THE OORACLEVolume 96 | Issue 6 | Free in single copy | November 2, 2012Tennessee Tech University | Cookeville, TN | 38505

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SGA moves to revive Tech traditions

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation awarded Tech the Clean Tennessee Energy Grant Award Oct. 24 in the amount of $250,000 to go toward transitioning from coal to natural gas in energy production.

“It’s our anticipation this will be our last winter on coal,” Jack Butler, associate vice president for facilities and business services, said.

The campus ran on natural gas during the summer months but will still depend on coal this winter.

“We don’t have the ability to carry a winter load on gas and have a backup in case that boiler went down,” Butler said. “So we could be burning gas now, even though it’s colder, but if that boiler went down we wouldn’t have a backup, so the university would be without heat until we came up on coal.”

According to Tech’s grant pro-posal, the TTU Coal Fired Steam

Plant currently runs on four boilers.In the 2011-2012 fi scal year, the plantconsumed 6,837 tons of coal, costingthe university $1,111,248.

The university plans to elimi-nate coal usage by switching thelarge boiler, number fi ve, that burnsStoker Coal to natural gas. Butlersaid the full transition is set to takeplace in the spring or summer of 2013.

The $650,000 transition is pro-jected to save Tech $368,330 annu-ally and have a payback period of1.76 years.

Though Tech has acted in com-pliance with the Title V permit—which is required of companieshaving operations involving majorair contaminants—through mainte-nance, air fi ltering and limiting airemissions, the plant reported a totalof 220 tons of air pollutant emissionsduring the 2011-2012 fi scal year.With the use of natural gas, the uni-versity anticipates a 95.3 percent an-nual reduction to 10.3 tons.

By JESSICA SMITHStaff Writer

SGA established the Historical Traditions Committee Tuesday night.

When student sena-tor Caleb Hodges pro-posed the idea for this committee, it passed with unanimous support from SGA members.

“Our goal is to bring back old tradition and implement new tradition here at Tennessee Tech,” Hodges said. “Other large universities are steeped in tradition, and we don’t have that one tradition that we consis-tently do that students, faculty and alumni can rally around.”

Hodges said many campus traditions have faded over the years, such as “Shinny-Nin-ny” and the “Blizzard.”

By KYLE MARTINStaff Writer

$250k grant to support change from coal to gas

Tech’s football team is 0-5 in the OVC and 2-6 overall so far in 2012, one year removed from an Ohio Val-ley Conference Championship and the school’s fi rst visit to the FCS Play-offs.

All I’ve heard the past few weeks is the public’s reasoning for the team’s “poor play,” as I’ve heard it called.

However, let me go in a different direction.

Although you may not have ex-pected a 2-6 record at this point in the season, when you look at the facts, it’s not surprising.

You may describe the team’s play as “underachieving.” I describe it as unfortunate.

Take last week’s game vs. Ten-nessee State University, for instance. Tech’s defense held the top team in the OVC to 15 points for 59 minutes and 59 seconds. At that point in the game, Tech had the lead.

That’s pretty decent. Tech was outgained in every phase except per-haps discipline and still had a chance to put the game away with less than three minutes left. A long fi eld goal didn’t go, and TSU ended up scor-ing with no time remaining on a play where offi cials missed the fact TSU was lined up illegally.

I’m not one to blame the offi cials for a loss, especially when no one knows what might have happened, but facts are facts.

Considering starting quarter-back Tre Lamb missed the game be-cause of an injury, and starting run-ning back Adam Urbano has been limited because of an injury as well, I would say the team overachieved during the game. Defensive stalwart Caleb Mitchell also didn’t make the trip. Sophomore Darian Stone played excellently in relief of Lamb, spark-ing the Golden Eagles with his legs

By ROSS HARVEYSports Editor

at many points throughout the game. He led the team to the brink of vic-tory.

The loss was unfortunate.Let’s look at Da’Rick Rogers.

Most people thought he would pro-pel Tech to back-to-back champion-ships when he joined the team in late August. A terrifi c talent, Rogers has 45 receptions for more that 700 yards and eight touchdowns.

But without having the benefi t of a full spring practice, Rogers can’t be expected to have the same grasp of Watson Brown’s system four-year player Tim Benford had last year. Don’t forget Benford was pretty good as well. He’s currently in the NFL.

Rogers has had his glimpses, but between an ankle injury and the lack of time in the system, he can’t be on the fi eld every play like Benford was.

Unfortunate. And fans, one last point… The

team last year spoiled you. They took care of business last

year and won the OVC, and we, as fans, would love for it to happen every year. But there are eight oth-er teams that put the bull’s-eye on Tech’s back this year, getting amped up to play the defending champs. Repeating as champs isn’t the easiest

thing to do.I am not making excuses for the

team because I’m sure they and coach Brown would give you none. Butthe fact remains that multiple issues other than the team across the side-line have stood in the Golden Eagles’way. And we just looked at one game.

Sometimes there isn’t much you can do about it.

It’s just unfortunate.

Despite the presence of transfer wideout Da’Rick Rogers, top left, Tech’s football team, bottom left, has gone winless in this year’s OVC campaign. Multiple injures that have forced backups to play in key positions, such as quarterback Darian Stone, right.

Photos courtesy of Jamal Ferguson, James Dillon and Ross Harvey

These events were based around sport rivalries with other state universi-ties, and over time with growing enrollment and schools changing divi-

sions traditions have be-come memories.

“We want to bring traditions like that back to Tech,” Hodges said. “We want students and

upcoming students to have something to looked forward to and get excited about.

Photo Services

Tech’s “Blizzard” is among the traditions SGA hopes to revive with the Historical Tra-ditions Committee.

See “Traditions,” page 2 See “Grant,” page 2

Editor declares Golden Eagles ‘surprising’ season explainable

Page 2 | November 2, 2012 tntechoracle.com

NEWS

techtech@eventsevents

November

tntech.edu/calendar

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9:30 a.m.Dr. Oldham’s presiden-tal InvestitureHooper Eblen Center

5:00 p.m.Homecoming Pep RallyMemorial Gym

7:30 p.m.Fall Trumpet Festival ConcertWattenbarger Audito-rium, Bryan Fine Arts

10:30 a.m. Homecoming ParadeDixie Avenue

1:30 p.m.Homecoming game vs.Eastern Illinois (OVC)

2:00-7:00 p.m.Senior Student RecitalsWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

All WeekAdvisement for Spring 2013 Semester

All WeekScholastic Book FairBartoo Hall

7:30 p.m.TTU Faculty JazzWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

7:30 p.m.Women’s Basketball hosts Lee (Exhibition) Hooper Eblen Center

7:30 p.m.The Cumberland Quin-tetWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

As Tech’s Homecom-ing week comes to an end, students anticipate tomor-row’s festivities.

The Tech Activi-ties Board is in charge of Homecoming, and the chosen theme is “Tech on TV.” Every organiza-tion participating has a choice to compete in vari-ous events throughout the week to gain points for overall Homecoming champions.

“We have 19 organi-zations participating this year, which is up from last year because we only had 17,” Shelby Reagan, TAB adviser, said. “All the resi-dent halls are participating also, which is new.”

This year instead of having spirit day partici-pation points, TAB decid-ed to have Welcome Presi-dent Oldham Day today.

“We wanted to encour-age students to go to Presi-dent Oldham’s Investiture Ceremony,” Reagan said. “It is an important time for the university, having a new president and all, so we wanted to tie that in with Homecoming.”

By ASHLEY AYUBBeat Reporter

Coming home for the television shows

87:30 p.mIsle of KlezbosWattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

7:30 p.mTTU Percussion En-semble Wattenbarger Auditorium, Bryan Fine Arts Building

8:00 p.m.“Caberet” opens at the Backdoor Playhouse

8:30 p.mTTU Swing DanceMemorial Gym Basement

101:30 p.m.Football hosts fi nal home game against UT- Martin

CRIME BRIEFS:- Not Available - Not Available Classifi cation: Intimidation Location: Other (Ninth & Dixie) Disposition: Open Case Notes: Insuffi cient time frame & vehicle info at this time

- Sept. 27 - Not Available Classifi cation: Destruction/Damage/ Vandalism Location: New Hall South Disposition: Open Case Notes: Vandalism to Motorcycle

- Oct.1 - 12:00 Classifi cation: Intimidation Location: Derryberry Hall (Offi ce) Disposition: Open Case Notes: None

- Oct. 9 - Not Available Classifi cation: Destruction/Damage/ Vandalism Location: West Stadium (Storage Closet) Disposition: Open Case Notes: Lock cut from a storage door

- Oct. 11 - 6:22 Classifi cation: Other (Loud music, suspi cious person, harassment, minor distur bance) Location: McCord Hall Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students. Notes: Loud music coming from dorm r room, disturbing surrounding commu nity

- Oct. 12 - 2:24 Classifi cation: Other (Open Theft) Location: Warf Hall (Bike Rack) Disposition: Open Case. Notes: None

- Oct. 18- Not Available Classifi cation: Theft of Vehicle Parts Location: Facility, Business Services Building (Parking Lot). Disposition: Open Case Notes: None.

