August 13, 1998
The No. 15-ranked Texas A&M football team practiced in full pads for the first time this season on Thursday while preparing for its season-opener against No. 2 Florida State in the Kickoff Classic on Aug. 31.
The Aggies had a pair of spirited workouts - full pads in the morning on the Simpson Drill Field and shorts and shoulder pads in the evening workout on the grass practice fields.
"I thought we practiced with a great deal of enthusiasm today," head coach R.C. Slocum said after the evening workout. "Both the offense and defense were flying around pretty good and I believe we got a lot of work done."
There were no new injuries to report.
Off the field, three current or former Aggie football players will receive their respective degrees at Friday's commencement ceremonies at the Reed Arena. A&M senior Dat Nguyen will pick up his parchment in agricultural development, while former standouts Phillip Meyers (1994-97) and Gary Jones (1986-89) will also graduate. Jones, who enjoyed a solid career in the National Football League, is now a graduate assistant with the Texas A&M Athletic Video Productions.