R.J. Barrett eliminates Arizona and Michigan from consideration

Mailbag: On Rich Rodriguez’s hot seat, possible head coach candidates, QB recruits, and more

Answering your questions!

This has been a wild, and mostly bad, week for the Arizona Wildcats.

But we already did one mailbag this week about basketball-related things, so we’re changing it up this time.

Here we go.

Is Jamarye Joiner the only quarterback Arizona is recruiting?

No he isn’t. However, the other two players that I know that they have continued to pursue are committed.

One is Jack Tuttle, a 4-star passer from San Marcos, Calif, who is committed to Utah. The other is Purdue commit Jack Plummer, a 3-star out of Gilbert.

Out of the two I’d say Plummer is one I’d still pay the most attention to, and UA is going to continue to recruit them until they are given a solid no.

Now there can always be someone we aren’t aware of yet that will come up later in the season, but as of right now that is who I’m tracking.

To be honest, I like how Joiner has developed as a passer. He is night-and-day different from last season and continues to put together a strong year for Cienega.

— Brandon Combs

If the ‘Cats don’t make a bowl game, is Rich Rod gone? What is Heeke thinking?

I do think Rich Rodriguez will be let go if Arizona fails to make a bowl game, which is becoming increasingly likely after the losses to Houston and Utah.

Arizona had its lowest attendance at a football game since 1997 last weekend, and a major problem is there’s a large amount of apathy among UA football fans — and it’s understandable. The team has regressed mightily since winning the Pac-12 South, and the product on the field is one of the worst in the Pac-12.

Bringing in a new coach would not only put Arizona in a better position to build a more competitive team (in my opinion, at least), it would also re-energize the fanbase.

As much as Arizona is a basketball school, football is the moneymaker for college athletic departments, so UA cannot afford to let the football program continue its demise.

And the fact that Dave Heeke wasn’t the one who brought Rodriguez to Tucson should make his decision easier to parse.

You do have to wonder how basketball’s instability affects things here, though.

— Ryan Kelapire

What fall sport (aside from basketball or football) is poised to make a postseason run?

Last year that was volleyball, but that team is rebuilding this year, so I’m thinking soccer.

Coach Tony Amato has said Arizona is playing their best soccer since he took over the program in 2013. That includes the 2015 team that reached the program’s first Sweet 16.

As someone who’s covered the team since that 2015 season, I agree with him.

The Wildcats are 4-3-2, but are better than their record shows.

Two of their losses were heartbreakers — they fell 2-1 to No. 13 UCF in Tempe despite having a 1-0 lead with 13 minutes left in regulation, and then lost to Florida Gulf Coast, despite outshooting the Eagles 19-2.

Their third loss was a 1-0 defeat to No. 2 Stanford in Palo Alto (nobody beats that team there).

Arizona has to finish over .500 to make the NCAA Tournament and their next three games are insanely difficult — No. 11 Cal, No. 1 UCLA, No. 10 USC — but if they do reach the tournament, they can compete with just about anyone.

They have beaten plenty of good teams already — Texas Tech, BYU, Oregon, then-No. 16 Oklahoma — and might have the most talent in the program’s history. Plus, they are battled-tested because of teams they face week in and week out in the Pac-12.

— Ryan Kelapire

If Rich Rodriguez gets fired, who do you think we would target to fill the job?

The No. 1 target our readers always mention is Joe Salave'a, a former Wildcat who was recently hired as Oregon’s defensive line coach.

He’s regarded as one of the up-and-coming coaches in college football, and Willie Taggart seemed to take note, nabbing him from Washington State.

And not only is Salave'a a UA alum, he was the school’s defensive line coach under Mike Stoops from 2010-12 (he wasn’t retained by Rich Rodriguez, which was probably a mistake).

Salave'a would presumably be able to rekindle the Polynesian recruiting pipeline that has been non-existent in the RichRod era.

Chuck Cecil, hired by Arizona in July as the Director of Player Development, is also a popular name (though mostly because of his legendary status as a former Arizona player).

Cecil doesn’t have any head coaching experience (or any experience coaching at the collegiate level), but he was a defensive coordinator in the NFL for several seasons, so he probably has the gravitas from an X’s and O’s standpoint. The biggest question mark would be his recruiting ability.

And when/if Butch Jones gets fired at Tennessee, people will probably throw his name into the mix because Heeke once hired him at Central Michigan.

But I wouldn’t be surprised if Heeke tries to hire a top coordinator in the country, rather than a retread coach. Most importantly, he needs to hire someone that would bring intrigue to the program.

— Ryan Kelapire

How are all of our basketball alum guys doing? Did Nick Johnson get a NBA deal?

We’ll just go ahead and list where some of Arizona’s former players landed this offseason.

• Nick Johnson had a strong Summer League with the Blazers, but is currently unsigned
• Brandon Ashley signed a multi-year deal with the Dallas Mavericks, allowing him to compete for a roster spot in training camp.
• Kaleb Tarczewski’s option was picked up by Olimpia Milano, so I’m assuming he will stay there for another season
• Gabe York signed with Medi Bayreuth in Germany.
• Kobi Simmons signed a “two-way” contract with the Memphis Grizzlies
• Lauri Markkanen (Bulls) and Kadeem Allen (Celtics) were drafted and signed by their respective NBA teams
• Mark Tollefsen signed with Maccabi Rishon LeZion in Israel
• Jason Terry re-signed with the Milwaukee Bucks on his 40th birthday
• Chance Comanche is still unsigned

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Dick Vitale ‘shocked’ if Sean Miller knew about Book Richardson’s ‘cheating’

Wildcat Radio Podcast on Book Richardson, Sean Miller, and the FBI investigation into Arizona basketball

Wildcat Radio discusses the crazy week that was for Arizona basketball

Wildcat Radio discusses Book Richardson, Sean Miller, and the FBI investigation into Arizona Wildcats basketball and other college basketball programs.

Plus, Adam Green joins the podcast to talk about Arizona football's quarterback situation, Rich Rodriguez's job at Arizona, and Pac-12 week five action. Plus, we have our first eliminations from the Pac-12 Eliminator pool, contest updates, and more.

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Sean Miller no longer in Hughes Federal Credit Union ads

Police report: Arizona safety Scottie Young Jr. spat on, pushed girlfriend in dorm

There also seems to be a history of this behavior

Arizona Wildcats freshman safety Scottie Young Jr. made an appearance in Pima County court on Thursday morning after being arrested on one count of misdemeanor domestic violence.

Friday afternoon, the Daily Star’s Caitlin Schmidt reported that Young got into a confrontation with his girlfriend in Likins Residence Hall shortly after midnight on Wednesday.

Originally, there were two very different stories to what happened.

According to Young, he “grabbed her two wrists for a few seconds and threw them down to her side” after the two got into a heated exchange in his room around 10 PM. He did this because he thought she was going to hit him.

However, according to the accuser, she visited Young at approximately 11:40 PM to pick up her laptop, and when she reached his room, Young threw the laptop at her. Young then confronted her outside of the room, called her a tramp, and said he wished she was dead.

After Young then threw her backpack towards the elevator, she tried to knock on the RA’s door. At this point, she says Young grabbed her left hand and spit on her. Police have pictures of her swollen left hand.

After police went back to Young, he admitted to grabbing his girlfriend’s wrist and spitting on her.

This also does not appear to be the first time that Young has put his hands on his girlfriend. She says he slapped her in the face several times a few days prior to this incident.

Other witnesses confirmed the woman’s story, with one saying that Young has previously “hit, choked, and slammed her” according to the police report.

Young is scheduled for arraignment on October 11th. The woman was also arrested and charged with a count of domestic violence for being accused of slapping Young and scratching him during the first incident a few days prior to Wednesday’s.

The only statement available from Arizona at this time has been “We’re aware that Scottie Young was charged with a misdemeanor, as was the other party involved. We are working with the university’s Dean of Students Office to gather more information.”

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Arizona wide receiver Donovan Moore hospitalized after suffering serious injuries in car accident

Steve Kerr not interested in being a college coach

If the Arizona Wildcats ever need a new head coach, Steve Kerr won’t be a candidate

If the Arizona Wildcats are ever in the market for a new head coach, you can all but rule out Steve Kerr as a candidate.

Yes, he’s an Arizona alumnus and has coached two NBA-championship teams, but the problem is, well, he has no interest in coaching at the collegiate level.

“There’s a reason I coach in the NBA,” said Kerr, whose Golden State Warriors won their second title in three years in June. “I never wanted to be a college coach.”

And Kerr’s stance was only strengthened after an FBI investigation recently shed light on a bribery scheme involving several schools.

“I don’t immerse myself in that stuff. The NBA is very pure,” he said. “We don’t want to make apologies or concessions about what we’re doing. We’re just playing basketball. It’s a business. And the NCAA obviously has lots of things to figure out on many levels who they are and what they’re doing.”

