10-12-2010 by The Daily Aztec

BORDER CROSSING

BOOKSTORE PRICES

BACKSHOP BUDDIES

The U.S. / Mexican border is getting a new design to help with traffic. page 2

The bookstore explains why textbook prices are more expensive. page 3

One of The Daily Aztec’s superstar designers shows her great artwork. page 4

dailyaztec the

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

w w w. T h e D a i l y A z t e c . c o m

Vol. 96, Issue 26

San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper since 1913

INDEX:

TODAY @ STATE SDSU Fights Hunger, today Martha Collins poetry reading, 7 p.m., Love Library

Tw i t t e r : T h e D a i l y A z t e c

sports... 1

opinion ... 2

news ... 3

backpage ... 4

BASEBALL

Gwynn’s bad news devastates Aztecs SDSU playing with heavy hearts after Gwynn tells his squad he has cancer EDWARD LEWIS SPORTS EDITOR

Tony Gwynn stood in front of his San Diego State baseball team and just couldn’t mutter the words. He’s a Hall of Famer with an indestructible career. He’s a .338 hitter who never breaks down. So how was he going to look this team of 18-, 19-, 20- and 21-year-old kids in the eye and tell them he had cancer? He talked for two minutes, choked up and walked away. “He came and talked to us and I had seen something in his face that was wrong,” junior outfielder Brandon Meredith said. “His whole right side of his face is not really functional right now. At first we thought he might have a stroke or something like that.”

Gwynn came back the next day. This time he gathered his squad in the locker room and told them the news he had tried to tell them the day before. “I have cancer,” he said. Veterans such as Meredith, Ryan O’Sullivan and Pat Colwell sank in their seats. “As soon as he started talking he started to get choked up and we knew something was wrong,” Colwell, a senior outfielder, said. “And I know myself, (Ryan) O’Sullivan, Brandon (Meredith), I could see all the returning guys’ faces kind of get choked up as well because we’ve known him for a while. And we got to see him and joke around with him and be joyful with him. And just to see him in that situation of vulnerability kind of makes it sad. It makes it real.” Gwynn revealed he has parotid cancer, a disease that affects the largest salivary gland. He told his team he would need chemotherapy treatments and wouldn’t be able to make it out to the baseball field for a while. Colwell was devastated. “I hope everybody in the locker room

made a choice to really give their all out on the field, if not for themselves then for coach Gwynn,” Colwell said. “Because we have a lot of new guys on the team who haven’t gotten to know him, but if they ask one of the older guys about him, they’ll see how we feel about him. We’re just really sad that he’s not able to be out here and enjoy this time with us.” SDSU assistant coach Mark Martinez is expected to fill Gwynn’s shoes while he’s recovering. Aztec players said they haven’t organized anything official for Gwynn yet such as flowers or cards, but they send him texts and phone calls daily, hoping their support can help the Hall of Famer get back on the field. “I know he wants to be back here as soon as he can and be around us because I know he misses being out here and we miss having him out here,” sophomore pitcher Bryan Crabb said. “It’s weird not having him out here and we miss him. We hope he gets healthy first of all and gets out here as soon as he can.”

David J. Olender / Photo Editor

MATT-ER OF FACT

Don’t blame SDSU, blame the zebras

ook at it. Do it in slow motion. Do it fast. Do it in reverse. Try different angles. Replay it and try, please try to tell me B.J. Williams didn’t strip that ball away from BYU and then recover it for San Diego State. The referees ruled it wasn’t a fumble. Head coach Brady Hoke challenged the call. He even broke a laugh with an official while waiting for the geeks in the replay booth to report what they saw. Hoke looked calm. He looked assured. Kind of like a coach who just recovered a fumble. But the umpire then upped his microphone to announce a zebra-striped propensity to fail. The Cougars kept the ball, scored their last touchdown and later won 24-21. No explanation from the referee. Nothing. Nada. Zero. If you feel the way I do, I’ve got several three-word phrases for both of us: Get over it. Suck it up. Quit your bitching. The Aztecs play Air Force this weekend. It’s the first time SDSU has hosted a conference opponent this season, and the Falcons are good. Ranked 25th, they exercise the top-ranked rushing attack in the nation, and rarely air the ball out, solidifying them as the biggest hypocrisy in collegiate football considering their branch of military. They ran for 343 yards against seventh-ranked Oklahoma and barely lost 27-24. It’s Air Force’s lone defeat. Oh, but those refs! Sorry Zuma. They blew it last Saturday. It was the second critical miscall this year against the Aztecs. The first was in Missouri when a crucial block in the back went uncalled on the game-losing play. I’m not sure which was harder to swallow: that whistle, or that loss. But don’t blame it on the referees, right? That’s football, right? Had SDSU been the better team on both occasions,

M A T T MCCLANAHAN S TA F F C O L U M N I S T

they would’ve won. Right? Sure, whatever. A Barry Bonds-sized asterisk should be scribbled next to both losses. The Aztecs could very easily be undefeated, in the top 25, and in serious contention for the conference title with one game away from bowl eligibility for the first time in 12 years. Instead, they’re one game away from a deflated 3-3 record. It’s true SDSU couldn’t run the ball Saturday, and the defense couldn’t get off the field. But BYU outscored the Aztecs by a mere field goal despite being on offense three times longer. It was the largest disparity in time of possession ever for a Mountain West Conference game. There were three-and-outs on offense and SDSU couldn’t stop the run on defense. But still. The Aztecs still could’ve won. SDSU wasn’t sharp, but still could’ve beaten the Cougars on the road. All the team needed was a big play. Perhaps a fumble recovery by Williams would’ve sufficed. Heck, the Aztecs might’ve won had those referees … well … you know. No more whining. It’s done with. Nothing will change. Right now, Falcon football. But an apology really is needed. Not to me. I’m an unbiased journalist. But to all three of those Red and Black fans who traveled to that stink hole in Provo, Utah. And to every player who had their chance at winning the game stripped from them like the way Williams stripped that ball. But like I said, no more whining. Air Force is undefeated in conference play, and its triple-option offense has tilled quite a bit of gridiron despite losing its

entire offensive line from last season. While BYU running backs gave SDSU defenders piggyback rides last week, this defense held Air Force’s triple-option in check a season ago, never allowing the offense to reach the end zone. But the Aztecs turned the ball over six times, with two turnovers going for touchdowns. Ryan Lindley threw four interceptions with a damaged finger against the Falcons last season and was sacked three times. But he did complete a good percentage of his passes for 284 yards.

BEHIND THE NUMBERS

This weekend will be the biggest game thus far for SDSU. And because I told myself a while ago to quit my bitching, I’m left with nothing more to say. Other than this: Those referees sucked.

—Matt McClanahan is a journalism senior. —The views expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Daily Aztec.