Sept. 23, 2013 Vanguard by The Vanguard

VANGUARD

THE

“If it matters to the USA family, it matters to us.”

SEPT. 23, 2013

INSIDE

VOL. 53, NO. 9

Gilbert envisions the presidency at USA By NOAH LOGAN

ncl1101@jagmail.southalabama.edu

► News: Ann Sirmon is named Alumni Association president. See Campus News, page 4

► Life: Tau Kappa Epsilon hosts an outdoor movie night for St. Jude. See JagLife, page 5

MIKE KITTRELL | PRESS-REGISTER/AL.COM

Dr. Jerome Gilbert, the first of the three presidential search finalist to visit campus, speaks on his vision for USA at the Mitchell Center Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013.

r. Jerome Gilbert of Mississippi State University arrived at USA’s campus Thursday, Sept. 19, for his two-day visit as a finalist in the search for USA’s next president. Gilbert was named one of the three finalists by the Presidential Search Committee and the nominations were approved the USA Board of Trustees. Gilbert attended Duke University, where he received his Ph.D. in biomedical engineering. After graduating, he taught mechanical engineering courses at North Carolina State University for a year before working at the University of North Carolina. Gilbert returned to MSU, from which he received his undergraduate degree, to serve as head of the department of biological and agricultural engineering. During his tenure at MSU, Gilbert has served as provost of the university and executive vice president. Each presidential search finalist’s two-day visit inludes an open forum in which the general public meets and voices their concerns to the finalist. At the first open forum, Gilbert presented a powerpoint titled, “Envi-

sioning the Presidency,” which contained his six plans to take the University of South Alabama to the next level. Members from the Board of Trustees, faculty, staff and students showed up to hear what Dr. Gilbert had to say. His first and main point focused on increasing the national stature and image of the University. He likened the University to a “hidden gem” and was “bothered” by the hidden aspect of it. “I do think there is a level of quality of this institution that is up here” Gilbert said while holding his hand up at eye level. “But I do think there is a level of image and perception that doesn’t quite live up to that quality.” Along with a marketing campaign to broadcast the quality of the University, Gilbert also explained he would encourage involvement of the faculty, administration and students in national and international activities to get the University’s name out there. Student life was also a recurring topic throughout his presentation. “I would also continue to work on the student life here and making the campus a very attractive place to come study and also utlitize the athletic department as See Gilbert visits campus for presidential public forum Page 2

Employee budget to increase by 4 percent ► LOC: Dr. Joel Erdmann explains the attendance concerns brought up by students. See Left of Center, page 8

► Sports: Patrick Rohr takes first place for men’s cross country at Azalea City Classic. See Sports, page 12

By NOAH LOGAN

ncl1101@jagmail.southalabama.edu

he USA Board of Trustees has approved a 4 percent merit raise for employees of the University. The raise is scheduled to go into effect on Oct. 1 of this year. The raise applies to all faculty, administration and staff members in every department of the University, except health care employees, who saw a raise in June of this year. According to a South Alabama memorandum, this is the first proposed increase for the University General Division since October 2007. A 2.5 percent raise was given in October 2011 but only as a result of a 2.5 percent increase in the Retirement System of Alabama deductions. The the same

find us on Facebook search “The Vanguard USA”

memo also includes, “This is possible because of the continuing diligent management of finances at all levels of the University, some growth in enrollment, a small increase in state appropriations, and modest tuition increase.” A 4 percent raise seems simple and straightforward, but in reality, the planning and details of this raise require further explanation. Vice President of Financial Affairs Steve Simmons was able explain the raise in detail. According to Simmons, the raise comes after former President Gordon Moulton promised the faculty that he would do his best to see a raise be put into place in the 2013-2014 fiscal year. This promise came before his unfortunate illness, but the Board of Trustees felt it still needed to be done. See USA salaries Page 3

Check out our digital edition thevanguardonline.com

NOAH LOGAN | STAFF REPORTER

The 4 percent raise for the USA employee budget takes effect Oct. 1 for administration, faculty and staff, like Sheila Tolbert (pictured) in Dining Services. In this Issue:

Life, Page 5 Left of Center, Page 7 Sports, Page 9 Opinion, Page 13

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Gilbert visits campus for presidential public forum Continued from Page One.

a way of getting the national brand and image out to the public.” Gilbert’s third standpoint focused on faculty salary. Gilbert made the point that the future of the University resides in the faculty and taking care of them should be a priority. “I would want to affirm the fact that the strength of the University truly rests with its faculty. And if we’re going to be a great university, we need to not only attract but keep great faculty here.” His fourth point brought attention to the University’s constant plans to increase enrollment. While he thinks we should aggressively try to keep enrollment rising, Gilbert explained that keeping, or even reducing, the current student faculty ratio of 21:1 should be just as important. An aspect that Gilbert said deserved immediate focus and attention is the current retention and graduation rate of students at the University. South Alabama currently as a retention rate of 60 percent and a graduation rate of 37 percent. Gilbert ended his speech by specifying how a president will be able to achieve all the goals he mentioned. “It will be done with integrity, respect, hard work and a commitment to excel-

lence.” After his speech, the floor was opened up to questions from the audience. Faculty President Dr. Douglas Marshall got the ball rolling with the first question. He asked Gilbert how the health care and hospital branches of the University measure up to the more stereotypical collegiate branches in terms of importance and how he saw them working together. Gilbert responded that merging the two branches together as much as possible is the key. “Well, the more ways we find to merge the two institutional branches of the University together, the better. … I think the opportunities for grant research would be greatly enhanced to have broader collaborative research teams. … I think even though there will always be a natural separation between the two, the more we can do to bring those two together, the better.” Two students from the College of Engineering brought up skewed student faculty ratios in the next question, citing that mechanical engineering currently has a 51:1 student faculty ration. They asked Gilbert how he would remedy some of these lopsided ratios. Gilbert cited methods he used at MSU to solve this problem. This solution includes a benchmarking survey

MIKE KITTRELL | PRESS-REGISTER/AL.COM

Dr. Jerome Gilbert, Provost and Executive Vice President of Mississippi State University, speaks to the public about his plans for USA at the Mitchell Center Thursday, Sept. 19. across the institution to create data driven decisions on where to put new faculty. This data would result from various aspects including, but not limited to, number of students, the number of grant dollars brought it and number of graduate students. Alumna Kim Proctor prompted Gilbert to share some of his experiences at MSU in regards to raising retention and graduation rates. Gilbert explained a wide variety of

methods and programs he implemented at MSU. One of which being an absence reporting program. “We get all of our professors that teach freshman classes to report absences and once a freshman has recorded two absences in a class, this program calls that student up and starts talking to them about why they aren’t going to class. ... We found that class attendance is perhaps the single most correlated factor in freshman performance.” Other methods included mandatory freshman on-campus living and special “learning skills courses” for academically suspended students as means of improving both retention and graduation rates. The Vanguard then asked Gilbert about the differences in getting community involvement in a college town like Starkville, Mississippi and getting community involvement in a much

larger, non-college town like Mobile. “I think you have to send a message out to the community that there is a willingness there to engage the community. I think inviting them to campus, going to community events and really sending the message out that Mobile is a partner with the University of South Alabama and that there can be a great partnership if you work together more strongly. I think it will have to grow over time but that’s something that would be part of a marketing campaign, I imagine.” This Thursday, Sept. 26, Dr. Sheri Everts of Illinois State University will be on campus to meet with the Board of Trustees and participate in an open forum session as well. It will start at 4 p.m. in the Mitchell Center and again, all faculty, staff and especially students are encouraged to come and participate.