Kerr’s stance is understandable, even if the NCAA wasn’t riddled with corruption. Being a college coach requires an endless amount of time and effort on the recruiting trail, along with the actual coaching aspects of the job.

In the NBA, head coaches are mainly focused on game-planning and the 15 guys on their roster. Not to mention Kerr is at the helm of one of the best teams in NBA history.

Fellow UA grad Luke Walton has a similar stance as Kerr, but for a different reason.

Walton, currently the Los Angeles Lakers’ head coach, mentioned he prefers coaching in the NBA because of the increased amount time he can spend with players — in other words, there are no NCAA hour limits to worry about.

Walton came to that realization when he was an assistant for UA alum Josh Pastner at Memphis during the NBA lockout in 2011.

“I knew I wanted to find something I could be passionate about when I was playing basketball. I didn’t know if that was coaching or if it was coaching in the NBA, coaching college. The time I spent here (in Memphis) and the time I was allowed to be with the players I really enjoyed,” Walton said, via the LA Times.

“But because of the other stuff, it was also nice to realize the NBA was probably the way I wanted to go instead of college.”

Walton and Kerr also have base salaries of $5 million per year in the NBA, nearly double what UA head coach Sean Miller makes, and that’s probably a factor, too.

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Follow Ryan Kelapire on Twitter at @RKelapire

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Former Arizona running back Orlando Bradford pleads guilty to domestic violence charges

He will serve 2-8 years in prison

About one year after being dismissed from the Arizona Wildcats, running back Orlando Bradford took a plea deal on Friday, resulting in 2-7.5 years of prison time.

Bradford plead guilty to two of the 15 counts he originally faced, which included 12 assault charges and three kidnapping charges. Ten of his charges were felonies, and five were misdemeanors.

The charges came from two different women. The original charges were brought by his girlfriend at the time after a dispute stemming from a Wendy’s Frosty not being consumed. Additional charges were filed the next day from a woman that claimed Bradford assaulted her multiple times over the course of nine months.

In the immediate aftermath, Rich Rodriguez now has the famous line of “We have a rule. You put your hands on a woman, you’re done. That’s it. If you did it, if you put your hands on a woman in any way, shape or form, you’re done. Next.”

Of course, Bradford’s sentencing comes on the heels of current freshman Scottie Young Jr. being arrested by UAPD on a misdemeanor domestic violence charge on Wednesday. According to a statement put out by Arizona Athletics late Thursday night, the other party involved was also charged, and they are working on gathering more information.

Bradford was taken into custody after his sentencing on Friday and also faces fines of up to $150,000 and restitution of up to $50,000 for each of the two victims according to the Daily Star’s Caitlin Schmidt.

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Arizona hockey 2017-18 season preview

How will the Wildcats stack up in the ACHA this year?

The Arizona Wildcats Ice Hockey team is set to begin their 2017-2018 season this weekend as they host in-state rivals, Grand Canyon and Arizona State, at the Tucson Convention Center on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

Last season, the Wildcats finished 14-14-2-2, narrowly missing the ACHA Division I National Tournament. Most people will remember the final weekend, in which the Wildcats swept Arizona State for the first time in nearly a decade (in both overtime and shootout fashions).

Now, Arizona is set to begin their fourth season under Chad Berman. Here are some of the things that you need to know about heading into opening weekend.

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Notable departures

There are several notable departures from last season’s Wildcats. The first notable departure from the team is former captain, Dylan Carter. Carter was a significant contributor to the Wildcats, scoring 27 points (10 of them being goals) in 33 games.

With Carter’s production and leadership gone, the Wildcats named senior Orion Olsen to be the team captain for the upcoming season.

Other departures include Brian “Toppie” Hogan, John Hogan, and Garret Patrick.

Toppie Hogan was the Wildcats’ top scorer last season, setting the Wildcat points record at 64. Because of the impact they had on the team, Toppie and his brother John Hogan were the de-facto faces of the UA Hockey program.

Toppie is now retired from hockey and is a member of the UA golf team as a graduate student. Meanwhile, John has returned to the UA hockey team as an assistant coach.

Patrick was one of the Wildcats’ go-to goaltenders last season. In his 20 starts last season, Patrick recorded a 3.92 goals-against-average and a .887 save percentage.

With the departure of Patrick from the Wildcat hockey program, Arizona will likely turn to returning goaltender Austin Wilson, who was not far behind Patrick on stat sheet last season.

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Top three returning players

Orion Olsen (F): As mentioned above, Olsen is returning not only returning to the Wildcats this season, he will be sporting the “C” patch on his sweater, upgrading from the “A” following Carter’s departure from the team.

Olsen was named captain about a week before team tryouts began, which UA Hockey Media Director Tim Gassen pointed out is an unusual move.

“Coach Berman really wanted to establish early, a new culture... a team-oriented culture” Gassen said, “and I think (naming Olsen captain) was a smart move because he was showing his leadership.”

Manny Rowe (D): You may know Manny Rowe as “the guy with the incredible flow.” You may also know him as the guy who scored the tying goal against ASU in the final 30 seconds of the third period on Senior Night, allowing the Wildcats to force overtime and win in the shootout.

Whatever you call Rowe, know he will be returning to the Wildcats for another year, becoming a top leader among Wildcat defensemen.

“Manny is a very athletic defenseman,” Gassen said, “he knows how to push the puck and has a very defensive focus that the coach wants, and now he’s a year older.”

Gassen pointed out that Rowe was also the Rookie of the Year award recipient for the Wildcats last season.

“He’s definitely going to be an all-star at the ACHA level,” Gassen said.

Austin Wilson (G): With Garret Patrick gone, the goaltender position has fallen to Wilson. Wilson has a lot of expectations this year with the likelihood of being named the starting goaltender. However, this year, coach Berman is looking to add more competition.

This offseason, he added some depth in transfer students Nolan Bivolcic and Anthony Ciurro. This adds pressure for Wilson to play at a much higher level than when he was behind Patrick, knowing there are two goaltenders ready to take his spot if he doesn’t.

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Other headlines to follow

• Coach Berman flexed his recruiting muscles once again this season, adding 12 new forwards, one new defenseman and two new goaltenders (mentioned above).
• Among Berman’s 2017 recruiting class are at least three D-III NCAA Transfers
• The Wildcats are going full-on “new look” this season, unveiling their new uniforms at their annual media day on Thursday.
• At the time of this writing, the Wildcats are ranked No. 19 nationally in the ACHA M1 Polls.
• Following the Wildcats opening weekend, the team will not return to the TCC until Oct. 26, when they face the defending ACHA Champions, University of Central Oklahoma.
• TCC is getting an organist! The Wildcats announced last week that Michael Davis will be the organist for the games at the TCC this season (because nothing says hockey like the good ol’ fashioned organ). According to ArizonaWildcatHockey.org, Davis was the organist for the then-named “Arizona IceCats” during the 1980’s and 1990’s.

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ABOR approves four Arizona Athletics facility projects, including Indoor Sports Center

The UA is finally getting an indoor facility

The Arizona Wildcats are finally get an indoor practice facility.

The Arizona Board of Regents approved four our athletics department facility projects Thursday, including the construction of the Indoor Sports Center, and improvements to Arizona Stadium, Hillenbrand Aquatic Center, and Hillenbrand Softball Stadium.

The budget for the renovations is roughly $66 million, “funded through a combination of private donations and the newly implemented student fee,” per the UA’s release.

McKale Center will also get a $1.5 million renovation in the form of upgraded locker rooms.

"We want to be aggressive as we approach facilities and these four projects will address some major needs, while improving the experience of virtually all of our student-athletes,” UA athletic director Dave Heeke said.

“We'll now turn to the design phase. While we have a number of ideas currently under review, we've yet to determine exactly what items will and will not be included in these projects. We'll work to generate these plans in the coming months as we seek approval from ABOR in November as part of the Capital Development Plan."

Here’s what you need to know about the projects (all info directly from the release):

Indoor Sports Center

• The Indoor Sports Center will be a multipurpose facility for each of Arizona's programs to utilize, while also serving as a gameday hospitality area.
• While the final site has not been determined, the center is expected to be located in the corridor between 6th St. and Enke Dr.
• With a project budget of $18 million, the center is expected to contain a 90-yard field and will have a ceiling height of 65 feet.
• Construction is scheduled to commence in May 2018 with completion estimated for October of the same year.

Arizona Stadium

• The initial renovation project for Arizona Stadium is expected to consist of two phases with a projected cost of $25 million.
• The first phase will focus on the east side ground level and student section. Construction is set to begin in January 2018 and be completed by the start of the 2018 football season.
• The second phase will provide renovations to the club areas in the stadium and additional concessions and restroom upgrades.
• Construction is expected to commence in January 2019 and be completed in time for the 2019 football season.

