Chris McAlister was a unanimous All-American in 1998

Arizona’s Fearsome Foursome of defense — Tedy Bruschi, Rob Waldrop, Chuck Cecil and Ricky Hunley — are now in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Bruschi will be officially inducted in December after being selected by the National Football Foundation on Tuesday.

Former coaches Warren Woodson, Darrell Mudra and Jim Young are also in the Hall of Fame.

Is this Arizona’s limit? Four players and three coaches? Where is the “Cactus Comet” Art Luppino? What about Chris McAlister? Dennis Northcutt?

And shouldn’t Larry Smith and Dick Tomey get consideration?

Woodson was 26-22-2 in only five years in Tucson from 1951-56. He won the necessary 60 percent of his games because of stints at Arkansas State Teachers University (40-8-3), Hardin-Simmons (57-23-6), New Mexico State (63-36-3) and Trinity (16-5).

Mudra was 200-81-4 in his career but he was 15-27-1 at Arizona and Florida State, the only major college programs he coached. And he lasted only four years total at those institutions. He stockpiled victories at places like Adams State, North Dakota State, Western Illinois, Eastern Illinois and Northern Iowa.

Tomey had a career record of 185-145-7, a winning percentage of .546 that falls below the National Football Foundation’s required 60 percent.

Tomey, however, is widely respected among his peers and former players. During his tenure at Arizona, he coached five future NFL first-round draft choices, 20 All-Americans, and 43 Pac-10 first team players. His best teams were in the mid-1990s, highlighted by the “Desert Swarm” defense of which Bruschi and Waldrop helped form into one of the best units in college football history.

Tomey coached Arizona to the only two double-digit-win seasons in school history, including a 12–1 campaign in 1998, in which they finished fourth in both major polls, the highest ranking in UA history. His 95 wins are the most in Wildcats history. He also left Hawaii as its winningest coach in school history (63-46-3) before Junes Jones surpassed him.

The late Smith had a .518 winning percentage overall but he was 48-28-3 in seven years at Arizona and 44-25-3 with three trips to the Rose Bowl in six years at USC. He coached the Wildcats to prominence despite inheriting a program that was placed on probation for recruiting improprieties related to former staffs.

Seven Arizona players earned All-America honors during his tenure, including Hunley, a two-time consensus All-American linebacker, Morris Trophy-winning center Joe Tofflemire, and All-American safety Allan Durden, placekicker Max Zendejas, linebacker Byron Evans and Cecil, a safety. More than 20 of Smith’s UA players went on to play professionally.

The National Football Foundation states in its fine print that Tomey and Smith can still be considered for the Hall of Fame. Players that do not comply with the 50-year rule and coaches who have not won 60 percent of their games may still be eligible for consideration by the Division I-A and Divisional Honors Review Committees, which examine unique cases.

Art Luppino’s chances of making the college football hall of fame are remote

The 50-year rule: Players must have played their last year of intercollegiate football within the last 50 years. For example, to be eligible for the 2013 ballot, the player must have played his last year in 1963 or thereafter.

That disqualifies Luppino, who completed his storied UA career in 1956. The National Football Foundation also makes it a requirement that a player earns a major first-team All-American selection to be considered for the Hall of Fame. Luppino, who led the nation in rushing in consecutive years in 1954 and 1955, was a UPI second-team All-American in 1954.

Currently, the NCAA recognizes All-Americans selected by the Associated Press (AP), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), The Sporting News (TSN), and the Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF). Consensus All-Americans are those chosen by at least three of these entities. Unanimous All-Americans are chosen by all.

Those from Arizona not in the Hall of Fame who have these “major” first-team All-American honors include:

• Mark Arneson, 1971, LB, TSN
• Jackie Wallace, 1972, DB, TSN
• Allen Durden, 1985, DB, WCFF
• Darryll Lewis, 1990, DB, Consensus
• Josh Miller, 1992, P, FWAA and TSN
• Steve McLaughlin, 1994, PK, Consensus
• Tony Bouie, 1994, DB, Consensus
• Chris McAlister, 1998, DB, Unanimous
• Dennis Northcutt, 1999, KR, Consensus
• Antoine Cason, 2007, DB, Consensus
• Ka’Deem Carey, 2012, RB, Consensus

The player from this list who should be a lock is McAlister. He was a first-team All-Pac-10 selection for three straight seasons in his UA career after transferring from Mount San Antonio College in California.

He became only the seventh player in college football history (first in Arizona history) to return a kickoff, punt and interception for touchdowns in the same season. His 18 interceptions at the end of his Arizona career ranked third on the school’s career-record chart behind Cecil (21) and Wallace (20).

Arneson and Wallace have less than 10 years before their 50-year window closes.

Arneson’s 357 tackles was a career record at Arizona when his eligibility was exhausted in 1971. It has been surpassed by nine players, including Hunley (school-record 566) and Cecil (392). Arneson was a second-round draft pick by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1972 and played with them for nine years.