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

“University of South Alabama’s Student Voice”

Editorial Editor in Chief Copy Editor Opinion Editor Sports Editor Left of Center JagLife Editor Web Editor Senior Reporter Staff Reporter

Samantha Andrews

Meg Lundberg Kelly Ficarelli JT Crabtree Alyssa Newton Emma Mitchell Matthew Strickland

Stuart Sox Noah Logan

Distribution Distribution Bobby Faulk Matthew Rhodes

Advertising Advertising Justine Burbank Graphic Designer Ryan Keller Sheldon Hall

Management Advising J. Sellers J. Aucoin Accounting Kathy Brannan

Mission The Vanguard, the student-run newspaper of the University of South Alabama, serves its readership by reporting the news involving the campus community and surrounding areas. The Vanguard strives to be impartial in its reporting and believes firmly in its First Amendment rights.

Send letters and guest columns to: The Vanguard University of South Alabama P.O. Drawer U-1057 Mobile, Ala., 36688. Or thevanguardeditor@gmail.com Letters and guest columns must be received by 7 p.m. on the Wednesday prior to the Monday publication. Submissions should be typed and must include the writer’s name, year, school and telephone number. All submissions become the property of The Vanguard. The Vanguard reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for length and clarity. Letters will be limited to 300 words. Letters and guest columns are the opinion of the writer. The Staff Editorial represents the consensus opinion of the Editorial Board, which is composed of the Editor in Chief, Copy Editor, Senior Reporter and Opinion Editor. All members of the Editorial Board have the same weight. The Vanguard has a commitment to accuracy and clarity and will print any corrections or clarifications. To report a mistake, e-mail thevanguardeditor@gmail.com. The Vanguard is published Mondays during the academic year, except for exam periods and vacations, and is published twice each summer. The Vanguard is supported in part by an allocation from student activity fees and operates in the Student Media Department of the Division of Student Affairs. Issues are available at most University buildings and select off-campus locations. The first copy is free. Additional copies are $1 each. Freelance writers will receive payment at the discretion of the section editor and will be notified.

USAPD Police Blotter

Weather for Sept. 23 - 29

09/18/2013 12:13 Criminal mischief second degree 171 Jaguar Drive The victim reported his car was keyed while at work. 09/17/2013 14:07 Property damage Performing arts parking lot Minor damage was done to the victims motorcycle side carry bag. 09/16/2013 21:26 Domestic violence third degree (harassing communications) Delta 6 Listed subject with intent to harass, annoy or cause alarm did so by contacting the victims via telephone. 09/14/2013 15:33 Duty upon striking in unoccupied vehicle Gamma parking lot Unknown subjects struck victim’s unattended vehicle, causing damage to vehicle. 09/12/2013 15:53 Burglary third degree Epsilon 1 Two female students had a $100 bill stolen from their dorm residents.

PATRICK BIGBIE | STAFF METEOROLOGIST

Twitter: StormTeam4g9wx Facebook: Facebook.com/StormTeam4Gamma9Wx

USA salaries SGA, Jaguar Productions put up $29,000 for homecoming Continued from Page One.

Simmons explained the 4 percent comes from the general raise in the budget for faculty, administration and staff, but this does not mean that every employee will get the full 4 percent or even any raise at all. He then went into specific detail about who gets a merit raise and how. “Faculty and administration will get a 4 percent merit raise. This doesn’t mean that every faculty member will get a straight across the board 4 percent raise, however. Faculty has their own process to determine who gets merit. Some professors will see no raise if he or she does not qualify for merit, and some faculty members could potentially see a 6 percent raise. … Staff will receive a 3 percent across the board raise with a potential 1 percent raise based on merit.” Dr. Corina Schulze, a professor of criminal justice and a member of the faculty senate, expressed a vast amount of pride in all of her colleagues at the University when questioned about the scheduled raise. “In terms of productivity in all of our colleges, we’re very competitive nationally and internationally. If you look at the new professors coming in, they’re all coming from very prestigious places, so certainly I feel it’s deserved. This University is definitely expanding. … I think I’m speaking for a lot of people here, but I’m immensely proud of what our faculty has done at this University.”

By STUART SOX sgsox@att.net

outh Alabama’s Student Government Association met to finish their fall budget and appropriations at the second round budget meeting Monday, Sept. 16 at the Fresh Food Co. In addition to appropriations, SGA also spent $14,500 on this year’s homecoming festivities. Jaguar Productions matched that amount, bringing the total cost to $29,000 for homecoming this year. Appropriation is the system by which SGA distributes funds to official student organizations at South. An organization must be active for a minimum of three full semesters before being eligible for appropriation. At the second round budget meeting Monday, Sept. 16, all organizations that turned in their appropriations packets late received funds. A total of $42,728 was requested by those organizations. The full amount requested was not awarded because some of the supplies that organizations asked for SGA to pay for are against SGA policy in The Lowdown, according to SGA President Riley Davis. More than $15,000 was approved for student

organization appropriations in the first round budget meeting Monday, Sept. 9. A total of $18,683 was requested by the various student organizations, but some did not meet all of the requirements for appropriation, such as turning in the Jag Numbers of all organization members. “I think appropriations went smoothly for having changed the appropriations bylaws this summer. We really tried to streamline them more and make the rules more clearly defined,” said Davis. “Appropriations are important for students to use because it’s a chance for them to utilize the student fees that are there for them to have,” said Davis. Each organization can be awarded up to $2,000 by the SGA annually. A total of $24,167 was allocated for SGA stipends, the funds that members of SGA receive as payment for their work. The SGA encourages all South Alabama students to attend their weekly meetings to find out about campus events and have a voice in SGA decisions as part of the student forum. The SGA meets Monday nights at 8 p.m. in the conference room at the Fresh Food Co. near the residence halls.

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Alumni Association names president, plans for future

Ann Sirmon South Alabama National Alumni Association President By STUART SOX sgsox@att.net

nn Sirmon has been named the new president of the South Alabama National Alumni Association as they make plans to continue to improve as an organization. Sirmon took office on Aug. 28. She has served previously as the vice president and secretary-treasurer. Each president serves a one-year term after serving as secretary-treasurer and vice president. “We change presidents every year,” said Karen Ed-

wards, the director of the Office of Alumni Relations. “It is an honor to serve the Alumni Association at this point… the fact that we just celebrated the University’s 50th anniversary and looking at the future, we have so much potential,” Sirmon said. The National Alumni Association has been working hard to improve as an organization. “This past year, we went through a strategic planning process. It was time to update our old plans. … We spent basically a year working on it,” said Edwards. “Our organization is 50 years old, but (it) didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to alumni until 10 years ago. … Our job is to get out there and be visible,” Edwards added. In the previous two years, the National Alumni Association Facebook page has improved from 900 to almost 2,300 “likes.” Even their event posts on Facebook are receiving more attention. “We posted a picture from the Tulane (football) game that got around 4,400 views, 50 shares and 200 ‘likes,’” Edwards said. “We also posted a picture of the scoreboard from the Western Kentucky game that went viral,” said Nick Lawkis, the associate director of membership and revenue programs at the Office of Alumni Relations. Lawkis said that having a social media presence is important for the Alumni Association. “We are going to be most effective in reaching

Marx Foundation donates $3 million to USA library By STUART SOX sgsox@att.net

ast week, the main campus library at USA was gifted $3 million by the Julien E. Marx Foundation and will be renamed after the Marx family. With this donation, many of South Alabama’s archives, which are currently housed in downtown Mobile, Ala., in what used to be Providence Hospital, will be moved to the third floor of the USA main campus library. The third floor of the library will also be renovated in preparation for the addition of the archives. The Julien E. Marx Foundation is managed by Linda Marx, the owner of Julius E. Marx Realty in downtown Mobile. In an interview with The Vanguard, Marx, whose husband Julien E. Marx passed away earlier this year, spoke about why she made the donation to USA’s library. “My late husband wanted to make sure that the archives were preserved because they were downtown in a flood zone, and we were afraid they would be destroyed,” Marx said. Marx is looking forward to the renovation of the library and the impact it will have at South Alabama. “As everyone knows, libraries are changing. Most of what is done is now research and online. The McCall Collection is a pretty big deal and will bring visitors to campus, hopefully it will be kind of a destination point for research students,” Marx said. The McCall Collection is an assortment of archives within the total archives that will be relocated to the USA library. The collection consists of old manuscript letters, slave records and other valuable historical materials. The McCall Collection is reportedly worth $3 million, according to USA Dean of Libraries Dr. Richard Wood.

