TV producers like to catch Mike Stoops yelling at the refs. Photo by Chris Morrison, US PRESSWIRE

Coaches yelling on the sideline has been a big college football topic this week, with the focus on Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini.

His coaching family just happens to be longtime friends with the Stoops coaching family, dating to childhood days in Youngstown, Ohio. Like the Pelinis, the Stoops boys have been known to blow some steam — OK, go nuclear — on the sideline from time to time.

The Wall Street Journal decided to compare the sideline behavior of Arizona Wildcats coach Mike Stoops and Oklahoma Sooners coach Bob Stoops during recently televised games.

Which leads me to one thought — why didn’t I think of this?

(more…)

Arizona coach Mike Stoops figures to have some options at quarterback against Oregon. Photo by Chris Morrison, US-PRESSWIRE

Arizona Wildcats football coach Mike Stoops approached the gathering of local media after Monday’s closed practice and had a message.

“OK, guys, we’re going to play the quarterback who gives us the best chance to win. OK?”

At first, I thought it was Stoops making a little joke, perhaps mocking a typical question that coaches never answer.

But he had a little edge in his voice. And this wasn’t a rare case when he was joking with the media.

I can’t remember what he said after that — perhaps something along the lines of “and let’s leave it at that” — with the upshot being that he seemed prematurely exasperated we were going to be pestering quarterbacks Nick Foles and Matt Scott about upcoming playing time or strategy … or something.

The bottom line is that Stoops put the quarterbacks off limits to the media this week in advance of Friday’s game at top-ranked Oregon.

(more…)

Trevin Wade's best moment of the season came when he picked off this deflected pass and returned it 85 yards for a TD against Iowa. Photo by Chris Morrison, US-PRESSWIRE

Trevin Wade’s banishment to the bench will last only one game.

Arizona Wildcats coach Mike Stoops said Monday morning that the junior cornerback will be back in the starting lineup for Friday’s game at top-ranked Oregon.

True freshman Shaquille Richardson got the start in the last game, against USC, with Wade playing off the bench. The plan is to use those two, plus starting cornerback Robert Golden.

“We’re just trying to rotate all three of them,” Stoops said.

Wade has struggled this season, suffering a thigh injury against Oregon State and giving up too many big plays.

“He’s a got a great attitude,” said co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach Greg Brown.

“I mean, he’s come out, he’s practicing hard, he’s into it, going 100 miles an hour, very helpful with Shaquille and Jonathan McKnight, the younger guys. He’s done a great job. My hat’s off to him. His back was to the wall, and he’s come out swinging.”

It will be interesting to see if Arizona follows the model Cal used in slowing down the high-scoring Ducks two weeks ago — and we’re not talking about allegedly faking injuries.

The Bears challenged Oregon by bringing down personnel, spying on quarterback Darron Thomas, crowding the line of scrimmage and playing man coverage on the outside. If Arizona dares Thomas to throw, Wade, Golden and Richardson are going to have to be up to the task.

(more…)

Final: Arizona 93, Northern Colorado 70.

No 100 points. No 3-pointer from Max Wiepking. But another comfortable victory for the Wildcats, who are charging toward a showdown with Kansas on Saturday.

* * *

Two minutes left in the game, and the Fox Sports Arizona telecast shows Lute Olson in the stands yawning. I feel like a nap, too.

* * *

Arizona will be 3-0 for the first time since 2002-03 season. That doesn’t possibly seem right, but it says a lot about the kind of tough schedules the Wildcats usually play. And it says something about some less-than-vintage teams in recent seasons.

* * *

Freshman guard Daniel Bejarano, the 12th man off the bench, enters with about 8:30 left in the game … and shoots an air ball from the left corner less than a minute later.

* * *

The last time Arizona scored 100 points? March 7, 2009, in a 101-87 home win over Stanford.

* * *

We interrupt basketball talk to tell you that the Arizona football team is No. 21 in the BCS standings just released. That doesn’t mean much of anything in terms of anything, other than finishing anywhere from No. 16 to No. 25 in the BCS standings would be worth a $30,000 bonus for coach Mike Stoops.

* * *

The blowout in the second half should mean a lot of good minutes for backup center Kyryl Natyazhko. His interior defense is going to be crucial — not in every game this season, but in many of them. The Cats don’t need anything fancy from him — like that 3-pointer he hit as I’m typing this — but they mostly just need his size in the lane.

Arizona leads 74-39 with 11:56 to play.

* * *

A sloppy start to the second half for Arizona, but it doesn’t really matter much. Can we just fast forward to the game against Kansas next Saturday in Las Vegas?

* * *

Sean Miller at halftime: “It’s all about team defense. When we play hard on defense and can create transition opportunities, that is when we are at our best.”

* * *

Arizona leads 57-31 at halftime. Can the Cats hit 100? They never did last season under Sean Miller.

* * *

Derrick Williams with a 3-pointer. That’s the kind of range that is going to is going to boost his already-high NBA stock.

