Jenkins

One thing Arizona has going for it is depth at running back.

The Cats were without their top three runners at Saturday’s scrimmage. Starter Nic Grigsby has been bothered by a hamstring injury, Keola Antolin took the day off from nagging injuries (the coaches are well aware of what he can do) and Greg Nwoko is sitting out the spring because of a shoulder injury.

So redshirt freshman Daniel Jenkins was the main man in the backfield, rushing 16 times for 91 yards.

“I think it was a good day for the offense as a whole,” Jenkins said. “But there is always room for improvement. Gotta keep working.”

Jenkins has a similar build to Grigsby, at 5-9, 187 pounds, although Grigsby, a senior, has used his age advantage to bulk up and be a bit bigger than that. Nobody on the team has Grigsby’s cutting ability, but Jenkins appears to have a nice blend of moves and speed.

At Saturday’s scrimmage, he broke off a 30-yard run and later scored on a 9-yard rush on fourth-and-3. He bounced that carry to the outside and sprinted into the end zone untouched around left end.

“Daniel is improved,” coach Mike Stoops said. “We knew he was a talented player. I think he continues to get better. Shows some elusiveness, has some strength and balance. A lot of good things.”

Jenkins is one of two redshirt freshman — Kylan Butler is the other — behind the three returning running backs. Butler has been getting ample practice time this spring, too, although he had only three carries Saturday.

Stoops also used fullback/H-back Taimi Tutogi in one-back sets Saturday. The powerful player — he’s 6-1, 258 — had six carries for 37 yards. He had an impressive moment last Wednesday in practice when he flattened cornerback Trevin Wade near the goal line en route to a touchdown.

Stoops nearly ripped the redshirt off Jenkins late last season when Grigsby, Antolin and Nwoko were all battling injuries before the Nov. 7 game against Washington State. But Arizona got by in the 48-7 rout with a little of Antolin and help from now-departed Greg Booth and Tatogi.

Jenkins spent most of his time last season on the scout team. He was a four-star recruit by Rivals.com out of Rancho Verde High School in Moreno Valley, Calif.

“It beat me up,” Jenkins said of not playing last season. “It ate me up from the inside out. But I got a lot of work in with Coach Ed (strength coach Corey Edmond), and I came back this season ready to play.”

Playing time might be limited for Jenkins if everyone stays, but all that will get sorted out.

“Right now, I’m just focusing on getting into the system and learning all the plays correctly,” he said. “Hopefully, I will work my way up the rotation as we go along.”

The Arizona football practice field is being renovated, and the Arizona Stadium turf is getting chewed up and is not in the best of shape, so coach Mike Stoops has had to adjust practice.

Instead of practicing on campus in the afternoon as originally scheduled, the Wildcats will hold spring practice sessions Wednesday and Thursday from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. at Salpointe Catholic High School.

“This field is just getting worn out,” Stoops said after Monday’s practice at the stadium. It’s just not healthy. … You have to protect the safety of your players.”

Arizona is no stranger to the artificial turf at Salpointe, having practiced there at times during fall camp and during bowl preparations.

As for the early start, Stoops isn’t trying to send any kind of message to his team.

“It’s the only time we can get a facility,” he said. “We can’t get a facility anywhere. The high schools are using their facilities for activities after school. So, it’s just the only time we could find a place to practice.”

After Thursday’s practice, Arizona will be off until Monday, so the Arizona Stadium turf might be in better shape by then.

Saying he is a “little bit frustrated” — you can bet that’s a lot frustrated — Stoops added, “It is what it is. We’ll make do.”

The construction at the Jimenez Practice Field is expected to be completed in mid-July in time for fall camp.

D.J. Shumpert, left, helps Derrick Williams block a shot against NAU in the 2009-10 opener against NAU/Photo by WildcatSportsReport.com

Sophomore forward D.J. Shumpert, a local kid from Santa Rita High School, is transferring from the Arizona basketball program after minimal playing time in the past two seasons.

Shumpert was an August addition to 2008-09 roster by then-coach Lute Olson after a stellar career at Santa Rita, where he averaged a triple double as a senior. Shumpert, a skinny 6-foot-7, didn’t appear to have much of a role moving forward under coach Sean Miller, playing in only 10 games this season. He appeared in four games as a freshman.

