Penalize out-of-line UA linebacker

It’s bad enough for someone representing the Wildcats to get drunk and drive down the wrong side of the road. (We just had a conviction for a drunk killing a little boy.)

But when the drunken Wildcat uses the race card to belittle an officer, that is going way too far.

Your story (Dec. 12, “UA linebacker accused of DUI, driving against traffic”) says he is a reserve player and has only been punished by being left home from one game.

I hope the coach will seriously consider kicking him off the team permanently.

R.B. Treat

Bawler to brawler: Shoe’s on different foot

I am so proud of George W. Bush for the way he handled the shoe-throwing incident! The “visual” in my head is of a tall guy placing a hand on the head of a short guy, who swings his fists but hits only air.

W. shrugged off the culture’s ultimate insult, in contrast to its idiotic supersensitivity, as when a Danish paper published cartoons that led them to riot. Way to go, Bush!

Lois Smith

retired

Redlight bailout; give green transport a go

Bail out the auto industry? Of course they are howling because history is catching up with them. Of course they want free money. Who wouldn’t when business is going bust?

But painful as it will be for the industry and nation, we are in a major paradigm shift, moving away from fossil fuel toward innovative technologies.

Dinosaur industries don’t like having to face decades of their failed strategies, but now is the time to move forward.

Despite falling gas prices, let’s not return to gas guzzlers and one-driver cars.

In the 21st century, public mass transportation and green technology will be the norm.

Perhaps the idea of the automobile owned by an individual is already outdated. Let us be part of the paradigm shift, not fight its unavoidable coming.

Albrecht Classen, Ph.D.

distinguished professor

Department of German Studies

University of Arizona

Don’t crack lobster, but shell out to Tucson

In the Friday guest opinion (“This year, please give close to home”), the Child and Family Resources asks us to make our contributions to local organizations. It’s ironic that each year his organization’s biggest fund-raiser spends approximately $20,000 in Maine.

The event is the Lobster Landing. They purchase close to 2,000 lobsters and then have them shipped alive to Tucson to sell to desert dwellers. Perhaps CFR doesn’t realize that when they spend $20K on lobsters from Maine, they are paying people in Maine to send out the boats and the traps, fish the animals out of the water, store them, package them and ship them here to Tucson.

This is $20K going straight into the pockets of families in Maine. I have no doubt that the economy in Maine welcomes this income, but please, Eric Schindler, read the article you submitted and take your own advice: Give (and spend) close to home.

This would benefit Tucson families by $20,000 as well as save the lives of 2,000 lobsters!

Margaret “Peggy” Raisglid

owner

Lovin’ Spoonfuls Restaurant

JOHN MOREDICH

jmoredich@tucsoncitizen.com

Montana to Rice, Part II?

It could happen at the University of Arizona in a few years.

Arizona may have wide receiver Jerry Rice Jr. lining up on the outside next year, and the Wildcats are hoping to lure Nick Montana, a high school junior, to Arizona for 2010.

Rice Jr., a senior in high school, is trying to set up an official visit to UA.

Quarterback Joe Montana, Nick’s father, and receiver Jerry Rice were a dynamic combination with the San Francisco 49ers in the 1980s and early 1990s.

“(UA likes) to throw the ball and I like that, being a receiver,” Rice Jr. said. “I have watched a couple of games. I’ve seen No. 10 (Mike Thomas). What is he, 5-(foot)-10, 5-11? I like what he does and how they use him in the offense.”

Rice Jr. is 5 feet 10, weighs 175 pounds and plays wide receiver at Menlo High School in Atherton, Calif. He’s four inches shorter than his father, a 13-time Pro Bowl receiver and three-time Super Bowl winner.

The younger Rice doesn’t have the prototypical size or speed of his father, who is considered the greatest receiver in NFL history. But he does have the desire to make a name for himself with his versatility, elusiveness and hands.

“(My dad) coaches me if I need him to, but he stays away unless I ask,” Rice Jr. said. “He doesn’t pressure me or anything like that. I am going to use him to help me out, I have to. He is a valuable resource, obviously.”