Wallace, sadly, has fallen on hard times after his six seasons in the NFL — including a starting role for Minnesota in Super Bowl IX — after playing at Arizona. A New Orleans TV station reported last June that Wallace is homeless in that city. Wallace, a victim of alcohol and drug abuse, has been in and out of shelters for at least the last 23 years.

Arneson, Wallace, Durden and Miller were not at least consensus All-Americans, so they have long odds to be selected to the Hall of Fame.

Lewis, McLaughlin, Bouie and Northcutt are consensus All-Americans who might receive more votes as time goes on.

One of the requirements of the National Football Foundation: While each nominee’s football achievements are of prime consideration, his post-football record as a citizen is also weighed. He must have proven himself worthy as a citizen, carrying the ideals of football forward into his relations with his community and his fellow man with love of his country. Consideration may also be given for academic honors and whether or not the candidate earned a college degree.

Bouie, whose name is among other Wildcat greats in the Ring of Honor on the facade of Arizona Stadium, deserves recognition with this requirement.

Dennis Northcutt is the only former UA offensive player eligible for hall of fame consideration

He has two Master’s degrees — Master of Arts in literacy and education from Arizona and Master of Business Administration from ASU. He currently sits on the national boards of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the National Football League Players’ Association. He formerly was the vice president of the University of Arizona Maricopa County Black Alumni Association, and was a national board member for the University of Arizona Alumni Association. He is a cancer survivor, having been diagnosed with Stage 4 Lymphoma in 2007. He underwent successful chemotherapy in the spring of 2008.

Northcutt is the only former offensive UA player that is eligible for Hall of Fame consideration. He caught passes in 43 straight games, a conference record. In his senior year, he set an Arizona record with 88 receptions for 1,422 yards. His punt-return average that year of 19 yards was second in the nation. As a senior in 1999, he was recognized a consensus first-team All-American as an “all-purpose” athlete.

Cason, a free-agent acquisition by the Arizona Cardinals this season, and Carey, a UA junior, are not yet eligible because they are not 10 years removed from their collegiate careers. Cason, who won the Jim Thorpe Award in 2007, becomes eligible for Hall of Fame consideration in 2017.

WILDABOUTAZCATS.net publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He also writes blogs for Lindy’s College Sports, TucsonCitizen.com and Sports Illustrated-sponsored site ZonaZealots.com.

In the 50 days leading up to Arizona’s season-opener against Toledo, on Sept. 1 at Arizona Stadium, TucsonCitizen.com and its affiliate WildAboutAZCats.net will rank the Top 50 games in the history of the football program. The ranking is at No. 2 as the kickoff to the Wildcats’ season — and the start of the Rich Rodriguez era — is only two days away.

SCORE: No. 12 Arizona Wildcats 16, No. 1 Washington Huskies 3

DATE: November 7, 1992

SITE: Arizona Stadium, 58,510 in attendance

WHY IT MADE THE LIST: The definitive voice of college football broadcasts — Keith Jackson — punctuated the ABC-TV telecast of Arizona’s dominating 1992 win over No. 1 Washington this way:

“And now you know why they play the games …”

But was the one-sided victory really an upset?

“I don’t think it was an upset,” Arizona coach Dick Tomey said after the game. “We expected to win.”

Another translation to Jackson’s comment: Washington had to play Arizona to realize how suffocating the Desert Swarm defense — a phenomenon in college football at the time — can be to an opponent’s offense. Considering Arizona’s four-game winning streak entering the game after a near-upset of No. 1 Miami on the road, and the way the Wildcats shut down the Huskies, was anybody surprised the UA won?

Washington was ranked No. 1 with an incredible 22-game winning streak, but anybody who followed college football closely that season knew Arizona belonged on the same field. The Desert Swarm was No. 1 in the nation against the run and No. 4 overall.

“I’ve never been more confident going into a game,” Tomey said.

This statement coming from a coach whose team less than two months earlier tied an Oregon State club that finished 1-9-1. Washington beat its first eight opponents in 1992 by an average margin of 20.1 points. The Huskies annihilated the Wildcats 54-0 the previous season in Seattle. Still, the Wildcats believed they were the better team and who could argue?

“I had just been voted team captain that week,” Arizona’s Heath Bray, a backup quarterback, defensive back and linebacker that season, told TucsonCitizen.com’s Anthony Gimino in a 2010 interview.

“When the refs came into the locker room before the game to call for captains for the coin toss, it was like balloons fell from the ceiling. Everything was in the air — helmets, pads, cups. Everybody was screaming and yelling. It was like a party. You wouldn’t have expected that. We walked out of the locker room that day, and there was not an empty seat in the house. You could tell from the coin flop, we were just going to win that game.”

Arizona beat the Huskies in 1992 in the same manner a boxer does not leave himself open and uses the bob and weave, a defensive maneuver to avoid a punch. The Wildcats played conservatively on offense — using the run in 54 out of 66 offensive plays — and decisively won the ball-control and field-position battle behind their defense and the punting of Josh Miller.

Miller, an All-Pac-10 selection, pinned the Huskies back continuously with his 47.3-yard average over eight punts. Washington never started a drive beyond its own 31-yard line.

