Appalachian State University - Rhododendron Yearbook (Boone, NC)

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Athletes of the Year Pete Camelo VMV ♦ ♦♦♦V wv m ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦♦♦♦ ' m Pete Camelo ' s athletic career at Appalachian State is not your normal one in any sense of the word. Coming all the way from Saranac, New York, to the mountains of Boone, North Carolina, Pete was determined to play football for the Mountaineers. Forsaking a baseball career, at least for the time being, he walked onto the football team without any scholarship aid. He worked hard, became a starter, and earned a scholarship. In his junior ♦VMV mV ♦ ♦♦V .♦MV season, 1980, he was the team ' s leading rusher on a 6-4-1 squad that turned out to be the best team of his four years. As a freshman, Pete carried the ball six times for 40 yards. As a sophomore, he carried the ball 38 times for 149 yards. He earned a reputation as a hard-nosed, durable fullback who was difficult to bring down. His junior year, on what was one of the nation ' s leading passing teams, Pete rushed for 521 yards on 116 attempts and scored six touchdowns. His senior year, hampered by an injury which caused him to begin the season late, and the recruitment of several new running backs, Camelo began to fall into the shadows. He carried the football 57 yards on 19 carries. Throughout his career, he was an effective pass receiver. He caught 10 passes for 234 yards as a sophomore, 32 passes for 353 yards as a junior, and 20 passes for 180 yards as a senior. But it was to be baseball that was to make the difference in Pete ' s life. After four years of football, he tried out for the Mountaineer baseball team as a senior and made an impact right away. Quickly moving into the designated hitter position, he batted .345, leading the team in triples (six) and home runs (16) and ranking second in doubles (eight) . More incredibly, he had a slugging percentage of .804. (Slugging percentage is figured on the basis of the number of times at bat and the total bases moved. With all Camelo ' s extra- base hits, his percentage was astron- omical.) He was an easy all-Southern Conference choice. Because of his success in baseball, Pete planned to return to ASU for another season, since he had a year of eligibility remaining. But also because of his success, and because of his age, the Montreal Expos decided they wanted him as well. And Pete Camelo became the latest in a long line of ASU baseball players to be drafted by the pros. And his contributions to Mountaineer football and baseball came to a close, with a touch of Pete Camelo ' s class. Denice Bruce Denice Bruce completed an out- standing athletic career of service to two sports at Appalachian - both field hockey and Softball for four years. In field hockey, Denice was a starting halfback for the Mountaineers for all of her four years. Her steadiness made her one of the most valuable players Coach Jan Watson has ever had. Her statistics weren ' t bad, either. She scored two goals in each of her first three seasons and five as a senior. For a defensive player, those figures aren ' t bad at all. In addition to having a number of assists, she also set up many other goals by making the key tackle to get the ASU attack going. Denice made the All-Deep South team all four years and was selected to play in the nationals both her junior and senior years. I can honestly say that Denice played consistently well in every game she ever played for us, said Watson. Not only was her stickwork good, but she had excellent quickness and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations. Watson also characterized Bruce as a worker, one of the hardest working day-to-day players I ' ve ever coached. A lot of people don ' t work hard in practice and then think they can make up for it in games; Denice isn ' t like that. She was always striving to learn new skills and improve her play. In Softball, Denice earned approx- imately a .400 batting average. She is a steady player — not flashy — and always gives her all. As a freshman, Denice was on the ASU All Tournament Team. The next three years she served as the team ' s co-captain. Softball Coach Toni Wyatt calls Denice a coach ' s dream. She always gives 100 percent and she kids all the time. Whether it was Softball or field hockey, Denice Bruce consistently made major contributions to the ASU athletic program for four years. Her efforts will be sorely missed. 283

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FOOTBALL James Madison L 35-39 Furman L 21-27 Wake Forest L 22-31 The Citadel W 48-22 Marshall W 21-13 Lenoir-Rhyne w 49-0 Virginia Tech L 0-34 ETSU W 29-16 UT-Chattanooga L 7-50 VMI L 14-31 WCU L 24-25 Ladies Tennis 11 wins — 5 losses RIFLE TEAM at ASU 1st of 3 teams at Annapolis 1st of rifle 2nd of air rifle at W. Carolina Rifle Conf. 1st of 4 teams vs VMI 1st vs Eastern Carolina 2nd vs Western Carolina 1st at W. Carolina Rifle Conf. 1st of 6 teams vs ETSU 2nd at VMI (SC Championship) 2nd of 6 teams at ETSU (Nationals) won 17. lost 3 with 7 teams LADIES BASKETBALL ASU 50, North Carolina 114 ASU 64, Milligan College 85 ASU 59. South Carolina 95 ASU 57, UT-Chattanooga 86 ASU 47. NC State 91 ASU 50. North Carolina 103 ASU 51. East Carolina 90 ASU 67. Cleveland State 112 ASU 32, Georgia 94 ASU 65. Eastern Kentucky 83 ASU 67. Fairleigh-Dickinson 81 ASU 47. NC State 95 ASU 79. Virginia Tech 92 ASU 73. Wake Forest 81 ASU 71, Marshall 69 ASU 73. James Madison 64 ASU 67. UNCC 71 ASU 53. East Carolina 68 ASU 75. Western Carolina 99 ASU 78. UNC-Wilmington 82 ASU 69. Wake Forest 82 ASU 46. ETSU 67 ASU 65. Marshall 66 ASU 73. Western Carolina 84 ASU 70. UT-Chattanooga 72 SOCCER Opponent Score Shots CK SA FO OS Clemson L 2-8 6 4 8 14 3 Campbell L 1-4 15 3 17 15 Davis 8d Elkins L 0-4 8 3 13 19 5 Tennessee W 1-0 30 8 5 18 3 Duke L 1-4 5 4 17 20 4 Georgia State L 0-3 20 5 7 17 3 Marshall W 1-0 19 6 3 22 4 VMI W 3-1 35 6 6 16 2 Fla. Infl. L 3-9 18 5 9 11 3 Davidson L 0-4 18 3 15 15 Randolph-Macon L 2-3 (OT) 25 5 10 20 1 Virginia Tech L 1-2 (OT) 14 8 16 21 4 The Citadel W 2-1 (OT) 36 9 6 16 4 UNC-Greensboro L 0-5 9 2 8 13 Davis Elkins L 3-5 10 4 9 9 5 UNC-Charlotte L 4-1 7 1 3 10 UT-Chattanooga T 4-4 17 20 4 22 4 Furman W 2-1 27 4 6 26 2 Western Carolina W 4-0 17 1 6 15 9 South Carolina L 1-5 24 1 2 16 3 Appalachian 348 112 170 209 59 Opponents 374 109 178 197 109 MEN ' S GOLF ASU 24th of 25 teams in Furman Invitational | ASU 19th of 24 teams in Iron Duke Invitational ASU 17th of 32 teams in Elon Invitational ASU 5th of ? teams in SC Ch ampionship 282 Stats