Despite his high visibility, colleges have been slow to catch on to the Rivals’ two-star prospect.

UCLA and California have asked him to walk on, Rice Jr. said. He is also getting attention from Air Force and Yale.

Arizona has not offered a scholarship, but Rice Jr. says talks with UA receiver coach Michael Smith have picked up over the past month.

Rice Jr. can catch passes, return punts and kickoffs and line up at tailback. He also can play in the secondary and even took over at quarterback for one game.

He completed all nine of his passes for 108 yards, rushed for 178 yards and caught a 30-yard touchdown pass in that game. His 31-yard scoring run on a third-and-8 in the fourth quarter proved to be the winning touchdown.

“It was silly. He was running in one direction, juked out five guys, cut back and then ran past four more,” Menlo coach Mark Newton told the San Francisco Chronicle.

Rice Jr. wants to play just one position. What else?

“Wide receiver is No. 1,” he said. “Ideally I don’t want to do anything else, but I will do anything I can to help my team win.”

Nick Montana is a 6-foot-3, 185-pound, highly regarded QB from Oaks Christian High in Westlake Village, Calif. UA has already offered him a scholarship.

LAS VEGAS BOWL

Arizona (7-5) vs. No. 17 BYU (10-2)

When: 6 p.m. Dec. 20

Where: Sam Boyd Stadium

TV: ESPN

Line: UA by 3

Arizona coaches are on the recruiting trail the next few days, trying to take advantage of their Las Vegas Bowl invitation.

They no longer have to hide that the last time the Wildcats went to a bowl game was 10 years ago.

Instead, a bowl game is just 10 days away.

“The timing of the game definitely cuts into recruiting, but winning helps with recruiting,” UA defensive coordinator Mark Stoops said.

Arizona, with 15 oral commitments for next year’s class, heads to Las Vegas on Dec. 20 to play BYU at Sam Boyd Stadium.

The full reward from a recruiting standpoint may not be fully realized when this year’s high school seniors sign in February.

Instead, it may take awhile.

“The way recruiting happens, you see more of a jump next year,” UA offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes said. “I think this year’s recruiting class is really good, but we’ll see more of a jump later.”

UA coaches have more to sell recruits after the Wildcats’ 31-10 victory over Arizona State completed a 7-5 regular season.

“I think it will help,” UA coach Mike Stoops said of the bowl appearance. “It will help not (having) recruits read all those articles (about past failures). Until you do it people are going to wonder, and rightfully so.”

UA can also point to the win over ASU when trying to get the attention of in-state recruits.

The most important aspect might be that Stoops and his staff aren’t going to be fired. Stoops has been on the hot seat several times in recent years.

“It hopefully gives us some stability,” Dykes said. “That is the thing we have been battling for a couple of years. A lot of people have been negative recruiting and saying we are not going to be there.

“This gives us some stability. That is critical in recruiting; just ask the basketball guys. It is important the players know the coach is going to be there and the program is heading in the right direction.”

Arizona interim basketball coach Russ Pennell is trying to recruit, but until a permanent replacement for Lute Olson is announced, UA will struggle to draw the attention of top players.

Stoops plans to keep recruiting the way he has in recent years in rebuilding the program.

“I believe you get the people you are supposed to get,” he said. “We recruit players that we feel make us better and fit our needs. We have done well recruiting so I don’t see changing.”

The Wildcats are in the bowl game largely because coaches have evaluated well and gotten players such as offensive tackle Eben Britton, receiver Mike Thomas, tailback Keola Antolin, and defensive tackle Earl Mitchell that the major football powers didn’t notice.

“Recruiting is so statistical. Look how people pan out,” Stoops said. “(Receiver Juron) Criner was not recruited as highly as other guys, but he could play anywhere in the country. Keola the same thing. Quarterback Matt Scott, the same thing.”

Criner made the key block to free Mike Thomas for his 52-yard punt return against ASU.

Antolin has been a key force for the Wildcats with 10 touchdowns.