Hillenbrand Aquatic Center

• The Hillenbrand Aquatic Center will see $15 million worth of renovations to rebuild the 50-meter pool and repair a vastly deteriorated pump and plumbing infrastructure.
• Construction at the pool is tentatively scheduled to begin in April 2018 and be completed by January 2019.

Hillenbrand Softball Stadium

• Will see a complete renovation that is expected to include a number of amenities for both the team and fans.
• Priced at $8 million, construction is scheduled for June 2018 with completion in time for the 2019 softball season.

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Jay Bilas doesn’t believe Sean Miller knew about Book Richardson’s illegal activity

Arizona soccer notebook: On Wildcats’ postseason outlook, the Bay Area, Pac-12 road trips, and more

How can Arizona make the NCAA Tournament this year? Simple. Finish over .500.

The Arizona Wildcats had the eighth-toughest non-conference schedule in the country, but they’ve seen nothing yet.

Their next two games are on the road at No. 2 Stanford and No. 13 Cal. Then they’ll host No. 10 USC and No. 1 UCLA next weekend.

Four arduous games in a row.

“What four?” UA head coach Tony Amato joked. “We play Stanford this week. That’s all I know about.”

The Wildcats currently sit at 4-2-2, riding a three-game winning streak. Arizona won their Pac-12 opener vs. Oregon 3-1 last Saturday, a massive victory for their postseason outlook.

“Overall you’ve got to go over .500 to go the (NCAA Tournament),” said Amato, whose team missed the postseason last year for the first since since 2014.

With four back-breaking games coming up, the Wildcats would benefit immensely from getting a favorable result or two before their schedule softens (relatively speaking) in the latter half of conference play.

While the Wildcats are set to play four ranked teams in a row, they only play one ranked team in their final six conference games (No. 24 Utah).

“When your non-conference (record) is as close as we were to .500, we’ve gotta win some games here,” Amato said. “I don’t think in the history of the Pac-12, anyone’s ever gone 6-4-1 in the 11 games and not made the tournament.”

In 2014, Arizona made the NCAA Tournament with a 4-6-1 conference record, but they had a 7-2-1 non-conference record that year.

“This isn’t that kind of year for us, so we know that we’re going to have to be above .500,” Amato said.

So even a tie or two against these powerful California schools would be welcomed.

And first up is No. 2 Stanford (8-1) in Palo Alto on Thursday at 7 p.m., a team Arizona has taken to overtime three times in the last four seasons.

“We know that we can come out and challenge them if we play our game,” said UA midfielder Morgan McGarry. “It can end up being a great game for us, and if we end up getting a tie or win, it’s going to be just what we want.”

Our full preview for Thursday’s game vs. Stanford can be found here.

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Stoian chasing records, likely to return Thursday

Arizona will likely be getting midfielder Gabi Stoian back Thursday vs. the Cardinal.

The senior, who missed two games with a leg injury, said she is not 100 percent yet, but is doing “a lot better than I was.”

Stoian said sitting out has been frustrating, especially since she’s on the verge of making history.

The midfielder is six goals and five assists shy of breaking UA’s all-time records.

“I definitely want to break the records, but the team’s been doing well this season in the games I haven’t played, so that’s all I can ask for,” Stoian said.

Indeed. Arizona’s attack has actually experienced an uptick without Stoian, scoring five goals in their last two games. They scored five goals in their first six games.

Amato says it’s not a coincidence, as it forces Stoian’s teammates to step out of “Go Gabi Go” mode and not rely on her so much.

"I agree with that, but they’ve done a great job creating chances, especially set pieces,” Stoian said.

Stoian admits she thinks about the records, but knows there’s still 10 games left to shatter them — at least.

“We’ll make the tournament, make a run there, and extend the (season),” she said.

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Those Pac-12 road trips

Arizona left for the Bay Area on Wednesday morning and won’t return to Tucson until Sunday night — just your typical Pac-12 road trip after the conference transitioned away from Friday-Sunday pairings.

“They’re definitely fun,” McGarry said. “You really create bonds with these teams because you’re together all the time.”

Arizona plays Stanford on Thursday and Cal on Sunday.

On Friday and Saturday, the Wildcats’ days off, they will train, recover, and throw in a couple team activities, like heading to the movies.

Meanwhile, the coaching staff never stops preparing.

“It’s actually really good because it gives me some time to do video with some people, meet with some people,” Amato said. “We don’t rest for a minute from a staff standpoint. ... You just have to make sure you’re not out of gas Sunday.”

Of course, there’s schoolwork, too.

The Wildcats won’t be traveling with an academic counselor this week (they will when they travel to Utah and Colorado, because of midterms) but Amato usually doesn’t have to worry about his team hitting the books.

“Honestly there’s really only one or two people that you have to lean on a little bit,” he said. “For the most part, they’re on top of it. They get stressed about school more than I would worry about it. They handle all that for me.”

Seven Wildcats earned Pac-12 Academic honors last season and in 2015-16, Arizona received the College Team Academic Award, awarded by the NSCAA.

Student-athletes are allotted study time during road trips, in addition to the time they spend studying on the plane and/or bus, or between meals.

“I try and download documents that I have to read for school so I don’t need WiFi or anything to do them,” said Jill Aguilera, a general studies major.

Missing several days of class during these road trips, student-athletes often have to be proactive with their studies so they don’t fall behind their classmates.

“I try and get ahead,” Aguilera said. “I try and talk to my professors as much as possible just so I’m not too behind. A lot of professors do really understand us being absent from class and how important athletics are to us, so they try and accommodate as much as they can.”

The nearly week long road trips are certainly chaotic in some ways, but in other ways they make it easier to zero in on the matches ahead — and in this case, both games are extremely important.

“When you’re home, you’re going to classes, you have other tasks that you have to get done throughout the day,” Stoian said. “It’s nice just being able to focus on these two games.”

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“I wanted to stay home but....”

Both Aguilera, a Redwood City, Calif. native, and McGarry, a Danville, Calif. native, will have friends and family in attendance for this weekend’s contests in the Bay Area.

“I’m really excited,” McGarry said. “We haven’t gone to Cal or Stanford ... in the three years that I’ve been here. So I’m really looking forward to be able to go out there.”

Aguilera grew up five minutes from Palo Alto and occasionally watched the hometown Cardinal at Laird Q. Cagan Stadium as a kid.

She imagined playing there one day, but is happy to be in Tucson.

“I knew that it was a really hard reach to get (to Stanford),” she said. “Of course I emailed them to come to my games during my recruitment. I also had Cal come to my games and stuff, too. I wanted to stay at home, but I feel like Arizona is a better fit for me.”

McGarry has started every game for the Wildcats this season, but Aguilera’s playing time has fluctuated.

After missing last season with a torn ACL, Aguilera has appeared in seven of Arizona’s eight games this season, ranging from 10 minutes of playing time to 57.

As much as Amato would like to let his players take the field in front of their friends and family, he can’t let that influence his rotations.

“It can’t factor in because everyone’s from somewhere,” he said. “We have kids from Seattle and we play UW. Or from Denver and we play Colorado. It’s not fair to the kids.

“We’re limited to who were allowed to take, so if I left someone at home and took someone because they’re from that area, that doesn’t sound fair.”

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Archie Miller spoke with brother Sean ‘very briefly’ after FBI investigation went public

Nassir Little’s family ‘did not ask for, nor were offered money,’ per AAU program

1 Family released a strongly-worded statement Thursday, denying the allegations surrounding its program’s players and families

The FBI arrested 10 people for bribery, fraud, and conspiracy among other charges Tuesday after they allegedly committed unlawful acts on the college basketball recruiting trail.

One of those people was Brad Augustine, the now-former director of AAU team, 1 Family.

The Department of Justice’s complaint alleges Augustine helped funnel payments to two recruits in return for their commitments to Adidas schools.

One of those recruits is suspected to be five-star wing Nassir Little, but 1 Family denied any wrongdoing by its program’s players and families Thursday, releasing this statement on Twitter:

“The Little family did not ask for, nor were offered money by an institution or individual. They were completely unaware of any of the alleged offenses that may have mentioned or contained their son’s name. There is not one player in our program, nor family member of any player, that had any knowledge or discussion about payments being made in regards to making a college decision.

“We stand by this 100% and will allow the truth to come out as this process unfolds. Any defamation or accusations made by media accusing any of our players of participating in said behavior will be documented and addressed legally. Our loyalty and commitment is to the young men we are blessed to coach and to their families. We fully support them and are standing with them in this process.”

The Arizona Wildcats possibly offered a recruit $150,000, per details in the FBI complaint, and were one of five teams in Little’s top five.

