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Show DAILY THE CHRONICLE UTAH qpQQQQQftn QGQQQGQ 60a U Coach Says Team Is Ready for MWC San Antonio Spur On iBh Midwest Will $t ' ' RORY BRUNNER Chronicle Sports Writer Following a week off, the Ute cross country team returns to action on Saturday with the MWC Championships in Fort Collins, Colo. Coach Mike Jones has high hopes for his No. (in the conference) men's team, saying, "I think we have a great chance of beating ERIC Chronicle Sports ;3 As the midwest region of the country is known for its corn and wheat fields, it's only appropriate the Midwest Division of the NBA is known for its solid, if unspectacular, style of Air Force and finishing third." Those two teams have been very competitive over the course of the their two season, splitting matchups thus far. However, this meet will be no easy task for the Utes, as the Falcons have more of a home field play. These seven teams won't be regular contributors to highlight sessions, and they certain- -, ly won't: make NBC swoon with the incredible ratings they generate, but they will be responsible for some solid, fundamental basketball. Here's bow it should shake cut. 1. San Antonio Spurs: advantage. The Utes will be counting on another big contribution from their top runner, Teren Jameson. He has been solid all year, most recently n finishing 40th out of the meet two field at the 360-ma- Pre-NCA- Jameson will be gunning for a team. The spot on the first and second team are determined by the runners who finish in e C first-roun- 57-2- Hor-nac- hard-nose- A "Jameson should finish in the top three or four," Jones said. But Jones also stressed the importance of a team effort, saying, "In order to get third, five of our scores must be in the top 20." He pointed towards the importance of B.J. Christenson and Aleksander Tomas placing in the top 15, and Matt Hansen and Colby Frazier to get within the top 20. On the women's side, Jones thinks the Utes are much better than their No. 6 conference ranking would indicate. He said that although it would be difficult, he would like to see a third-plac- e ish out of the women. fin- "Charity Catmull, our No. all year, must maintain her consistency," Jones said. A key player for the women will be inconsistent freshman Nellie 1 Hammons. Coach Jones explained, "Hammons' needs to run with Charityshe is capable. The course is flat and Hammons is a speed run-ne- r. weeks ago! Fol- divilowing their d sional finish and playoff loss last season, the Spurs got discounted more than any Dillard's item ever sold to Peter Warrick. However, with twin towers David Robinson and Tim Duncan healthy again, the power game is once more formidable. And with Scan Elliott set to play a full season and former Clippers guard Derek Anderson now in the mis, the wing positions will be quality as well. Beyond hat, the bench finally has some young legs to spell all that veteran guile, with Antonio Daniels and Samaki Walker playing increasingly large roles. All in all, if everyone can stay healthy, this team will challenge the Pacific powerhouses for league supremacy again. Projected Record; 5 2. Utah Jazz:; For a. team known for its excessive stability, this squad underwent a bigger facelift this summer than Michael Jackson ever experienced. Nevertheless, while Jeff retired, the Jazz still manto aged keep their core together. Karl Malone will again be among the dominant players in the league and John Stockton will still provide the veteran leadership. As for the newcomers, John Starks is more streaky than Horny, but is Danny Manning, when healthy, is a jolt of offense, Donyell Mar-se- e second-plac- T 8008 ek d, the top The women pulled off a split between the first five runners at the UNLV Invitational two nd see 14. cross country, page 10 Utah's cross country team is preparing for Saturday's MWC Championships. Now Football Can't Even Count on Health SHANE MCCAMMON Chronicle Editor in Chief If there was one thing going for Utah football this season, it was the good health of the majority of the team. Barring some injuries along the offensive line, the Utes had avoided the literal bad breaks of their 5 season. But when it rains, it pours. 2-- ' As if things couldn't get worse for Utah's struggling offense, wide receiver Cliff Russell broke a bone in his right arm during Saturday's game with Colorado State and will be sidelined for three to four weeks. Losing Russell, who leads the team in receptions at 35 and receiving touchdowns with three, is a huge setback for the Utes. With his incredible speed, Russell repeatedly took advantage of opponents who paid more attention to Utah's other wide receiver, Steve Smith. But with Russell now in street clothes, Smith will have to contend with a regular dose of double coverage. In his place, Chris Christcnscn, who usually lines up at slot, will move to the outside, and the Utes will probably play two tight ends like they did Saturday. WALDEN, page 10 see FOOTBALL, page 9 With Utah's offense further debilitated, Jeff Ray and his fellow defenders wiil have to be even better for the Utes. T MEN'S TENNIS SWIMMING VOLLEYBALL "Utah Utah at BYU Colorado State vs Utah 1027 6 p.m. 3 Provo, Utah 1027 p.m. 3 Crimson Court at 1TA Region VII 1025-2- 9 8 Las Vegas, Ncv. CHRONICLE SPORTS EDITOR 7 CROSS COUNTRY Utah" at MWC Title Meet 1028 Fort Collins, Colo. FOOTBALL VOLLEYBALL UtarT Wyoming vs Utah at New Mexico 1028 1028 1 p.m. Albuquerque, N.M. ERIC "WALLY" WALDEN EWALDENCHRONICLE.UTAH.EDU 581-704- 7 p.m. Crimson Court 1 |