Arizona has seen action from 10 players from a 2008 class that was ranked 39th nationally by Rivals.

Rivals rates the Wildcats’ current class as No. 52.

“People get caught up in recruiting,” Stoops said. “It has become a season of its own. It’s become a feeding frenzy for fans and the Internet. You need to take two or three years down the road to see how it pans out.

“Some players don’t even end up going to college, do they? It is a matter of where people fit. We got kids who want to be here and that is important.”

The Las Vegas Bowl will open ever more doors, however.

JOHN MOREDICH

jmoredich@tucsoncitizen.com

LAS VEGAS BOWL

Arizona (7-5) vs. No. 17 BYU (10-2)

When: 6 p.m. Dec. 20

Where: Sam Boyd Stadium

TV: ESPN

Series: UA leads 11-9-1

Line: Arizona by 3.5

UA’s current oral commitments, 3C

Arizona’s 2009 recruiting class

Pos. Player Ht. Wt. High school

OL Jake Baratz 6-4 275 Naperville (Calif.) North

TE Jack Baucus 6-6 235 Mundelein (Ill.) Carmel

CB Marcus Benjamin 6-1 200 Arizona Western JC

TB Kylan Butler 5-6 180 Concord (Calif.) De La Salle

WR Travis Cobb 6-0 180 Blinn (Texas) JC

LB Trevor Erno 6-0 225 Lakewood (Calif.) High

LB Jake Fischer 5-11 225 Ironwood Ridge

LB Cordarius Golston 6-1 220 Lancaster (Texas) High

TB Daniel Jenkins 5-9 170 Moreno Valley (Calif.) Rancho Verde

LB Taniela Maka 6-1 220 Long Beach (Calif.) Jordan

TE Terrence Miller 6-4 215 Moreno Valley (Calif.) Rancho Verde

CB Ryan Milus 5-10 155 Chandler Hamilton

QB Richard Morrison 6-0 170 Royse City (Texas) High

DE Jackson Powell 6-5 235 Newbury Park (Calif.) High

OT Chris Putton 6-4 275 Glendale Cactus

Re: For Mike Stoops, nothing’s wrong with this picture

• Wins against weak teams do not make a coach. Remember, he is only 7-5 now, with several losing seasons. We had a weak schedule in a weak conference, and still just barely made it. 867

• 867: No one has claimed that the Wildcats are at the top of college football. No one is making them out to be world beaters. Yes, a couple more wins and they would be in the Holiday or Sun Bowl. But for me, I will take this season as step in the right direction. GDBRODESS

• I do not think Stoops is a good crunch-time coach (witness games against Stanford and New Mexico), but he is a good recruiter, his players are graduating at a higher rate every year and he’s had to work through the damage caused by John Mackovic, who is now gone. Stoops was also smart enough to bring in Sonny Dykes and it is the offense that drives this team. It makes them fun to watch, but also vulnerable when the system finds a team that they don’t match up well with, like USC. All that being said, that third quarter against ASU is the best UA football I’ve seen over the Stoops era. I’d like to see Mike get a two-year extension for recruiting purposes. TRODELPOST

Got a beef? E-mail: sports@tucsoncitizen.com. Call: 573-4635. Fax: 573-4569. Write: Sports sound-off, P.O. Box 26767, Tucson 85726-6767

Arizona’s special teams were a mess in the first half against Arizona State on Saturday.

The Wildcats allowed a 46-yard kick return to Kyle Williams, which set up a short drive for a field goal. Sophomore punter Keenyn Crier made a huge mistake when he fielded a punt snap with his knee on the ground, effectively downing the ball at the UA 19. The Sun Devils went on to score a touchdown.

Arizona had three chances at a kick return, but failed to have an attempt longer than 17 yards.

Arizona committed two penalties on its first punt return, including a dead-ball personal foul on freshman receiver Bug Wright.

Arizona committed another dead-ball personal foul penalty (linebacker Adrian McCovy) on its second punt return.