“This donation means quite a bit to the library. … In terms of the significance, it’s a first,” Wood said. The largest contribution before this was $200,000. “We’re bringing those materials to campus where students have ready access. … Students can stay here on campus at the library and ask to see whatever it is they are interested in without having to go downtown for assignments,” Wood said. According to Wood, the photo archives within the collection are probably one of largest photographic archive collections in the state and the region. In the collection, there are more than 1 million photos of everything from old real estate houses to photos of Mardi Gras in past years. Unlike regular library books, these archives will not be available to check out from the library. When a student wants to view the archives, they must be viewed in a reading room at the library. The archives won’t actually be moved for at least two years, according to Wood. “It’ll take us that long to prepare for the renovations. … Renovation on the third floor will probably begin a year from now,” Wood added. Wood also spoke about the plans of getting a Starbucks in the library. The new coffee shop will be situated near the west entrance of the library where there is currently a vacated computer lab. “Construction should begin by the end of October,” Wood said. This Starbucks, according to Wood, will be a “full-fledged Starbucks,” not like the one at Shelby Hall. “Students that ordinarily go off campus to study at Starbucks will hopefully come here instead,” Wood commented. Wood said that the approximate date of completion of the new Starbucks is June of next year.

out to alumni by increasing our social media footprint, looking at other universities and see how they are doing it… what’s successful and what’s not,” Lawkis said. There are South Alabama alumni in all 50 states and 4,400 internationally, according to Edwards. Another goal in the new strategic planning of the Alumni Association is to provide the opportunity for all alumni to be engaged. To achieve this, the Association is planning a National Day of Service by South Alabama alumni called Jaguars Care. “It’s in the planning stages and will probably happen in the spring around April,” Edwards said. The Alumni Association chapter in Washington D.C. is planning to work with Habitat for Humanity on the day of Jaguars Care, according to Edwards. The Jaguars Care Day of Service is very significant for the University and its alumni, according to Edwards. “We think the Jaguars Care program is the single most important thing we can do because it’s a way for all alumni to get out there and do something for the community on behalf of USA. … It’s also something we can all do together,” Edwards said. The National Alumni Association is growing in chapters more and more every year. Their 14th chapter was just added in Los Angeles, with around 500 members. The possibility of adding a chapter in Dothan, Ala., is currently being explored. Each chapter gets a “chapter tool kit” and is encouraged to do one signature event per year, according to Edwards. For example, the Port City chapter does a wine tasting event, and Baldwin County does a “Meet the Coaches” event. Proceeds from both events go toward scholarships for new students. The National Alumni Association offers the

Children of Alumni Scholarships and the Alumni Freshman Scholarship. For this year, 35 scholarships were awarded to incoming freshmen for a total of $48,000. These funds were raised through Jag Tags for Scholarships, a program by which the National Alumni Association raises money for scholarships by selling custom South Alabama license plates. Out of the $50 cost for each tag, $40 goes to scholarships for incoming freshmen. There have been four Jag Tag designs over the last few years. The newest design became available Sept. 1. “We’re thinking we’re going to grow tremendously this year,” said Lawkis. The National Alumni Association is planning to actively promote the Jag Tags this year. This is something, they say, that hasn’t been done in the past. The National Alumni Association is also planning the construction of a new dedicated alumni center. The new building will be used for events and office space while the current alumni hall will be used for archives and events. “The current house is great for entertaining… but there are wiring issues, and it doesn’t even have running water,” Lawkis said. The current alumni hall, located on USA South Drive, is the second oldest home in Mobile at almost 200 years old. The building will be renovated when the new alumni center is built. “Our board just approved a feasibility study for the new alumni center. … We’re currently in the research stages,” Edwards said. For more information on the National Alumni Association and their new developments and events, visit their Facebook page or www.southalabama. edu/alumni.

jagLIFE

EMMA MITCHELL, JAGLIFE EDITOR eem1002@jagmail.southalabama.edu

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Weekly Lowdown

Tau Kappa Epsilon to host St. Jude charity By EMMA MITCHELL eem1002@jagmail.southalabama.edu

he Nu-Mu chapter of Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity is hosting an outdoor movie night to raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Started in 1962 by Tau Kappa Epsilon alumnus Danny Thomas, St. Jude is a nonprofit hospital that operates entirely on donations from patrons around the world. According to their website, www.stjude.org, the hospital sees about 7,800 patients annually and does not turn down a patient for any reason, including cost of treatment. St. Jude offers the best treatment to every patient, a practice that contributes to the $1.8 million daily cost of running the hospital. “(Tau Kappa Epsilon’s) main things are philanthropy and brotherhood,” said Coleman Wolf, the philanthropy chair of South’s TKE chapter and a senior professional health major. The fraternity, which has been recognized nationally for its philanthropic involvement, is hoping to raise a minimum of $1,200 through the movie showing event, all of which will go to St. Jude. Each member of the fraternity has been made responsible for pre-selling his share of the tickets, which are $5 in advance and $7 at the door. They will also be required to attend the showing

Thursday at 7 p.m. Wolf explained the topical but satirical choice by saying, “It’s funny… (but) not what real fraternities are like.” During the screening, each patron will be provided popcorn and a nonalcoholic beverage. In addition, each ticket will be entered in the night’s raffle. Raffle prizes include a traveling South Paw and a variety of Tshirts. The raffle prizes, popcorn and drinks are provided by the event’s sponsors: the USA Bookstore, the Student Government Association and Guy Harvey. Everyone attending is encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets to sit on EMMA MITCHELL | JAGLIFE EDITOR during the movie. Pledge Class President Jacob Rose (left) and Philanthropy Chair To purchase tickets, make a donation, get direcColeman Wolf (right) stand next to the sheet sign for their event. tions to the TKE house or Thursday evening at the fraternity’s off- the side of this fraternity that “no one inquire about more information, conever sees.” “This [event] is not just for tact Coleman Wolf at mcw802@jagcampus house. Pre-physical therapy major and Greek life,” said Wolf. “Anyone can mail.southalabama.edu. The TKE fraTKE (Tau Kappa Epsilon) pledge class take part. … We want to show (USA ternity would like to thank everyone in president, Jacob Rose, said about the re- students) that we’re just another orga- advance for helping them raise money for such a notable cause. They would quirements, “My career goal is to help nization.” The 1978 John Landis film “Animal also like to thank their event sponsors people. … I’m glad to be involved in House” has been selected for the as well as the women of Kappa Delta this.” Wolf is enthusiastic to show USA outdoor showing, which takes place for painting their sheet sign for them.

Question of the edition: What is the worst style currently trending in women’s fashion?

Monday > Sept. 23 •

Free STD Testing Java City, 5 p.m. -7 p.m.

Tuesday > Sept. 24 •

Girls’ Night Out Mitchell Center globe, 5 p.m.

