C.J. Parish, here tackling Stanford running back Tyler Gaffney, would like more chances to be on the other side of these kind of collisions. Photo by Chris Morrison-US PRESSWIRE

There was a player down on the field, injured, late in the first half at the Casino Del Sol All-Star Game at Kino Stadium.

Someone mentioned that it was former Arizona Wildcats defensive end C.J. Parish. How could that be? His team was on offense. He was supposed to be on the sideline.

But it was Parish. When scouts asked him during practice last week to show them what he’s got at fullback, he gave them a nod and a smile and said, “Yes, sir.”

“Everybody has a dream to go to the next level,” Parish said after the Monday night’s game.

“So you do whatever you can to put yourself in that position. The scouts wanted to see me at fullback and we didn’t have one. I caught on fast. The plays came to me naturally. It was good.”

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Robert Golden breaks up a pass intended for ASU receiver Gerell Robinson in the November game. Photo by Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Former Arizona Wildcat defensive back Robert Golden will get a chance next week to start showing NFL scouts where he might end up in the secondary.

Golden is one of five ex-Cats who have committed to play in the Casino Del Sol All-Star Game, which will be played Jan. 16 at Kino Stadium.

The others are defensive ends C.J. Parish and Mohammed Usman and linebackers Paul Vassallo and Derek Earls.

Golden figures to be the best pro prospect of the bunch, ranked 244th overall by NFLDraftScout.com, which would put Golden near the end of the seventh round. His position flexibility — he started at cornerback and safety for Arizona — could be a plus.

“I feel I can be anywhere between a corner and a nickel back,” Golden said. “As a safety, I like to get physical in the box and I feel I can cover just as well as any corner out there.”

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Paul Vassallo will be trying for his second season with 100-plus tackles. Photo by David Kadlubowski/The Arizona Republic

Here is the eighth part of our Arizona Wildcats football preview in collaboration with our Gannett partner, The Arizona Republic.

We write the words, and they have taken the cool photographs and put it all together in a slick presentation at azcentral.com.

Check back here and at azcentral.com every Friday as we roll out more of our preview every week, all the way into August.

This week: The linebackers.

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Linebacker Jake Fischer is taken off the field after suffering an injury to his right knee.
Photo by David Kadlubowski/The Arizona Republic

What is it that coaches always say? They just want to get through spring practice, especially the final scrimmage, without any injuries.

The Arizona Wildcats did neither.

In the wake of previous ACL tears to backup running back Greg Nwoko and starting safety Adam Hall, starting linebacker Jake Fischer suffered a potentially serious knee injury late in Saturday’s spring game at Arizona Stadium.

It was too early for coach Mike Stoops to speculate on the injury, but he said, “We’ll be disappointed if it’s significant. That will be another major blow for us.”

Depth at linebacker already took a hit in the offseason when backups R.J. Young and Trevor Erno left the team.

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Arizona swarms to the ball to take down Washington running back Chris Polk/Photo by Chris Morrison, US PRESSWIRE

The focus, deservedly so, was on Arizona Wildcats quarterback Matt Scott in the 44-14 victory over Washington, but don’t forget about the standout performance by the defense.

Arizona, as I noted last week, had held four of its first six opponents to their season-low point total and had (in a different combination of teams) held four foes to their season-low yardage total.

How did the Cats do against Washington?

The Huskies’ 14 points tied their season low (against Arizona State) and their 290 yards were their second-lowest total of the year.

“As we keep going,” said senior defensive end Ricky Elmore, “every win gets more satisfying, makes us hungier and makes us want to work harder.”

It helped that Washington quarterback Jake Locker was bothered by a rib injury, which limited what the Huskies could do with him in the running game. He was 17 of 29 passing for 183 yards, and the Cats sacked him four times. He had only two other runs.

“He’s beat up,” said Washington coach Steve Sarkisian. “His ribs are hurting and I didn’t want to expose him.”

Arizona is seventh in total defense (13.43 points per game) and 10th in total defense (285.14 yards per game). Both marks lead the Pac-10.

It would be a quick show of hands from those who saw that coming.

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Freshman receiver Austin Hill makes a catch over the coverage of freshman Jourdan Grandon/Photo by Brad Allis, WildcatSportsReport.com

The alarm clocks rang early.

“I try to wake up as late as I can, but I woke up at 4:45 to be on the bus at 5:30,” said Arizona senior defensive end Ricky Elmore. “You wake up and stumble into the locker room and try to get to the bus on time.”

The Arizona Wildcats began fall camp Thursday morning at 6:15 a.m., and other than a little to-be-expected rust, coach Mike Stoops liked what he saw physically.