Arizona quarterback George Malauulu completed only five of 12 passes for 54 yards but he did not throw an interception or fumble. In Washington’s 54-0 rout in 1991, Malauulu was responsible for six turnovers. That was Arizona’s worst loss in 32 years. The Wildcats, who ran effectively against the Huskies in 1992, were methodical and error-free.

Former Arizona punter Josh Miller was chosen the Player of the Game for his performance against top-ranked Washington in the Wildcats’ 16-3 victory at Arizona Stadium in 1992. He currently serves as an NFL analyst for a Pittsburgh radio station that covers Steelers games. (Pittsburgh CBS affiliate photo)

Billy Johnson ran for 99 yards and Chuck Levy added 37 as Arizona gained 197 yards on the ground.

“I know our offense don’t look too good on the outside,” UA linebacker Sean Harris told the Los Angeles Times. “They didn’t do nothing in the first quarter. They didn’t do nothing in the second quarter. They didn’t do nothing in the third quarter. But they turned it on in the fourth quarter.”

The kicking of Arizona’s Steve McLaughlin, who missed a 51-yarder as time expired that would have beaten Miami, put the Wildcats in position to win with three field goals. He made a 34-yard field goal in the first half, the only scoring by halftime.

His 20-yard field goal with 12:38 remaining put the Wildcats ahead 6-3 and it culminated a 17-play, 74-yard drive that started in the third quarter. The Wildcats ground out 4.4 yards a play in that series, starting from its 23 and ending at the Washington 3-yard line.

“It’s not very fancy, but I do think teams underestimate it,” Levy was quoted by The Los Angeles Times about the UA’s offense. “It may be ugly, but we get the job done. Now they’re sitting in their locker room (wondering) how we won.”

Washington quarterback Mark Brunell fumbled on the next possession and Arizona’s Jim Hoffman recovered at the Huskies’ 20. Four plays later, McLaughlin made a 30-yard field goal to put the Wildcats ahead 9-3.

Former Arizona safety Tony Bouie, who in the 1992 classic win over Washington made one of the greatest defensive plays since the Cats joined the Pac-10, went on to play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Tony Bouie photo)

Arizona stopped Washington’s next drive when cornerback Keshon Johnson intercepted a Brunell pass with 8:37 left. Washington’s Jason Shelley made the reception, but was immediately hit by safety Tony Bouie, dislodging the ball into the air and into Johnson’s hands. Johnson returned the interception 21 yards to the UA 40 and Washington never threatened again.

Bouie’s play ranks as one of the top 10 in Arizona football since the Cats joined the Pac-10 in 1978.

A series later, after the Huskies’ punted from their 13, the Wildcats drove from their 43 and scored the game’s only touchdown on Malauulu’s 1-yard keeper with 48 seconds remaining. The only drama remaining at that time was Arizona’s crowd trying to rush the field before the game came to an end.

“We won the turnover battle, the fourth quarter, the kicking game, and we dominated the line of scrimmage in the fourth quarter,” said Tomey afterward. “This was our day. It was time.”

Washington’s best scoring opportunity occurred late in the first half. The Huskies drove 72 yards to the Arizona 8 with a minute left before halftime. A bad snap on a 25-yard field-goal attempt forced holder Eric Bjornson to try a pass to tight end Mark Bruener in the end zone. Bruener, who was open, dropped the football. Arizona’s streak of not allowing a first-half touchdown that season remained intact.

Former Arizona player Heath Bray, named a captain for the 1992 Washington game, remembers that the atmosphere of Arizona Stadium leading up to the game indicated a victory was in the making

Washington fumbled four times, losing three. Brunell, who did not share the quarterback responsibilities with Billy Joe Hobert (out while being investigated by Washington for receiving an alleged improper loan), threw an interception and looked rattled by the constant pressure from Rob Waldrop, Jimmie Hopkins and Tedy Bruschi.

Brunell completed 25 of 41 passes for a career-high 243 yards but he could never sustain a long drive for the Huskies. Washington’s star running back Napoleon Kaufman rushed for only 50 yards and fumbled twice.

“I’m not going to get into anything about the Billy Joe Hobert case,” Brunell told reporters. “It had no impact, and I’m not going to talk about it.”

“It didn’t really matter to us,” Waldrop, Arizona’s All-American nose tackle, said after the game. “Whatever they bring in, we’ll stop it. It didn’t matter if it were Hobert, Brunell or if the third-string guy was in there.”

Arizona’s victory put itself in position to earn its first Rose Bowl appearance with a 4-1-1 Pac-10 record. The Wildcats needed two more conference victories — against Southern Cal and Arizona State — coupled with a tie or loss by Washington (5-1 in conference) and they would be bound for Pasadena.

But the Wildcats stumbled with a 14-7 loss at USC before losing to ASU 7-6 at Arizona Stadium. They ended the year with a 20-15 humbling loss to Baylor in the Sun Bowl. Washington lost two of its last three games, including the Rose Bowl to Michigan 38-31.