“I’d say all year we had probably four, maybe five, penalties (on special teams),” special teams coach Jeff Hammerschmidt said after the 31-10 victory over ASU.

“Today, it seemed we had four or five in the first half. I thought I was going to get fired in the first half. When I came out for the second half, that was a good sign.”

Problems trickled over into the first possession of the second half, as safety Joe Perkins was called for an illegal block in the back on a punt return, although returner Mike Thomas hadn’t even fielded the ball.

After that, the UA special teams played well, stuffing ASU’s returns and scoring on Thomas’ 52-yard punt return.

“In the second half, we killed them,” Hammerschmidt said.

“In the first half, guys were trying too hard. You have so many guys who aren’t starters who are so anxious in a big game. They’re just playing aggressive.”

JOHN MOREDICH

jmoredich@tucsoncitizen.com

For the past few weeks, the Arizona football team has been living with distraction.

Coach Mike Stoops is hoping a few Elvis impersonators and showgirls don’t change the Wildcats’ concentration level when they face No. 17-ranked Brigham Young in the Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 20.

“The worst thing you can do is just be happy to be in a bowl game,” Stoops said. “You go in there and don’t play well.”

The Wildcats (7-5, 5-4) are heading to the distraction capital of the world for their first postseason bid since 1998.

But their 31-10 victory over Arizona State on Saturday night showed they could overcome off-the-field, negative talk about Stoops’ job future, UA being stuck on six wins since Nov. 8 and ASU’s recent success in the rivalry.

“I have never felt so much pressure for one game before,” UA defensive end Brooks Reed said. “I think the coaches were feeling a lot of pressure from the fans and the media. The players were feeling the heat from the coaches. I thought we handled it well.”

The Wildcats came through by scoring 21 points in a five-minute span in the third quarter to pick up their first win over ASU since 2004. It also kept the Sun Devils from bowl eligibility.

“You have defining moments in all seasons and lifetimes of programs,” Stoops said. “This was a defining moment for us.

“We tried to not make it that way, but let’s face it, it was. We tried to stay cool, calm and collected, but it got pretty hot under the collar.”

BYU (10-2) is accustomed to the glitz and glamour of Vegas, having played in the bowl three straight years at Sam Boyd Stadium.

The Cougars have won the last two, taking care of Oregon 38-8 in 2006, and last year blocked a last-second UCLA field goal for a 17-16 victory.

Arizona fell at BYU 20-7 in last season’s opener and beat the Cougars 16-13 in 2006 in Tucson.

But BYU’s offense is more potent now, ranked seventh nationally in passing and averaging 35 points per game under quarterback Max Hall.

“We are going to take BYU serious,” Stoops said.

The Wildcats have had to block distractions since a 59-28 win over Washington State on Nov. 8 guaranteed them a bowl berth.

Coaches and players knew they needed a seventh win to guarantee the program’s first winning season since the 1998 Wildcats knocked off Nebraska 23-20 in the Holiday Bowl.

But the Cats played tight, falling to Oregon 55-45 after a poor first half and losing at home to Oregon State 19-17 in the final seconds.

“It would have been hard having three straight losses going to the bowl game,” Stoops said. “That’s never a good position to be in.

“This win over ASU gives us a lot of good feeling going into another tough game.”

Lots will happen before the Wildcats even kick off against BYU.

Elvis look-alikes and showgirls from the casinos New York, New York, MGM, Excalibur and Tropicana will greet the Wildcats the week of the game.

A “Stomp Out Loud” show and dinner at Planet Hollywood are part of the event schedule.

Five players and Wilbur the mascot will visit a local hospital before a dinner Thursday.

There will be kickoff luncheons and pep rallies, shopping sprees for coaches’ wives and family members – and tailgating.

Oh, yeah, there will be practices and a game that could put the ribbon nicely on top of the Wildcats’ Christmas season.

“I hope we show the maturity and leadership we have to this point,” Stoops said.

Is that chore tougher considering the gambling and different vices in Las Vegas?