Hoopmasters.com reported the transfer, citing Etop Udo-Ema, who was Shumpert’s travel-ball coach (as well as the travel coach for UA’s Jamelle Horne for the Compton Magic).

While it is generally positive to have whatever local kids you can have on the roster, this parting does give Miller what he needs most — a roster spot. He is still recruiting mostly post players and point guards for the next class, after getting a commitment from junior college forward Jesse Perry on Sunday.

Here is how the roster shakes out for next season:

Senior: F Jamelle Horne
Junior: G Kyle Fogg, C Alex Jacobson, G Brendan Lavender, F Jesse Perry*
Sophomore: G MoMo Jones, F Solomon Hill, F Kevin Parrom, F Derrick Williams, C Kyryl Natyazhko
Freshmen: G Daniel Bejarano, G Jordin Mayes*
(Perry and Mayes have committed, cannot sign until next month)

Arizona has one scholarship available to fill its allotment of 13. The Wildcats will have only 12 scholarships in 2011-12 because of self-imposed sanctions. Arizona has one commitment for the Class of 2011 — 6-9 power forward Sidiki Johnson — so expect more player movement before then.

Miller released a statement through the athletic department about Shumpert:

“D.J. Shumpert is a fantastic kid and was an exceptional teammate and representative of our basketball program during his two years at Arizona. Like a lot of young players he wants to put himself in a position to have a more significant role as a basketball player in his future. We mutually agreed that pursuing that at another program would be best for him. We wish D.J. all the best in his future, and in the meantime, he will continue to work out and be a part of our postseason program.”

At least Mike Stoops is happy about his quarterback play.
TucsonCitizen.com photo

This is the way it is in spring football. If you like your offense, you probably don’t like your defense. If your defense is controlling scrimmages, then what is wrong with your offense?

Right now, Arizona coach Mike Stoops likes what he is seeing from a veteran offense, led by junior quarterback Nick Foles, while saying, “defensively, we have a long way to go.”

Stoops put his team through a scrimmage-like practice Saturday morning at Arizona Stadium, for about 70 plays, and three quarterbacks combined to go 30 of 35 for 269 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

“When you get solid quarterback play like we’re getting right now, that really helps,” Stoops said.

“I think we have some playmakers. We hopefully will be able to get some yards, some big yards in chunks. We had to work pretty hard for our yards last year. I like what we’re doing offensively.”

Foles was 15 of 16 for 106 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown pass to Juron Criner on a fade pass to the left corner of the end zone.

Matt Scott was 7 of 10 for 72 yards, connecting with receiver Gino Crump on a 34-yard pass over the middle on a crossing pattern for a touchdown. Crump has been one of the most impressive receivers in camp, but it’s OK if you’re asking yourself, “Who’s he?” He’s a 6-2 junior transfer from West Virginia, and the Arizona Daily Star’s Ryan Finley talked to him last week.

While Crump had four receptions for 88 yards, he also caught some grief. Crump beat backup cornerback Mike Turner and hauled in a pass from third-string quarterback Bryson Beirne on a sideline streak, but then Turner punched the ball out and backup free safety Adam Hall recovered.

Beirne was 8 of 9 for 91 yards.

The quarterbacks were not allowed to be tackled, but play was stopped several times on “touch sacks” by the defense. The sports information staff credited defensive end Brooks Reed with two sacks (I had him for four), and also gave two sacks to end Ricky Elmore.

Mostly, Stoops sees the defense, which has to replace seven starters, as a major work in progress.

“Losing all three linebackers … those guys are in the middle of everything,” Stoops said. “That is probably the area that we’re the youngest.

“We’re replacing those guys with three guys who haven’t played much at this level. Just getting them to play at a more rapid speed, see things more quickly, be more sudden as a defense, is what we need to do.”

Mid-year junior college transfers Derek Earls and Paul Vassallo have been working with the first team. Senior C.J. Parish, sophomore Jake Fischer, sophomore R.J. Young and redshirt freshman Trevor Erno form a six-way battle for playing time.

“I have an active group of six guys right now who are really, really competitive,” linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator Tim Kish said last week. “That is what it is all about. It’s the competition that raises your level of play.”