The way the 1992 season ended does not take away from that special November afternoon in Tucson in front of an over-capacity crowd, the most electrifying and significant win at Arizona Stadium.

“We didn’t luckily win that ball game,” Bray told Gimino in 2010. “Let’s be very blunt about this: We beat their ass.”

THE COUNTDOWN:

No. 3 — Arizona’s Desert Swarm and offense too much for Miami in historic Fiesta Bowl shutout (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 4 — ASU smells roses but through broken nose as Cecil, DeBow lead Cats (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 5 — Zendejas returns after hastily leaving UA at halftime, makes 48-yard FG to beat Notre Dame (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 6 — 1982 upset win keeps Sun Devils from Rose Bowl, starts “The Streak” (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 7 — “Leap by the Lake” most amazing individual play in UA history gives Cats win over Huskies (WildAboutAZCats.com)

No. 8 — UA loses heartbreaker to ASU wondering: “The Catch” really a catch? (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 9 — Arizona (12-1) achieves best record, highest ranking to end season with 1998 win over Nebraska (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 10 — UA wins 1926 game after McKale delivers Salmon’s “Bear Down” line (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 11 — The Desert Swarm is born in 1992 near-upset of top-ranked Miami at the Orange Bowl (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 12 — Zendejas’ 57-yard FG ties UA record, keeps ASU out of Rose Bowl again (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 13 — Arizona blows 20-point lead and shot at the Rose Bowl with 1993 collapse at California (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 14 — UA upsets No. 2 UCLA in 1980 when Bruins appeared ready to be No. 1 (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 15 — L.A. Times reporter: Arizona shows “fight of wildcats” in 1914 game vs. Occidental (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 16 — UA leads UCLA late in third quarter but loses big in 12-1 season (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 17 — Unranked Arizona upsets Ohio State, Woody Hayes in Buckeyes’ 1967 opener in Columbus (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 18 — Arizona and hasty coach Mudra lose Ultimatum Bowl to ASU in 1968 (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 19 — Arizona keeps “The Streak” without loss to ASU alive in ’87 with bizarre finish that ends in tie (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 20 — Arizona fit to be tied with Cal despite leading 26-3 in third quarter (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 21 — Zendejas’ last-second 45-yard FG vs. ASU generates momentum for “The Streak” to endure (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 22 — Arizona wins its first bowl behind “Heat-seeking Missile” Chuck Cecil (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 23 — Collapse vs. Utah after leading 27-0 in fourth quarter changed the face of UA football (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 24 — UA shuts out ASU, Kush during dominating run for Sun Devils coach (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 25 — Arizona’s defense and Doug Pfaff’s last-second FG enough to upset sixth-ranked Oklahoma (WildAboutAZCats.com)

No. 26 — UA upsets ASU from Fiesta Bowl consideration in program’s best stretch (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 27 — Trung Canidate rushes for record 288 yards and three long TDs in ’98 shootout against ASU (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 28 — UA dominates No. 3 SMU, highest ranked non-conference foe to lose to Cats (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 29 — Arizona stuns second-ranked Oregon in most significant victory in Mike Stoops era (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 30 — Arizona win on last-second FG over ASU ends Kush dominance in series (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 31 — Arizona reaches its zenith under Stoops with victory over Brigham Young in Las Vegas Bowl (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 32 — Arizona owed Cal a couple, knock Bears out of BCS title, Rose Bowl run (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 33 — Arizona’s 10-9 loss at Oregon in 1994, derailing its Rose Bowl hopes, still hurts (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 34 — ASU ripe for picking in banana uniforms for “The Streak” to reach eight (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 35 — Arizona tries risky fake PAT to beat California but loses in epic 4 overtime game (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 36 — Veal to Hill “Hail Mary” pass highlights “The Streak” reaching seven games against ASU (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 37 — USC outlasts Arizona 48-41 in one of most wild games played in Tucson (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 38 — Arizona shows signs of life under Stoops with rout over No. 7 UCLA (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 39 — Art Luppino “The Cactus Comet” rockets toward 38 yards per carry and five touchdowns (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 40 — Fumblerooski enables Arizona to sweep USC, UCLA in L.A. for first time (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 41 — Sun Devil nemesis Dan White quarterbacks Arizona into Fiesta Bowl with win over ASU (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 42 — Struggling UA gets improbable win against ’83 Pac-10 champ UCLA (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 43 — Closing chapter of “The Streak” includes Arizona’s dramatic fourth-quarter heroics (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 44 — Arizona overcomes rival Texas Tech with unfathomable late-game rally (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 45 — Dick Tomey, the Desert Fox, does a number on UCLA by changing offense in midseason (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 46 — “The Streak” reaches three games, UA achieves best Pac-10 finish (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 47 — Arizona’s first game at Arizona Stadium in 1929, a 35-0 win over Cal Tech (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 48 — Underdog Arizona’s 2011 thriller over arch-rival Arizona State (TucsonCitizen.com)

No. 49 — Arizona’s first win over arch-rival Arizona State, then known as Territorial Normal (WildAboutAZCats.net)

No. 50 — Arizona’s first win in program’s history: 22-5 over Tucson Indians (TucsonCitizen.com)

Junior Seau (55) and Tedy Bruschi (54) listen to New England coach Bill Belichick during a game in the 2007 season, when the Patriots went 16-0 in the regular season (YouTube video still - click on picture to access video)

Tedy Bruschi’s voice is usually excitable, but when an ESPN SportsCenter anchor asked him Wednesday for his reaction to the death of former teammate Junior Seau, Bruschi’s voice was a few notches below the norm.