“Kids have access to everything they want here,” Stoops said. “Everywhere is Sin City. This is not the holy ground here in Tucson.”

UA will fly into the game five days early, practice the first time at UNLV on Dec. 17, take part in the events as much as possible and then put in a curfew.

The game, early in the bowl season, is only 12 days away.

The Wildcats have recruiting issues to take care of first. Coaches will be scattered throughout the country the next three days meeting prospects.

That doesn’t leave a lot of extra time, or even the use of the full 15 allotted NCAA practices for a bowl game.

Younger players will work out Tuesday before Thursday’s full-scale practice.

A later bowl would have given the Wildcats more time to work with younger players to get them ready for next year.

“All I wanted was to come in here and (beat ASU). We would go any place, anywhere,” UA defensive coordinator Mark Stoops said. “I am not complaining a bit.”

Neither are UA players, who finally have in-state bragging rights.

“I go home and hear a lot from my friends and family, ‘Way to go, now beat ASU,’ ” UA defensive end Brooks Reed said. “We play every team the same, but you know, it’s extra special when we beat ASU.

“It means a lot.”

Las Vegas Bowl

Arizona (7-5) vs. No. 17 BYU (10-2)

When: Dec. 20, 5 p.m. Where: Sam Boyd Stadium

TV: ESPN Series: UA leads 11-9-1.

Last meeting: BYU won 20-7 in the 2007 season opener.

Continued from 1C

Cats bask in win over ASU; will face BYU in Las Vegas Bowl

Bowl tickets available only through UA athletic Web site

UA officials say about 12,000 tickets for the Dec. 20 Las Vegas Bowl will go on sale at noon Monday only through the school’s Web site, www.arizonaathletics.com. Call 621-2287 for help. Six hours before UA and BYU kick off, the Cats will face UNLV in men’s basketball at noon just down the road. Call 866-388-3267 for hoops tickets.

HOW THEY MATCH UP

(Per game averages)

Category UA BYU

Rushing offense 164 136

Passing offense 237 309

Total offense 401 444

Scoring offense 37 35

Rush defense 132 144

Pass defense 170 206

Total defense 302 351

Scoring defense 21 21

About BYU: Quarterback Max Hall has completed 69.7% of his passes and thrown 34 TDs. WR Collie Austin has 95 catches, averaging a nation’s best 118 yards per game. Harvey Unga has run for 1,061 yards and 10 TDs

STALLED DRIVES

Arizona State couldn’t move the ball against Arizona:

Quarter Plays Yards Time

1st 3 -1 1:06

1st 5 22 2:11

1st 9 29 4:25

2nd 5 19 2:09

*2nd 5 19 2:09

2nd 5 8 2:09

2nd 1 -1 0:29

3rd 1 -5 1:38

3rd 3 49 1:30

3rd 3 -9 1:57

3rd 7 38 2:30

4th 3 4 1:11

4th 8 24 1:25

*Touchdown after UA punter Keenyn Crier’s knee touched the ground while trying to grab low snap.

JOHN MOREDICH

jmoredich@tucsoncitizen.com

Arizona’s senior class still has work to do.

Quarterback Willie Tuitama set a host of school career passing marks to help UA snag its first postseason berth in 10 years. But he’d trade those records for a win Saturday over Arizona State, resulting in an invitation to the Las Vegas Bowl.

Of the 11 seniors heading into their final game at Arizona Stadium, only receiver B.J. Dennard has actually played – and beaten – the Sun Devils. Dennard, now a reserve, was a starter as a true freshman when UA won 34-27 in 2004.

“I don’t plan on coming up short,” Tuitama said, when asked if a fourth-straight loss to ASU would leave an incomplete feeling. “A (win) would be huge. We are definitely a whole lot better team. It comes down to when we step on the field if we are ready to play. I guarantee you we will be.”

There won’t be another chance for redemption for a senior class on the verge of UA’s first winning season since 1998. The group will be introduced before the game.

“I will look back at my time here as a heck of a journey with a lot of highs and lows and something I am proud of,” offensive guard Joe Longacre said. “It has meant a lot to me to finish the way we have.”