Arizona freshman Kenzie Fowler threw her second career no-hitter as the Wildcats softball team finished off a three-game sweep at New Mexico on Sunday, winning 14-0 in five innings.

Fowler (18-2) struck out eight and walked two. She also had three hits, including her first career home run.

Junior outfielder Brittany Lastrapes and freshman third baseman Brigette Del Ponte also hit home runs, keeping pace with each other for the team lead with 11. Arizona improved to 28-3.

UA begins Pac-10 play at Arizona State on Thursday at 7 p.m.

Rob Gronkowski's workout Saturday improved his draft stock/Tucson Citizen photo

Rob Gronkowski had just finished the three-cone drill, headed for a break on the sideline, when he uttered, confidently, “The beast is back, baby.”

The former Arizona tight end worked out Saturday on campus, his all-important first audition in front of pro scouts — 25 of them, representing 22 teams. At stake was a potential first-round selection and lots of money.

Not only did Gronkowski have to run fast times and show good hands and be flexible and all that stuff, but he absolutely needed to do what he could to counter a report from NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock, who said Wednesday that Gronkowski has spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spine.

Like Gronk said, the beast is back.

He worked out for three hours and posted the kind of 40-yard dash times that affirms his status as a physical freak. After the first of his two 40s — he was clocked in 4.65 seconds with the wind, in the low 4.7s against it — his exuberant agent Drew Rosenhaus ran over and slapped his hand, gave him hugs and must have been calculating how much his client’s stock was rising.

“I’m ecstatic,” Rosenhaus said. “Rob put on a show. He is the premiere tight end in the draft and he’s going to be the first player drafted at his position, and he fully demonstrated that today.”

Check out video of parts of Rosenhaus’ interview at FoxSportsArizona.com

Gronkowski is considered one of the top two most talented tight ends in the draft, the other being Oklahoma’s Jermaine Gresham, who, like Gronkowski, missed all of last season. Gresham had a knee injury.

Naturally, Rosenhaus enthusiastically touted his client, saying he is hearing Gronkowski could go as high as the mid first-round. Tight ends are rarely selected any higher than that.

“Without exaggeration, Rob put on a show,” Rosenhaus said.

“He was spectacular in his times. He was brilliant in his routes. He demonstrated his is healthy. He is clearly the No. 1 tight end in the draft.

“I couldn’t be happier for Rob in his performance because he came out here for three hours and worked his tail off and showed all these teams that he is healthy and 100 percent ready to go and be the top tight end in the draft. …

“Rob Gronkowski is a complete tight end,” Rosenhaus added. “He can catch and block, and not everyone can say that.”

Now, about that back …

Rosenhaus flatly denied that Gronkowski has stenosis, a condition that shortened the career of NFL Pro Bowl offensive linemen Chris Samuels and is cited as a reason why former Auburn star offensive tackle Marcus McNeill slid to the second round in the 2006 draft.

NFLDraftScout.com reported Friday that a scout with an NFL team had confirmed that Gronkowski has been “red-flagged” by teams due to a spinal condition.

Gronkowski, who missed the 2009 season for the Wildcats, underwent a microdiscectomy on his back Sept. 24.

“Every team I have talked to says there are no concerns about his back,” Rosenhaus said.

“He passed his physical at the combine. There are no red flags on him. He is ready to go. The back is not a factor. He had an injury. He had surgery to correct it. He had the best back doctor in the world in Robert Watkins, who has cleared him by the way. So has Dr. James Andrews.

“There’s no issue.”

Gronkowski, checking in at 6-foot-6 and 258 pounds, has been pointing toward this day ever since he declared in mid-January that he was leaving early for the NFL Draft. He was unable to work out at the combine and skipped Arizona’s pro day on March 12 because he needed the extra time to be ready.

“I have been waiting for this day for a while now,” Gronkowski said.

“I have been training in Miami for about two months, every single day. I believe I came out here and everything went great. I have proved my back is no issue. I performed every single thing they wanted me to with no problem.”

According to NFL.com, Gronkowski had a 33 1/2-inch vertical jump, a 9-foot, 11-inch broad jump, a 4.47-second short shuttle and a 7.18-second three-cone drill.

He caught passes from former Salpointe High School and Hawaii quarterback Tyler Graunke, and performed blocking drills against his brother Chris, who is considered a late-round prospect as a fullback/H-back.