The Miami Hurricanes, also believed to be one of the schools implicated in the FBI’s investigation, were among Little’s top preferences as well.

Little tweeted (then deleted) that he had re-opened his recruitment Wednesday, after the details of the FBI’s investigation were unveiled.

While it is not clear if those two events are related, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress tweeted that some coaches backed off their recruitment of Little because “it became clear he was Arizona-bound.”

Givony also said there’s a “decent chance” Little is among those named in the FBI’s complaint.

The director of Nassir Little's AAU team is currently in jail, and there's a decent chance Little is among those named in FBI/DOJ complaint.

— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) September 26, 2017

However, Little was not explicitly named in the FBI’s investigation — though it’s still possible he is one of the unnamed players involved — and 1 Family is adamant there was no foul play.

“We stand by this 100% and will allow the truth to come out as this process unfolds,” its statement read.

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Follow Ryan Kelapire on Twitter at @RKelapire

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Arizona soccer faces ‘historically great’ Stanford team in Pac-12 road opener

R.J. Barrett no longer considering Arizona after FBI investigation, per report

Arizona basketball: Rawle Alkins out 8-12 weeks with broken foot

Arizona basketball: Wildcats allegedly offered a recruit $150,000 per FBI documents

And Adidas was prepared to up the offer

Arizona Wildcats assistant coach Book Richardson was one of four college basketball coaches arrested on Tuesday due to charges filed by the FBI in a fraud and bribery investigation surrounding recruiting.

We’ve already talked about the big things that showed up in Richardson’s portion of the file released by the government, but there’s something hiding in the Miami portion.

Thanks to our Miami sister site State of the U, there is another huge detail involving Arizona that doesn’t name Richardson or the Wildcat coaching staff.

Arizona appears to have offered a 2018 recruit $150,000 to play in Tucson.

Below is the full section of the involvement of Miami and how Arizona fits in.

For background, Merl Code is a former Clemson player and current Adidas official. James Gatto is the head of global sports marketing for basketball at Adidas. Christian Dawkins was a sports agent, and Brad Augustine is the director of an AAU team that is sponsored by Adidas in Orlando, FL.

In addition, “Company-1” is Adidas, “University-4” is Arizona, “University-7” is Miami, and “Player-12” is thought to be 2018 five-star wing Nassir Little. Little was not publicly committed to any school prior to the charges being filed, but mysteriously tweeted out a decommitment (since deleted) on Tuesday.

August 11, 2017: Call 2, part 1 — Code discussed with Gatto the involvement of Dawkins and Augustine in the scheme to facilitate payments to “Player-12” in order to secure “Player-12’s” commitment to attend “University-7”. Code explained that another Division 1 university “University-4” was offering “Player-12” $150,000. Code stated “and we’re trying to keep him from going to one of their (rival apparel company’s) schools”.

Code further went on to tell Gatto that Dawkins and Augustine had asked Code if Gatto “would be able to keep him at “University-7” because they really want the kid.” Gatto confirmed that “Player-12” would be a rising senior in high school, and Code assured Gatto that the payments need not be “all in one lump sum. I can make it work...” Code went on to tell Gatto that the situation was “not one of those where I need an answer today. You know what I’m saying? I just wanted to put it on your plate.”

Call 2, part 2 — Still on call 2, Gatto asked whether “Company-1” would “have to match the “University-4” deal?” Gatto went on to ask if the payments could be pushed to 2018, saying “if I have to pay it out in ‘18, that’s fine”, but “I just don’t know if I, I just don’t know if I can’ do anything in ‘17 that’s what I’m saying”.

Referring back to the “University-6” (Louisville) scheme involving “Player-10” (thought to be Brian Bowen), Gatto told Code that he should “try to get it to, what did we do with “Player-10”, a 100”, which the FBI believes to represent a $100,000 payment to “Player-10”. Code replied that he was not sure “they’ll take that much less if I can take it down at least twenty five” (25 likely representing a $25,000 reduction in payment to “Player-12”), to which Gatto replied “alright, well let’s just see.”

August 12, 2017 — A phone call between Code and Dawkins is recorded by the FBI wiretap. On this call, Code relayed to Dawkins the substance of the August 11th calls between Code and Gatto regarding payments by “Company-1” to “Player-12”, including Gatto’s request that Code negotiate the $150,00 asking price set by “Player-12”. According to Code, however, if “University-4” was willing to pay the full $150,000 “then that’s where the kid is going to go.”

Referring to Gatto’s statement about not having sufficient funds to pay “Player-12” in 2017, Code stated if “Company-1” waited until January 2018 to commit to a payment amount “by that point that number might be 200” indicating $200,000. Code added that “Company-1” “won’t play if it’s. . . at that level, we won’t play.”

Dawkins asked what would be the highest payment that Gatto and “Company-1” would agree to, to which Code replied “I think they do 150 [$150,000] if, if “Coach-3” stayed on it.”

While Nike escaped the first day of this, employees of the company’s EYBL grassroots division along with all documents were subpoenaed by the FBI on Wednesday. The investigation has also led to the firing of Louisville head coach Rick Pitino and athletic director Tom Jurich. Louisville is alleged to have payed Brian Bowen $100,000, who has now been suspended indefinitely.

Arizona is also said to have a current player on the roster that was paid in some form according to the FBI report in addition to this $150,000 allegation.

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Arizona’s Taryn Griffey, daughter of Ken Jr., retires from basketball due to injuries

Griffey played in 37 games, and was one of the best 3-point shooters in UA history

Arizona Wildcats guard Taryn Griffey has retired from basketball after dealing with multiple injuries throughout her career, it was announced Wednesday.

Griffey, the daughter of MLB Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. and sister of former UA wide receiver Trey Griffey, will continue her academic career at Arizona and plans to remain part of the team in some capacity.

“It is no secret that over these past few years I have dealt with multiple injuries that have caused me to either sit out a few games or sit out an entire season. So with that being said I have decided that it’s best for me and my future health to walk away from the game of basketball,” Griffey said in a statement.

“Nothing has changed though, that little girl that fell in love with the game of basketball 19 years ago hasn't changed, just the circumstances. I will still be a part of this program and will help my teammates in any way I can. One door closes and another one opens. I am forever grateful for where basketball has taken me and I am beyond grateful for the lifelong friendships that I have established throughout my years playing.”

Griffey arrived at Arizona in 2014 as a highly-touted recruit out of Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando, Fla, despite missing her junior and season seniors with knee injuries.

Griffey was part of former UA coach Niya Butts’ final recruiting class, and redshirted her first year on campus because of another knee injury.

She played 37 games over the next two seasons, averaging 7.1 points per game and shooting 39.8 percent from 3, one of the highest percentages in UA history.

Griffey’s departure is not a surprise, as she was never listed on Arizona’s 2017-18 roster.

Arizona’s depth will be lacking this year, currently listing 11 players on the roster. Underclassmen Bria Rice, Eugenie Simonet-Keller, Charise Holloway left the program.

And four of Arizona’s 11 players are freshmen while three others — guards Aarion McDonald and Tee Tee Starks, and forward Dominique McBryde — have to sit out due to NCAA transfer rules.

Arizona plans to add a couple walk-ons.

The Wildcats went 14-16 last season, and could take a step back from that mark this year.

However, Arizona currently has the No. 2 recruiting class in 2018, and the program is trending in the right direction under head coach Adia Barnes, who is entering her second season at her alma mater.

The Wildcats open the regular season on Friday, Nov. 10 against Iona in McKale Center.

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Mailbag: On Book Richardson, Sean Miller, Rawle Alkins, 2018 recruiting and more

Answering your questions about all the chaos surrounding Arizona basketball

The Arizona Wildcats are a mess right now.

Assistant coach Book Richardson was arrested for bribery, fraud, and other things for improper conduct on the recruiting trail, was immediately suspended by the UA, and now we’re waiting to see what effects that will have on Arizona’s program as a whole.

Oh yeah, there’s also a couple current Arizona players implicated in the FBI’s investigation, a few other concerning details, and one star player is rumored to have an injury.

A lot of questions are being asked by readers, so I did my best to answer them as well as I could.

Here we go.

Q. How much will this affect the team going into the season?

It’s too early to say because we don’t know Sean Miller’s role in this whole thing yet. If this is an instance where it’s determined Richardson acted on his own volition then Miller could emerge relatively unscathed from this.

If it’s shown Miller knew about this and/or had a major hand in it, the UA may have no choice but to suspend or fire him. Obviously if that happens, players would likely transfer from the program, thus putting a major dent in the upcoming season.

Also, the Department of Justice’s complaint basically said a current Arizona player accepted payments, and whoever that player is will surely be suspended or ruled ineligible. The complaint listed Louisville freshman Brian Bowen, who the UA recruited, as someone who accepted money, and the school smartly suspended him right away (and fired head coach Rick Pitino).