“I’m just sad, very sad,” said Bruschi, the former Arizona standout who won three Super Bowls with the New England Patriots.

Seau, who died Wednesday at age 43 from an apparent suicide, joined the Patriots in 2006 and played three years with Bruschi and the New England linebacker corps.

“I grew up watching him play,” Bruschi said in the ESPN interview, his voice returning to its usual gusto. “I loved to watch him play. And then in 2006, he became my teammate. I spent a lot of time with him.

“We won a lot of games in 2007 for Junior (when New England went 16-0 in the regular season but lost in the Super Bowl to the New York Giants). We wanted to win the Super Bowl for Junior. I loved him so much. It didn’t take long for people to love Junior.”

Bruschi recalls Seau’s enthusiasm for football and his dedication to the sport.

“He had almost too much energy,” Bruschi, an ESPN NFL commentator, said with a laugh during the network’s interview. “I remember three weeks after he started, the strength staff came to me and said, ‘Hey, you have to talk to Junior.’

“I asked them, ‘Why do I have to talk to Junior?’ They said, ‘Junior is getting here at 4 a.m. We can’t get here that early. I told them he’s been doing that for 20 years. There’s no changing him now. They just had to get up (earlier).”

While Seau was intense on the field, and during his before-dawn workouts, he also played and behaved with a lighter side, according to Bruschi.

“He made veteran players work harder and have more fun,” Bruschi told ESPN. “In between practices, we’d be beat and tired and wanted to get rest. Junior picks up a guitar and tries to learn the guitar in the locker room …. I am gonna miss him so much.”

Bruschi was one of hundreds of former teammates and friends, Seau called, “Buddy”. It seemed every interview Wednesday with a former teammate of Seau brought up that word. Bruschi and others believe the word was not just a figure of speech for Seau; he meant that all those who touched his life were really his buddies.

“Anybody who knows Junior, knows the term ‘Buddy,’” Bruschi said in the interview. “That’s what I am going to miss so much. Everybody wanted to be around him.

“He loved to surf. I remember him telling me, ‘Bru, I need to get you out on the water and teach you how to surf.’ I wish I did that.”

Bruschi added that Seau was the “best linebacker to play the game.”

“He could always sense something with his instincts. If he felt like he could shoot a gap, he would. He was so smart and instinctive. When he saw something, he went after it and couldn’t be stopped.”

At the end of the interview, Bruschi recalled the waning seconds of the loss to the Giants in Super Bowl XLII. His voice became low again as he thought of his former teammate and friend missing out on the chance to win his first Super Bowl title.

Seau also played in Super Bowl XXIX with the San Diego Chargers, who lost to San Francisco.

“Randy Moss catches the touchdown pass to put the Pats up and all we needed was one stop,” Bruschi told ESPN. “One stop, and we’re 19-0 and world champions. But Eli (Manning) took their team down the field and scored.

“One of my main regrets is not getting Junior Seau his world championship. I remember he was on the ground, his face on the turf, feeling so bad after that loss. Winning the Super Bowl is something we wanted to deliver him — the coaches, players and organization. I just wish we could’ve done that. But, still, I have so many good memories of him.”

Don’t forget: For all the links, Twitter feeds and news feeds related to Arizona and its opponents, go to Morales’ site WILDABOUTAZCATS.NET. No other Arizona sports Web site is like it!

DEFENSE

No. 4: TEDY BRUSCHI, defensive end (1992-1995)

Being a badass can be uplifting to not only a football program, but also a community, and, yes, a nation.

Tedy Bruschi is a Wildcat legend and a Tucson favorite because of how he emerged from obscurity, perceived to be too small and slow out of high school (6 feet and 230 pounds), to become the school’s all-time sack leader with 55. That’s more than double the next guy on the list — defensive end Ricky Elmore — who accumulated 25.5 sacks from 2007-10.

While with the New England Patriots, Bruschi — appropriately nicknamed “Full Tilt” — became a national hero when he returned to the field midway through the 2005 season after suffering a minor stroke. He played only seven months after doctors repaired a small hole in his heart that was the cause of his stroke.

“Getting back to playing football was a big part of why I wanted to come back, but how am I supposed to tell my sons (Tedy Jr., Rex and Dante) later in life that any obstacle can be overcome, that you can achieve anything in life, if I don’t live my life that way?” Bruschi was quoted as saying in a USA Today article.

“I want to draw off my experiences on how I lived my life and be able to teach them from what I’ve experienced. For me to be able to teach them about life and overcoming any challenge they’re presented with, I have to live my life that way.”

His sons — and all of us — can not have a better role model.

