Tucson Citizen.com
AG's Wildcat Report - Dispatches on the Wildcats, from Anthony Gimino

Archive for July, 2010

ESPN visits Arizona weight room (with video)

Thursday, July 8th, 2010

ESPN and ESPN The Magazine have been in the McKale Center weight room recently, focusing on former Arizona Wildcat linebacker Lance Briggs, who has been working out in Tucson.

In the video above from the Arizona athletics official site, Briggs explains that ESPN is working on a story on veteran players — such as Briggs, an All-Pro with the Chicago Bears — returning to their alma maters.

ESPN paired Briggs with Arizona sophomore linebacker Jake Fischer in the photo shoot. Briggs said he hoped he could get together with all the UA linebackers and break down some game film.

Briggs, who leads the pack of ex-Wildcats in the NFL in terms of honors, has been a great representative of Arizona football.

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Wondering what would have happened if Don Coryell had said yes to Arizona

Wednesday, July 7th, 2010

As Arizona football fans know, the Wildcats are working on a couple of negative streaks.

There is the one about never having been to the Rose Bowl. And there’s the one about not producing an NFL quarterback during the entire length of the school’s existence in the Pac-10, starting in 1978.

In fact — let us repeat, just for the record — the last Arizona quarterback to throw a pass in an NFL game was Bill Demory in 1973, when he was subbing for injured Joe Namath with the New York Jets.

It all makes you wonder what would happened if the Wildcats had hired the man who would later be called the father of the modern passing game.

Just think: If the Wildcats had hired Don Coryell, would Arizona have become known as a passing school?

This story goes back to 1967, when athletic director Dick Clausen was looking to replace football coach Jim Larue. Clausen offered the job to Coryell, then the head coach at San Diego State.

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Wildcats in Cape Cod League: No-no goes the wrong way

Friday, July 2nd, 2010

A pair of Arizona baseball players were on the wrong end of a no-hitter earlier this week in the prestigious Cape Cod League.

Arizona outfielder Steve Selsky and pitcher Kyle Simon — they will be juniors next season — are playing for the Orleans (Mass.) Firebirds. Simon started on Tuesday and did well — allowing three hits and two unearned runs in 6 2/3 innings.

But the opposing starter, Jordan Pries from Stanford), didn’t allow a hit and walked only three as he led the YD Red Sox to a 2-0 victory. Selsky, batting cleanup, was 0-for-3 with a strikeout.

During the 2010 college season, Selsky and the Wildcats had no trouble handling Pries, getting to him for seven hits and six runs in four innings as UA beat the Cardinal 9-8 on May 22.

Good news is that Simon, despite pitching into some bad luck in the summer, is having quite a bit of success against the wood bats of the Cape Cod League. He is 0-2 with a 0.50 ERA in three starts.