- Oct. 19 - 4:00 Classifi cation: Theft from Building Location: Evins Hall (Laundry Room) Disposition: Open Case Notes: None.

- Oct. 23 - 9:41 Classifi cation: Drug/ Narcotic Violation Location: Maddux Hall Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students Notes: None.

- Oct. 23 - 11:14 Classifi cation: Simple Assault Location: New Hall South Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students. Notes: None.

- Oct. 23- 12:46 Classifi cation: Breaking &Entering Location: Foundation Hall Disposition: Open Case Notes: Also pried open light box (Vandalism) for use on basketball court.

- Oct. 23 - Not Available Classifi cation: Destruction/Damage/ Vandalism Location: Johnson Hall Disposition: Open Case Notes: None.

- Oct. 25 - 2:59 Classifi cation: 7:00 Location: New Hall South Disposition: Closed. Referred to Dean of Students Notes: Also had drug paraphernalia

- Oct. 26 - 1:20 Classifi cation: Theft from Building Location: Bryan Fine Arts Building Disposition: Open Case Notes: Student left purse in room. Missing property.

For up-to-date crime information, visit tntechoracle.com

“Being elected Homecoming Queen for 76-77 year was the most humbling honor and greatest shock of my life at that point. I will always remember it. It was especially sweet to be invited later on to Homecom-ing with all other previous Homecoming Queens to ride in the parade and participate in halftime activi-ties. I found out that another lady at my local church was also a previous TTU Homecoming Queen!“

“

“

“

I love both TTU and Homecoming, so to be a part of it was a big deal to me. Although I wore the crown, I give all the credit to my Phi Mu sisters, friends and family. Without them I wouldn’t have received a sin-gle vote, and I want to thank them for all the support they gave me. Being able to represent a university of such high quality is truly a memory I’ll always cherish.

The experience of running for queen came at a diffi cult time in my life where I was so thankful for the love and support of my family, my Phi Mu sisters, and my teammates, and I felt like I needed a win. Honestly, just making Homecoming court was enough for me. I was honored to have even made it that far. Out on the fi eld, after they had announced everyone else’s names and I realized our names were the only ones left, it hit me. We had won. So for me, being crowned Homecoming Queen was more than just a couple of parades and a sparkly crown. It was an opportunity to be the one everyone else was cheering for, and it felt surreal! It is a feeling I will never forget.

Being Homecoming Queen was such an honor! I will never forget Homecoming day and the mo-ment the queen was announced. It was so great to see all of my sisters in the crowd cheering me on. It is truly something I will forever cherish.

“

“

“

Anita Phillips Moore, 1976

Hailey Fanning, 2009

Katie Pierce, 2010

Caroline Harlan, 2011

The Queens of Tech

TraditionsCONTINUED from page 1

“My initial idea was to have a Traditions week which would be a different event every day to remem-ber old traditions, but we don’t want to only focus on old traditions. I would like to start some new traditions, so current students can be a part of it.”

Many traditions have become such a part of cam-pus that students don’t take the time to appreciate the history behind it. For exam-ple, The Memorial Gym to many students is the place students take physical edu-cation classes, but the build-ing was actually named in honor of our students and alumni who died in WWII.

South Patio has been the main hangout for stu-dents since the RUC opened in 1971, although the term “south patio” did not really come into use until the plaza was built in the mid-’80s.

The Main Quad was the original campus, known as Dixie College, and is home to the “Big Oak,” the largest tree on the quad predating Dixie College itself. The land was deeded to the state upon the establishment of Tech in 1915.

Since its beginning as Dixie College in 1909, and then to Tennessee Polytech-nic Institute in 1916, Tech has grown dramatically. The in-stitute, with 13 faculty mem-bers, opened its doors to 19 college students at the start of the 1916-1917 academic year. At the time, Tech’s campus consisted of 18 acres of undeveloped land, an ad-ministrative building and two dormitories.

Since Tech was estab-lished, the university has blossomed from three build-ings located on the fringes of a daisy fi eld to an 87-build-ing complex situated on 235 acres. The faculty has grown from the 13 men and women to about 370 today. From the fi rst class of 19 students, Ten-nessee Tech’s enrollment has grown to more than 11,500.

“Though Tech has grown and changed, tradi-tions cannot be forgotten,” Hodges said. “There is plen-ty of history and tradition here. We just want to make sure students know about it. I want our students to have a passion about something other than just academics that we can generally rally around and make our own.”

For more information on the Historical Traditions Committee, contact Hodges at calebhodges42@gmail.com.

GrantCONTINUED from page 1

Currently, Tech’s plant produces approximately 480 tons of coal ash per year. The ash is transported by truck to an approved landfi ll in Indi-ana. The total emissions from the ash transportation were not included in the proposal document.

The Clean Tennessee En-ergy Grant Program provides fi nancial assistance to state and local government agen-cies and private businesses and organizations to pur-chase, install and construct energy products that reduce emissions and pollutants.

Andy Loftis, power plant manager, said Tech was one of four government agen-cies chosen from 333 applica-tions to receive funding from TDEC.

The award process was based on three criteria: cleaner alternative energy, including biomass, geothermal, solar and wind energy; energy con-servation, including lighting, HVAC improvements, im-proved fuel effi ciency, insula-tion and idling minimization; and air quality improvement, including sulfur dioxide, volatile organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, hazardous air pollutants and greenhouse gases. Tech met all criteria.

TAB President Lindsay Adcock agreed.

“We have more partici-pation points for the Wel-come President Oldham Day because we really want students to go and support our President dur-ing the Investiture, so this is an incentive for students to attend,” Adcock said.

Some of the themes organizations are doing include “Veggie Tales,” “The Golden Girls,” “Ke-nan and Kel,” “The Flint-stones,” “Dukes of Haz-zard,” “Pokémon,” “The Beverly Hillbillies,” “The Smurfs” and “Hey Ar-nold!”

Monday’s event was a banner competition. Tuesday was “Jeopardy!” Night. Wednesday was a canned food drive and “The Amazing Race” fi eld games. The week ends with today as Welcome President Oldham Day and tomorrow’s parade and football game.

The winners for each individual event will be announced throughout the football game, and the overall Homecoming champions will be an-nounced during the fourth quarter of the game.

By JODI LAWRENCE, Beat Reporter

tntechoracle.com Page 3 | November 2, 2012

NEWS

Tech Alumni Relations spreads the word to alumni about its services and what it is doing to further con-nect with graduates.

Tracey Duncan, direc-tor of alumni relations, said Alumni Relations reaches out to Tech alumni through phone calls, email and in-ternet sources.

“In this day of technolo-gy, we can do that electroni-cally for free,” Duncan said. “The fi rst thing that we do is send everything out through email regarding events like Homecoming and big events on campus. We also send out an elec-tronic e-newsletter about once a quarter, and that includes news, announce-ments and event sched-ules.”

Duncan said they also reach out to Tech alumni us-ing sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to get the word out about what is happening on Tech’s cam-pus.

James Jones, Tech alum-nus, said the Tech Alumni Relations department does keep in contact with him frequently.

“They send me stuff all the time in the mail,” Jones said. “They send me things like what events that are going on, what is new on campus and even the sports

Alumni Relations reaches out to Tech graduatesBy MICA BILBREYBeat Reporter

program will try to get me to sign up for season tick-ets every year for football, baseball and basketball.”Importance of Alumni

Lucas Flatt, Tech alum-nus, said it is important to be an alumnus of Tech.

“I think that Tech has a history of success with graduates and alumni,” Flatt said. “With the train-ing I have got from teach-ing composition in the master’s degree program, I think their training is excel-lent, so I do feel like I have gotten a lot out of being an alumni.”

Duncan said the impor-tance of alumni is to help out the university by giv-ing back not just fi nancially but by spreading the word about the campus.

“A lot of people assume that just means giving back fi nancially, but it also means that we need our alumni who are employers to hire our students,” Duncan said. “We also want neighbors to tell their neighbors’ kids or grandkids about Tennes-see Tech and to encourage them to visit the campus.”

James Jones, Tech alum-nus, said he also believes

there’s a big importance to being a Tech alum.

“It’s a top quality school,” Jones said. “I met a lot of people, and I have learned a lot. Tech was a big infl uence in my life, and Tech still is a big infl uence in my life.”Homecoming

Duncan said Home-coming is important be-cause it is a long tradition of the school and for the alumni to come together to see what all has changed.

“Homecoming is more of a tradition that goes back a long time,” Duncan said.

“It’s for alumni to come back to campus and enjoy and see what has happened since they graduated.”

Jones said Homecom-ing is important to him because he can spend time with his greek brothers and see other alumni he wouldn’t get to see other-wise.

“Homecoming for me is a good thing, and I enjoy it,” Jones said. “Homecom-ing is where I get to meet other alumni from other greek organizations that I got to know. It’s the one time of year that I get to see

other greeks that I knew.”Services

Duncan said Tech offersalumni other services, suchas insurance through Lib-erty Mutual.

