The Battalion September 13, 2017 by The Battalion

The barrel, or the tall part of a senior boot, is made to the specific size of a cadet’s calf. Jenny Hollowell — THE BATTALION

WHEN THE BARREL STANDS TALL A look at how Holick’s has crafted the Corps’s senior boots for 126 years By Mariah Colón @mariahcolon18 All across campus, senior Corps members are walking proudly in their senior boots. The longstanding tradition of getting one’s senior boots holds a deep meaning with each cadet, beginning with a trip to local bootmaking company Holick’s. According to the Holick’s website, the company began in 1891 by Joseph Holick, who came to America from Czechoslovakia at the age of 16 in 1884. Holick ended up in Bryan by accident after falling asleep on a train, and from there he made Aggieland his home. Leo Belovoskey II is the current owner of Holick’s. He was named to the position by the Holick family, and has been working for the company since 1991. He said the history of Holick’s began when Holick became the first Aggie Band Master. “Joseph was working in a shoe repair shop in downtown Bryan, and someone from the university came up to him and asked if he wanted to repair shoes for the guys in the quad. He said sure and ended up living with those guys in the quad and there is where he started the Aggie band and was the first band director,” Belovoskey said. The Holick’s website states that the tall boots seen today weren’t introduced as part of the uniform until the 1920s. Belovoskey said that Johnnie Holick, son of Joseph Hol-

ick, came back to College Station to craft the senior boot with his father. “When Johnnie came back from Austin [he and his father] started making the senior boots,” Belovoskey said. “Joseph and Johnnie, the son, pretty much took over the business after that.” Belovoskey said that the style of the boots have not changed since Holick’s began. “Nothing has changed, they’re the same now as the first day they started making boots,” Belovoskey said. “As a matter of fact, the machinery is still the same with the exception of a few pieces of machinery ... we’ve got machines back there that are over 120 years old and are still pumping out boots.” Renting boots is a less expensive option for senior cadets. Old Ags will sometimes donate their senior boots to be rented out for the year. Jacob Arth, university studies senior and cadet, said to him there is a value to purchasing the boots instead of renting them. “I think it is super important for people to buy their boots instead of renting them from the Corps Center,” Arth said. “Having the boots with you, instead of having to return them, is something you can look at and remember all of those good times when you see them.” HOLICK’S ON PG. 4

Jenny Hollowell — THE BATTALION

Leo Belovoskey II, the current owner of Holick’s, said the style of their boots has never changed.

Cassie Stricker — THE BATTALION

Freshman quarterback Kellen Mond went 12 for 21 pass attempts for 105 yards and one touchdown vs. Nicholls.

Musical chairs for QB position, again

Meredith Seaver — THE BATTALION

The exhibit at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum features photos, awards and more from the past 20 years.

Inconsistency with the quarterback position has plagued the Aggies’ football team for several years

Twenty years of education about H.W.

By Angel Franco @angelmadison_

The 41st president’s library reflects on past two decades By Tyler Snell @Tyler_Snell2

The last time Texas A&M had a returning starter at quarterback, it was returning Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Johnny Manziel. Now, almost four years later, A&M has not had a quarterback who finished one year and completed the next season. A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin said at Tuesday’s press conference that the lack of stability at the position can be traced to many factors. Sumlin said that the college landscape has changed and makes it hard to have a multi-year starter at quarterback. “The idea of a long term that starts from his freshman year as quarterback or a two-year starter, I see that being ideal, but I don’t see very many three-year guys out there right now,” Sumlin said. “So, there’s number of reasons why [there hasn’t

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum. To commemorate this, the center will feature a special exhibit to recognize the George H. W. Bush Library and Museum, the George Bush Foundation and the Bush School of Government and Public Service. The exhibit opened Sept. 1 and features highlights of the past two decades at the center. Included are

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decorations and distinguished honors of President Bush, photos and biographies of the nine recipients of the George Bush Award for Excellence in Public Service, local and national awards the library and center have received and highlights of the center’s partnership with community service projects. George H. W. Bush Library and Museum Deputy Director Robert Holzweiss said he hopes students and members of the community get a chance to look through the history of the library. “I would encourage everyone at A&M to come out and take a look at it, because most of the A&M community are students and some of

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them weren’t even alive when we opened up,” Holzweiss said. “It will be a thumbnail crash course on what the Bush Library is and did and give you a preview of what we are looking to do in the next 20 years.” The Bush Library and Museum opened Nov. 6, 1997, and Supervisory Archivist Deborah Wheeler had only been on staff for one month when she said she witnessed history unfolding. “There were thousands of people and all the former presidents and first ladies, and I remember sitting in the audience with this sense of, ‘I can’t believe that I have this personal opportunity to see history unfolding LIBRARY ON PG. 4

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