•

Meditation Flash Mob Moulton Tower, 6 p.m. - 7 p.m.

Wednesday > Sept. 25 •

Test taking and study skills workshop Student Recreation Center, 2 p.m.

•

Alpha Epsilon Delta fundraiser - Five Guys on Airport, 4 - 10 p.m.

•

STEP AFRIKA Mitchell Center, 7 p.m.

Thursday > Sept. 26 •

TIME TICKETS POSTED FOR SPRING 2014 REGISTRATION

Friday > Sept. 27 •

Women’s Soccer vs. Texas State, 7 p.m.

•

Women’s Volleyball vs. Arkansas - Little Rock, 7 p.m.

Saturday > Sept. 28

Nathan Shadix Music Education - Senior

“Long tees and athletic shorts.”

Keith Stephens Psychology - Senior

“Cut-off shirts that expose too much torso.”

Dillon Sutton Radiological Sciences Sophomore

“Leggings and small athletic shorts.”

Ian Jones Music - Junior

“Really long T-shirts, shorts and baseball caps.”

•

Sepluga River paddle $25 students, $30 faculty - leave from Student Recreation Center, 7 a.m. - 5 p.m.

•

Jaguars vs. Tennessee (football) at Tennessee 11:21 a.m.

Want your event featured? E-mail the name, date, time, price, place and a brief tagline (under 10 words) to eem1002@jagmail.southalabama.edu

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Men, Women of Excellence host showcase

TIMOTHY BORLAND | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Men of Excellence and Women of Excellence host a performance event to integrate students and display excellence. By TIMOTHY BORLAND trb903@jagmail.southalabama.edu

he first ever Showcase of Excellence, presented by the Men of Excellence and Women of Excellence campus organizations, was held Sept. 17. The event, which took place at Moulton Tower, was a social opportunity for students as well as a musical performance. MOX and WOX were founded in 2006 through the USA Office of Multicultural Affairs to ensure, encourage and motivate African-American men at USA to establish and use leadership skills. The program focuses on class scheduling, career opportunities, etiquette and student involvement on campus. “We gather all the minority male leaders on campus, and we help them become better leaders,” said Dylan Scott Sutton, President of MOX and a sophomore radiologic sciences major. “We put them in leadership positions, so they can branch out and spread their knowledge. Through service, we try to give back to the community as much as possible. Our foundation is based on integrity, so that is what we push for.” Membership in MOX or WOX is open to any USA student. There is a three-stage process of application, interview and then induction. Additionally, each organization has GPA require-

ments of 2.5 for MOX and 2.75 for WOX. “They want people who don’t follow the trends,” said Joshua Salter, the publicity chair of MOX and a senior social work major. “Somebody who can be a role model, so people will say ‘That is a man of excellence.’” Campus fraternities Omega Psi and Kappa Alpha Psi sponsored the event. An estimated 150 people were in attendance. Guests danced to the music and cheered for student rappers performing original material. DJ Justin Walker, a senior interdisciplinary major, organized the event. “I enjoy being a member of MOX. It really helps you out as a student to broaden your horizons,” Walker said. For some students, the opportunity to perform in front of a large group of peers was a dream come true. USA student and music business major Chris Wilson headlined the night with his project Wilson 8:1. The artist performed intelligent hip-hop full of positive messages, devoid of profanity. “I just wanted to get the message across and let new people hear my music,” Wilson said. Those interested in joining MOX or WOX can contact the organizations through their Facebook page, South Alabama Men of Excellence.

Mobile Fashion Week Events KICK OFF PARTY Sunday, Sept. 22 7 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.

LACE BOUTIQUE POP-UP SHOP Monday, Sept. 23 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.

FASHION IN THE VILLAGE HOSTED BY LEGACY VILLAGE Wednesday, Sept. 25 Lace Boutique & Ruby Blue Boutique Show 6 p.m. - 7 p.m. Apricot Lane & Francesca’s 7 p.m. - 8 p.m. Pure Barre & White House Black Market 8 p.m. -9 p.m.

RUBY BLUE BOUTIQUE POP-UP SHOP Tuesday, Sept. 24 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.

FASHION’S NIGHT OUT Friday, Sept. 27 6 p.m. - 9 p.m.

THE FINALE Saturday, Sept. 28 6 p.m. - 10 p.m.

BLOOD, SWEAT & SHEARS Thursday, Sept. 26 6 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.

For more information on show locations, donations or ticket purchases, please visit www.mobfashionweek.com/

LEFT OF CENTER

ALYSSA NEWTON, LOC EDITOR akn1104@jagmail.southalabama.edu

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

THIS WEEK IN SPORTS Monday, Sept. 23 ► GOLF

South Alabama at the University of Louisiana Monroe

Friday, Sept. 27 ►SOCCER

South Alabama vs. Texas State 7 p.m at The Cage

► VOLLEYBALL

South Alabama vs. Arkansas at Little Rock

7 p.m at the Jaguar Gym ALYSSA NEWTON|LOC EDITOR

Coach Wes Darwin and players running exercises at a practice last Thursday, Sept. 19.

South Alabama Rugby back in full force With new challenges and players, rugby goes head first into fall season

By ALYSSA NEWTON akn1104@jagmail.southalabama.edu

outh Alabama’s rugby team is back in full force once again as they begin their competitive season. But before the first game at Spring Hill College this past Saturday, a lot of training and prep work went into the new team. This year, the Jags faced a new challenge. Instead of the friendly season that didn’t count toward their chances of going for a championship, the competitive season, called a matrix season, is now starting in the fall. Before, the rugby team had five to six months to prepare. This team had a mere six training sessions in all before the opening game. Even with the short amount of time to prepare, the Jags do have one advantage: returning players. In the past, rugby has struggled with numbers and returning members, forcing them to start with a clean slate every year. This year more than half the team is comprised of members who have

returned from last year, their most successful year yet. “(The returning players) have stepped up and taken a leadership role,” said Head Coach Wes Darwin. “They have to explain a lot and verbalize on the field. The new guys coming in have never played a game. You can imagine how that feels. Having team members that are experienced, that can give words of encouragement or advice helps a lot.” Even with the addition of new players, CJ Leggett, the team captain, sees promise in the team. “This year, we have bigger and better boys than we have had in the past,” said Leggett. “We have talent we have never seen before and have numbers we haven’t had access to in the past. We’re looking good. We have the potential to match and surpass our team last year.” Last year, the Jags went undefeated in the Deep South Rugby Conference and were tied for first place. Their only loss came when they

played the University of West Florida in the championship match last April in the attempt to move on to the conference finals. This past Saturday, the Jags played their rival, the Spring Hill Badgers in their first match of the season. Spring Hill’s rugby team was moved under the athletic department this past year. It is a fully-funded sports program and provides scholarships for students. Last year was the first year that South Alabama had defeated them in rugby. Unfortunately, the Jags couldn’t repeat the performance, falling 52-12. This was the first time playing in a rugby match for seven of the players, and many returning members played in different positions than they had previously. “Overall, I’m pleased with the performance,” Darwin said in a Facebook post on the South Alabama Rugby Club page. “We now need to work on a few things to get the results we desire. … The Jaguars will bounce back.”

The Jags will play at home this Saturday against Louisiana Tech. For more information, “like” the South Alabama Rugby Club page on Facebook.

Saturday, Sept. 28 ► FOOTBALL

South Alabama vs. Tennessee at Tennessee

11:21 a.m at Neyland Stadium ► Aired live on SEC TV network

RUGBY South Alabama vs. Louisiana Monroe

►

VOLLEYBALL South Alabama vs. Western Kentucky 7 p.m at the Jaguar Gym

Want live play-byplay tweets of USA sporting events and other sports info?