“We have insuranceprograms, for example,where you can get auto andhome insurance for a dis-count because they are part of the Alumni Association,”Duncan said. “We offerlong term care insurance,short term health insuranceand travel programs.”Improvement

Duncan said AlumniRelations is trying to im-prove on collecting updat-ed emails so they can bettercontact Tech alumni andupdate its directory.

“The number one thing is obtaining more emailaddresses,” Duncan said. “We keep about 50 percentof email addresses from alums, so we don’t haveemail addresses from theother half. We are askingat events, and at our annu-al phone-athon callers getemails.”

Flatt said he hasn’t re-ceived a phone call or emailin a while.

“They might try to con-tact me through my Techaccounts, but I don’t haveaccess to them anymore,” Flatt said. “I also haven’tupdated my information ei-ther, so that is my fault fornot setting the email up tobe forwarded.”

Hundreds of Tech alumni attend the Homecoming game each year from all over the country. Saturday’s game against East-ern Illinois University kicks off at 1:30 p.m.

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Page 4 | November 2, 2012 tntechoracle.com

NEWS

With Homecoming and purple pride in the air, stu-dents have been buying supplies, working on fl oats and getting involved in this week’s events.

This year some frater-nities and sororities have teamed up to work on Home-coming activities.

“We are paired with a fraternity, and both organi-zations have a set budget on what we can spend on Homecoming needs,” Mer-edith Painter, Delta Gamma sister and vice president of social standards, said. “Bud-gets come from our dues that we all pay as members.”

The theme this year for homecoming is “Tech on TV,” according to Tech’s website.

“Some of the themes that will be featured this year are

Organizations gear up for HomecomingBy BRITTANY FRANKLINBeat Reporter

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By SHELBY MCDONALD, Beat Reporter / Photos courtesy of SGA/Greek

Meet the Homecoming candidatesTia Repscher & Bobby Adams

Repscher is a senior psychology major from Kingston, Tenn. Repscher is representing Phi Mu.

Adams is a senior chemical engi-neering major from Kingsport, Tenn. Adams is representing Phi Gamma Delta.

Repscher Adams

Painter Aikens

Sherrell Hutto

Henderson Chan

Arnold Stroop

‘Dukes of Hazzard,’ ‘The Bev-erly Hillbillies,’ ‘The Flint-stones’ and ‘The Smurfs,’” Kayla Chaffi n, president of Phi Mu, said.

Chaffi n said most of Greek Life is participating in Homecoming this year, as well as some other student organizations, such as Tech’s Baptist Collegiate Ministry.

Organizations entering the fl oat competition have been working to complete them in time for tomorrow’s parade. The organizations get fl oat supplies from vari-ous places in the area.

“All of the wood we use for homecoming is bought at hardware stores, but this year it was donated by alumni,” Painter said.

Some organizations use a tissue-like paper called pomp to decorate the fl oats. Painter said they buy all their pomp from a store in Knoxville.

Painter said Sigma Chi fraternity and Delta Gamma sorority had a meeting at the beginning of the semester to come up with ideas for their fl oat.

“We go to our fl oat site for nights on end and work for extended periods of time,” Painter said.

Organizations also par-ticipate in other Homecom-ing events. Chaffi n said some activities for Homecoming this year were a banner com-petition, a canned food drive, “Jeopardy!” night, “Amaz-ing Race” games, President Oldham’s investiture and to-night’s pep rally.

The pep rally begins Fri-day at 5 p.m. in Memorial Gym.

The parade will begin Saturday at 10:30 a.m. on Jefferson Avenue and will proceed on Dixie Avenue to campus.

Photo Services

Last year’s fl oats featured world destinations. This year’s parade starts at 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

Men’s Wearhouse is offer-ing a dress for success work-shop and an opportunity to be measured for a suit Nov. 15.

The College of Business has teamed up with Men’s Wearhouse for a campus-wide event called Suit Up.

“This event is open to anyone who wants to attend,” Amy Jo Carpenter, student to career program manager, said. “An email was originally sent out to men only since it was Men’s Wearhouse that was coming, but everyone is wel-come to come.”

From 11 a.m. to noon Men’s Wearhouse will do a

By JORDAN KERLEYBeat Reporter

College of Business, Men’s Wearhouse invite students to ‘suit up’ workshop

dress for success workshop with the staff where they will talk to students about how to dress for the job they want.

After the workshop stu-dents will be offered the option to be measured for suits across the hall from the auditorium in the Virginia Plummer Room.

“Once students have been measured, they will be given a card with their exact mea-surements which will allow the student to purchase a suit specifi cally fi tted for them,” Carpenter said.

Students who attend ca-reer fairs and go to job inter-views know how important it is to look the part.

“This sounds like a great idea,” senior Gabe Collins

said. “Some people really don’tknow how to even start whenit comes to the interview pro-cess, and it’s nice that they aretaking time out of their jobs tohelp others and give pointers.”

Carpenter said she wantsto organize a similar event forwomen in the future and is try-ing to fi nd a vender to partnerwith her to make it happen.

A sign-up sheet has beenposted to ttustudent2career.com/suit-up/ to help giveMen’s Wearhouse a good es-timate of how many studentsplan on attending this event, sothey can bring enough person-nel to help.

This event will be heldNov. 15 at 11 a.m. in the John-son Hall Auditorium.

Project Safe Haven is turning departments and of-fi ces around campus into safe places for lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender and ques-tioning students.

Lambda, Tech’s gay-straight alliance, started the project to give LGBTQ stu-dents safe places to talk and get resources after bullying and suicide numbers among the LGBTQ community have been on the rise.

“TTU Lambda GSA start-ed it mostly because of the bullying and suicide epidemic that has affected a lot of LGBT individuals,” Abel Howard, junior and GSA president, said. “A lot of students come

By LINDSEY GOREBeat Reporter

Campus transforms into safe haven for LGBT studentsout to their teachers fi rst be-fore their peers. High schools and universities all over the United States have a Safe Ha-ven project for this reason. We also wanted to expand the places the students would be able to get information for questions they have. It also means a lot to someone our age to see older generations and people we respect sup-port us.”

The Safe Havens make information such as hotline numbers available, and mem-bers of the Safe

Haven will be available for students to talk to about diffi cult LGBTQ issues.

“Students will be given tons of information on dif-ferent topics surrounding the LGBT community, from sui-

cide prevention to coming outto your family and friends,”Howard said. “They will alsohave an ally they can speak to,which is a wonderful feeling.”

The Women’s Centersigned up to be the fi rst SafeHaven on campus.

“Women’s centers havehistorically been safe havenswithout really calling them-selves that,”

Diana Lalani, secretaryfor the women’s center, said.“Women understand what itis to be the underdog.

Women’s organizationsembrace diversity.”

Students can get involvedwith by joining GSA and visit-ing the TTU Safe Haven Face-book page.

Meredith Painter & Joshua Aikens

Painter is a senior speech com-munications major from Red Boiling Springs, Tenn. Painter is representing Delta Gamma.

Aikens is a senior accounting and fi nance major from Franklin, Tenn. Aikens is representing Chi Alpha.

Sarah Arnold & Noa Stroop

Arnold is a junior math major from Hendersonville, Tenn. Arnold is repre-senting Chi Alpha.

Stroop is a junior mechanical engi-neering major form Mt. Juliet, Tenn. Stroop is representing Kappa Sigma.

Katie Henderson & Raymond Chan

Henderson is a senior nursing major from Cookeville. Henderson is repre-senting Alpha Delta Pi.

Chan is a junior biology-health sci-ence major from Cookeville. Chan is representing Sigma Alpha Epsilon.

Samantha Sherrell & Alex Hutto

Sherrell is a senior accounting major from Cookeville, Tenn. Sherrell is representing Kappa Delta Sorority.

Hutto is a senior physical therapy major from Lebanon. Hutto is repre-senting Sigma Chi.

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The United States govern-ment has placed pressure on Israel to give up land for peace for many years. However, the land of Israel was promised to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their descendants. This pres-sure has resulted in judgment on the U.S. from the same God that promised Israel to the Jews.

Now, more than ever, I am convinced our treat-ment of Israel is directly related to recent natural di-sasters America has suffered through. The siren has been sounded, warning America to stand by Israel or suffer the wrath that will surely come.

The Northeast United States was hammered with a super storm known as Sandy Oct. 30. This “Perfect Storm” is being reported as one of the most disastrous storms to ever hit the U.S.

Some Americans may be experiencing deja vu. Exactly 21 years ago, the Northeast U.S. was preparing for the fi rst “Perfect Storm.”

But what has the U.S. done against Israel this time to

make God release his wrath and send down a warning?

Oct. 30, 1991: President George H.W. Bush opened up the historic Mid East Peace Conference in Madrid to en-courage Arabs and Israelis to “lay down the past.”

On that same day, “The Perfect Storm” hit the U.S. The waves from the fi rst “Perfect Storm” were the larg-est ocean waves ever recorded and almost wiped out Present George H. W. Bush’s home in Kenebunkport, Maine.

