel Tower and the Palace of Versailles.
Follow online ◗ For photos, videos and game updates you can follow the “Fast Break” blog on www. aggieathletics.com
Aggies sign with NFL teams Adrian O’Hanlon III The Battalion The NFL lockout ended last week allowing teams to talk to and sign free agents. After the first weekend of talks, a list of Aggies have been on the move in the longawaited NFL offseason. Former A&M linebacker Von Miller inked a deal with Denver for four years and $21 million including a $13.773 million signing bonus. Denver agreed to pay Miller the league’s minimum salary of $375,000 in his first year with big pay raises in the following years and added a team option for year five. Miller was the second overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, tying the highest selection in school history, where Hall of Fame quarterback and Broncos chief of football operations John Elway compared him to the late Kansas City pass rusher Derrick Thomas. Fittingly, Miller will wear No. 58 as he enters his rookie season in honor— and in comparison—to the former NFL great. Miller came to College Station with high expectations as a hybrid See Football on page 3
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