Finishing means beating ASU.

“It is nice to know we are going to a bowl game, but all we want is this game more than any bowl game possible,” Tuitama said. “That’s our mindset.”

Tuitama is UA’s career passing leader in yards (8,602), touchdowns (63), attempts (1,204) and completions (737). He’s also first in total offense with 8,127 yards.

His top target, Mike Thomas, is UA’s all-time receptions leader with 246 and No. 3 in yards (3,127). The seniors have engineered five wins over top-25 foes since 2005 (UCLA, Cal (twice), Oregon and Washington State).

While ASU (5-6) isn’t ranked this year, it has won three straight and can go to its fifth straight bowl game with a win.

UA coach Mike Stoops also had a win over a top-25 team in his first year, when the Cats beat No. 18 ASU at Arizona Stadium. Fifth-year seniors Ronnie Palmer, Jason Bondzio, Brandon Lopez and Longacre were on the sideline that day, watching Dennard (the other fifth-year senior) and the Wildcats win to finish 3-8.

“That first one (over ASU) was the sweetest,” Palmer said. “That was a bad year for us. We were struggling. It was coach Stoops’ first year. To win that game to end the season was big.”

The Wildcats have suffered painful losses to ASU since 2004:

2005 (ASU 23, UA 20): Arizona was rolling in Tempe with a 20-5 lead in the third quarter before a rash of injuries took their toll.

Tuitama hurt his ribs; tailback Mike Bell, who had 117 yards rushing, left with a leg injury; fullback Gilbert Harris was knocked out; tailback Chris Henry suffered a blow to the head; tight end Brad Wood blew out a knee and Thomas was used a decoy because of a broken hand.

“It was unbelievable,” Tuitama said. “It was bad.”

The insult was ASU getting a late 71-yard Terry Richardson punt return, a two-point conversion and a last-second 20-yard field goal by Jesse Ainsworth.

2006 (ASU 28, UA 14): The Wildcats needed a win to earn a bowl berth. But ASU took a 21-0 lead by the end of the first quarter at Arizona Stadium behind QB Rudy Carpenter’s TD throws of 7, 26 and 38 yards.

“We didn’t react very well in that game,” Stoops said. “I think they were more prepared and they beat us to the punch.”

Arizona (6-6) still was eligible for the postseason, but there were no bowl slots available.

2007 (ASU 20, UA 17): The Wildcats jumped out early with a Rob Gronkowski TD catch. But after that, Tuitama was intercepted twice and UA was held to 44 yards rushing.

“We were tight last year. We pressed throughout that game, for whatever reason,” Stoops said. “We just didn’t execute very well. We had to work extremely hard to get anything.”

The Wildcats (5-7) were left without a bowl trip again.

If Arizona were to lose Saturday, it would likely go to the Hawaii Bowl and ASU would go to the Las Vegas Bowl.

Regardless of the outcome, UA seniors hope the “younger guys learn from this and get the program going in the direction it needs to go,” said Bondzio, the Wildcats’ kicker.

“The younger guys seem anxious . . . eager to win,” he said.

The UA-ASU rivalry

(Pac-10 era)

UA Category ASU

16-13-1 record 13-16-1

8-7 at home 6-8-1

8 wins by 7 or fewer 4

671 points 738

4,522 rushing yards 4,127

5,450 passing yards 7,331

UA’S SENIOR CLASS

Player Position

13 Jason Bondzio* Place-kicker

4 B.J. Dennard* Wide receiver

23 Marquis Hundley Cornerback

75 Joe Longacre* Offensive line

45 Brandon Lopez* H-Back

25 Adrian McCovy% Linebacker

32 Nate Ness Safety

33 Ronnie Palmer* Linebacker

10 Mike Thomas Wide receiver

66 James Tretheway Offensive line

7 Willie Tuitama Quarterback

*Fifth year seniors

% Applying for NCAA medical hardship

JOHN MOREDICH

jmoredich@tucsoncitizen.com

Arizona has let a few football games slip through its fingers this season, but don’t expect Wildcat athletic director Jim Livengood to overreact.