Oct. 30, 2012: Hurricane Sandy, the second “Perfect Storm” hit New York City and the Northeast U.S. Sandy caused widespread damage estimated to be in the billions of dollars.

The Palestinians made an offi cial move to make steps to declare itself a state to the United Nations, and the ap-plication was to be presented Oct. 30. The U.N., however, was unable to open its doors to vote on the request because of Hurricane Sandy.

This is not the only creepy coincidence of the U.S. being

struck by a devastating storm at the very moment we start-ed pulling away our support for Israel.

Aug. 23, 1992: The Madrid Conference moved to Washington D.C., and peace talks resumed. So did God’s warnings! Hurricane Andrew came ashore and left more than 180,000 Floridians homeless. Hurricane Andrew is second only to Hurricane Katrina in fi nancial damage.

Jan. 16, 1994: President

Bill Clinton met with Syria’s President Hafez el-Assad in Geneva about a peace agree-ment with Israel that includ-ed Israel giving up the Golan Heights. Within 24 hours, a powerful 6.9 earthquake rocked Southern California. The earthquake was the third most destructive natural di-saster to hit the United States, behind Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Andrew.

Sept. 28, 1998: President Clinton met with Yasser

Arafat and Prime Minister Netanyahu at the White House to fi nalize the land deal that had Israel give up 13 percent of Yesha (Judah and Samaria). On this same day, Hurricane George slammed into the U.S. Gulf Coast and stalled with 110 mph winds and gusts up to 175 mph. Later, Arafat addressed the U.N. about declaring an inde-pendent Palestinian state by May 1999. At the exact time Arafat departed the U.S., the

storm began to dissipate. Oct. 15-22, 1998: Arafat

and Netanyahu met again in the U.S. to continue talks that focused on Israel giving up 13 percent of Yesha. Torrentialrains and massive tornadoeshit southern Texas Oct. 17.The fl oods ravaged 25 percentof Texas, and 31 people died.President Clinton declared ita major disaster area.

May 3, 1999: Arafatwas scheduled to declarea Palestinian state withJerusalem as the capital.However, the declaration waspostponed to December 1999 at the request of PresidentClinton because the mostpowerful tornado storm sys-tem ever to hit the U.S. sweptacross Oklahoma and Kansasthat day. President Clinton’sletter to Arafat sent words of encouragement in “aspira-tions for his own land.”

Aug. 15, 2005: The Jewish communities in the Gaza Strip were forced out of theirhomes on this day in responseto pressure by the U.S. onPrime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, to force the Israelimilitary to remove Jews fromGush Katif, Gaza for a futurePalestinian State. The StateDepartment said they were tobe removed by Aug. 15, 2005,without excuse.

Page 6 | November 2, 2012 tntechoracle.com

OPINION

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Election

2012

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ETHAN DUKE, Freshman

I’m not voting because I haven’t watched anything about them. Whenever I listened to them they were just bad-mouthing the other, so I turned it. I’m just waiting to see who God puts in there, and whoever is there will be the right decision.

EVIE KINSLOW, Freshman

People tell me it matters. But in Tennessee, I don’t know if it really matters, because they’re going to go Republican. I think it’s

vote for representatives, but as far as President, the Electoral College is the one who decides that.

BROOKE PACK, Senior

I do feel that my vote matters; maybe not as much as the swing states, but it still matters. It’s important for students to

lives and our children’s lives, so we need to be a part of that decision.

the STUDENT on the STREETDoes your vote matter?

47%Obama/Biden

36%No

2%Other

1%Undecided

50%Romney/Ryan

64%Yes

Tech Students: Are you voting? Tech Students: Who are you voting for?SOME DON’T LIKE THEIR CHOICES, some didn’t watch the debates, and many haven’t even registered – whatever the reason, more than one-third of Tech students polled this week said they weren’t going to bother voting Tuesday. With national polls showing candidates Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama in a dead-heat in their 2012 bids, the campaigns have focused on battleground states like Ohio, Virginia and Florida. Tennessee’s 11 electoral votes are expected to fall to the Romney/Ryan ticket. Of those that are voting, most polled students at Tech will be voting “red” too.

Illustration by ALDEN BRUCE

Poll conducted by JUSTIN DUKE

Students weigh in on the Election

I think it’s time--past time--for Tech to purge it-self of the cliché word “awe-some,” both as in “Awesome Eagle” and in that inscru-table slogan, “Unleash your awesomeness.”

My students tell me this whole “awesome” thing is a joke around campus and students from other schools make fun of it. They say they fi nd it embarrassing they will

be graduates of a university that identifi es itself with a cliché.

I recently looked up the websites of about 25 different state universities. All were attractive, all were obviously trying to appeal to prospec-tive students, but not one featured a cartoon on its web-page. So to whom is Tech trying to appeal, high school graduates or fi fth-graders?

Now that we have a new president, how about start-ing anew linguistically by

forever striking the word “awesome” from Tech’s vo-cabulary? As for the mascot, since it’s the golden eagle, how about Goldy for its name? Make it female. Stake out some new territory in the realm of university mascots.

Please. A trite word should not be the signature of one of the highest-rated universities in the Southeast.

With the presidential election coming up this month, there are a couple of things I have heard people say that really bother me, especially within the past couple of weeks.

This includes when someone says, “I’m voting for Romney because I’m a Republican,” or “My dad told me to vote for Obama,

and I come from a long line of Democrats, so I will.”

Who cares? It’s your vote, so make your own de-cision on who you want as president. Take the time and research each candidate, and make a decision based on their qualities, not their party.

Vote for the candidate whose values and ideas cor-relate with what you think will best suit our country. Frankly, it is dumb to vote

for someone based on what organization they belong to. If you do the research and still want to vote for that candidate, that’s fi ne.

Thank you for consider-ing the future of our country and voting on who you be-lieve is the right choice. Be an informed voter, not an ignorant one.

A question Mitt Romney loves to tell us to ask ourselves is “are we better off than we were four years ago?”

Romney asks this ques-tion under the prevailing no-tion the answer will be no, but when you use facts and logic you will see the answer is yes, we are better off than we were four years ago.

Admittedly the economy is in rough shape, but it would be even worse if it were not for the policies of Barack Obama. When George W. Bush took offi ce, unemployment was at around 4 percent. When he left offi ce and handed the reigns over to Obama, it was at 7.8 percent and quickly rising.

It got up to 10 percent in 2009. Then the policies cre-ated by Obama began to push the unemployment rate back down. It is now below 8 percent.

Do you think if Republicans had inherited the White House and there

was no bailout for the auto industry, which saved more than a million jobs, things would be better?

Do you think if we did not pass the stimulus plan, which helped place nearly 4 million people in jobs according to the bipartisan Congressional Budget Offi ce, things would be better?

It is no coincidence the stimulus package was passed in early 2009 and the unem-ployment rate rise halted and began to drop in June.

Another thing Republicans like to say is dur-ing Obama’s time in offi ce the defi cit has doubled, which is not true. The annual defi cit in 2009 was $1.19 trillion. It is es-timated at the end of 2012 the annual defi cit will be at $1.09 trillion. Our annual defi cit has actually gone down under Obama.

Obama lowered the defi -cit in spite of including the two wars in the budget. Bush had the wars listed as “emergency

spending measures” and were not included in his budget. Obama decided it would be smart to actually try to pay for the wars at some point, and yet Republicans are the party of fi scal responsibility.

Obama’s foreign policy can also be touted as a suc-cess. Obama has ended two wars, made the call to kill the man responsible for the 9/11 terrorist attacks and strate-gically and wisely ensured

the United States did not get dragged into another confl ict, despite incredible turmoil in Arab and Middle Eastern countries.

Obama has recently got-ten some criticism for the at-tacks on Benghazi, but amidst all the fog of talking heads and Glenn Beck conspiracy theories are the facts that get ignored. There are 294 United States Embassies and Consulates around the world,

many of which are located in very volatile countries, all in the name to protect U.S. inter-ests, which are mostly oil and defense.

The consulate in Benghazi was not unique in terms of feeling they were in danger. Our worst fears came into fruition, and we were unpre-pared for it. What this should do is open up dialogue about how well our consulates are protected and if we even need to be present in many of these countries. Conspiracy theories and talking heads are clouding the real issue unfor-tunately, and the chance to have any real discussion about this is beginning to dissipate.

Unlike my Republican counterparts, if my guy does not win I do not think it will be the end of the United States as we know it. Some Republicans truly believe Obama is the living ghost of Che Guevara and if reelected will reveal himself and we will soon be socialists. I do not think that Romney will ruin this country.

What I fear about a Romney presidency is a re-turn to the ignorance and anti-intellectualism that was so prominent during the Bush years. I am afraid to have a

White House fi lled with peo-ple who think evolution andclimate change are just theo-ries, you know, like gravity isjust a theory. Perhaps we canall fl oat.

I fear an administrationthat bans stem cell research,even though it is likely to leadto major breakthroughs in theworld of medicine.

