VOLUME 106, ISSUE NO. 3 | STUDENT-RUN SINCE 1916 | RICETHRESHER.ORG | WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2021
‘CLB’ is a good listen but nothing new JACOB PELLEGRINO
THRESHER STAFF
Classes with over 50 students expected to remain virtual unless petitioned ILLUSTRATION BY CHLOE XU
BONNIE ZHAO
ASST NEWS EDITOR
Rice University announced last week that classes with over 50 students are expected to be delivered remotely unless instructors of those classes successfully request an exemption to teach face-to-face, according to an email sent by the Office of the Provost. Christopher Johns-Krull, the speaker of the Faculty Senate, said that the decision to have larger classes held online was to provide an extra layer of safety against potentially large COVID spreading events. “We have no indication that the classroom has spread the disease, we don’t know for sure,” Johns-Krull said. “But we know that the Delta variant is more transmissible. So we’re trying to watch out for safety as best we can given the information that we have.” Provost Reginald DesRoches said Rice uses dynamic risk assessment to adjust the strictness of their public health policies strategy. “While we have no evidence that classes greater than 50 would be less safe, we are
acting out of an abundance of caution as the population dynamics of [the delta variant] remain poorly understood and the number of cases in the Houston area remains high,” DesRoches said. DesRoches said that the longevity of the policy depends on the COVID-19 conditions on campus and in the surrounding
We have no indication that the classroom has spread the disease, we don’t know for sure. But we know that the Delta variant is more transmissible. Christopher Johns-Krull
SPEAKER OF THE FACULTY SENATE community. “The Crisis Management Advisory Committee meets multiple times a week to assess the latest surveillance data and adjust university policy to achieve the best
balance of health and safety safeguards and [meaningful] in-person learning experience,” DesRoches said. Johns-Krull said there is a possibility that this policy may be for the full semester, but that it also may be temporary depending on the situation. According to Johns-Krull, professors that believe the nature of their material works better in in-person format are encouraged to talk with their deans, their department chairs, and the provost to come to the best solution for a given class, depending on its particular needs. “We do recognize that classes, and some classes more than others, really don’t function as well online as they do in person,” Johns-Krull said. “So [it’s] a balancing act to try and preserve both the educational experience and the overall safety [of our community]. Trying to strike that right balance is a little uncertain.” Noah Spector, a Baker College freshman, created a change.org petition in response to the policy, calling for the administration to give professors the choice to teach in person. SEE VIRTUAL CLASSES PAGE 3
On “Certified Lover Boy,” Drake continues to prove that consistency is key — at least for him. Essentially delivering the same type of music that he has for years, Drake created a highly polished and enjoyable listen, even if he doesn’t really do anything new. “CLB” is drenched in Drake’s perennial themes of heartbreak and braggadocio, along with the strong features and glossy production typical of his work. Although “CLB” was heavily delayed throughout the past year, Drake continued his release strategy from “Scorpion” by dropping a second “Scary Hours” EP to help satisfy fans as they waited for new music. After the album’s release, the release cycle of “Scorpion” further repeated itself as Drake broke his own streaming record for an album debut, becoming Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day. The album cover features twelve pregnant women emoji with different skin tones, hair colors and shirt colors. After Drake posted the cover artwork on his Instagram, fans were surprised to learn that it was, in fact, the official album artwork and not just a promotional image. After albums primarily featuring himself on the cover, Drake’s choice of the emoji cover seems odd and out of place. Along with the title, “Certified Lover Boy,” the cover seems like an immature dedication to promiscuity, a sign of the 34-year-old rapper’s lack of growth. Drake consistently crafts strong intro tracks, and “Champagne Poetry” on “CLB” is no exception. Using the beat from Masego’s “Navajo,” which samples The Beatles’ “Michelle,” Drake raps about fatherhood, his success, social justice and the pressures of fame. The looping production and pitched-up Beatles sample create an entrancing sound that enhances Drake’s long verses. Recent scrutiny of Drake’s actions — from being called out for displaying his wealth in a music video released during the COVID-19 pandemic to criticism for not using his platform to help when a friend was killed —is explored on the song. Drake also addresses the “charges being laid” and what he sees as “sweetheart deals” from judges in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests and unrest in response to police brutality and the loss of Black lives in the United States over the last year. Another highlight of the album is the Travis Scott feature, “Fair Trade,” SEE CERTIFIED LOVER BOY PAGE 8
The Bayou Bucket: The story behind the ‘ugliest trophy in sports’ DANIEL SCHRAGER
SPORTS EDITOR
David Bailiff cherished the two times that he won the Bayou Bucket during his tenure as the Rice head football coach from 2007-2017. But that doesn’t mean he has any misconceptions when it comes to the trophy’s appearance. “The trophy is as ugly as can be,” Bailiff said. “But it’s so valuable when you win it.” When the Rice football team hosts the University of Houston this Saturday, the two teams compete for the right to lift the Bucket, a 47-year-old dented piece of metal mounted on a trophy that has been awarded to the winner of every Rice-UH football game since 1974. The trophy is overseen by the Touchdown Club of Houston, a local organization dedicated to football-related causes in the city. According to Neal Farmer, executive director of the Touchdown Club, the trophy began as an idea in 1974.
“For years, the Touchdown Club had a luncheon [for the University of] Texas, [Austin]-Texas A&M [University game],” Farmer said. “In 1974, some of the guys [at] the Touchdown Club said ‘well if we do something for Texas-Texas A&M, we need to do something for Rice-Houston.’ So they got [together] with the two coaches, [Al] Conover and [Bill] Yeoman, and they agreed to have a luncheon before the game.” Once the coaches were on board, the club had to find a way to draw attention to their event, according to Farmer. “They sat around and one of the guys [there] said ‘how can we promote this?’” Farmer said. Inspired by the Old Oaken Bucket given to the winner of the game between Purdue University and the University of Indiana, the Touchdown Club’s board decided to create a trophy for the game made out of a bucket. But they still needed a name.
“It took them two meetings,” Farmer said. “Finally [former Texas football player Delano Womack asked], ‘what’s
It took them two meetings [to come up with a name]. Finally [Delano Womack asked], ‘what’s Hoston known for?’ and [Fred Curry] said, ‘dirty bayous.’” Neal Farmer EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TOUCHDOWN CLUB OF HOUSTON Houston known for?’ and [former Rice football player Fred Curry] said ‘dirty bayous.’”
From then on, the trophy was known as the Bayou Bucket. According to Farmer, Curry stumbled upon the perfect bucket for the trophy one day while out shopping with his wife in New Braunfels. “They found this old beat up bucket. So he bought the bucket and had a guy he knew put it on a trophy, and that’s how the Bayou Bucket came [to be],” Farmer said. Between buying the bucket and getting the trophy made, the Bayou Bucket cost the Touchdown Club a total of $179. The trophy was first awarded in the 1974 meeting between the two teams at Rice Stadium, a 21-0 UH win. In the two teams’ 39 games since its inception, the trophy has seen its fair share of college football history. In 1989, UH beat Rice by a score of 640. According to Farmer, just moments after lifting the Bucket, Houston quarterback Andre Ware found out that he had won the Heisman Trophy. SEE BAYOU BUCKET PAGE 11