Arizona would likely do the same thing, since self-imposed sanctions are generally lighter than those the NCAA hands out (not to mention that every thing will be vacated if you use an ineligible player anyway).

At least one other current Arizona player — possibly two — was mentioned in the complaint, though their role in this scandal is unclear.

But you’re looking at one to three players possibly being suspended and/or ruled ineligible.

Q. Who’s the current player that got paid?

I’m not touching this question. Ha.

Q. Have you heard anything about Rawle Alkins breaking his foot?

Yes. I’ve heard what everyone else has heard about it. While I can’t confirm the injury, several people that I trust have said Alkins has a broken foot.

And this guy on Twitter (@MGRADS) — who is well connected with high school and college basketball — said the injury happened in workouts.

Bad news on top of the bad news for Arizona. Rawle Alkins has a broken foot suffered in workouts the other day.

— GRADS (@MGRADS) September 27, 2017

Q. Chances Sean Miller is still the Arizona head coach at the beginning of the season?

Again, it all comes down to what the FBI deems Miller’s role to be in this. If it’s significant enough, the UA might have no choice to let him go.

The one thing Miller does have going for him is he’s run a pretty clean program thus far — at least from a recruiting standpoint — so the program’s punishment may not be as severe as, say, Louisville’s since that program is a repeat offender.

But it’s pretty terrifying that it’s September and we can’t safely say who Arizona’s coach will be for the season-opener or even the Red-Blue game.

Q. Who would replace Miller?

I mean, in the short-term the obvious candidate is Lorenzo Romar. He has tons of Pac-12 head coaching experience, has a strong relationship with several Wildcats already, and can probably distance himself from the stuff that’s happening since he just got to Tucson.

Romar probably wouldn’t be a great long-term solution at the position, but he would be a pretty ideal interim.

One person in my mentions suggested Arizona alum and current Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner as a potential long-term replacement, and that would be fun. I think he would kill it as a recruiter in Tucson.

That said, it’s far too early to discuss coaching candidates.

Q. How's Nike feeling about this, concerning their $20+ million UA deal?

I don’t know, but Nike has its own problems right now. The FBI just subpoenaed "employees of Nike's EYBL grassroots division, along with documents” as part of the investigation, so its travel basketball program may soon be ripped to shreds, and who knows what the consequences of that will be.

Q. Do you think Shareef O’Neal or Brandon Williams will end up decommitting? What does that say for any possible recruits we had on our radar for 2018?

I don’t think O’Neal or Williams will decommit until they know the fate of Arizona and/or Sean Miller. Louisville lost its entire recruiting class after Pitino was fired, and something similar could happen at Arizona if Miller is forced out.

If Miller and Arizona aren’t punished too severely, I could see the 2018 class staying relatively in tact......except Jahvon Quinerly. Based on the description in the complaint, he likely received payments from Arizona, and thus it seems highly unlikely he steps foot on the UA campus (his future as a college basketball player might be done, too).

Also, it sounds like Nassir Little was basically committed to Arizona but re-opened his recruitment after the news broke yesterday. Little is widely believed to be part of the investigation, so don’t count on him playing in Tucson, either.

Q. Do you think more coaches will go down in this ongoing FBI investigation?

At this point, I think it’d be naive to think there won’t be. The way national writers are making it sound is that this is just the beginning of “college basketball Armageddon.”

Adidas and all its schools are in danger, and Nike’s could very well be, too. Fans of so-called “clean” programs should probably wait before throwing shade at other schools.

Q. Is all this basketball drama directly related to how bad the current uni's are?

All of it. You’re bringing these problems on yourself when you change a beautiful uniform design to that hideous gradient pattern. We should have seen this coming (sarcasm heavily intended).

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I was planning to run a much different mailbag this week with questions about non-FBI investigation things, but obviously I had to make a change of plans. I am still planning to do another mailbag about stuff unrelated to this, though, and you can submit your questions in the comment section here, or to me on Twitter at @RKelapire.

Basically anything Arizona Athletics-related is appropriate.

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Recapping the Book Richardson fiasco

Tuesday was a long day for Arizona basketball, so we’re here to help you get caught up with all the madness

If you somehow missed it yesterday, Arizona Wildcats assistant coach Book Richardson was arrested by the FBI on charges of bribery, corruption, conspiracy, and fraud, stemming from improper conduct on the recruiting trail.

But plenty of other bad stuff was revealed, and here are the important things you need to know for now:

• The investigation involved three other assistant coaches around college basketball — Auburn’s Chuck Person, Oklahoma State’s Lamont Evans, and USC’s Anthony Bland.
• It also involved former ASM sports agent Christian Dawkins, financial advisor Munish Sood, and Adidas executive Jim Gatto, among others.
• In Richardson’s case, he received $20,000 in bribes from Dawkins and Sood, "some of which (he) appears to have kept for himself and some of which he appears to have provided to at least one prospective high school basketball player,” according to the Department of Justice’s complaint.
• That player is likely Arizona commit Jahvon Quinerly, since the complaint links Richardson’s payment to a point guard who verbally committed to the UA on or about Aug. 9 — Quinerly, a five-star point guard, committed Aug. 8. If true, Quinerly’s future at Arizona (or any other school) is in serious doubt.
• Aside from that, Dawkins and Sood wanted Richardson "to use his influence over the student-athletes he coached to pressure them" to hire Dawkins as their agent and Sood as their financial advisor, according to the complaint.
• The complaint says one current Arizona player received payments from Richardson, and two other current players were implicated in the story as targets for Dawkins to add as clients. However, it is unclear if those two players received payments or not.
• The UA said it found out about the investigation Tuesday morning, and it immediately suspended Richardson, relieving him of all duties. The UA also called Richardson’s involvement “appalling.”
• The NCAA apparently didn’t know about the investigation until Tuesday, too.
• The complaint shows one other Arizona assistant coach, one who no longer coaches at the UA, was involved. Connecting the dots, that likely leads to Joe Pasternack, who left this offseason to become the head coach at UC Santa Barbara.
• Dawkins said in a phone call that he was allowed at Arizona’s practices. NCAA rules prohibit coaches from facilitating contact between players and agents or financial advisors, so that’s a rule violation right there, assuming he wasn’t lying.
• If Dawkins was at practices, that’s presumably not a good omen for Sean Miller, since the UA basketball program is very strict about who can and can’t watch practice. In other words, it’s hard to believe he didn’t know agents were attending his practices.
• That said, no head coaches were implicated in the complaint.
• Interestingly, I found that zero former Arizona players are ASM clients at the moment.
• Former Arizona target Brian Bowen was explicitly named in the complaint for accepting $100,000 from Adidas to commit to Louisville. Bowen’s mom said she didn’t know anything about it.
• Arizona was scheduled to have media day Wednesday, but that has been postponed. The new date is TBA.
• Richardson was released on $50,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 10.
• Despite being uncommitted, Arizona target Nassir Little tweeted (and deleted) that he re-opened his recruitment Tuesday. This hardly seems to be a coincidence, as Jonathan Givony of ESPN/DraftExpress said there’s a “decent chance” Little is involved in the investigation. He was also considering Miami, which the Palm Beach Post said is “potentially” involved in the investigation, and played for an AAU team that was sponsored by Adidas — the same AAU team whose director is currently in jail.
• There was clamoring on Twitter yesterday about Rawle Alkins suffering a foot injury, but that’s not something we can confirm right now.
• Many think this is just the tip of the iceberg of things to come. One national writer called it Armeggedon for college basketball. Buckle up.

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Our full stories can be found here

• Arizona assistant Book Richardson arrested for corruption, taking bribes
• Nassir Little tweets (and deletes) that he’s re-opened his recruitment
• Book Richardson suspended by Arizona amid FBI investigation

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Highlights of FBI allegations involving Arizona assistant coach Book Richardson

Arizona target Nassir Little tweets (and deletes) that he’s re-opened his recruitment

Book Richardson suspended by Arizona Wildcats amid FBI investigation

The UA learned of the investigation on Tuesday morning

Arizona Wildcats assistant coach Book Richardson has been “immediately suspended and relieved of all duties” following his arrest in an FBI corruption probe, the University of Arizona announced Tuesday.

Here is the University of Arizona’s response in its entirety

“We were made aware of the Department of Justice’s investigation this morning and we are cooperating fully with the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s office. Assistant coach Emanuel Richardson was immediately suspended and relieved of all duties.

“We were appalled to learn of the allegations as they do not reflect the standards we hold ourselves to and require from our colleagues. The University of Arizona has a strong culture of compliance and the expectation is we follow the rules.”