I fear a Romney cabinetthat believes the federal gov-ernment should not interferewith the lives of their citizensunless, of course, you are awoman or gay.

I fear an administrationthat did not support an endto “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” andwill defend DOMA.

This brings us to the fun-damental difference betweenRepublicans and Democrats. My Republican friends alwaysask why I care so much aboutgay rights. They point outthat I am not gay and there-fore should have no stake inthis issue.

This monocentric view of the world republicans haveis what separates them from Democrats.

Republicans are only con-cerned with the “me and now”while Democrats tend to focuson the “us and the future.”

Page 7 | November 2, 2012tntechoracle.com

OPINION

CORRECTION - SEPT. 21CORRECTION - SEPT. 21

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The story “Cookeville meningitis death sparks concern” in the Oct. 26 issue of The Oracle incorrectly stated Cookeville Regional Medical Center received spinal epidurals infected with fungal meningitis. CRMC never received or used injectable medications from New England Compounding Center in Massachusetts. CRMC has been treating patients with fungal meningitis who received injections from other health care providers. The Oracle regrets the error.

LETTER TO THE EDITORVote using your own mind

Nick RollinsAlumnus

Nwrollins42@students.tntech.edu

President Barack Obama during the fi rst Presidential Debate.Salon

Send letters to the editor to oracle@tntech.edu. Include your Send letters to the editor to oracle@tntech.edu. Include your name, email address and limit letters to 300 words. Anonymous name, email address and limit letters to 300 words. Anonymous letters are not accepted. Deadline for letters is 4 p.m. Tuesday. letters are not accepted. Deadline for letters is 4 p.m. Tuesday. We reserve the right to edit grammar, length and clarity.We reserve the right to edit grammar, length and clarity.

JONATHAN KAULAY

Opinion Editor

We are better off than we were four years ago

ROMNEY

What’s on your mind?Who would you like to see become president of the United States and why?

“The past four years Obama hasn’t really kept the promises he had made.”

-Katy CoxEducation majorSophomore

“Unless you are like really rich, it is kind of silly to vote for a Republican.”

-David PhiferEnglish majorSenior

“I don’t really agree with Obama’s health care plan. Some parts I agree with, but some of it sounds like communism.”

-David FarmerBusiness majorFreshman

ROMNEYOBAMA

Enough with the awesome

Michael O’RourkeProfessor of English

MORourke@tntech.edu

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

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Tech will have its annual campus-wide school pep rally tonight at 5:00 p.m. in Memorial Gym.

The pep rally is open to all Tech stu-dents and faculty as well as parents. The Tech spirit squad, which includes the dance team, cheerleaders and mascots, will be performing for the Golden Eagles football team. They will perform pieces from their national competition routines as well as other routines they have per-formed throughout the football season.

“I still get nervous performing in front of people I know on campus,” soph-omore dance team member Carly Owens said. “It feels different to perform in front of your friends than when you’re per-forming at a game.”

The spirit squads will be participat-ing in many activities to lift school spirit and raise team morale for the Tech foot-ball team.

“I feel like we get the crowd excited and ready for the game,” freshman cheer-leader Rachel Coleman said. “We help pump up our fans and get our football team ready to play. Our goal is to just keep the crowd cheering.”

Owens said, “I think it makes people in attendance more excited about the weekend and inspires them to get more involved with athletics that go on around campus.”

According to the Tech website, Max-well Alderson was the fi rst offi cial Gold-en Eagle mascot in 1961. Alderson will be coming back to show his school spirit during the 50th Golden Grad Reunion over the Homecoming weekend. He will return once again to the eagle suit to per-form for the Tech audience during tomor-row’s football game against Eastern Illi-nois University.

“To me, once I had dressed in the cos-tume, I was the Golden Eagle mascot,” Alderson said. “It was not Max Alderson dressed for Halloween or for a costume

party. I became a majestic creature that represented a tradition that began in 1925 with the selection for the Golden Eagle as a mascot.”

The pep rally will also include a judged competition section. The sorori-ties, fraternities and some of the resident halls will participate in the activities. They will be judged on two separate sec-tions: participation of other organizations and the competition itself. These organi-zations have been practicing for weeks to perform choreography, tumbling and stunts in front of the Tech football team and the three selected judges.

“School spirit to me is not just going to class, but enthusiastically supporting your school’s athletics, teachers and oth-er students,” junior Kappa Sigma mem-ber Zach Stephens said. “I think the pep rally is a very competitive contest and is a great way to represent how much work the greek and other organizations have done to perform their routines.”

Last week’s PurplePalooza successfully set theschool spirit for the upcoming Tech basketball sea-son.

The inaugural PurplePalooza was held Oct. 25at the Hooper Eblen Center as a tip off celebrationfor all things basketball at Tech. The night featuredperformances from the dance team and cheerleadingsquad as well as two 10-minute scrimmages, a slam-dunk contest and 3-point contests.

The PurplePalooza was created as an alternativeto midnight madness, so the fans could feel more intouch with the teams.

“There is no reason the Eblen Center shouldn’tbe the most intimidating atmosphere,” Mark Wilson,director of athletics, said to the crowd during Purple-Palooza. “Students will be seated in sections I and J,right behind the visiting team’s bench.”

Both basketball teams were picked to fi nish atthe top of the Ohio Valley Conference standings dur-ing OVC Media Day. The young men’s team waspicked to fi nish in third place during the regular sea-son, while the women were picked to fi nish in fi rst.

“At the OVC Media Day we were picked to bethe overall champions,” Jim Davis, women’s basket-ball head coach, said to the crowd. “It is our goal tolead in fi ve categories: rebounding margin, turnovermargin, fi eld goals for defense, free throw percent-age and intensity.”

The women’s basketball team was up for thefi rst of the two 10-minute scrimmages. The women’steam was split into the white, or home, team and thepurple, or away, team. One of the highlights of thescrimmage was watching senior twins Kellie and Ky-lie Cook go against each other. The scrimmage wasfull of intense energy as both teams went back andforth until the fi nal buzzer with the white team even-tually winning 14-12.

“I look forward to the women’s team everyyear,” senior Brent Smith said.

The men took the court next in an exhibition ofyouth and experience that will be necessary to takeon OVC foes Murray State University and BelmontUniversity.

“In all of my years here, this is the youngest teamI have had,” Steve Payne, men’s head coach, said ashe addressed the crowd.

The men’s team was split into two squads, thegold, or home, team and the purple, or away, team.The purple team, led in points by Jud Dillard, domi-nated the scrimmage 38-25. The scrimmage wasa thrilling exhibition of three pointers and dunks,helping to boost the crowd’s energy.

“Anything like this that gets people excitedis sure to bring people in,” sophomore SamanthaWhite said.

Fans were treated to a 3-point contest. Contestantshad one minute to shoot as many 3-pointers as theycould. During the contest the men’s team competedon one side of the court while the women competedon the other. The women’s winner was Kellie Cook,and the men’s and overall winner was Lanerryl John-son.

“I really enjoyed the action in the 3-point con-test,” sophomore Lydia Holmes said. “It was my fa-vorite part.”

The fi nal segment of the night was a slam-dunkcontest. Contestants got two chances to successfullymake the most creative slam-dunk they could thinkof. The eventual winner, Javon McKay, dunked over7-foot-tall Eric Weisenbach.

For more information on Tech’s basketball pro-grams and all of Tech athletics, visit TTUSports.com.

The Golden Eagles men’s basketball team will be returning to the court Nov. 10 to build off of last year’s successful season.

Last year’s season was something not happen-ing often at Tech: back-to-back 19 plus win seasons, conference tournament appearances and producing another NBA draft pick in Kevin Murphy, who cur-rently plays for the Utah Jazz.

The Golden Eagles lost six good seniors after last season, but coach Steve Payne knows what it will take to build off of last season’s successes and get these younger guys to step up and take over.

“The sum needs to be greater than all of its parts,” Payne said.

After having a big senior class last season and having just two seniors this year in Jud Dillard, a pre-season All-OVC team selection, and Terrell Barnes, Payne and the players still have a lot of confi dence in the young team.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what the young guys will do and how they will adapt to the college game,” Barnes said.

Payne said, “I think we’ll be more balanced on offense. Kevin and Jud are such great scorers and had that scorer’s mentality and would just take over the game.”

Using a more balanced offense with some good returning players including the two seniors, the Golden Eagles have some more big games this sea-son everyone should be looking forward to seeing.

The Golden Eagles will travel to Auburn Univer-sity Dec. 18 and Oklahoma State University Dec. 22.

The Bruins of Belmont University are new to the OVC this season, and they come to Cookeville Jan. 5.

One of the season highlights will be when con-ference rival and defending OVC Champions Mur-ray State University comes to town for a nationally televised game Jan. 24. The game will be broadcast on ESPN-U.

“I feel like we have the greatest school in our conference and a lot of fan support,” Payne said. “We have guys that you like and will represent you well.”

The Golden Eagles will tip off Nov. 10 at the Hoop at 8 p.m. against Crowley’s Ridge College.