ALYSSA NEWTON | LOC EDITOR

Rugby players practice lineout lifting.

Follow USAVGSports on Twitter and like USA Vanguard Sports on Facebook

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Questions concerning attendance answered Dr. Joel Erdmann explains attendance concerns that have been brought up by students By ALYSSA NEWTON akn1104@jagmail.southalabama.edu

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s an FBS team, South Alabama now has a few new requirements to meet, including attendance. South is required to average 15,000 over a season for attendance at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. ESPN reported that, for the last two years, South Alabama has not met the requirement. Because South was not an FBS team, it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hurt the program, but many fans and Jaguar supporters were confused. South Alabamaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s box scores suggested that, in the past two years, we have met and exceeded the 15,000 average. â&#x20AC;&#x153;To calculate for FBS standards, there is a very narrow definition of how you count tickets,â&#x20AC;? Director of Athletics Dr. Joel Erdmann explained. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As an FBS member, you can calculate attendance two ways: actual attendance and paid attendance. In the past, we used estimations at the time. In order to use paid attendance, which will normally be the highest number, this includes all season tickets, whether attending or not, and all paid tickets as long as it is at least one-third the value of the highest price of a single game ticket whether that ticket attends or not. Any tickets which are below one-third must attend, including complimentary student tickets. â&#x20AC;Ś You add all those up, and thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s how, per FBS rules, attendance is dictated.â&#x20AC;? With this new requirement in place,

many students were concerned. When attending the first game of the season against Southern Utah, some students reported that they were simply waved in, without purchasing a ticket or having their Jag IDs swiped. When asked about this occurrence, Erdmann explained they might have been counted in a different way. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They should have been clicked,â&#x20AC;? Erdmann said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We should have a scanning system and a backup clicking system. If a student ID is not valid, we canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t submit a ticket. There is a redundancy to where we have physical clickers. They should print a ticket for every student, scan or click.â&#x20AC;? Erdmann assures that the department is diligently counting every single person who walks through the gates at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. If there are any questionable instances, Erdmann encourages that any questions or concerns be brought to the athletic department. As for attendance, Erdmann sees Southâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stands filling up more and more in the future. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I hope (attendance) increases,â&#x20AC;? said Erdmann. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I hope to see season ticket holders utilizing their tickets. I hope students keep showing up in great numbers. I hope we can continue to get over 2,000 students and see walk-up sales increase.â&#x20AC;? The next South home game will be homecoming on Oct. 19 against Kent State.

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ALYSSA NEWTON | LOC EDITOR

The student section of Ladd-Pebbles Stadium was filled with over 2,000 Jags on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2013.

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

SPORTS

JT CRABTREE, SPORTS EDITOR jtc804@jagmail.southalabama.edu

Jay Jones @_JayJones8: Running back It don’t cost a single dime to keep it real! Drew Dearman @Heavistotle: Offensive lineman Sloppy top Tennessee Chris May @CmayFive5: Offensive lineman

PATRICK HERRING | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Tyrell Pearson’s first interception sets up the game-winning touchdown for the Jags against WKU.

Pearson comes up big in the clutch Senior DB has made a big impact this year in limited playing time

By PATRICK HERRING pwh802@jagmail.southalabama.edu

“

Big time players make big time plays.“ Those are the words senior cornerback Tyrell Pearson tweeted after his performance during the football team’s come-from-behind win over Western Kentucky last week. A game in which he intercepted two passes and made two tackles. Did I mention he didn’t see the field until the fourth quarter? Pearson, who was named to the preseason All-Sun Belt Conference Team, was suspended for the first two games of this football season for a violation of team rules. During his absence from the field, he has been honing his skills and working to become a better player. “It was frustrating (sitting out the first two games), but like Coach said, when your time comes, you’ve just gotta (sic) make the best of it. Keep chopping wood and keep working

because your time will come,” Pearson said. His time came, and he responded in a big way. With the game tied and little more than two minutes left on the clock, Pearson jumped the route on a pass from Hilltopper quarterback Brandon Doughty, intercepted it and returned it 49 yards to the end zone. Though an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty would negate the touchdown, it still set up the game-winning score for South Alabama. In a last-ditch effort, Western Kentucky drove to the Jaguar red zone, but on the final play of the game, Doughty lobbed a pass into the end zone. Pearson leapt, came down with the ball and sealed the victory. For his late-game heroics, Pearson was named the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Week. Defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach Kevin Sherrer is excited to have him back working

with the defense. “It means a lot. He has a lot of energy, he wants to be a really good player,” Sherrer said. “He’s an instinctive player, makes a lot of plays, and that’s kind of been his trademark over the years is having the ability to make big plays at key times.” After playing two seasons at Mesa Community College in Arizona, where he recorded 11 interceptions and 19 passes defended, the Greenville, S.C., native transferred to South Alabama in order to be closer to home. “I figured I’d come back down this way to the south to be closer to home, to my family, my grandma and my little girl.” In his first season playing with South Alabama in 2012, Pearson was named a third-team All-Sun Belt selection by Phil Steele Publications. He started all 13 contests for the Jaguars and led the team in interceptions (4) and passes broken

up (11). He also added 40 tackles, three of which came behind the line of scrimmage. Even after missing the first two games of the season, he’s already on pace to better some of those numbers. Pearson wants to continue improving as the season progresses, and his goals are clear: “I just wanna (sic) keep working, keep getting better in my technique and keep making plays like I’ve been doing,” Pearson said. What is unclear is whether or not Pearson will get the start at Tennessee this weekend, but he will surely see the field and have more opportunities to make plays on what may be the program’s biggest stage to date. The Jaguars’ game at Tennessee will be featured on the SEC Network. Kickoff is scheduled for 11:21 a.m. Saturday at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville.

1/3 of the way to our first bowl game 1/6 of the way to our first conference championship Ross Metheny @RMetheny15: Quarterback Desmond Howard, it’s “regulations” not “regalashuns” Jereme Jones @That_Man11: Wide Receiver I feed off negative energy which means haters are welcomed.. Bryant Lavender @O_Yea_ThatKid8: Wide Receiver That feelin when you done with your school work for the week!! *does happy dance* Shavarez Smith @Shavarez: Wide Receiver It was great seeing all my family at my game. I got to blow my mother a kiss after a big play. priceless.

@USAVGSports

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

By JT CRABTREE

jtc804@jagmail.southalabama.edu

he Lady Jags soccer team completed a three-game home sweep on Sept. 15, defeating Alabama A&M 11-0. Linsey Snavely scored a hat trick, while three others scored their firstever collegiate goals against the Lady Bulldogs. Clarissa Hernandez, Monique Autmon, Stacie Bevens, Alyssa Mayer, Kristyn Thacker, Carlaine Myers and Snavely all scored for the Lady Jags. Hernandez started the scoring at the ninth minute for her second goal of the season. Snavely scored at the 21st, 64th and 71st minutes. Bevens added two goals (48th and 58th minutes) of her own, her first two of the season. Autmon scored her first goal of her Lady Jag career at the 24th minute. Mayer added two goals (53th and 59th minutes), running her season total to four. Thacker and Myers added goals at the 85th and 88th minutes, respectively. Both goals were their first of the season. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was a little disappointed with the way we came out. We started a bit sluggish and didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t give our opponents the respect they deserved,â&#x20AC;? said Head Coach Graham Winkworth. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We talked about that at halftime. I believe you should show

VANGUARD ARCHIEVES

Linsey Snavely scored three goals against Alabama A&M on Sept. 15.