Here is the statement from Arizona Athletics:

“We became aware of the situation involving one of our men’s basketball coaches Emmanuel Richardson this morning. We have been working in conjunction with the University and have confirmed that Richardson has been suspension effective immediately. We will cooperate fully with authorities as they move through their investigation.

“We work under the basic directive that all department personnel operate within applicable laws and NCAA rules. The behavior that Richardson is accused of is completely unacceptable and does not reflect the principles of this athletics department.”

Richardson was one of four assistant coaches charged with fraud and corruption for accepting bribes to pressure student-athletes to take on certain agents and advisors.

Richardson allegedly accepted $20,000 bribes, and he used some of the money to pay at least one recruit to attend the UA, a court document says.

Richardson has been on Arizona’s staff since 2009 when head coach Sean Miller was hired from Xavier, where Richardson was also on Miller’s staff.

Richardson was primarily known for his recruiting prowess, especially on the East Coast.

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Arizona football: Should Brandon Dawkins or Khalil Tate start at quarterback?

Is it time for the Wildcats to make a quarterback change? Our staff discussed it

The Arizona Wildcats have a quarterback problem.

Ranked 79th in the country in passing efficiency, redshirt junior Brandon Dawkins has had trouble finding any sort of consistency through the air this season, especially when the Wildcats have faced upper-tier defenses.

Arizona is 2-2, losing two games that were winnable thanks to a young defense that’s been a pleasant surprise this season.

Dawkins has not progressed as some hoped, and now folks are wondering if it’s time to give somebody else a shot a position, specifically sophomore Khalil Tate.

Should Rich Rodriguez make that change, though? Our staff discussed it.

Ryan Kelapire

I think Khalil Tate should start (assuming he’s healthy), mainly because there’s nothing to lose. Arizona is not a good team, likely won’t make a bowl game, and its quarterback play with Brandon Dawkins at the helm has been subpar.

Plus Tate, a former four-star recruit, actually has upside and has never really had a fair opportunity to showcase his talent (getting a start as a 17-year-old true freshman vs. USC is brutal).

Granted, UA’s coaches get to watch the two duke it out in practice everyday, but Dawkins appears to have reached his ceiling — in fact, he’s regressed from last year — so why not see what Tate can do?

At minimum, he has the arm talent and legs to play at the Pac-12 level, something Dawkins is quickly proving he doesn’t have.

Whether Tate has the intangibles needed to play QB at a high level remains to be seen, but we surely won’t find out if he never gets in the game.

Also, if there’s anytime to make a change, it’s now since Arizona has a bye this week.

Gabe Encinas

I think Khalil Tate should start, but I don’t see it happening until Rich Rodriguez completely loses his trust in Brandon Dawkins, and I think it’ll take until after week six for that to happen.

Dawkins, who is entering his fourth year in the program, just isn’t cutting it. We saw flashes of what he can do in his 2015 debut against Arizona State, and he almost pulled off a huge win last season vs Washington.

But this season, the offense is healthy and he’s a had basically a full season as the starter, and is still not able to pull off complete drives. The offensive woes don’t all fall on Dawkins, but the inaccuracy and inconsistency certainly amplify the issue.

Arizona held Houston to 19 points and lost. And again, not all the blame falls on Brandon Dawkins, but it’s hard to look past four turnovers against Utah.

Now Tate, just 18 years old, holds one career start. I don’t think he’s the answer to Arizona’s problems, that was Braxton Burmeister, but I think you ought to see what he can do with an offseason under his belt.

But a concern with Tate was his mindset entering the program. As a four-star kid courted by schools all across the country, you would think he has the mentality and confidence to come in immediately and win the job as a true freshman.

We don’t know if Rodriguez is going to be around, but depending on how frustrated Tate is with the situation, there’s a chance he could transfer out of the program.

He might be injured, I get that. But it’s interesting is the fact that Dawkins played a few drives into the fourth quarter against UTEP, risking injury, when there really is no reason to do so. Especially when you have three very inexperienced freshmen.

Rodriguez doesn’t have a lot of time, but he needs to show promising improvement. You’re still seeing bad quarterbacking from a fourth-year guy. Might as well try to get more upside with a quarterback. But to be fair, we were saying the same thing about Brandon Dawkins with Anu Solomon was making some bonehead decisions too.

Christopher Boan

Do you want the long answer with a “but” or the short answer with an “if”?

The bottom line is that neither is a Pac-12 quarterback at this point, though Tate obviously has a better chance going forward than Dawkins. With that said, if I were Rich Rodriguez or Rod Smith I’d heed the call of everyone half-witted Arizona fan that’s been bellowing out “Go to Tate!” each snap since August and put the sophomore in there.

The only hesitation I have in anointing Tate right now would be the nagging injury he suffered against NAU, but that should be more or less cleared up by now, so why not give him the old college try?

There’s no question that Tate is the more skilled passing-wise of the two, and has the tools and size to survive the year.

Also, let’s face it, this season is at best a lost cause for the Wildcats, with it appearing more and more likely that the Rodriguez years are coming to an end, so why not give the young gun a shot?

Dawkins has been given everything necessary to compete, and has continued to shoot himself (and the team, by extension) in the foot.

Now is the time to finally hand the rope to the young fella, and see what he can do going forward in the Old Pueblo.

Jason Bartel

This whole thing is hilarious to me because we were literally doing the same thing with Dawkins and Solomon last year. The fanbase was calling for a change because Solomon struggled against BYU, and then that hand was forced when Anu hurt his knee in practice.

But man, what has Khalil Tate ACTUALLY shown in a game that makes you trust him so much more than Dawkins that you’re willing to go against the coaching staff? He makes the same bad throws and decisions, he’s less explosive in the open field running the ball, and he makes much worse decisions about taking (or avoiding) contact.

Granted it’s a small sample size, but Tate has only completed 42.5% of the passes he’s attempted in his college career. Dawkins? 56.6%.

The bigger issue isn’t who’s playing quarterback, it’s the coaching going on around it. Playcalling is the real concern. Put your players in a position to succeed. Rich Rodriguez isn’t doing that with his quarterbacks right now. Don’t call plays to line up with the offense you created. Call plays that mesh with the skillset available to you. These are the players you brought in and coached up, now use their skills appropriately.

Every time Arizona throws the ball on first or second down — especially down the field -- it’s an affront to the fanbase because that is obviously not the way to go about playing the game of football with these players. Run the ball until it doesn’t work. More passing attempts than rushing attempts in the first half in a winnable game against Utah? Give me a break.

That’s the real issue. Not who’s receiving the ball from the center.

Ronnie Stoffle

Another season, another quarterback controversy. With RichRod’s job potentially on the line, I can understand the hesitation to start Tate because he’s an unknown.

As far as I’m concerned, Arizona is 2-2 and could easily be 4-0. The defense has certainly played well enough to be 4-0 which leaves the blame on the other side of the ball. It’s not as simple as assigning all of the blame to the QB position but it deserves the lion’s share.

At this point in Dawkins’ career, we know he is a tremendous athlete with accuracy issues. My fear is Dawkins has reached his ceiling and we are on a trajectory for another sub-.500 season. The defense has improved enough to perhaps provide an extra win or two from last season. However, it would still be another sub-.500 season.

The case for Tate is he’s an unknown. There is too small of a sample size to say if he’s better or worse than Dawkins for this team. Anyone that says they know Dawkins is better than Tate is simply fooling themselves because we haven’t seen enough to really know.

I would start Tate for a few reasons:

1. He would have two weeks to prepare with the first team as a result of the bye week.
2. Someone new may provide the spark this team needs after losing two of their last three games in heartbreaking fashion.
3. We know what we have in Dawkins and we don’t know what we have in Tate.
4. It could be the move that saves RichRod’s job.

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Arizona assistant Book Richardson arrested for corruption, taking bribes

Richardson used some of the bribe money to influence a player to commit to Arizona

Arizona Wildcats assistant coach Book Richardson is one of four coaches arrested after being charged with fraud and corruption for “taking bribes to deliver star athletes to a financial adviser or an agent,” NBC News uncovered Tuesday.

An FBI investigation revealed Richardson took $20,000 in bribes, "some of which Richardson appears to have kept for himself and some of which he appears to have provided to at least one prospective high school basketball player,” a court document said.

That player has been suggested to be 2018 five-star point guard Jahvon Quinerly, since the court document says “player-5” verbally committed to “university-4” (Arizona) “on or about” Aug. 9.

Quinerly committed to Arizona on Aug. 8.

It’s likely not the only player Richardson has paid, as the document says co-defendant Christian Dawkins, a former sports agent, referred to a current player at “university-4” (Arizona) “who had already received payments.”

The court document says Richardson also used the bribe money "to use his influence over the student-athletes he coached to pressure them" to hire Dawkins as their manager and Munish Sood, another co-defendant, as their financial adviser, according to the document.