By KATIE VAUGHNBeat Reporter

Page 8 | November 2, 2012 tntechoracle.com

SPORTS

By ARIEL PERRYBeat Reporter

Basketball kickoff brings frenzy, excitement to Eblen in anticipation of seasonBy CALLEN HARRELL

Beat Reporter

Racquet MasterFitness Center

TTU Students: Workout 24/7 No Contract $25 Per Month

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The Tech soccer team’s hopes for a playoff appearance were crushed last weekend when they were swept in a 5-1 loss against Southeastern Missouri State University and a 6-0 loss at the University of Tennessee at Martin.

The Golden Eagles were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs after Friday’s loss to the Redhawks of Southeast-ern Missouri.

“It was hard to watch as the time fi nally ticked down,” said freshman goal keeper Jordan Brown.

Friday’s game was the last home game of the season, but it did not go as the Golden Eagles had planned.

The fi rst half was fairly quiet with Southeast Missouri having just a 1-0 lead at the break on Torey Byrd’s goal at 32:33.

However, the Redhawks came out hot in the second half scoring two more goals within the fi rst four minutes of the new half.

Their second goal was scored at 47:54 and the third came just 26 seconds later at 48:20 to give the Redhawks a 3-0 lead.

“Once SEMO started scoring, they were on fi re,” said Tech midfi elder Emily Homan. “As much as we tried to get control of the game, it just wasn’t clicking for us.”

Tech scored their lone goal of the game when senior mid-fi elder Jacquie Watkins scored at 64:49 on a pass from senior midfi elder Kris Cambron.

The Redhawks would go on to add another goal at 66:52 and one more at 88:46 to polish off the 5-1 conference victory.

With Friday’s loss to Southeast Missouri fresh on their minds, the Golden Eagles had one other tough match ahead of them Sunday afternoon at the home of the Ohio Valley Con-ference’s No. 1 team, UT-Martin.

“We had to go into Sunday’s game with the same mental-ity that we would any other game,” said Brown. “The fact that we were already eliminated didn’t mean that we wanted to win any less.”

However, the defending OVC Champion Skyhawks did not leave that up to the Golden Eagles.

The game was highlighted by Skyhawk forward, Abi San-vee scoring her fi rst career hat trick in Sunday’s match.

Sanvee scored the fi rst two goals of the game for Martin at 8:06 and 15:12 followed by two other goals from her team-mates at 33:32 and 42:41 to give the Skyhawks a commanding 4-0 lead at halftime.

The Skyhawks picked up in the second half right where they left off, scoring again at 51:36 to put the Golden Eagles down 5-0.

Savnee racked up her third goal of the game to complete the hat trick at 66:20 and end the scoring spree for the Sky-hawks.

The score remained the same for the last 24 minutes end-ing the Golden Eagles’ 2012 season with the bitter taste of a 6-0 loss on their tongues.

“The difference between us and Martin was that they

Men’s basketball looks to begin another successful campaign following last

PurplePalooza:

Cheerleaders, dance team, students come together for pep rally tonight

could fi nd the back of the net,” said Homan. “We created many chances but were just unlucky.”

Sunday’s loss not only ended the season but also the col-lege playing careers of seniors Kris Cambron, Sarah Gawthrop, Andrea Meloff, Kerri Reid, Alex Stevenson, Julie Thompson and Jacquie Watkins.

Homan said that the underclassmen of the team are ready to put this season behind them and build off of it for next year.

“We really appreciate all of the support we got this sea-son,” said Homan. “The fans really picked up on our Twitter and Facebook events, and we can’t wait to bring back some more action next year.”

Tech soccer falls short in quest for OVC tournamentBy CALLEN HARRELLBeat Reporter

(Top) Tech’s Jud Dilliard, a preseason All-OVC selection, makes a layup during the men’s intersquad scrimmage at PurplePalooza. (Bottom) Jeremiah Samarrippas and Josiah Moore sign autographs of the community.

Photos by Jamal Ferguson and Katie Vaughn

The Ohio Valley Conference has re-leased a statement regarding the no-call on the last play of the game against Tennessee State University Oct. 27.

In the last remaining seconds of the game, Tennessee State, after being held out of the endzone the entire game, scored a touchdown by the way of a six-yard A.C. Leonard pass to Michael German.

What caused the controversy was that the offi cials didn’t fl ag the Tigers for lining up in an illegal formation.

“They were in an illegal formation on the play, and the offi cials missed it,” Wat-son Brown, head coach, said. “And that would have been a fi ve yard penalty, and they get another shot, and that would have put them on the 12-yard line with another

throw in the end zone.”The reason pushing TSU back would

have been so signifi cant is because it would have given Tech’s defense more room to breathe.

TSU’s kicker Jamin Godfrey missed a kick that would have won the game for the Tigers against Jacksonville State Oct. 20. If the Golden Eagles could have made a third down stop after the penalty, Godfrey would have been attempting a 29-yard fi eld goal.

“You have to line up with seven men on the line of scrimmage every play, or it’s an illegal formation,” Justin Matheney, stu-dent assistant coach, said.

TSU only lined up with six men on the line.

According to NCAA Approved ruling 7-1-4, “Team A’s formation at the snap in-cludes only 10 players: fi ve players on the line of scrimmage numbered 50-79, one

Volleyball’s Gray earns OVC DPOW

Senior Kelsey Gray caught the attention of the conference and revealed why she is the best blocker in the Ohio Valley Confer-ence when she turned in a 2.54 block per set performance over the weekend.

Gray’s spectacular play at the net snagged the senior Defensive Player of the Week honors.

This marks the fi rst time Gray, a 6’2” middle blocker, has earned Adidas OVC De-fensive Player of the Week this season, but this is the second time she has been honored in her four-year career. Gray previously won the award her sophomore season after post-ing 10 blocks against Jacksonville State Un-versity Oct. 15, 2010.

For the weekend, the Golden Eagles registered 25 team blocks with Gray having a hand in 18 of them. Against undefeated Morehead State University, Gray was a part of every Tech block. She had a career-high 10 block assists and a season-high 11 total blocks versus Eastern Kentucky University. Gray averaged 2.54 blocks per set, and to put in perspective the greatness of her perfor-mance, the best blocker in Division I is cur-

rently averaging 1.74 blocks per set.Gray is currently ranked fi rst in the OVC

with 1.54 blocks per set, placing her 10th in Division I, ahead of perennial powerhouses such as Stanford University, the University of Texas and Pennsylvania State University.

Vanlier named to FCS Freshman Watch List

Tennessee Tech true freshman Ladarius Vanlier has been named to the prestigious Football Championship Subdivision Nation-al Freshman Performer of the Year Watch List by the College Football Performance Awards.

The watch list highlights freshmen whose performances merit recognition, and Vanlier was one of 30 athletes named.

In his fi rst year wearing purple and gold, Vanlier has done just that. Throughout his freshman season, Vanlier has received nods for his exceptional play from the Ohio Valley Conference and the CFPA.

Vanlier took the fi eld by storm, break-ing OVC records and coming up just shy of NCAA records within his fi rst month of play and also averages 21.4 yards per kick return.

Page 9 | November 2, 2012tntechoracle.com

SPORTS

By DREW HASTONBeat Reporter

Illegal formation missed by refs results in ‘heartbreaking’ loss

Weekly Roundup This week’s sports stories at a glance

This week’s Weekly Roundup features stories from TTU Sports Information.

HOT CORNER

James Dillon. As a Tech staff member, Dillon has responsibilities on campus but continues to go above and beyond those duties in order to serve Tech. Dillon has also helped supply pictures for The Oracle and has made countless donations to The Oracle’s photography department.

True freshman wide receiver Eric Belew, above, scores his fi rst career touchdown vs. TSU. The Golden Eagles and the Tigers battled on the sideline as well, as Awesome Eagle and Tigre, right, banter in jest.

Jamal Fergu-

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player on the line wearing number 82, and four players in the backfi eld.”

In layman’s terms, if there are more than four people in the backfi eld as well, then the formation is illegal. Tennessee State lined up with fi ve.

“On the last play of regulation, Tennes-see State threw a touchdown pass to tie the game and then kicked the extra point to win it,” Jim Jackson, OVC Coordinator of Football Offi ciating, said. “The offense was lined up in an illegal formation as there were fi ve players in the offensive backfi eld. There should have been a foul called, a penalty of 5 yards assessed and the down should have been replayed.”

Jackson is looking into the matter, but any form of punishment on the offi ciating crew has not been announced.

“Jim Jackson is a good man,” Brownsaid. “I think he will take care of it. I be-lieve in him. I don’t know if people will getsuspended or what they’ll do from it, we’llwait and see what happens with that.”

Brown also talked about how he felt forhis players after the game.

“It’s tough, it’s tough on our kids,”Brown said. “We all make mistakes. I un-derstand that. I make them myself, but youjust don’t feel good for your players whenyou just lose the game on the last play ofthe game on a poor offi ciating call.”