Lady Jags sweep three-game home series Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s soccer team continues best start in school history, rank top in nation intensity for 90 minutes and show your opposition respect. We put our foot down on the pedal in the second half and worked a lot harder.â&#x20AC;? The Lady Jags outshot the Lady Bulldogs 50-6. Making her collegiate debut, redshirt freshman Sarah Hay

recorded two saves in the shutout. Hay became the third Lady Jags goalkeeper to record a shutout in a week after Lauren Arnold shutout Southern 8-0 and Melissa Drish shutout Murray State 2-0. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In the second half, we managed

to tire the opponent out by moving the ball out wide and putting crosses in, and, finally, putting some in the back of the net,â&#x20AC;? Winkworth said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m happy with the three wins, all shutouts. We used three goalkeepers this week, and it was nice for all of

them to get a shutout. Our defense has been working hard.â&#x20AC;? The Lady Jags next played South Florida and North Florida on the See Soccer continues torrid pace Page 11

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VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Soccer continues torrid pace Continued from Page 10.

road before returning home to open their conference schedule, playing host to Texas State on Sept. 27. “South Florida and North Florida is really going to be one of the toughest weekends we will face, and that’s the reason we put them in the weekend before conference starts,” Winkworth said. “South Florida are flying in their non-conference schedule right now against very good opponents. They have some national team players that are very strong. North Florida played South Florida close the other week, and they’ve got a very big, deep squad. It’s going to be a challenging weekend on the road, but we’re excited to get to work

this week to prepare for them.” Following their three-game series where they outscored opponents 210, the Lady Jags’ (7-1-1) impressive final scores have gained national recognition. South Alabama soccer ranks No. 1 in the country in goals scored (36), assists (38), shots (202), shots on goal (96) and points (110). USA is 26 points ahead of the next closest team (Virginia). USA has outscored opponents 36-8 and outshot opponents 202-85. Freshman Lauren Allison is second in the country in points with 23 and third with nine goals scored. The Lady Jags’ 7-1-1 record is still the best start in program history.

PATRICK HERRING | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Brandon Bridge (left) and Ross Metheny (right) have seen the most snaps at quarterback this season.

Jags’ offense high powered at QB Rotating different quarterbacks leaves teams confused By JT CRABTREE

jtc804@jagmail.southalabama.edu

VANGUARD ARCHIVES

Clarissa Hernandez has scored two goals this season for the Lady Jags.

Volleyball unable to play in tournament By JT CRABTREE

jtc804@jagmail.southalabama.edu

ue to teamwide injury and illness, the South Alabama women’s volleyball team will not be able to participate as scheduled in the Razorback Invitational hosted by Arkansas. The announcement was made by athletic department officials Thursday morning. The four-team tournament, which featured Arkansas, St. Louis

and Kansas State, was due to take place Sept. 20-22. No makeup dates have been announced for any of the matches. The Lady Jags are currently 5-5. They are scheduled to start Sun Belt Conference play against ArkansasLittle Rock and Western Kentucky this weekend in the Jag Gym. South will host UALR on Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. and WKU on Sept. 28 at 5 p.m.

ntering the 2013 football season, there were two quarterbacks battling for the starting job: Ross Metheny and Brandon Bridge. Metheny won that battle, but as we quickly learned Week 1 against Southern Utah, Bridge saw plenty of playing time. Metheny played the first and third quarters, while Bridge played the second and fourth. South Alabama would lose 22-21 to the Thunderbirds. Fans questioned if the twoquarterback system was the best way to go. A similar system was used in 2012, when playing time was split between Metheny and C.J. Bennett for the majority of the first half of the season. Some blamed the Jags’ 2-11 record on the fact that two quarterbacks were used, and neither one was able to build any momentum. Following a 31-10 loss to rival Troy, head coach Joey Jones named Metheny the starting quarterback for the remainder of the season, effectively abandoning the two-quarterback system. When the Jags faced Tulane on the road in Week 2 of this season, Metheny stole the show, totaling 365 yards of total offense and four touchdowns, both school records. For his efforts in the Jags’ 41-39 victory over Tulane, Metheny was named the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Bridge played only one series the entire game. By the time of the Western Kentucky matchup a week later, many were curious whether Bridge would be utilized at all after Metheny’s display of offensive prowess. Not only was Bridge used, but so was third-string quarterback Trey Fetner. And all three quarterbacks were used very effectively.

All three quarterbacks were responsible for touchdown drives during the game, including Fetner’s gamewinning touchdown with less than two minutes remaining in the game. This is an offense we have never seen before from South Alabama, and its dominating ability was shown against Western Kentucky. Each quarterback brings a different skill set, leaving it nearly impossible for a defense to prepare properly for whichever player is in to take the snaps. Metheny is the more accurate quarterback but still has the mobility to be a legitimate rushing threat. Bridge has a cannon of an arm and brings his ultraathletic playing style to a potential runand-gun style of offense. Fetner’s role closely reflects that of Tim Tebow, as he is utilized mainly for power running plays but still possesses the skills needed to be

an effective passer. South Alabama’s offense is deadly, something that was shown after the Jags put up 28 points against Tulane in the first 16 minutes of the game. And then the biggest win in program history came while utilizing three different quarterbacks against Western Kentucky. It is unknown whether or not the same system will be used against Tennessee this week, but if it is, you can trust that Joey Jones and offensive coordinator Robert Matthews know what they are doing and will put the best 11 players on the field in order for the Jags to win. Can you imagine the buzz created around the country if the Jags pull off an upset in Knoxville? You might wake up Sunday to find the entire campus painted red, white and blue.

VANGUARD ARCHIVES

Backup quarterback Trey Fetner.

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Jaguar Cross Country team wins Azalea City Classic By JT CRABTREE

jtc804@jagmail.southalabama.edu

outh Alabama’s cross country teams hosted the 39th annual Azalea City Classic on Sept. 14, with sophomore Patrick Rohr taking home first place for the men’s team. The annual 8K, held at the Mobile County Fairgrounds, saw the Jags finishing with five top-10 finishers. Joe Gratton (25:03.42), Robert Mann (25:08.66) and Ian Bordelon (25:23.25) combined for a 3-4-5 finish, while Daniel Carter (25:28.54) also cracked the top 10 finishing eighth to help seal the Jags to victory. Alex Shields (11th, 25:46.01), Buddy Soto (13th, 25:55.79) and Derek Westbrook (15th, 26:14.47) completed the lineup for the men’s team. Every member of the team finished in the top 15 in a field of 53. “I thought all of the guys raced pretty well today,” said Head Cross Country Coach David Barnett. “We’re always looking for our guys to race to their full potential, and that’s what everybody did today. And of course, any time you can win, that’s just icing on the cake.” The women’s team finished second behind UAB, who placed four of the top five spots in the race. Kristin Parry paced USA in the 6K race, finishing second with a time of 21:24.61. Nicole Durham finished 14th

as the next best Lady Jag with a time of 22:18.22. Shannen Weyer (18th, 22:32.55), Ivy Chastain (19th, 22:44.03) and Joanna McCoy (20th, 22:44.36) rounded out the top 20 in the 65-woman field. Also finishing for USA were Ashley Heitling (23:08.05), Kayla Wheeler (23:58.05) and Alivia Bryars (24:10.24). “This was the longest race any of our freshmen have ever run, so I thought they competed really well,” Barnett said. “I think they’re going to keep getting better, and I’m looking forward to their future races. “I thought the meet was a success,” Barnett continued. “There were a lot of people out here enjoying themselves, and I was very pleased with how it came together.” “Our men’s team did really well today, and I think we’re going to continue to be very competitive this season,” said Head Coach Paul Brueske. “On the women’s side, we’re very young. We have four freshmen on the team, and they’re going to keep getting better and better. Those guys finished second only to UAB, who is the cream of the crop in Conference USA. So I think we’re headed in the right direction, and overall it was a great day.” The Jaguars cross country team will next travel to Louisville, Ky. on Oct. 5 for the Greater Louisville Classic.