“I ran the time I wanted to, and I was feeling great out there,” Rob Gronkowski said. “I knew the hard work would pay off in the end.”

It could pay off with a first-round selection.

Nick Foles is trying to recapture the accuracy he had in his first three starts/Photo by WildcatSportsReport.com

When new quarterbacks coach Frank Scelfo arrived at Arizona less than two months ago, he flipped on the game tapes to see what he had inherited.

What he saw was a backup quarterback, Matt Scott, whose delivery had become too long. Scelfo saw a starting quarterback, Nick Foles, whose footwork too often got out of whack.

“A lot of times I do a good job of keeping my feet moving, but sometimes my feet will be pointing one way and I’ll throw it the other way,” Foles said. “We’re just trying to keep my feet pretty much on a swivel, on line with my throwing.”

Foles was a flash upon taking over as the starter from Scott in the fourth game of last season.

In Foles’ first three starts, he completed 104 of 138 passes for 1,053 yards, with seven touchdowns and two interceptions (one of which bounced off a shoe — or the Husky Stadium turf, if you prefer).

Not that we expected Foles to keep completing 75 percent of his passes for 351 yards per game … but his drop-off the rest of the season definitely brought expectations back to earth. Hold off on Foles4Heisman.com.

Read more from Frank Scelfo and watch a post-practice video from Nick Foles in my report at FoxSportsArizona.com.

In his last seven starts, Foles completed 144 of 254 passes (56.7 percent) for 1,334 yards, with 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Eh. That includes the miserable, discombobulated performance — from Foles and the entire Wildcats team — in the Holiday Bowl against Nebraska.

Scelfo said what he saw from game tape was that Foles knew what he wanted to do, and generally made the right decisions, but his accuracy was compromised by that poor footwork.

“The one thing he lacked last year at times was accuracy. He knows what to do, but a lot of times he was inaccurate,” Scelfo said. “When he and I were looking at it, it was based on his mechanics, his footwork, his balance and his transition.

“Those are the things that we’re working on. He obviously has a big arm, but if he improves his accuracy, we’ll be more successful as a team.”

Despite having last season’s top two quarterbacks back, Scelfo said he is struck by the inexperience at the position. He notes that last season marked the first real playing time for either quarterback since high school. Scott is a junior, Foles a redshirt junior.

“I really like what I see from him,” Foles said of Scelfo.

“He’s a really good guy. He’s a player’s coach. He cares about the players. We already have a really good bond with him. …

“You always have to have a reason for everything you do, and he makes us explain what that reason is. He’s a fundamental guy, which is very important for the quarterback position.”

Scelfo does have an outgoing personality, but he said he is somewhat treading lightly because part of the goal of spring is establishing a trusting relationship … and he can’t expect his relatively inexperienced quarterbacks to be close to perfect right now.

“You’ve got to figure out who they are and which buttons to press when you’re dealing with them,” Scelfo said. “There is a learning period, and they have got to know how to take me. It’s a learning curve on both sides.

And how should the quarterbacks take him?

“I’m kinda old, so I’m just going to do it the way I need to do it, and they will figure it out,” said Scelfo, 51.

“The guys are receptive to what I’m telling them. Also, what’s happening out there is the guys are having some success. So they are seeing a little bit of what I’m telling them actually translating over to the plays. That makes it easy. When you have good players, you can be a good coach.”

Greg Byrne at his introductory press conference/Photo by Mark Evans, TucsonCitizen.com

To borrow a phrase from former Arizona athletic director Jim Livengood, the new guy just “won the press conference.”

To borrow another phrase, new athletic director Greg Byrne sure seems to be having a “great Wildcat day.”

But those are phrases from the old era. This is a new era.

Byrne, who has been the athletic director at Mississippi State for the past two years, was introduced as the new athletic director at Arizona on Wednesday, wearing an “A” pin on his lapel, accompanied by family and providing a general roadmap of who he is and where he wants the department to go.

Here are some of the highlights:

Byrne, the fund-raiser
Byrne has a strong background in fund-raising, serving key roles in that area at Kentucky and Oregon State. Explaining his approach in that area, Byrne said:

“I’m very genuine in my approach to people. I’m not going to try to fool you. I am going to be very honest. Regina (his wife) and I have life-long friendships from every place we have been. I guarantee you, you are going to see a lot of good supporters from other schools where we have been who are going to be coming to our games as our guests because they are friends.