The other coaches involved in this were Oklahoma State’s Lamont Evans, Auburn’s Chuck Person, and USC’s Anthony Bland.

Adidas executive Jim Gatto also arranged payments to high school players and/or their families in exchange for commitments to schools they sponsor, the court document says.

Former five-star recruit Brian Bowen, who the Wildcats were recruiting heavily, allegedly received $100,000 from Louisville.

Obviously, this investigation is likely going to have ramifications on Arizona basketball and the college basketball landscape as a whole.

Joon Kim to others in college basketball: "We have your playbook."

Yeah, this isn't over.

— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) September 26, 2017

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott said he has already been in contact with the leadership at Arizona and USC.

Statement from Pac-12 Conference Commissioner Larry Scott https://t.co/EHK1xny2sT http://pic.twitter.com/rpgGtzvARD

— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) September 26, 2017

Arizona has not released a statement on the matter yet. Oklahoma State has, and Auburn has suspended Person without pay.

Arizona is scheduled to have media day Wednesday, but it would be shocking if that isn’t canceled.

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Arizona football recruiting SitRep: Wildcats host visitors vs. Utah, 2018 commit highlights, and more

Arizona is going to have more defensive athletes on the roster next season

It was an overall slow week for the Arizona Wildcats on the recruiting trail, but they did host a few visitors and had plenty of their commits in action over the weekend.

So let’s get to it in this week’s SitRep.

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David Watson, OT/DT

2017 Stats: 13 tackles, 3.0 TFL, 2.0 sacks, 1 forced fumble

Watson and his Amphi team are still having issues this season. The Panthers fell to Walden Grove, 59-0.

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Armani Adams, S

2017 Stats: 16 tackles; 2 rec, 13 yds, 0 TD

Adams’ Lakewood Spartans team gained their second win of the season after having their last couple of games suspended due to Hurricane Irma. Lakewood put away Lehigh, 21-13. Usually Adams’ stats are updated midway through the week so I haven’t been able to get his updated stats.

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Jhevon Hill, DB

2017 Stats: 18 tackles, 2 INT, 3 PBU

Hill continues to have a good season for Cajon. On Friday the Cowboys took on Redlands and came out on top 39-7. Hill finished the game with four tackles and a deflected pass. Below is a clip of Hill during the game and his first four game highlights. His highlights are fun to watch and shows how physical he is.

vs. Redlands highlights:

Season highlights:

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Issaiah Johnson, LB

Los Al suffered their second loss of the season at the hands of JSerra Catholic 32-10. I was unable to find any clips or stats of Johnson.

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Jaiden Dockery, S

Dockery had a pretty solid game on Friday, despite Lancaster losing to Lake Ridge, 24-20.

Dockery showed great physicality and willingness to come up and smack a ball carrier in the run game. He also had a sack coming out of what would be the Spur position in UA’s defense. I see him fitting in well at the Spur at the next level.

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Mykee Irving, DT

2017 Stats: 7 tackles

Irving and Calabasas continue to roll this season. The Coyotes are sitting undefeated, with their latest victory coming against El Camino Real. Irving did play in Calabasas’ 35-8 win, but did not record any stats.

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Jamarye Joiner, QB

2017 Stats: 53-for-88, 823 yds, 13 TD, 3 INT; 40 car, 331 yds, 10 TD

Joiner had an uncharacteristic game against Tucson on Friday. He didn’t have the greatest game statistically for the Bobcats, but did enough to lead Cienega to a 51-17 victory over the Badgers.

Joiner finished 9-for-20 for 111 yards, two scores and two picks through the air. He also had 42 yards on eight carries and two touchdowns. He did have a really nice long touchdown pass that can be seen in his game highlights below:

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Darrius Smith, RB

Smith and his Dawson squad smashed Dobie in a 38-0 lopsided win, bringing the Eagles to 2-1 on the season. I was unable to find any stats or clips of Smith in action.

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Jake Peters, TE

2017 Stats: 4 rec, 41 yds, 0 TD; 13 tackles

Santa Margarita Catholic was handed their first loss of the season to Orange County powerhouse Mission Viejo, falling 28-23.

Peters had a pretty solid game, not statistically, but he did what was asked of him.

He threw some physical blocks to set the edge and open holes for his running backs. He did have seven yards on a catch. Below are his highlights from the game and his midseason highlights.

vs. Mission Viejo:

Midseason highlights:

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McKenzie Barnes, CB

2017 Stats: 12 tackles, 12 PBU; 2 rec, 21 yds, 0 TD

Much like Hill, Barnes is continuing to have a solid season for Edison. The Tigers picked up their second win of the season, defeating Garces Memorial, 27-15.

Barnes showed how versatile he is, playing corner, receiver, and even punter. He played aggressively, press coverage and even showed skill shedding blocks to pursue the ball carrier.

He made a nice touchdown saving tackle after chasing him down. Below are his highlights against Garces and his midseason highlights.

vs. Garces Memorial:

Midseason highlights:

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Visitors

• Arizona hosted a small group of visitors for the Utah game. We’ll start with the two JUCO players who made the short trip over to UA’s campus. Bryant Pirtle and Haki Woods play at local Pima C.C. and have already visited UA multiple times. These are two to keep an eye on, though Pirtle has plenty of options.
• The next prospect is a 2018 player who actually picked up his offer from the ‘Cats recently, San Diego-based running back Martell Irby. He was on campus Friday night, just four days after receiving his offer. He fits Arizona’s offense and could be used multiple ways. It’ll be interesting to see how his recruitment goes, especially since UA is his only Power Five offer.
• The final visitor of the night was 2020 stud running back Kendall Milton. Scout has him unranked, but 247Sports has him as a 4-star prospect. Milton visiting was a little surprise, however he does have both Arizona and Utah on his offer list. USC has a lot of buzz in his recruitment, but it’s still very early and it’s never a bad thing to get him on campus this early.
• Sunday, Arizona got news that they’ll receive a big visitor on Nov. 10. Defensive tackle Jonathan Lolohea tweeted that he will be taking an official visit to Tucson. The one time Kansas commit has become a major target for the Wildcats now that he is back on the market. This is one I believe has a good shot at going UA’s way.

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Wildcat Radio Podcast: Adam Green talks Utah-Arizona, UA’s quarterback situation, and more

Adam Green joins Wildcat Radio to talk about Arizona football things

Adam Green joins the Wildcat Radio podcast to talk about the Arizona Wildcats’ quarterback situation, Rich Rodriguez's job security at Arizona, and Pac-12 week five action.

Plus, we have our first eliminations from the Pac-12 Eliminator pool, contest updates, and more.

Listen to the Wildcat Radio Podcast by playing below or subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, TuneIn Radio, Google Play, or any other podcast player.

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Arizona’s DeAndre Ayton shows off 43.5-inch vertical

This is ridiculous

Sean Miller said he’s never seen a 19-year-old quite like DeAndre Ayton.

“I don’t think I will again,” Miller said of the freshman in August. “It’s just because he’s so physically imposing.”

Ayton, a top-three recruit in 2017, measures at 7-feet, 260 pounds and moves swiftly around the court.

“He’s as strong and as gifted at running as anyone I’ve worked with,” Miller said.

And that’s not all.

Evidently, Ayton can jump out of the gym, too. The 7-footer showed off his 43.5-inch vertical in McKale Center on Monday.

Check it out:

7 footer, 260 lbs, 43.5 inch vert http://pic.twitter.com/7oJbq2rJDk

— Deandre Ayton (@RealDeandreAy) September 26, 2017

I mean, look how high his hand is above the rim. A 7’5” wingspan with that explosiveness? Not fair.

The Arizona Wildcats are expecting big things out of Ayton this season. He will likely be replacing Lauri Markkanen in the starting lineup, and will be asked to be a physical presence in the paint, which the team sorely lacked last year.

And it’s safe to say he’s well-equipped to do just that.

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Follow Ryan Kelapire on Twitter at @RKelapire

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Pac-12 Power Rankings: Washington State surges, Arizona slides and other happenings

It might be time to panic in Tucson...

Welcome to week five of the Pac-12 football schedule, better known as hell week to the teams actually taking the field.

With the hometown Arizona Wildcats taking a much-needed week off, there is a dearth of action on the gridiron here in Baja Arizona.

There’s still plenty of red-hot potential in the games that will happen, however, including USC’s less-than-triumphant return to The Palouse, fresh off a shaky win against Cal last Saturday.

We’ll delve into those games and more below, but rest assured that there will be plenty of potential for some good, old-fashioned Pac-12 After Dark action in the week ahead.

Without further adieu, here’s how I see the conference hierarchy stacking up right now:

1. Washington Huskies (4-0)

Things did not look promising for Coach Chris Petersen and company in the land of Boulder for most of the night Saturday.