COURTESY OF USAJAGUARS.COM

Patrick Rohr finishes in first place to lead the men’s team to victory.

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Opinion

KELLY FICARELLI, OPINION EDITOR kficarelli@gmail.com

Support our Jags, be an enthusiastic fan of South

By KELLY FICARELLI kficarelli@gmail.com

he University of South Alabama is known for its outstanding academic programs in business, medicine, communication, health and education, and also for its hospitals, student activities and, of course, awesome sports programs. Football is one of the biggest programs at South. When people see that red and blue Jaguar mascot image, they usually automatically think of South’s great football team. There are several individuals, groups, fraternities and sororities who go above and beyond in supporting our Jaguars. Michelle Vajgrt, SongFest chair of Chi Omega, says her sorority plans tailgating events for every home game, and sisters can earn points by attending games to redeem gift cards at the end of every semester. They even host parents’ game days during the fall for which they buy their parents tickets to a football game to attend with them.

Former player and student assistant to defense, Anthony Brown, says great motivators for players are the homecoming activities, Family Day, the Hall of Fame game, the Jag Walk (where fans come to meet players) and tailgaters, in addition to the marching band, cheerleaders and pep rallies. He says another thing Coach Jones did to encourage the players was to have various people from the community come and speak with them, letting them know they are important to the whole city of Mobile. Brown says a great deal of support is shown when there is a large student turnout at the games. He says there’s nothing like looking up from the field and seeing the stands filled with Jag supporters. He believes the fan base is headed in an upward direction with USA enrollment at an all-time high and coaches joining Twitter and Facebook to interact with students, alumni and fans. Brown feels this interaction is needed since this is South’s first year as an FBS team. One particular group of fans we all know and love are the guys who get painted up for every game. These eight students, most of them in honors’ classes, attend every home game and travel to away games as well. Nick Grondin says he and Matthew Moore began this tradition. They organize at the beginning of the week before the game, tailgate with the honor’s pro-

gram and are full of passion and school spirit. The group members—in their body-painted“USA JAGS!” order—are Matthew Moore, Nick Grondin, Caden Moore, James Mozur, Colin Rains, Jared Richards, Jared Johnson and Ellis Hicks as well as a fellow fan who provides the space between Moore’s “A” and Mozur’s “J.” The students are mostly freshmen and sophomores from different cities and states, South Alabama fans dress up for the occasion so they consider themselves the new South Alabamians. whole game and support the team, Grondin says they have a lot of fun whether they are down a few points or and do their best to promote a spirited in the lead. Grondin says he would like to see atmosphere at the games. It is frustrating when people leave at halftime, so more enthusiastic fans attending all they try to boost enthusiasm through- athletic games at South, including basout the game and raise student repu- ketball, baseball, all women’s games tation. As an athlete himself, Grondin and so on. He also believes recruiters knows that players want fans to be look at fan turnout. Because South is proud of them. When fans leave a now a full-fledged FBS team, we are game early, players don’t feel that same eligible to play in bowl games and the encouraging motivation that they’d felt Sun Belt Conference. A pair of campus ministries, the when the bleachers were full at the start of a game. This is an issue only USA Wesley Foundation and the the fans can correct: stay through the Catholic Student Association, have also become synonymous with “going all-out.” The Wesley Foundation is responsible for the original Super Fans, starting with JagMan, TogaMan and AfroMan. All three became popular at football games by always attending and always being loud. Whether they were waving a South Alabama flag in the stands after touchdowns, running up the length of the student section highfiving other fans or screaming “South in your Mouth,” they were always in the front row of the student section. These three fans have since graduated, or “retired,” and the role of super fan has been taken over by a new crop of fans from the Catholic Student Association, called the Jaguar Knights. You’ve probably seen them decked out in full gold armor, wearing Jaguar helmets and wielding swords. They, too, have become a hit and a staple at South Alabama athletic events.

RYAN KELLER | GRAPHIC DESIGNER

ALYSSA NEWTON | LOC EDITOR

at USA football games. The reasoning behind these displays is simple: these fans truly love their Jaguars. But you don’t have to paint yourself a crazy design or dress up in some ridiculous outfit to show your school spirit. Just being there is half the battle. Heck, you can even go to games to rack up Jag Swag points in order to receive prizes from the athletic marketing department. You can learn the fight song, or just stand up and cheer, or you can go crazy and scream at the other team for wearing awkwardly-colored shoes. But it’s all up to you. It’s a personal preference. Simply being in the stands gives the players and coaches a reason to play that much harder. Looking across the stands and seeing thousands of their peers cheering for them is plenty of motivation. This all being said, fan support makes a huge impact on the way athletes play, on how recruiters and other fans perceive the greatness of a team, and can affect the way a game or season goes. When an individual or team feels that they are important to someone, especially a bleacher full of supporters, it will push them to do their best and not give up. So be the kind of supporter you would want to have -- not someone who gives up on you halfway through, but someone who stays by your side, cheering you on until the very end. That’s the kind of support that can make or break a player or a team.

CORRECTIONS: GRAPHICclasses DESIGNER Last week’s Point/Counterpoint section against online public speaking was not referring specifically to the University of South Alabama’s class structure. South’s RYAN onlineKELLER public| speaking meet on campus several times throughout the semester and speeches are not recorded and submitted. The Sept. 2 article about the TalkRocket Go app that helps those with speech disabilities communicate out loud described features that were actually specific to the RocketKeys app, by the same company.

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Focus on the real issues of injustice in America

By JOHN BLYTHE johnblythe@gmail.com

: Why did the racist cross the street? A: Who cares? Did they get hit by traffic? Racism is nothing new, obviously, and unfortunately, it’s not old news yet either. Like a rash we’d really rather not discuss in public, racism is an embarrassment that persists no matter how much we’ve assured ourselves that it is, in fact, gone for good this time. Well, par for the course, racism stuck its ugly head in the headlines this week as the

title of Miss America was awarded, for the first time in the pageant’s history, to a woman of Indian descent. In case you missed it, here are some examples of the tweets that went out as a result. One person wrote, “And the Arab wins Miss America. Classic.” Another said, “I swear I’m not racist but this is America.” Gotta love the former’s geography skills and the latter’s self-awareness cloaked in denial (and is anyone else hearing Ricky Bobby’s echoes here?). BuzzFeed broke the news first, and it was then picked up by major news outlets such as USA Today and popular morning shows such as NBC’s Today. Carson Daly reported—a phrase I never imagined using—that there were 705 tweets referencing ‘Miss America’ and ‘terrorist.’ At least this informs us of a way we might successfully evade the racists’ clans. Because they aren’t very good with maps, we can just move to any foreign country. Back to point,

there are undoubtedly many other racially-charged tweets that didn’t get caught by Daly’s metrics. How many? Who knows. Could we assume 10 or even 100 times as many? Let’s be generous and say 1,000 times. That’s a whopping 705,000 tweets filled with a nice, chunky blend of idiocy and prejudice. Pretty unsettling, isn’t it? It is until you run that against the 400 million-plus tweets sent out each day. So, to put it in perspective, that’s less than 0.0017 of the total tweets— hardly more than 1 percent. And, again, we’re assuming a lot here by using a multiplier of 1,000. That isn’t to say that bigotry is OK so long as it isn’t widespread, but it does help to put things in perspective since some have been apologetic and derogatory toward America/Americans as a whole (irony anyone?) when we are talking about just the outliers here. We could rant about how dumb racism is—because it is. We could