“Telling our staff and the donors and such the other day in Starkville (that we were leaving), that was the most challenging thing I have ever done in my life. When people see you being real, and that you genuinely care about them and their interests , I think that goes a long way for you.

“People don’t give to people. They give to the school. But people give to the school when there are people that they feel comfortable with and they trust. One thing the university fan base will know is that when we tell you something, we’re going to do it and we’re going to be honest with you.” …

Byrne said he will soon devote a couple of days to just making calls and getting to know people.

“I love raising money. I really enjoy it and I have enjoyed building those relationships,” he said.

Byrne helped with the donation at Oregon State that changed the football stadium name to Reser Stadium.” Could naming rights for Arizona Stadium be on the table? He said it’s too early to say.

Tucson media surround new UA athletic director Greg Byrne following his introductory press conference/Photo by Mark Evans, TucsonCitizen.com

Byrne, the young guy
He is 38 years old, and he was the youngest athletic director in the country when he was hired at Mississippi State two years ago. Asked if that ever became an issue for him in Starkville, he began his reply with an anecdote.

“The night I got named athletic director at Mississippi State, I was 36 years old, and we go out and have a celebration dinner,” he said. “I am not a big drinker whatsoever, but I had a glass of wine to celebrate. I got carded.

“The good thing is I’m 38 now and I’m told I still look very young.”

Turning more serious, he related a story from billionaire Warren Buffett.

“He once had an MBA student ask, ‘Hey, I’m young, I can’t get people to take me serious.’ He said, ‘If you prove yourself to people at a young age — to somebody who is a lot older than you — they are going to go a lot further for you than they would for somebody their own age because of their belief in trying to mentor you and help you grow.’

“I have found that to be 100 percent true.”

Byrne, the legacy athletic director
He is following in the footsteps of his father, Bill Byrne, who has been the athletic director at Oregon, Nebraska and, currently, Texas A&M.

“I had a passion for it from early on,” Byrne said. “We would be sitting around the dinner table, talking about contracts and scheduling and coaching and Nike and all these different things. It was just dinner conversation.

“I remember I started reading the NCAA News in the eighth grade. And if you ever have insomnia, that’s a great cure for it. … To be around this industry where people have such passion, and these kids have such passion, it’s invigorating every day.”

Byrne, committed to academics
Arizona’s numbers in the NCAA’s Academic Progress Report have risen, but this has been a problem area for the athletic department, at one point losing three scholarships in football.

Byrne said an emphasis with the coaches, establishing relationships with the deans of every school on campus and a class attendance policy helped the Mississippi State athletic department post a 2.99 grade-point average last fall.

“We also did a class attendance policy where if a kid missed a certain number of classes, they weren’t playing,” Byrne said. “If you want to get a kid’s attention quicker than anything else, just sit the down. All of a sudden when that started taking place, GPAs started to rise.

“We had a 2.99 GPA in the fall as an athletic department. We tried everything we could to get to a 3.0, but it wasn’t there, so we didn’t report it as a 3.0.”

New UA athletic director Greg Byrne addresses the media. Next to him are UA President Robert Shelton and Arizona Board of Regents President Ernest Calderon/Photo by Mark Evans, TucsonCitizen.com

Byrne, the social media user
Byrne said, yes, he will change the theme of his Twitter page, which still has a Mississippi State background. Byrne, who also had a weekly blog on the Mississippi State athletics site, says he will continue to tweet.

“That is a great way to communicate, to get your message out there for a very efficient price — often free. Between Facebook and Twitter, I think it is a way that the younger generation is absolutely communicating, and we need to make sure we are on the forefront of that.

“I will communicate regularly through my Twitter page to our fan base.”

There have been cases of college athletes posting inappropriate comments on their personal pages, sometimes facing suspensions because of that. Did Byrne give his student-athletes guidelines or rules about social media at Mississippi State?

“I don’t think anybody has their arms around that completely,” he said.

“We had our compliance office following every one of our student-athletes, and if they said something inappropriate, it was addressed immediately. It could be a learning opportunity for them, because they need to understand that everyone is watching them. …

“As soon as sign that scholarship, get on a roster of a team, you’re viewed differently.”