“This is not a point-your-finger time,” Livengood said on Tuesday.

The Wildcats are assured of their first bowl appearance in 10 years as they prepare for their annual rivalry game with Arizona State on Dec. 6. Yet much of the attention after two straight losses seems to be on UA’s fourth quarter failures and coach Mike Stoops’ job security.

Stoops, with a 23-34 record in nearly five years, has a contract through the 2010 season.

Livengood chooses to look at the big picture.

“We’re more competitive than we have been in the last four years. There’s no denying that,” Livengood said. “This is a better team, a better program. We’re missing one simple thing: the ability to finish some games.”

The Wildcats (6-5, 4-4) have had a chance to win late in every game this season. They have fallen short four times by a combined 28 points, an average of 5.6 points per game.

Arizona had five turnovers against New Mexico in an eight-point loss; settled for a pair of field goals, instead of touchdowns, early in the fourth quarter of a 24-23 loss to Stanford; was within a touchdown of USC; and dropped a fourth-quarter pass on fourth down late against Oregon.

The trend continued with a 19-17 loss to Oregon State on Saturday. The Cats yielded a TD, were unable to run out the clock and allowed a game-winning field goal on the final play.

“We’re living in a society where people want to find fault or blame. We’re in this thing together,” Livengood said. “We’re not far away. You can’t suggest we haven’t improved just because we have the same record, or anything like that. We have better talent.

“We’re just not closing.”

When Arizona wins, it’s by an average margin of 32.6 points a game. But the combined record of teams UA beat is 18-49.

The Wildcats’ lone victory against a team with a winning record came in a 42-27 triumph over California (7-4).

Wildcat losses have been against teams with a combined 35-22 mark.

Arizona has clinched a postseason appearance in the Sun, Las Vegas, Emerald or Hawaii Bowl, depending on its outcome against ASU.

“There’s nothing we can do about the games we’ve played. That is in the past,” Livengood said. “Let’s look at what we can do against Arizona State on Dec. 6.”

UP NEXT

ASU (4-6, 3-4)

at UA (6-5, 4-4)

When: 6 p.m., Dec. 6.

Where: Arizona Stadium

TV: FSNA and ESPN or ESPN2

SPORTS SOUND-OFF

• UA professed to go into a “spread” wide-open passing attack, but it seems to have gotten very conservative lately because it has a pair of good running backs. That has led to, as (Citizen Columnist) Anthony Gimino sort of noted, being tight at important times in the game. We’ve become way too predictable. We have such good athletes. Be creative. Lastly, I was appalled by Sonny Dykes’ comment noting he wished Oregon State had made the extra point (to tie it) and that UA would have proceeded on that last drive differently. Please, isn’t that a way of really saying, “I was too afraid to open it up just a little.” GENE G.

Got a beef? E-mail: sports@tucsoncitizen.com. Call: 573-4635.

SPORTS SOUND-OFF

• I believe that the UA program has progressed to a certain extent, but not to the point that we have attracted a host of top recruits. In order to be truly competitive, we need more Gronkowski types and I don’t know if that will happen under Mike Stoops. Another loss to ASU could render the question moot. BOB57

• I want UA to keep Stoops, and I don’t think that if ASU beats UA, Arizona athletic director Jim Livengood will fire him. Too much money on the hook for that! Keep Stoops. Go Devils! JEFFRO95

• Stoops: Let Sonny Dykes run the offense! Stop holding him back! And have some faith in your players! GREG M.

• A MoonDogg Thanksgiving dream: UA president Robert Shelton tells Livengood that his services are no longer needed. Let The Stoops brothers know the ASU game will be their last day of employment at Arizona. Have Dykes coach the bowl game. Steve Kerr takes over as Arizona’s AD. Go to Michigan State – my old school – spend some money wisely, then bring in Mark Dantonio and Tom Izzo to run the football and hoops programs. 3367