Bruschi, who grew up in an impoverished area of Sacramento, overcame a difficult upbringing after his parents divorced when he was 3. He didn’t start playing organized football until 14. He ran track, wrestled and lettered in football his last two years, when he was noticed by small colleges and former Arizona coach Dick Tomey.

It is well documented that Bruschi resorted to drinking and got into fights mostly because of the demands placed on him by his father and his helpless feeling about alleviating the burdens placed on his mom. As he matured at Arizona, and became one of the Desert Swarm’s standouts, Bruschi channeled that anger the appropriate way. He became a badass on the football field in every sense of the word.

“I had a chip on my shoulder the size of a boulder,” Bruschi said in a Boston Globe interview. “I suppose it comes from growing up hard. I can’t fully explain it. All I know is it seemed like I was angry a lot when I played football.”

Similar to former UA center Joe Tofflemire, No. 5 on our Badass List, Bruschi was a three-time All-Pac-10 first-team selection and a Morris Trophy winner for being the top lineman in the league in 1995. He was a consensus All-American in 1994 and a unanimous pick in 1995.

Scouts deemed him too small at 6-1, 247 pounds coming out of Arizona to make it as an NFL defensive end. But Bill Parcells, the Patriots coach at the time, and defensive assistants Bill Belichick, Al Groh and Romeo Crennel believed their 1996 third-round choice can thrive at linebacker.

Chalk that up as one of the best draft choices in Patriots’ history.

“I think (Bruschi’s) the kind of person that could do just about anything that his capabilities would allow him to do,” Tomey said in a 2008 Boston Globe article. “He was a great defensive end. Obviously, he would be undersized for the NFL … but he was just tremendously quick and he had a tremendous passion. He played at a different level than most other players, but again, he came that way and that’s not something we taught him.

“When he was coming out of college, everybody was suspicious about ‘is he big enough? Can he run fast enough?’ And you’re trying to pound it into their heads: ‘You just need to watch the tape. He’s a special player.’ Gladly, the Patriots recognized that.”

Bruschi, 38, who played 13 years in the NFL and won three Super Bowl rings with New England, serves as an NFL analyst for ESPN studio programs.

OFFENSE

No. 4 DAVID ADAMS, tailback (1984-1986)

This thrilling touchdown run against Washington State was captured in a YouTube video (click on the picture to view)

David Adams is the most extreme example of a Wildcat who answered quite emphatically those critics who claimed he was too small to succeed. The Atlanta Constitution-Journal described Adams as a “waif with wings” before the Wildcats played Georgia in the 1985 Sun Bowl.

The Sunnyside High School graduate, listed at 5-foot-6 and 165 pounds during his Wildcat career, is arguably pound-for-pound the biggest badass the program has produced. Former UA coach Larry Smith found promise in Adams where others did not.

“He keeps his nose to the grindstone,” the late Smith often said about Adams during the tailback’s career.

“One of the main things that motivated me was people saying I couldn’t do it,” Adams told me Sunday. “I wanted my mom (Clarice Adams) to be proud of me and football was what I was best at.”

Adams, who led the Pac-10 in rushing his senior season in 1986 with 1,175 yards on 238 attempts, made believers out of his opponents.

Former Oregon safety Anthony Newman, whose team allowed Adams to rush for 130 yards in a 41-17 loss in 1986, told the Eugene (Ore.) Register-Guard: “David Adams is very hard to tackle, and he’s much calmer and collected and did a better job of reading the defense than last year. He is so quick, yet he’s still willing to run over you and strong enough to do it.”

Adams never stopped at hearing the word “No”, he said, and that separated him from not only players his size but the behemoths as well.

“If given the opportunity, I could show them I had the skills,” Adams told me in regards to coaches who passed on him out of Sunnyside. “I just wasn’t tall, but I could play. I also knew the world could only give you so many ‘Nos’ before somebody said ‘Yes’ … It just the law of average.

“Plus, I would not take no for an answer. Failure is never an option.”

David Adams' 18-yard scamper after catching a pass from Alfred Jenkins was one of the highlights of Arizona's 34-17 win over Rose Bowl-bound ASU in 1986 (click on the photo to access the YouTube video)

If Arizona’s current team, 2-6 and playing under an interim coach, embodied Adams’ fortitude, who knows? Adams missed only one game during his UA career because of a leg injury — “I could have played but the coaches didn’t let me,” said — which exemplified his badass nature even more. His teammates could always count on him. Can the same thing be said about today’s players?

“I would tell (the 2011 Cats) to be mentally tough; you must want to prove something more than anything else,” Adams said. “You must kill me to beat me because I will keep coming back until I win.

“Plus you must realize that I am the best and there is no way you can beat me at anything. If you do, we will play again until I win, no matter how long it takes.”

Adams, 47, said the plays he most remembers is “diving over the top (of the line) for touchdowns and first downs. I could always jump outta the gym!”