talk about how racists are a blight to society—because they are. We could soapbox all sorts of things here, but we won’t. Just because a choir is assembled doesn’t mean they need to be preached to. There is never a question as to whether racism is right or wrong. There is never a question as to whether or not we should esteem people who espouse racist ideals. There is a question, however, as to how we are to respond. What determines the answer, I think, is the threat level. Is there something really going on here that can affect others in a significant way? And, sorry, I really don’t have hurt feelings in view here. While such vitriol and general lack of sense can certainly wound others emotionally—Miss America in this case—I don’t think it should even be given enough attention and weight to be able to do so in the first place. If we try to go up

in arms about every person who can voice a terrible opinion on Twitter— and it should be noted that nearly all of BuzzFeed’s example tweets were by high school kids—we’ll never fight the real battles that plague us. So, let your feathers get ruffled and those jimmies rustled, but only to the end that you focus on the racial issues that really matter. It’s easy to pluck out a handful (705 even) of crazy sounding tweets and get a headline out of it. It’s much harder to fight systemic injustices that are based on race, ethnicity, gender or religion. It’s convenient to get all riled up about people vomiting up their idiocy via social media for the world to see, but it’s painful to ask ourselves how much lingering discriminatory biases reside in our own hearts. I hope you care about racism and are ready to strike it down, but let’s help remind each other that if, Carson Daly is reporting on it, then we probably have some bigger racist fish to fry.

Consider learning USA insurance needs to pay foreign languages up, prove they care for students

By LYDIA CHRISTIAN quietartsytype@gmail.com

he Internet and globalization have brought humanity together from all corners of the planet. From behind a keyboard, one can sustain friendships and business relationships with almost anyone in the world. Now, more than ever, being able to communicate effectively is important. Due to increasingly inexpensive travel options, the likelihood of physically meeting an Internet friend is quite feasible. With more career opportunities abroad and jobs being outsourced to other countries daily, knowing at least one foreign language is an invaluable skill set. South Alabama has very well-developed foreign language programs with extremely knowledgeable professors in every curriculum. Students have the option of learning widelytaught languages like Spanish and

French, but we also have access to lesser taught languages such as Russian and American Sign Language, which are often not even offered at other universities. According to Dr. Nicholas Gossett, the head of the Russian language program, “Studying a foreign language opens up a whole new world to students.” Gossett, who earned his bachelor’s degree at South, speaks five languages. He is a wonderful example of the high caliber of foreign language professors currently employed at USA. To the onlooker, it may seem difficult to learn Russian, but Gossett strives to make sure each of his students understands and enjoys the learning process. Making each lesson exciting, Gossett’s youthful approach is clear in his teaching style –– a blend of conversation, computer programs and music. By the end of class, there are no confused, glassy-eyed stares or open-mouth drooling. The reasons to study a different language are virtually limitless. However, a secret that many people don’t tell is that it is also very fun. The sense of accomplishment and pride that accompanies understanding obscure Russian words or ASL hand signs are irreplaceable. Give yourself a chance to learn something useful and interesting. If nothing else, it’s a pretty cool party trick.

ERIN WENINEGAR | CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Erin Weninegar’s vehicle sustained damages by a Jag Tran turning beside her in a parking lot.

By ERIN WENINEGAR edw9292@gmail.com

he event occurred just after 10:45 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 22. I had just gotten out of class and was in my car in the Central parking lot in front of the Humanities Building. I was waiting to turn left onto South Drive. The Jag Tran next to me was waiting to turn right. The driver saw an opening to go but, as the Tran swung right, its back left corner hit the

left side of my car, scraping the back right end of my car, and then hit my car again, breaking off the passenger side mirror. I was caught in whiplash as the two blows rocked my vehicle. The Jag Tran kept going, though, and I was left dumbfounded. I took pictures of the damage and filed a report with campus police. The officer told me that, because it happened in the parking lot, there is nothing they can do about it. He told me it is considered “property damage.” I was advised to take the report, which freely admitted fault on behalf of the Jag Tran, to my insurance company. However, because I have only liability insurance, my insurance company only covers damage that I cause, not damage from another person. This leaves it up to South to repair my car,

but they have given no indication that they will. In my opinion, they have given no indication that they care at all about this incident. The officer with whom I spoke even told me that accidents like mine have happened with the Jag Trans before. He said they were having a hard time contacting the Jag Tran department to find out the driver’s identity. They spent a whole week trying to find out who it was but came up with no information for me. It has been about a month now since the accident took place, and South has been awfully silent. It is pretty apparent to me that they expect me to do nothing and that they feel perfectly safe should these events happen again in the future. I feel this is more proof that South just doesn’t care.

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013

Horoscopes

Libra 9/24-10/23 Things have been going really well lately. Later this week, that might change. Your professor will finally remember that stack of exams your class took the second week of school. You know, the one that counts for 50% of your grade, and you were sure she never covered the material.

Aquarius 1/21-2/19 A i 1/21 2/19 Your classes are not as crowded and parking is less and less of a problem. No one around you seems very concerned, but you know the truth. Aliens. It is the only logical explanation.

Scorpio 10/22-11/22 You have never thought of yourself as an athlete, but your ability to get from Stokes Hall to Shelby Hall on foot in less than 3 minutes flat has made you a legend. You earn double points for doing it while reading your class assignment on the way.

Pisces 2/20-3/20 After weeks of introducing yourself to new people, you have grown tired of hearing your own life story. You devise an ingenious plan to answer all of the standard questions up front: a sandwich board. It can be a little cumbersome on the Jag Tran, but it is worth not having to repeat your name, major and hometown 100 times a day.

Sagittarius 11/23-12/21 You are a risk taker and a thrill seeker.Your favorite way to get your adrenaline going is extreme paper writing. Twenty-page research paper due this Friday? Wait until Thursday afternoon to start it. Now that is a rush.

Aries 3/21-4/20 You have been bitten by the travel bug and need to feel the rush of wind through your hair. On a college student’s budget, the only place you are going is around campus on the Jag Tran. Grab a group of friends, pack a few Cokes and enjoy.

Capricorn 12/22-1/20 You really are not a club kind of person, but you are very jealous of all of the spiffy T-shirts you see on campus. Form your own and make yourself the president of the “T-Shirt Accumulating Association.” Make the club dues a shirt from another organization. Problem solved.

Taurus 4/21-5/21 Your kind and patient nature has served you well in the past, but your team-based learning class is testing your resolve. These projects are supposed to prepare you for the real workforce where your kindness and patience will still be tested. Sorry. That really does not make you feel better, does it?

Gemini 5/22-6/21 The calendar (and all the stores) say “fall,” but the weather still says “summer.” You have been dying to pull all the fuzzy sweaters and boots from your closet. Go ahead and wear ‘em. We promise we won’t make fun of you. Pinky swear. Cancer 6/22-7/23 Feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the deadlines and pressures of college life? You need to celebrate the little victories. Made it to class on time twice in a row? Time to roll the roundabout! Leo 7/24-8/23 Behind on your assignments because of a poorlytimed “Law and Order” marathon, you are looking forward to Fall Break. Unfortunately, the only thing you will accomplish is a poorly-timed “Doctor Who” marathon. Virgo 8/24-9/23 Signs for career fairs and grad school expos keep popping up all over campus and have mystified you for some time. After much thought, you decide maybe the universe is trying to tell you something really important. Then again, probably not.

This is a work of fiction meant for entertainment.

VOL. 53, NO. 9 / SEPT. 23, 2013