More from the TucsonCitizen.com Sports Network:
Lute on The Streak: I just look forward to the next one

Even as a Sun Devil, new Arizona AD appreciated Lute Olson

UASports.net: Young Cat: New Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne is not old

Wildcat Sports Report: Who cares what school Greg Byrne attended?

Lute Olson listens to new UA athletic director Greg Byrne at a press conference./Photo by Mark Evans, TucsonCitizen.com

Former Arizona basketball coach Lute Olson, who attended the introductory press conference for new athletic director Greg Byrne on Wednesday, made his first public comments on the end of the program’s streak of 25 consecutive years in the NCAA Tournament.

Olson began the streak in his second season, 1984-85, and it continued through interim head coaches Kevin O’Neill and Russ Pennell before finally ending this season in coach Sean Miller‘s debut.

“When I first took the job here and the team was 1-17 in the league, I came in with the idea that we wanted to develop a program that would be pretty consistent,” Olson said. “Never did I dream that we would end up with a streak like that.

“The program is in great hands with Sean and his staff. I think they will get their own streak started here pretty soon, and it will be fun to watch that as it goes. …

“I guess when the streak ended, you just think, ‘Wow, that was quite an accomplishment by a lot of outstanding players who came through the program. I just look forward to the next one starting.”

Despite Arizona not being involved, Olson said he has been “peeled” to the coverage of the NCAA Tournament.

“There have just been so many great games,” he said. “The fact that there are 11 different conferences represented in the round of 16 is amazing. I don’t think that has ever happened.

“It sort of tickles me, too, that the Pac-10 and the West have knocked out so many of those Big East people that I kept hearing about all year long, about how it could be an entire Final Four of Big East teams. Some of them took early vacations, in fact.”

Olson is keeping a close eye on 11th-seeded Washington, which takes on No. 2 seed West Virginia in the Sweet 16.

“I love the way Washington is playing. I tell you, they could still be a huge factor, I think, with their quickness and length and shooting ability,” Olson said. “Lorenzo (Romar) has done a great job with those guys.”

Legendary UA men's basketball coach Lute Olson awaits new UA athletic director Greg Byrne, left, at Byrne's introductory press conference/Photo by Mark Evans, TucsonCitizen.com

New Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne shares something with almost all Wildcats fans. Even though he attended Arizona State, he appreciates Lute Olson and the basketball program.

One of the first things Byrne did Wednesday at his introductory press conference at McKale Center was acknowledge the presence of Olson, standing in the back of the room.

“I looked up to him for a lot of years as a young fan,” said the 38-year-old Byrnes. “I was a basketball player that he certainly didn’t know who I was because of my ability. It’s great to be around him today.”

Byrne said he remembers attending the Pac-10 tournament, when it was held in McKale during the 1987-88 season. His father, Bill Byrne, was the athletic director at Oregon at the time.

“Steve Kerr would throw in a 3-pointer and the whole crowd would yell out, ‘Steeeeve Kerrrrr,’” Byrne said. “I remember getting to meet Sean Elliott when I was a high school basketball player and how thrilled I was at that opportunity.”

Olson, who retired because of health reasons just before the 2008-09 season, said it’s not unusual to hear how the basketball program has impacted people, even those from rival schools.

“I hear that from Washington, Washington State, pretty much up and down (the Pac-10) and nationally, people who have followed the program,” Olson said.

“I think the basketball program through the years has been a good selling point for the university. I still run into students who come and say, ‘The reason I came here was because of you and the basketball program.’

“You don’t realize those things are out there. That’s the far-reaching success of good athletic programs. Just like with the swimming program and the softball program. We, without a doubt, have the best ‘Olympic sports’ coaching staff in the country. There is no one who even comes close, in my opinion.”

And now Byrne, whose dad knew Olson from Pac-10 meetings, is in charge of it all.

Olson approves, which still means something.

The Hall of Fame coach cited Byrne’s experience within the Oregon and Oregon State athletic departments.

“I think that it is important that we get somebody who is familiar with this conference,” Olson said. “And with his experience as a fund-raiser, I think that is critical. I think there is a lot of work to be done in that area.”