One of his most memorable plays, however, was a zig-zag 18-yard touchdown run after catching a pass from Alfred Jenkins when the Wildcats stunned Rose Bowl-bound ASU 34-17 in 1986 at Arizona Stadium. That play capped a 97-yard drive in the first quarter and set to the tone for the game, culminating on Chuck Cecil’s historic 100-yard interception return for a touchdown.

Adams is now a partner with A&K Ventures, a residential and commercial real-estate development firm in Tucson. He was drafted in the 12th round by Dallas in 1987. He played three games with the Cowboys that year when the league used replacement players during the NFL players union strike.

THE BADASS LIST

DEFENSE

4. Tedy Bruschi, defensive end (1992-95)
5. Marcus Bell, linebacker (1996-99)
6. Byron Evans, linebacker (1983-86)
7. Brant Boyer, linebacker (1992-93)
8. Ty Parten, defensive tackle (1989-92)
9. Jimmie Hopkins, defensive end (1990-93)
10. Al “Bubba” Gross, safety (1979-82)

OFFENSE

4. David Adams, tailback (1984-86)
5. Joe Tofflemire, center (1985-88)
6. Glenn Parker, offensive guard (1988-89)
7. Rob Gronkowski, tight end (2007-08)
8. Hicham El-Mashtoub, center (1991-94)
9. Dennis Northcutt, wide receiver (1996-99)
10. Nick Foles, quarterback (2009-11)

Nick Saban having a statue at Alabama after only 43 wins in Tuscaloosa, Ala., begs the question: What’s taking Arizona so long to erect one of Hall of Famer Lute Olson?

Other than the meaningful statue of John “Button” Salmon outside McKale Center, the Wildcats offer a statue of two bobcats playing with each other. Why not a statue of Olson flanked on each side by a likeness of Sean Elliott and Steve Kerr — the father, son and holy toast of the town?

Other long overdue peripheral objectives that should be on the desk of athletic director Greg Byrne at this very moment:

• It’s time to give Jason Terry his just due by retiring No. 31. Terry, who received illegal benefits from agents as a senior, repaid Arizona the $45,363 it forfeited from the 1999 NCAA tournament. Terry was made ineligible for jersey retirement and induction to the UA Sports Hall of Fame. The school supposedly has petitioned the Pac-10 to retire his jersey, but how serious is Arizona after 12 years and counting? We know how serious Terry is to Arizona’s image as a marketing tool. He is one of 11 NBA players this season who are former Wildcats. We also know how serious Terry is to giving back to the community. Terry comes from an impoverished background in Seattle so he knows how important it is to not be passive in our society. Retiring Terry’s number is a no-brainer for Byrne, who thankfully is a progressive athletic director. With Terry’s effervescent personality, having him on stage at McKale Center being honored with his jersey number retirement, the nation — through the ESPN cameras — will take note.
• Get Coniel Norman at midcourt in front of a standing ovation of a packed McKale Center. How many leading scorers of a program become destitute on the streets, wondering if or when they’ll get another paycheck? Norman has what appears to be an untouchable Arizona record — a career average scoring mark of 23.9 points a game from 1972-74. His name is synonymous to Arizona’s development as a basketball school. His story is not only touching but educational, especially for players of this generation who believe a ticket to a sustained NBA career can easily be punched.
• It’s ridiculous that UA career rushing leader Trung Canidate is not on Arizona’s Ring of Fame in Arizona Stadium. Even more silly is the fact Tedy Bruschi was left off the jersey-number retirement ceremony last November. OK, OK, the official criteria is a player must have won a national player of the year award or earn induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. The school should modify it to include consensus All-Americans who established a career NCAA record while at Arizona. Bruschi was a consensus All-American who left Arizona with 52 sacks, which tied a career Division I-A record. Moreover, Bruschi has that star appeal, similar to Terry, that would help Arizona’s image with a much-publicized ceremony.

Be practical, Arizona, not stodgy. This is not Cooperstown.

Former Arizona basketball All-American and national player of the year Sean Elliott was selected the Bear Down Leader at our partner site WILDABOUTAZCATS.com in July (National Kidney Foundation photo)

RELATED LINK: The resurfacing of Arizona basketball great Coniel Norman, homeless and feared dead by some family and friends, is the No. 1 inspirational story of the year involving Wildcat athletics.

Using the “Bear Down Leader” voting this summer at WILDABOUTAZCATS.com as a gauge, the most popular athletes by sport at Arizona include:

• Sean Elliott, men’s basketball, the overall winner of the unprecedented reader-involved tournament.
• Tedy Bruschi, football, a semifinalist in the Bear Down Leader competition who is treasured as much by New England Patriots fans.
• Jennie Finch-Daigle, softball, came up short against Elliott in the championship but is ahead of famed golfer Annika Sorenstam (quarterfinalist in the Bear Down Leader tournament) in terms of the most famous female athlete to wear cardinal red and navy blue.
• Terry Francona, baseball, quarterfinalist who like Bruschi is revered in the New England area for managing the Red Sox to two World Series titles.