“Overall, I’m pleased with what our guys look like,” Stoops said.

“Our young guys, watching them move around for the first day, there are going to be some guys who are going to help us from the recruiting class of a year ago. I can see that already.”

It was only the first day, so we’ll just have to wait a little bit on exactly who those guys are … but certainly freshman safety Marquis Flowers is one to watch (especially if the Wildcats seem intent on using a lot of nickel coverage).

And, as you can see from the photo snapped by Brad Allis of TucsonCitizen.com Sports Network partner WildcatSportsReport.com, freshman receiver Austin Hill made a couple of nice, difficult catches.

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Derek Earls is the new man in the middle for Arizona.
Photo by Brad Allis, WildcatSportsReport.com

Arizona released its post-spring depth chart Wednesday, and the starting linebacker spots came into clearer focus.

“Obviously, it’s the biggest question mark,” said Tim Kish, the linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator.

There’s no experience to speak of, but there are reasons for reasonable optimism.

“That’s the way we always look at it, with the glass half full,” Kish said.

What we know at the end of spring ball that we didn’t at the beginning is that mid-year junior college transfer Derek Earls should be solid at middle linebacker. And that sophomore Jack Fischer, from Ironwood Ridge High School, is a real find. And that … well, maybe that’s about it.

Here’s how Kish breaks it down:

MLB Derek Earls, Jr., 6-3, 235
Kish said Earls is a “little bit behind concepts-wise, but I have never had a guy come in from a juco situation and be able to transition that quickly at that position. He made a few mistakes, but he did them playing fast. If you’re going to make a mistake early, make it playing fast.

“He really has a tremendous upside. I’m really anxious to see how he will progress over the course of the summer and fall camp, and I anticipate him being a leader as well.”

SLB Jake Fischer, So., 5-11, 220
He doesn’t fit the physical profile that the UA coaches would like from their linebackers, but Kish seems to like everything else about Fischer, who mostly played on special teams as a true freshman. Fischer did enough to impress in spring, moving from the weak side to the strong side, even though he was limited with a foot problem. Kish said Fischer underwent surgery Tuesday to remove an extra bone from a foot.

“That’s a guy who is a little bit of a throwback,” Kish said.

“I tell you what, I just think his potential is great because he’s such a tough nut and he can do so many things for you. He can come off the edge. He can be in the gap in the core in run situations. He’s quick enough to help on the perimeter in pass situations. His flexibility and his toughness overshadow any lack of size he might have.”

WLB Paul Vassallo, Jr., 6-3, 240 and WLB R.J. Young, So., 5-11, 232
Vassallo and Young are listed as co-starters heading into the summer.

“Paul probably has not picked it up as quickly as Derek from a concepts standpoint and probably is not playing as fast right now, but I think potentially he could have the same impact as Derek,” Kish said.

“I think R.J. has been fairly steady all spring. I’m not giving either one of those guys the nod right now. I want them to compete all summer and in the offseason program and come out ready to compete again in the fall. Hopefully, the good news will be that both will help us.”

Also on the depth chart are redshirt freshman Trevor Erno and senior C.J. Parish at middle linebacker, and redshirt freshman Cordarius Golston at strong-side linebacker.

On Parish, Kish said: “He is going to play a little bit of defensive end for us. We’re trying to get that fast rush group going, and he could be a factor in that. I’m really pleased in the progression he’s made.”

Arizona has one incoming recruit at the position — freshman Kyle Benson from Tempe Corona del Sol High School — but he is recovering from a knee injury, which limits his chances of contributing in his first year.

Marquis Flowers was on the cover of the Arizona edition of ESPN Rise magazine in October.

As of late Wednesday night, with all but a trickle of signees still to come across the country, Arizona’s recruiting class was ranked close to the bottom of the Pac-10.

Rivals.com ranked the Wildcats eighth in the Pac-10 and 36th in the nation. Scout.com pegged Arizona ninth in the league and 40th nationally, even below Washington State.

That’s not quite the ratings that were expected after two bowl seasons and plenty of positive momentum in the past two years, but I’m a big fan of taking the rankings as a good dose of entertainment, not gospel.

Arizona signed a total of 23 players, including Texas transfer receiver Dan Buckner (who has to sit out this season under transfer rules) and two mid-year junior college transfers.

Coach Mike Stoops doesn’t need a lot of immediate help on offense, needing mostly depth on the offensive line, which he got. Defense is a different story, with pressing concerns at defensive tackle, linebacker and safety. Stoops and his staff seemed to address that just fine.