Tech will look to bounce back tomor-row for Homecoming against Eastern Illi-nois University at 1:30 p.m.

For more OVC news, visit OVCSports.com.

tntechoracle.comPage 10 | November 2, 2012

ENTERTAINMENT

‘The Walking Dead’ is back, bigger than everBy JAKE THREETEntertainment Editor

Must read books for the fall, winterBy HANNAH BENJAMINEntertainment Critic

There’s a war brewing on the third season of AMC’s hit dra-ma “The Walking Dead” as new characters are introduced.

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The hit show “The Walking Dead” has returned for a new season of zombies, killing and surviving on AMC.

When the show ended its second season, Shane had been killed by a gunshot from Rick and then killed again by another gunshot from Carl after Shane came back to life as a walker. The gunshots attracted a large horde of nearby walkers and Rick and Carl were forced into the barn for safety. They ignited the barn after drawing walkers inside, both to draw attention and to save themselves. In the fi nal battle to save the farm, Jimmy and Patricia were killed, Andrea was left behind and the RV was lost. Andrea attempted to survive on her own and was later rescued by a mysterious woman leading chained, armless walkers.

The remaining survivors were Rick, Lori, Carl, Glenn, Daryl, Carol, T-Dog, Maggie, Beth and Hershel. They recovered on the highway but were forced to make camp there because of a shortage of gas. Rick became irritated with the group and revealed both the truth behind Shane’s death and what Dr. Jenner whispered to him at the CDC.

Dr. Jenner informed Rick whatever the plague is, they all carried it and would return as walkers. The end result would be the same, and it would not matter if they were bitten or scratched by a walker. As the season came to a close, a large prison loomed in the distance.Season three, episode one

The third season opens with the group locating the prison, fi ghting off walkers to get inside and trying to turn the prison into a safe fortress. We learn the woman who rescued Andrea is named Michonne. She carries a razor-sharp katana and travels with a pair of double-amputee walkers to mask the scent of her living fl esh. On a funny note, they also carry her baggage. She tends to a sick Andrea, who has a fever, as they seek safer refuge.

Once Rick’s group gets inside the prison, all hell breaks loose. The group gets separated, and Hershel, while searching for Glenn and Maggie, gets bitten on the lower leg by a walker. After the group reorganizes

It’s that time of year again! The weather is getting colder, and everyone is busting out the sweaters and boots. This is the perfect time to pick up a book and lose yourself in a new story. Why not read some of the popular hits to fi ll you in on what your friends are talking about? “The Casual Vacancy” by J.K. Rowling

“The Casual Vacancy” is the fi rst book from J.K. Rowling since the “Harry Potter” series and is specifi cally marketed to adults.

In the small town of Pagford, not everything is what it seems. While seemingly the perfect little English town, everyone is actualy at war with each other. The rich are at war with the poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, etc.

When Barry Fairbrother dies unexpectedly in his 40s, his town council seat becomes a catalyst for the biggest war the town has seen yet.

The book is described as blackly comic and thought provoking, which is perfect for the now grown audience of “Harry Potter.” People magazine describes the novel as, “A vivid read with great, memorable characters and a truly emotional payoff.”“Divergent” by Veronica Roth

Hot on the heels of “The Hunger Games” craze comes the “Divergent” series.

In a dystopian world, society is divided into fi ve

factions dedicated to a certain value: Candor (the honest), Abegnation (the selfl ess), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful) and Erudite (the intelligent).

Once a year, all 16-year-olds must choose which faction to join for the rest of their lives. The story focuses on Beatrice Prior, who surprises herself and her Abegnation family by joining the Dauntless. Her choice exposes her to the harsh initiation of the group and threatens to expose a personal secret that could put her in serious danger.

Multiple reviews compliment the narrative voice and consider the series even better than “The Hunger Games.” If you enjoy sci-fi dystopian thrillers, this is a new trilogy for you!“No Easy Day: The Firsthand Account of the Mission That Killed Osama bin Laden” by Mark Owen

and Kevin Maurer“No Easy Day” is the

fi rst and only novel thatdescribes the planning and execution of the bin Ladenraid from Seal Team 6, theUnited States Naval SpecialWarfare DevelopmentGroup.

Aside from describingthe events leading up to theraid, Owen takes readersonto the fi eld of the soldiersfi ghting the War on Terrorand details the selection and training process for one ofthe most elite units in themilitary. The Los AngelesTimes remarks, “Make nomistake: ‘No Easy Day’is an important historicdocument. Think if we had a fi rst-person account ofthe last minutes of Hitler inhis bunker. ‘No Easy Day’is brisk and compelling inits telling of the training,execution and immediateaftermath of the bin Ladenmission by the elite SealTeam 6.”

Humans vs Zombies enters second campaign

The game of humans versus zombies is scheduled to continue on Nov. 12.

“Humans vs. Zombies is a game of tag that started at Goucher [College] in 2005,” Morgan Elmore, sophomore and one of the moderators of the game, said. “They wanted to take the concept from games like ‘Left for Dead’ and movies like ‘28 Days Later’ and ‘Dawn of the Dead,’ and they wanted to put it in as much of a real-world setting as they possibly could.”

The game is played by

By LINDSEY GOREEntertainment Critic

players acting as humans or zombies battling each other with Nerf guns or balled up socks. There is one original zombie, and the numbers of the infected rise as that zombie tags other humans and turns them into zombies.

“The zombies have to effectively eat all the humans and turn them into zombies, or the humans have to survive and fend off the zombies until the zombies die out,” Elmore said.

The second campaign has been updated with new methods and rules to make the game easier for moderators, or members who make sure players

adhere to the game’s rules.“We made it easier on

the game moderators byimplementing new methodsso that we don’t have to keepup with everything, just have the players keep doingwhat they’re doing,” Nina

Chanthavongsa, juniorand moderator, said. “Withthese new methods, we’ll be able to watch over the players and not have to worry so much about takingcare of them.”

The game costs $5 to play. More information isavailable at the Tech Humansvs. Zombies Facebook page and humansvszombies.org.

ColliderThe offi cial cover art for J.K. Rowling’s latest novel, “The Casual Vacancy.”

‘Cabaret’ opens at BDPHThe Backdoor

Playhouse is presenting the musical “Cabaret” beginning Thursday night.

Tech’s Center Stage Series, in cooperation with the English and c o m m u n i c a t i o n s department and the Tech Players, are performing “Cabaret,” with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. It is based on a book by Christopher Isherwood.

Set in 1929 at the beginning of Hitler’s rise to power in a seedy Cabaret in Germany, the Emcee, played by Anthony Herd, takes you on a journey through the romances and arguments, joy and pain and hope and failure that is life. “Cabaret” presents the story of everyday people

and their existence in the face of the rising darkness of the Nazi party. “Cabaret” explores how the Nazi party altered the history of the world and how those alterations affected the humanity in us all.

Adam Combs, director, said he wants it to “feel like you are walking into the Kit Kat Klub the instant you walk through the door of the theatre, from the lights and costumes to the sets and actors. I really want the audience to feel the like they have been transported to 1929 Germany. I want them to relate to these characters and feel the darkness that is all around this time period, as well as the hope that we have as humanity even in the darkest times.”

Featuring classic musical theatre numbers under the direction of

Melinda Richards, thechoreography stylings of Jennifer Dotson Creter anda cast of approximately 30 ofCookeville and Tech’s mosttalented actors, singers anddancers, this production isone not to be missed!

“Cabaret” runs Nov.8-10, 12, 13, 16 and 17 at 8 p.m. A late showing willbe Nov. 15 at 10 p.m. and amatinee will be Nov. 17 at 2p.m.

Admission is free forTech students with theirID. Tickets for generaladmission cost $12, senior citizen tickets cost $10 andnon-Tech student tickets are$5.

For more informationcontact the BackdoorPlayhouse box offi ce at372-6595 or online at www.tntech.edu/bdph.

PRESS RELEASE

and gets together in the prison cafeteria, Rick amputates the leg at the knee. It’s not pretty. It’s one of the goriest scenes in the show’s history.

The group hears some commotion, and when they check out what is wrong, they fi nd surviving prisoners trapped in the cafeteria and surviving on pantry food.Season three, episode two

The second episode of season three opens with Hershel being brought back to the group’s cellblock. Rick updates the prison survivors on the zombie apocalypse. The survivors eventually come to an agreement: Rick’s group will prepare a cellblock for the prisoners to inhabit in exchange for half of the prison’s food rations. While the surviving prisoners are fi ghting off walkers under the supervision of Rick’s group, a walker scratches a prisoner named “Big Tiny.” He says he is fi ne, and Rick seems inclined to let him live, but the prisoners’ leader, Tomas, sadistically kills him on the spot.