* * *

Arizona’s interior defense and rebounding have been suspect. That’ll give coach Sean Miller something to talk about.

* * *

Derrick Williams with nice court presence, passing out of the middle of Northern Colorado’s zone to find a wide-open Brendon Lavender for a 3-pointer.

* * *

Three fouls for Jamelle Horne with 7:05 to play in the first half. Not much of a concern with Arizona’s depth and interchangeable parts at forward.

* * *

Arizona beginning to pull away, leading 33-18 with under eight minutes to play. One thing I’ve noticed about junior guard Kyle Fogg is that an extra 8 to 10 pounds of muscle, plus off-season work on his left-hand dribbling, has made him more dangerous and confident in driving to the basket.

* * *

Wildcats lead 19-15 with 11:53 to go in the first half. This would qualify as the third slow start — in three games — for Arizona. This time, the all-backup lineup isn’t able to pull away from Northern Colorado as it was able to do at a similar time of the game against New Mexico State.

* * *

Some subs after the first TV timeout, near the 16-minute mark. Guards Jordin Mayes and Brendon Lavender are in, as is forward Jesse Perry.

* * *

An opening 8-0 run ends on a goaltending call against Derrick Williams. This team appears to have the “spurtability” that Arizona teams of several years ago had, and you can’t be that kind of team unless you really get after it on defense.

* * *

OK, just so you know, I’m watching the game on television today (TucsonCitizen.com’s Steve Rivera is at the game) … anyway, did Dave Sitton just call Jamelle Horne, “Jawann?”

* * *

Don’t want to jinx him, but Derrick Williams scores the first two points of the game on free throws and is hitting 78.9 percent (15 of 19) in the early season.

* * *

This will be the spot for our in-game thoughts — and your in-game comments — on today’s Arizona basketball game against Northern Colorado of the Big Sky. Sean Miller’s Wildcats will be trying to move to 3-0 on the season, and should do so easily.

Here is part of a preview from Javier Morales of our TucsonCitizen.com Sports Network partner, WildAboutAZCats. Check out the full preview and much more at his site.

BACKCOURT
Arizona’s starting backcourt of Lamont “MoMo” Jones and Kyle Fogg is shooting like the temperatures are dropping these days. Combined in the first two games, they are 8-of-27 from the field (29.6 percent), including 2-of-14 from three-point range (14.3 percent). But if you’re Sean Miller would you sacrifice good shooting by these guards for consistent and steady play that sets up others for success?

Of course, the right answer is you want both — accurate shooting to go with consistent, error-free basketball, especially from Jones at the point. Jones and Fogg have a 4-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio (20 assists and only five turnovers) playing a combined 23 minutes per game. They have been resourceful enough to do everything but shoot the ball well. That has translated into two easy wins for the Wildcats.

Conversely, Northern Colorado’s backcourt — 6-2 Elliott Lloyd and 6-1 Devin Beitzel — carry the team’s scoring. They combine for 32 points per game. Beitzel leads the team with 18.5 points per game. Before he broke his foot last February, Beitzel was No. 4 in the NCAA in three-point shooting at 44 percent. He is shooting only 23 percent from that range this season, but Lloyd is at a 58.3 percent clip from there.

Advantage: Arizona’s Fogg and Jones (11.5 points a game combined) don’t need to score like their counterpart for their team to excel. They can beat you in other ways, which makes them more dangerous.

FRONTCOURT

Northern Colorado has an edge in overall experience here as wing player Chris Kaba (senior), power forward Mike Proctor (junior) and post player Taylor Montgomery (senior) are all regular returning starters from a year ago. Arizona makes up for the experience gap with their overall talent compared to the Bears’ starters.

Sophomores Derrick Williams at the post and Solomon Hill on the wing are playing well to their strengths. Williams has been particularly flawless, missing only two field goal attempts in the first two games (15 of 17 for 88.2 percent) and averaging a near double-double (21.5 points and 9.5 rebounds). Hill’s value as a tone-setter is most evident with his team-leading 25 minutes per game.

Jamelle Horne, Arizona’s lone senior, is adversely affecting his field-goal percentage with poor shooting from three-point range. Take away his three-pointer attempts (1-of-7) and Horne has made 4-of-6 shots. He can be dangerously good or bad at any time. Playing smart is key for him to be on the good side.

Advantage: Although Northern Colorado has more experience, they have not faced a player as talented as Williams and a system like Miller’s that consistently feeds the potential Pac-10 Player of the Year. The last UA player to win that honor? Jason Terry in 1999.

Alex Zendejas, who has been struggling with his place-kicking, will take over pooch-punting duties from Keenyn Crier (also the holder). Photo by Chris Morrison, US-PRESSWIRE

Arizona spent part of its bye week practices figuring out how to improve special teams.

There aren’t many options in the kicking positions — although the Wildcats will tweak that a bit (more on that below) — but the coaching staff has found reason to overhaul kick coverage.