So, no, the class rankings aren’t exactly going to send the fan message boards into a buzz, but it appears as if the impact players come at all the right spots … and, at this point, Stoops has earned a bit of trust in the kind of players he identifies and signs.

Here are five players we’re most looking forward to seeing in action right away. Call them the top five impact players:

1. S Marquis Flowers, Goodyear Millennium High School
He’s the headliner of the class, the top-rated recruit in the state, which is a rare get for the Wildcats. “Marquis Flowers is a very unique individual,” Stoops said. “A big safety who can run. A very athletic safety. One of the best I have seen all year.” At 6-3, 200, Flowers gives Arizona two young, big, athletic safeties, joining one of the top recruits from the 2009 class — Adam Hall.

2. DT Willie Mobley, Orange Coast CC
Arizona tried to recruit him out of high school, but Mobley signed at Ohio State, where he redshirted in 2008. He tried to transfer to UCLA (where the Bruins thought he was the answer to their decimated defensive tackle position), but he didn’t qualify, and his recruiting relationship with UA assistant Mike Tuiasosopo led him to Tucson. He didn’t play in junior college and has three seasons of eligibility remaining. Stoops said Mobley, combined with Saneilia Fuimaono and Kirifi Leuta-Taula, are the “best three interior defensive linemen we have recruited in some time.”

3. LB Derek Earls, North Dakota State College
Arizona has to replace all three of its starting linebackers, which meant it was critical to get immediate help. Finding a couple of talented mid-year transfers was critical and Earls (6-3, 230) fits the bill as a NJCAA first-team All-American. Stoops said he saw Earls and the other JC transfer linebacker, Paul Vassallo, work out Wednesday for the first time. “They did some things athletically that I thought we were getting from them, but it’s nice to see it with your own eyes,” Stoops said.

4. LB Paul Vassallo, Sierra College
Stoops said he didn’t know yet where Earls and Vassallo (6-3, 240) might fit into the linebacker group — inside or outside — but that will be sorted out in spring ball. “They’re big; they’re long. These guys are pretty athletic for their size and they give us a lot of different options,” Stoops said. Vassallo redshirted at Nevada for a season before transferring to junior college, where he has 14.5 sacks in 2008. He missed seven games last season because of a concussion.

5. WR Garic Wharton, Las Vegas Valley High
Arizona has dependable possession-type receivers, but is looking for a bit more pizzazz from the position, such as what Mike Thomas brought to the team in 2008. The Wildcats have moved quarterback Richard Morrison to the position and have added Wharton, whom Stoops called “probably the fastest football player in the country coming out of high school.” Wharton (5-11, 168) is a sprinting star who was an all-around skill player in high school, including returning three kicks for touchdown last season. “He has unique size to him and he is a guy who can the distance at any time,” Stoops said. “He has crazy speed.” (JC transfer Dexter Ransom is a 6-4 receiver who could make a quick impact on the outside for the Wildcats.)

Buckner

The University of Arizona football team has added a wide receiver transfer from the University of Texas.

Dan Buckner has enrolled at Arizona for the spring semester and will sit out next season under NCAA transfer rules, the UA announced today. He will have two seasons of eligibility left.

Buckner and the Longhorns parted ways last week soon after he was arrested in College Station, Texas, on charges of criminal trespass and resisting arrest.

“We’ve talked to Dan and his family about his recent situation and they’ve assured us that he doesn’t think he did anything wrong and they’re confident that it will be cleared up through the legal process,” Texas coach Mack Brown said last week.

“During our discussion with Dan and his family, we all decided that the best thing for him would be to transfer to another school and get a fresh start.”

Buckner (6-4, 215 pounds) caught 29 passes, four for touchdowns, through the first five games of the 2009 season. Listed as a “flex tight end” on the depth chart, Buckner and his position was phased out during the season as the Longhorns went with fewer four- and five-receiver sets later in the season.

Buckner ended up with 45 catches for 442 yards, the third-best reception total for Texas, which lost to Alabama in the national championship game.

He was a rated the 95th-best prospect in the nation, according to Rivals.com, in the 2008 recruiting class. Buckner is from Allen (Texas) High School, where he was teammates with Matt Brown, who is expected to sign with Arizona in February.

Arizona also officially announced the December signing of a pair of junior college transfers — linebackers Derek Earls and Paul Vassallo. Both should contend in spring ball for starting roles at a position where UA loses all three starters.

“They appear to be physically ready for Pac-10 play and we’ll get a quick look in spring ball,” coach Mike Stoops said.