After fi ghting another group of walkers and avoiding a murder attempt by Tomas, Rick kills Tomas. Another prisoner named Andrew strikes back by attacking Rick but gives up and fl ees. Andrew accidentally charges into a walker-infested prison yard and Rick, who is right behind him, closes the doors on him and leaves Andrew to be torn apart by walkers. Rick, Daryl and T-Dog leave the remaining prisoners, Axel and Oscar, in the promised cellblock. When they return to their group, Hershel awakens after Lori saves him. He awakes not

as a walker and remembers what has happened. The amputation was successful. Season three, episode three

In the third episode, Andrea and Michonne are introduced to a new community of survivors after seeing a helicopter crash. Hospitality is provided to both women and Merle Dixon, a member from season one, is revealed to be alive and part of the group of survivors after he escaped from the rooftop. A survivor of the accident, Welles, informs the leader of the group, “the Governor,” about how he left 10 men behind so he can investigate. The Governor promises if they are still alive, he will bring them back.

The Governor introduces Andrea and Michonne to Woodbury, a small town with 73 residents. They attend breakfast with the Governor the next morning, where Michonne remains wary of the Governor, but Andrea wants to stay in Woodbury longer. Later, the Governor tracks down Welles’ squad and kills all of them, and the men return to town with military trucks. Later that night, in his apartment, the Governor sips a glass of whiskey and enters a private room, which contains three rows of aquariums fi lled with live heads of walkers. Among them are Michonne’s pets and also the head of Welles.

As the season moves on, Rick’s group and the Governor’s townspeople are on a collision course to meet. This season will be longer that the previous two and will consist of sixteen episodes.

This season premiered with mind-blowing ratings for cable television. The season premiere garnered 10.87 million viewers in its initial telecast and totaled more than 15.2 million for the entire night. Both were records for cable television and made the show the most watched drama series telecast in basic cable history.

The previous record holder was TNT’s “The Closer.”

For the season so far, the show is averaging 10 million viewers per episode.

Viewers better sit back and hold on because this season is just getting started, and things have yet to explode. The season is going to bring unprecedented events of carnage, death and survival.

tntechoracle.com Page 11 | November 2, 2012

ENTERTAINMENT

FACEBOOK.COM/TNTECHORACLE

@TNTECHORACLE

‘Cloud Atlas’ almost too ambitious, confusing

By JAKE THREETEntertainment Editor

“Red” has sold more than 1.4 million copies in its fi rst week.RollingStone

www.tntechoracle.com

LoadTVThe hilarious cast of the comedy “Happy Endings,” airing Tuesday’s at 8 p.m. CST on ABC.

Under the radar: TV shows you should be watching

Tom Hanks stars in the German sci-fi hit “Cloud Atlas.”Esquire

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“Cloud Atlas” is a visually appealing fantasy fi lm that is almost too thought provoking.

Based on the novel by David Mitchell, “Cloud Atlas” follows six characters across different times and weaves the characters together through six stories to show how people connect and infl uence one another’s lives. The fi lm explores love, mystery, revolution and the basic human condition through a variety of worlds, both fantasy and reality.

The fi lm has a cast of big Hollywood names such as Tom Hanks, Halle Berry and Hugh Grant, and some smaller actors such as Jim Sturgess and Bae Doona. Each actor plays a number of characters throughout the fi lm, and each appear in separate stories ranging from a mid-19th century tale of friendship to a 22nd century where a romance builds between two unlikely people.

Each actor has shining moments during the fi lm, and each has a fair share of lackluster scenes. Hanks prevails in his role as a doctor on a slave boat, but he fails to match this performance when he plays the role of a tribesman in post-apocalyptic Korea. The same goes for Berry as she shines in her role as ‘70s journalist and disappoints as a member of a technologically advanced

By LINDSEY GOREEntertainment Critic

group in the post- apocalyptic story.

Visually, the fi lm does not disappoint. Each story’s set is carefully constructed, and every focal point is obviously and seriously thought out. The post-apocalyptic story and the story taking place in the far future with a restaurant server clone (Doona) as the main character prove to have the strongest visuals, but the other four stories do not fail to impress.

The only effect that does fall behind is the makeup and prosthetics used. Too much is not necessarily a good thing when too much latex is obviously used to show age on Hanks and Berry. The prosthetics used to help change a character’s race and sex are also poorly done, but it is an effect that

Swift has the world seeing ‘Red’

Taylor Swift’s highly anticipated new album dropped last Monday and is already No. 1 on the iTunes top album list.

Of course, we all saw this coming. With her previously released catchy single “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” the album was sure to be a hit.

“Red” is defi nitely a pop album, so all of those expecting a country sensation should probably look elsewhere. Most of the songs are upbeat with electric guitars and drum tracks, such as “22,” which is sure to become an anthem for ladies’ nights all over.

“I Knew You Were Trouble” even drops the bass with some pseudo-dubstep.

Swift does remain true to her roots with a few slower, country-feeling songs such as “All Too Well” and “I Almost

By HANNAH BENJAMINEntertainment Critic

Do.” Also featured on her album are collaborations with Gary Lightbody from Snow Patrol and British singer/songwriter, and personal favorite of mine, Ed Sheeran.

Some of the songs fall fl at. “Starlight” tells a story about falling in love during the summer of 1945. It’s upbeat and follows Swift’s “Love Story” formula, but it’s cheesy and not her best work.

Overall, it seems that

Swift’s songwriting on her more emotional songs has drastically improved from years past, and the new album offers much variety in style. While I’ve never been much of a T-Swizzle fan in the past, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed and will continue to shamelessly listen to “Red.”

The general consensus of her fans is this is her best album yet and certainly worth a listen this fall.

is easily ignored.The fi lm’s major

downfall is that it is on the verge of having too much content squeezed into the already lengthy runtime of more than two and a half hours. There is a lot going on in terms of plot in each story, so there is a lot of information presented rather quickly. The subject matter itself offers an idea almost too big for fi lm, and trying to understand this can take away from what else the fi lm has to offer.

“Cloud Atlas” is full of visually beautiful scenes with an award-winning cast, which makes it worth going to see on the big screen.

“Cloud Atlas” is rated R for violence, sexuality/nudity and some drug use.

“Happy Endings”Entering its third

season on ABC, “Happy Endings” is funnier than ever and is literally laugh out loud fun.

The writing is fresh and sharp. With a cast with insanely great chemistry, there is never a dull moment to be watched Tuesday nights. With a full season order of 23 episodes, this season is bound for comedy greatness!

This show is almost a newer version of “Friends,” except no show could or ever will compare to the greatness of “Friends.”

“Happy Endings” airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. CST on ABC.“Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23”

Starting its second season, also on ABC Tuesday nights, “Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23” is putting “mean girl funny” on the map.

With its hilarious cast, this show proves to be a cult classic. It borders the line between racy and all out fi lth, but that is what makes it the comedic gem it is. The ratings have not been favorable, but they have not been terrible either. One good thing is it’s a critic’s darling, and the people who do love it are loyal and continue to tune in each week. Maybe that is just me, but who the hell really cares. I love it, and I’m sticking with it.

“Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23” airs Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. CST on ABC.“Sons of Anarchy”

Currently in the middle of its fi fth season on FX, “Sons of Anarchy” is still proving to be one of the most shocking and brilliantly written shows on all of television.

The current season is ratings gold, beating out the previous four seasons. It is the top cable show Tuesday nights.

Beginning this season, Jax’s rule has a shaky start after the One-Niners attack one of SAMCRO’s gun shipments, Gemma makes a new ally during a night of drinking, an irritated Tara has trouble ascending to her role as queen and mother and Clay attempts to get into the club’s good graces by revealing part of the truth about Piney’s death. With the heart-wrenching death of Opie and the rise of gang member Damon Pope, the ride for revenge is sure to be thrilling!

“Sons of Anarchy” airs

Tuesdays at 9 p.m. CST on FX. “Covert Affairs”

Finishing up the last half of its fourth season, USA Network’s “Covert Affairs” is kicking ass and taking names every week.

Airing Tuesday nights, this spy-based show is one of the best action/drama shows on the air. It stars Piper Perabo, the famed actress from the fi lm “Coyote Ugly,” as a sexy spy working for the CIA as a fi eld operative with a varied skill usage.

Each week is packed with ass kicking and intense action scenes all wrapped up in a great storyline.

“Covert Affairs” airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. CST on USA Network.‘The Neighbors”

Debuting in its freshman year, “The Neighbors,” airing Wednesday nights, takes a page from the past to create a hysterical new show.

When I say it “takes a page from the past,” I believe this show draws from the old comedy “3rd

Rock from the Sun.” Itincorporates aliens comingto Earth in the form of humans and learning howto interact with a familywho moves into theirneighborhood. The show puts a new spin on thehumans’ reaction to aliens.Unlike shows before, thisfamily accepts the aliens,and they decide to take them under their wing andhelp them become better adapted to the new world.

Each episodehilariously depicts differentsituations or life events thealiens have to experienceand adjust to. The actingis quite excellent, andthe facial expressions areoutrageously funny attimes.

The ratings havebeen quite good despiteunfavorable preseasonreviews, and it has beenoffi cially picked up for afull season. This show may seem extremely odd at fi rst, but in time you will fi nd it is a true comedic hit.

“The Neighbors” airsWednesdays at 7:30 p.m.CST on ABC.

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