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A Time For Change A Man For Change When people look back to the 1982-83 sports year at ASU one aspect will stand out over all the rest - CHANGE. It was the year that saw its football program downgraded by the NCAA from Division I-A to Division I-AA. It was also the year that saw the retirement of C. H. Gilstrap as Athletic Director, turning the reins over to a young west Texan by the name of Jim Garner. Garner was named the new Appalachian State Athletic Director in September of 1982 after spending several years as the Assistant AD at West Texas State University. When asked why he chose to come to ASU, Garner said, I had done some checking around, calling some of the other AD ' s in the Southern Conference, trying to find out what I might be getting into. And they informed me that it was a very good, sound program, unlike most when there is a change of leadership, where there are usually a lot of problems. Not only had he done his homework on the ASU sports program, he also did his domestic homework. When there are a wife and three kids to think about, you don ' t just pull up stakes and move anywhere. Boy, is that the truth. I really liked the community very much when I visited. It is the size of community I want to live in and raise my family. With the wife and kids, the community is very important, said Garner. Soon after Garner took over, he was flooded with questions from students, the press, local residents, all of which concerning the new Division I-AA classification for ASU and Southern Conference football. His reply, I think it ' s the best thing that could have ever happened to ASU football. Comparing our football program to say NC State or North Carolina is like comparing apples and oranges. We just can not compete with them financially or, consequently, in athletics either. Garner also was very quick to point out other advantages that the Division I-AA classification brings to the Southern Conference. With this new classification, we now have a chance to compete in a post season championship play off. Last year, if we had gone 1 1-0, we would not have gone to a bowl. The Bowl Committees don ' t pick small teams like ASU or Western Carolina even if they do go 10-1 or 11-0. They will always go for the Nebraskas, the Georgia ' s, or the Florida State ' s. This way we have a chance to play for a national championship and I think this will breed a lot more interest in the future for Southern Conference football. At the news conference where he was named the new AD, Garner stated that he felt the ASU sports program was in good shape because, you don ' t win five consecutive Southern Conference Commissioners Cups by having a bad program. However, he went on to say that his biggest concern would be in the area of fund-raising, promotions, and public relations. Without money we can ' t do the things we want to do. It ' s that simple. I want to do all that I can to make Appalachian as visible as possible. I ' m a people person. Anything I can do, 284 Athletic Director ' -m iSf ' Jim Garner: ASU Athletic Director I will do. I ' ll travel; I ' ll speak; I ' ll do whatever it takes to get us noticed, positively of course. I don ' t intend to be tied down to a desk. Another of Garner ' s main goals is to see Appalachian State at the forefront of Division I-AA football. I want us to consistently be a leader in the Southern Conference and in the division. That ' s just the way I am. I never wanted to march in the middle of a parade. I always strove to march in front of it. Some of his secondary goals for the program include the addition of a separate weight room for the athletic department, new astroturf for Conrad Stadium, and a new track. So far, the biggest step that Garner has taken towards improving the outlook of ASU athletics in general, and football in particular came on Sunday evening, November twenty-first. In a prepared statement, Chancellor John Thomas read these words: Mike Working is being relieved from his position as head football coach at Appalachian State University. Our Athletic Director Jim Garner will proceed immediately to recruit a replacement. All of us at ASU wish Coach Working well. Garner added these final words, This is the unpleasant part of this business. However, I always believe everything works out for the best. And I sincerely feel that will be true in this case, both for Mike and his staff, and for Appalachian State University. Garner hopes that in the coming years enthusiasm will begin to flourish once again at ASU athletic events, I want the people who come to all of our athletic events to come for the family atmosphere and the fun atmosphere. I firmly believe we ' re in the entertainment business. I want people to leave our athletic events with a good taste in their mouths and the desire to come back. I want people to feel good about our program, and hopefully encourage them to become more involved with it.