The bottom line: To get better on special teams, you need better players.

“It’s been pretty much my fault, but we’ve been getting away with using some backup guys who are out there helping,” said special teams coach Jeff Hammerschmidt.

“But when you go down for the first kickoff against USC, and three guys miss tackles in space, you kind of go, ‘Wait a minute, we’re playing USC and we have to play with the same kind of guys.’ For us to do that, there are some starting guys who are going to have to step up and be on everything.”

(more…)

It's usually the defenders, and not the Oregon mascot, who need a minute to catch their breath against the Ducks. Photo by Jason O. Watson-US PRESSWIRE

The Arizona Wildcats practiced their leg cramps Wednesday. Grabbing at their hamstrings. Having the wind knocked out of them. Falling down for no apparent reason.

The secret is out. The way to stop Oregon’s fast-paced offense — a national-best 50.7 points per game — is to stop the game by faking injuries.

“I hope we can do a little bit of that ourselves,” said Arizona co-defensive coordinator Tim Kish.

Kidding. He was kidding.

The folks in Eugene are taking this very seriously — as they should — as the whole faking injury thing has been a trending topic after what Cal (allegedly) tried to pull last week. Opponents have been accused of playing possum all season, but none so brazenly as the Bears.

(more…)

New Mexico State's Troy Gillenwater drives to the hoop vs. Michigan State last season. Photo by Steve Dykes-US PRESSWIRE

The Arizona Wildcats basketball team has a game against Kansas looming on Nov. 27. Oklahoma will visit McKale Center next month. The Cats have a rematch against Jimmer Fredette and BYU in Salt Lake City.

Before Christmas, Arizona also will have played at Rice and North Carolina State.

“We’re playing a number of quality opponents,” said UA coach Sean Miller, “but New Mexico State doesn’t take a backseat to any of them.”

Well, a coach can be forgiven for a little hyperbole, but he made his point … and a coach in a league whose teams lost to Seattle U. and Rider on Wednesday night shouldn’t be overconfident.

The Aggies — who play at Arizona on Thursday night — aren’t quite the same team that won the WAC tournament and took Michigan State to the wire in the first round of last season’s NCAA Tournament, but here is what they are: The most athletic team in the WAC, a fearless 3-point shooting team, and one that likes to run and press.

“The faster the game, the more frenetic the transition game becomes, that is when they are at their best and their most comfortable,” Miller said.

(more…)

Brooks Reed (42) and the rest of the Arizona defensive line next take on Oregon, which has the nation's highest-scoring offense. Photo by Chris Morrison-US PRESSWIRE.

The Arizona Wildcats’ two-game losing streak could easily turn into a three-game losing streak, and nobody around these parts really wants to think of what a gut-punch it would be to end on a four-game slide.

That would mean the expected loss at top-ranked Oregon on Nov. 26 and a home loss to rival Arizona State on Dec. 2.

“We understand we have a lot to play for this year,” quarterback Nick Foles said after Tuesday’s practice.

He’s got that right.

Call it desperate times.

And desperate times often mean a players-only meeting.

(more…)

Jake Fischer

Three Arizona Wildcats made the Pac-10 All-Academic football team, announced Tuesday morning.

They are starting sophomore linebacker Jake Fischer, who has a 3.42 grade-point average in pre-Business; starting senior safety Anthony Wilcox, who has a 3.05 GPA in Religious Studies, and junior placekicker John Bonano, who has a 3.90 GPA in Pre-Physiology. Bonano is the team’s kickoff specialist.

Two Wildcats earned second-team honors — redshirt sophomore linebacker R.J. Young (3.41 GPA, Journalism) and sophomore safety Adam Hall (3.12, Psychology).

Four Arizona players earned honorable mention honors: redshirt freshman tight end Jack Baucus; junior quarterback Nick Foles; junior receiver David Roberts; senior tight end A.J. Simmons.

The Arizona Wildcats basketball team has played only one game, and it might already have its signature highlight of the season.

The play came with 15:53 to play in the second half Saturday, as point guard MoMo Jones was pushing the ball up the right sideline, spotting Derrick Williams cutting toward the basket from the left side of the court.

The play ended with a back-to-the-basket, over-the-head throw-down.

“I called for the lob, and MoMo threw it,” Williams said after the 90-42 victory. “He actually jumped before he threw it. I was already coming down, so I just threw it behind my head. I didn’t know it went in until the crowd started cheering.”

More coverage of the Arizona-Idaho State game from those involved in the TucsonCitizen.com Sports Network:

Javier Morales, at WildcatSportsReport.com: Solomon Hill showing maturity beyond his years

Javier Morales, at TC.com: Eric Money returns to McKale Center after 20-year absence

Gimino, at TC.com: Arizona-Idaho State blog: Cats open with a rout

Gimino, at FoxSportsArizona.com: Yeah, but it was only Idaho State

Steve Rivera, at TC.com: Arizona coach Sean Miller goes with deep bench, could happen all season