These and many more UA athletes are gifts given by the university to its fans through the years. The biggest gift under the Christmas tree, so to speak on this Christmas Day, is Elliott. As an appreciation of his value to Arizona and for your readership here and at WILDABOUTAZCATS.com and WildcatSportsReport.com, I offer this video (in two parts) involving Elliott and Arizona beating Duke in 1989 to regain the No. 1 spot in the country. Merry Christmas:

Hector A. Morales Jr. with his youngest grandchild, Mackenzie Morales, before his 75th birthday in 2008

I will always remember the conversations I had with my father, Hector A. Morales Jr., about the Arizona Wildcats. True to form, my father was never overly enthusiastic about the UA football and basketball teams after they won, but he was never too down on them either when they lost.

My father carried the characteristic of a coach. He was always analytical about the Wildcats.

If a quarterback completed three touchdown passes, my father would question the interception that was thrown in the second quarter. If a basketball player had a subpar game, my dad would ask: What did the other guys do to make up for it?

That was my dad in a nutshell: Pursuing perfection when he knew deep down that it was unachievable. Throughout his many years of community service — working endlessly for those who are less fortunate — he knew he fought a battle that was difficult to win. It was the attempt that made my father.

The first memory I have of my father and Arizona athletics is when he would take me and my brothers to watch Fred Snowden‘s Wildcats in the 1970s. He allowed us to stay around after the game to get autographs. Snowden and his staff befriended me and personally escorted me to every player to get an autograph. My father was only in his 40s, robust with life, serving the public he deeply cared about working alongside Mo Udall and Cesar Chavez.

The last memory I have of my dad and the Wildcats was him struggling to climb the Arizona Stadium seats with his cane to get to his seat. He was a season ticket holder and made every attempt to attend a game even though his health dictated otherwise.

For almost 12 years, he battled Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma cancer. Other than all the chemotherapy treatments and medication, he suffered through problems with his eyes and blood-flow problems to his legs. He got through each day as he did when he was younger and vibrant: With a smile and sincere dedication to his family and others in the Tucson community.

To his dying day Friday, my father served on the Pima County Health Board.

Within the last couple of months, after my father was diagnosed with blood clots in his left leg and lungs, he rested at Life Care Center of Tucson. After he was released to hospice care at my parent’s home, my father asked my mother, Elsa Jaramillo Morales, if it would be possible to return to the Life Care Center to eat lunch and offer thanks to the people who attended to his needs.

That was my dad: Always thinking of others, even at a time when he could understandably be thinking only about himself.

My last conversation with my father was less than two weeks ago. His oncologist determined only a few days before that cancer spread fast through his body from his neck to his shoulder, arms, stomach, groin and legs. Given his age (76) and his overall poor health condition, my father, with the support of his family, decided that renewed chemotherapy treatments would not be in his best interest. The oncologist, Dr. Jonathon Schwartz, recommended that we decide against chemotherapy because my father could slip into a coma.

Knowing that cancer was overcoming his body, and treatment for it stopped, my father talked to me the way he did since I was old enough to walk.

“Don’t worry, Javier,” my father said. “Everything will be all right. We will get through this. Don’t cry.”

Once again, he faced a tough situation with determination although the odds were largely against him.

That same kind of spirit will hold true through all of his family and friends who were touched by him.

When my nephew and Godson, Ian Michael Beal, died prematurely at age 23 while doing construction work on Mount Lemmon in 2003, my father hurt more than any of his ailments could cause. Through the pain, however, he stood firmly by my sister, Debra Gloria Beal, Ian’s mother, and offered his support. He attempted to gather more awareness for workplace safety in honor of his first grandson. He was always cognizant of worker’s rights as a member of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the AFL-CIO.

In terms of the Wildcats, my father respected the way coaches such as Dick Tomey and Lute Olson got the most out of those players who were not superstars. Players such as Tedy Bruschi and Steve Kerr — under-recruited athletes who succeeded on the playing field and life in general — made my father the most proud about being a lifelong Wildcat fan.

Nobody gave them a chance but they made something out of themselves. Those are the type of people in Tucson, impoverished and wealthy alike, who consider my father a champion in the battle for those less fortunate.

I can hear him say now about the unheralded Wildcats who made something out of their careers: “Those guys care more about their team than they do about their stats.”

They are the true champions, just like my father.

Hector A. Morales Jr. was preceded in death by his parents, Hector and Mary Morales and by his first grandchild, Ian Michael Beal. He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Elsa Jaramillo Morales; his children, Hector III, Debra Gloria (Michael) Beal, Carlos (Terri), Andres (Jane) and Javier and grandchildren, Wade (Guedo), Arianna, Brittney, Maggie Rose, Amber, Adam “up and Adam,” Mackenzie and Chase; his brother, Eugene and his sisters, Gloria, Annie, Irma, Cecilia, Toni and close cousin, Norma along with many nephews, nieces and friends. In lieu of flowers please donate to the Ian’s Spirit for Students Scholarship Foundation. Rosary at CARRILLO’S TUCSON MORTUARY, Sunday, March 14, 2010, 7:00 p.m. The funeral mass will be Monday, March 15, 2010, at 9 a.m. at St. Augustine’s Cathedral in downtown Tucson.