Football Headline

INSIDE TODAY: MU is gaining the freshman 5,800.

COLUMBIA’S MORNING NEWSPAPER ESTABLISHED IN 1908

Thursday, August 28, 2008

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Last season’s success has brought a lot of attention to the MU football team, but fans are confident it’s not just hype.

Rock Bridge ups security for football High school students will need a student ID to enter games. By CAROLINE EVANS

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Middle school students hoping to catch some of the action of a high school football game at Rock Bridge High School will now have to be accompanied by an adult. The school is adopting a new rule to tighten security at football games after a juvenile was arrested on suspicion of brandishing a handgun during a fight at a football jamboree at Hickman High School on Aug. 22. The scuffle drew around 300 people. “We want to be smart about supervision, but we don’t want to overreact at the same time,” Rock Bridge Principal Kathy Ritter said. “After Friday’s incident, we decided to look at security at both (Hickman and Rock Bridge) to decide reasonable things to help us monitor what goes on at games.” In addition to the new rule, all students attending football

SAM O’KEEFE/Missourian

Savanna Hazelrigg, 2, and grandfather, Ray, spend time together at the Faurot Field pep rally on Wednesday evening. While many fans waited for autographs, othere were watching magician John Meyers as he performed at the event.

All signs point to football success

By ANDREW ASTLEFORD

[email protected] Jacqueline Farley senses a fall spice in the air. It’s a little after 8 on the college football season’s first Monday morning of game week, and the MU junior has witnessed mid-Missouri arise from summertime slumber. A steady pace of fans come, greeting her at the Mizzou Arena ticket office window eager to claim their slice of the most anticipated MU football season in decades. “It’s really exciting for us,” Farley said, smiling behind a glass pane. “When people come up to the window, you can tell they’re excited about Illinois. “Everybody’s hoping that we do really well. ... Everybody that comes up to the window has been, ‘Go Tigers!’ Everybody is really excited about it.” A summer of Sports Illustrated cov-

ers, national newspaper centerpieces, Heisman predictions and possible Big 12 and national title aspirations is almost complete. Preseason buzz has injected Columbia with a rush of anticipation for Saturday’s season opener against Illinois that city leaders and business representatives say they haven’t experienced in recent memory. Fall wasn’t always welcomed. During the 1960s, under legendary coach Dan Devine, MU was the only team that never lost more than three games each year. But when Devine left to coach the NFL’s Green Bay Packers in January 1971, the Tigers began a descent toward mediocrity. Over the next three decades, five MU teams were able to win as many as eight games in a season (in 1973, ’78, ’80, ’81 and ’98). It took time, but MU recovered under Gary Pinkel. After he was introduced as coach in 2000, he finished his first

two seasons with a combined record of 9-14. Then , dynamic quarterbacks Brad Smith, now a wide receiver for the New York Jets, and current senior Chase Daniel attracted renewed attention to the program. Following a 12-2 finish and Cotton Bowl title lastseason, MU’s best mark since 1960, businesses anticipate the continuation of a positive trend. “For the past four or five years, I’ve seen the atmosphere continue to change,” said Lorah Steiner, executive director of the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau. “It just keeps getting better. There was a time where there didn’t seem to be anything distinguishing a football weekend from any other weekend. “Over the past few years, the color and the excitement and the activity at

Please see TIGERS, page 4A

games will be required to show student IDs before entering the stadium. There will also be five offduty police officers to supervise security at football games in case crowds become unruly, Ritter said. In the past, there have rarely been security problems at football games, Ritter said. These problems mostly involved officers removing adults attending games while under the influence drugs or alcohol, she said. To some Rock Bridge students, the new measures are hardly reasonable. “They’re pretty much punishing us for what happened at Hickman,” Rock Bridge senior Tyler Todd said. “I don’t mind if there are more police officers there, but I feel like the new rules just ruin the whole environment.” Under the new rule, Todd will have to show his ID when entering. Rock Bridge students were notified of the new rules via bulletins, which are read daily in the school. Student ID cards are being distributed this week, Please see SECURITY, page 3A

Missouri delegates reflect on experience of party’s convention Three Missourian reporters met with Missouri delegates at the Democratic National Convention to talk with them about their experiences and hear their reactions to candidates’ speeches.

By MISSOURIAN STAFF

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DENVER — Former Missouri Gov. Bob Holden urged Missouri’s delegates who were pledged to Sen. Hillary Clinton to vote for Sen. Barack Obama instead. In a brief meeting at the end of the Missouri delegation’s breakfast, the Clinton delegates heard Holden, a delegate himself, praise Clinton but emphasize the importance of party unity. “She also showed more class, more vision than any of us could ever do by how she handled this process and how she ended it last night,” Holden said. “We cannot walk out of this convention with anybody saying anything about us not being unified in November.” Holden’s remarks echoed those of state Rep. Rachel Storch, who served as Clinton’s

campaign director in Missouri. “I had goosebumps last night. That was a legacy speech,” she said of Clinton’s remarks at the Democratic National Convention. But now, Storch said, it is important for Democrats to unify. “It’s really about going forward together,” she said. “The stakes are just too high not to function together.” Cindy Nugent, an at-large delegate pledged to Clinton, expressed her support for Obama. “I’m from that rural area where we all have to come together,” she said. “After sitting here listening, I’m going to cast my vote for Barack Obama.” — Catherine McComb

Delegate stays busy Missouri delegate Bill Monroe of Fulton has had the time of his life. Between issues caucuses, a film festival and myriad exhibitions, Monroe only had time

See CONVENTION, page 3A

Cave paintings change history Drawings offer new insights into ancient cultures in Missouri. By MICHAEL GIBNEY

HEADLINES

[email protected] The story begins, as many do, with curiosity. About 20 years ago, two men exploring “Picture Cave” found paintings on the rock walls and sent handdrawn reproductions to archaeologists Jim Duncan and Carol Diaz-Granados. “These things are fake!” Duncan remembered thinking at the time. As it turned out, the nature and location of the

drawings contradicted widely held beliefs about Mississippian culture. The figures on the walls of the cave in east-central Missouri now provide crucial details of the prehistoric timeline of the region. And there’s recent evidence that the paintings in Picture Cave predate the Cahokia Mounds as the birthplace of what archaeologists refer to as the Mississippian period. According to archaeological records, the Mississippian period saw the creation of some of the first large towns and city centers north of Mexico. The conventional belief has been

Shorter sentence for Abramoff urged WASHINGTON — The Justice Department on Wednesday recommended a dramatic reduction in the prison sentence of imprisoned lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who became the key witness against lawmakers and congressional aides he spent years corrupting. — The Associated Press

that this period started around 1050 AD, but the drawings in Picture Cave indicate the period began earlier and in a different location. The husband-and-wife team of Duncan and Diaz-Granados has been investigating the drawings for years, and Duncan will discuss the significance of Picture Cave when the Boonslick Archaeological Society meets at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Walters-Boone County Historical Museum. He will discuss the story of the drawings and the impact they might have on

Courtesy of Carol Diaz-Granados

These were drawn to represent the cave paintings by Carol Diaz-Granados in a 1993 dissertation. The letters “BK” represent black drawings, while “R” depicts red drawings. The Please see CAVES, page 3A paintings show the bison hunting that took place in the Mississippian period.

Outside today

Correction

Index

Today: Partly cloudy, with a 30 percent chance of showers and T-storms. Temp: 89° Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a 50 percent chance of showers and T-storms. Temp: 64° Page 2A

The photograph of Kenny Hulshof on page 1A Wednesday was taken by Missourian photographer Mike Pittman. The photo credit was incorrectly attributed.

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