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Spring Football News
and Notes
• It was the maroon and white and red jerseys
flapping in the north wind as spring drills kicked
off March 11 at Kyle Field. The red jerseys,
unfortunately for the Aggies, indicate a player’s
unhealthy status.
Several A&M players will be limited in
spring drills because of offseason surgeries.
Running back Dante Hall underwent shoulder surgery
in January, while sophomore running back Burnest
Rhodes had offseason back surgery. Junior tailback
Eric Bernard (wearing No. 3 on day one of drills)
is recovering from major knee surgery. All three
running backs went through non-contact drills on
the first day of spring practice, with Hall and
Rhodes likely to be limited in contact work.
Senior quarterback Branndon Stewart was just
recently cleared for workouts after nursing his
Achilles tendon injury he suffered against UCLA in
the Cotton Bowl loss.
Punter Shane Lechler, likely a preseason
All-American pick, also had surgery on his left
shoulder to repair an old baseball injury...
• Position changes this spring include sophomore
defensive back Michael Jameson moving from
cornerback to safety, while Cameron Spikes has
moved from right tackle to left guard.
Jason Glenn, who began his career at safety and
moved to outside linebacker, worked out with the
outside linebackers on day one of spring ball...
• Defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz has
switched his position coaching from inside
linebackers to outside linebackers. New assistant
coach Alan Weddell will handle the inside
linebacker duties as well as some special teams
chores...
• Some interesting records fell during winter
weightlifting and running tests, most notably one
held by Leeland McElroy in the 40-yard dash.
McElroy set the school record in the 40 with a time
of 4.27 in 1995, but senior tailback Sirr Parker
became the faster Aggie ever timed in a hand-held
40, blistering the track with a time of 4.24
seconds. Parker also tied the school record in the
vertical jump (held by Wilbert Biggens in 1994)
with a leap of 40.1 inches.
Speedy wide receiver Chris Taylor also moved up
the charts, tying Rodney Thomas for the third-best
mark ever in the 40 with a time of 4.31 seconds.
In case you’re counting at home, sophomore Rocky
Bernard holds the top bench press mark among all
defensive linemen, recording a lift of 420 pounds,
compared to 410 for Ronald Edwards and 380 for Evan
Perroni.
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