The Huskies battled a hail of bone-chilling rain for the better half of two quarters, before finally blowing the door open — en route to a 37-10 romp at Folsom Field.

The Huskies, in their conference opener, looked shaky in the game’s opening half, with a 10-7 lead going into the half, before trouncing the hapless Buffs into oblivion down the stretch.

In doing so, the Huskies proved themselves to be the premier team out west, with a plethora of talent on both sides of the ball and the type of coaching accruement unrivaled in the conference since USC’s heyday a decade ago.

Do-it-all back Myles Gaskin gashed the Colorado defense, galloping through defenders to the tune of 202 yards and two touchdowns, while Pedersen’s top-notch defense snagged three picks against woebegone Buffs QB Steven Montez.

The Huskies out-rushed Colorado to the tune of 254-120 Saturday, and survived despite an uncharacteristically shaky performance by dynamic gunslinger Jake Browning, who only completed 11 of 21 passes for 160 yards and a touchdown.

The Huskies get a bye of sorts this week, traveling to Corvallis to play Oregon State, which should be a blowout by halftime. Expect Washington, now ranked sixth in the latest AP poll, to continue its steady climb up the hierarchy of collegiate football, because these Dogs can play.

2. Washington State Cougars (4-0)

Here’s our first plot twist of the season, folks! The boys from Pullman are 4-0 for the first time since 2001 — when Mike Price led the Wazzu to a 10-2 record and a Sun Bowl appearance.

The Cougars come in to Friday’s battle fresh off a 45-7 slaughter of poor Nevada, thanks to 478 yards and five touchdowns from the aforementioned Falk.

Speaking of Falk, the six foot four inch senior now has 1,378 passing yards and 14 touchdowns, to only one interception so far this year, with an unreal completion percentage of 76.9 — ahead of Colt McCoy’s single-season record of 76.67 percent in 2008.

The Cougars find themselves ranking fourth in the conference in points per game (43.8), but average a whopping 504.2 yards per game so far, while leading the Pac in total defense, giving up a mere 262.2 yards per game this season.

I am fully on-board the Cougar Bandwagon Express — and have no problem keeping the Cougars in the number-two spot from here on out (assuming, of course, they don’t lose to USC on Friday).

3. USC Trojans (4-0)

The Trojans find themselves in the number three spot this week, but are by no means the dominating force of the past.

The Trojans, behind another shaky performance by quarterback Sam Darnold, escaped the rolling hills of Berkeley relatively unscathed, with the game’s 10-point margin looking far superior in style than substance.

It’s troubling to me that Darnold — who ESPN’s announcers fawned over to the point of criminality — has seven interceptions in four games, and continues to try to force the issue instead of taking what the defense gives him.

It’s also troubling that the Trojans’ vaunted defense is currently seventh in the conference in points per game allowed (24.8) and total defense (370.2 YPG), which are good for seventh and sixth in the conference, respectively.

The lone saving grace for the Trojans’ defense is their ability to force turnovers, with the third-most interceptions so far, which will come in handy Friday, when they’ll face Arizona’s four-letter word (Falk) and Washington State in The Palouse.

Weird things happen to the Men of Troy when they venture to Martin Stadium, where Pete Carroll and company famously lost in 2002.

Expect Washington State to push the Trojans to the edge Friday, and don’t be surprised if the Trojans, tasked with the unenviable 12 games in as many weeks schedule, take the L in Pullman.

4. Utah Utes (4-0)

Here’s where the Conference of Champions gets a little dicey in my opinion.

Kyle Whittingham’s Utes are fresh off a stinker at Arizona Stadium, outlasting an abysmal Wildcats team in front of an embarrassingly small crowd.

The Utes find themselves undefeated after four weeks, mainly due to a schedule that ranks 110^th out of 130 FBS teams, according to Sports Reference.

The Utes survived in Tucson, despite losing dual-threat quarterback Tyler Huntley to a shoulder injury in Friday’s 30-24 win over the Wildcats — the Utes first win in Tucson in six years.

Utah seems to have its typical lockdown defense, allowing the third fewest points per game (17.2) and yards per game (296.5) in the conference. We’ll see whether the Utes are for real or not Saturday, when Stanford comes calling, fresh off a 24-point win over UCLA last Saturday.

The player to watch for Utah going forward lines up at the receiver position, though, as Oregon transfer Darren Carrington has been phenomenal so far, with 485 yards and four touchdowns.

Whittingham and company will need Carrington to be there for whoever lines up under-center, with a nascent rushing attack that averages 165 yards per game, down from the 214 yards per game they averaged in 2016.

5. California Golden Bears (3-1)

The Bears might have put up the most impressive 10-point loss in recent memory in its ultimate defeat at the hands of USC on Saturday.

The Bears showed signs of life throughout, and a dual-threat offensive attack that could lead to the school’s first bowl berth in three years under new Coach Justin Wilcox.

Sophomore receiver Kanawai Noa showed bursts of glory Saturday, with a game-and-career-high 110 receiving yards on six catches, including a 38-yard catch in the game’s opening half.

The Bears, heading into Saturday’s intra-conference showdown against Oregon, have a better defense than advertised, allowing 24 points per game, good for sixth in the conference, with the fifth-most interceptions (6) so far.

The Bears’ game against Oregon at Autzen will clarify whether the team has the chops to win seven or eight games this fall, which would be a smashing success for Wilcox and company, given the radical facelift that’s taking place in Berkeley right now.

6. Colorado Buffaloes (3-1)

This spot should, and would have gone to the Ducks, had they not choked away Saturday’s game in Tempe.

Given that embarrassing loss, the middle of the Pac position falls to the Buffs, despite an awful performance down the stretch against Washington.

The Buffs, who entered Saturday’s matchup with three interceptions in its first three games against CSU, Texas State and Northern Colorado, matched that number in a rain-slogged hellscape Saturday.

Quarterback Steven Montez — fresh off a career-high 357 yard, four-touchdown performance against UNC — struggled mightily in the second half Saturday, tossing three picks with a Quarterback Ranking of 25 percent, his lowest of the year.

Montez wasn’t helped by the fact that dynamic back Phillip Lindsay, who entered Saturday’s game averaging 126 rushing yards per game, was held to 68 yards on 19 carries against the Huskies, dooming the Buffaloes to a performance as gloomy as the weather along the Front Range that night.

Colorado has a prime chance to get back on the right track Saturday night, when they’ll make the 1,020-mile jaunt to Pasadena to face UCLA, against a Bruins defense that ranks second-to-last in the conference in points per game allowed (43.2) and dead-last in defensive yards per game (524.8).

7. Oregon Ducks (3-1)

Boy howdy, did the wheels come off the Willie Taggart Express Saturday night under the LED lights of Sun Devil Stadium.

The Ducks, who entered Saturday’s game a 13-point favorite, looked downright embarrassing at times against ASU, trailing by as much as 17, before quarterback Justin Herbert hit Johnny Johnson III for a 20-yard score, kicking off a 14-0 Ducks run to pull within three.

Herbert’s four-yard score with 6:41 to go gave Oregon its first (and only) lead of the night, before freshman kicker Brandon Ruiz nailed a 41-yard kick to dash the Ducks hopes, with the hometown Devils winning 37-35.

The Ducks were manhandled all night by a Devils offense that ranks eighth in the conference in yards per game (431.2), with the Devils outgaining them 489-401 Saturday.

It’s clear that Herbert and company are not the dominating offensive juggernaut we’ve come to expect from Ducks teams of yole, converting on an embarrassingly-low 11.1 percent of its third down tries.

The Ducks schedule doesn’t get much easier from here, with games at home against the Bears and Cougars, before heading to Palo Alto on Oct. 14 to face Stanford. It’s not meltdown time for Ducks fans in Eugene and beyond just yet, but Saturday’s result does give indication that all is not well in the Willamette Valley.

8. Stanford Cardinal (2-2)

Few teams have been as disappointing so far than Coach David Shaw’s Cardinal team, who vacillate between outright ineptitude and abject mediocrity each week.

The Cardinal looked list its old self against UCLA Saturday, pummeling the Bruins to the tune of 58 points and 553 offensive yards, while keeping the ball for more than 36 minutes in a 24-point victory.

Running back Bryce Love looked like the real deal too, with a career-best 263 yards and a touchdown to lead the way, while sophomore K.J. Costello came off the bench to throw for 123 yards and two touchdowns in the win.

The win was Stanford’s 10th straight over UCLA, and another stone on top of UCLA Coach Jim Mora’s ultimate grave (more on that later).

That performance, however, cannot undo the two clunkers turned in against USC and San Diego State, who combined to outscore the Cardinal 62-41.

Luckily for Shaw and company, ASU comes to town for a matinee at Stanford Stadium, which should get the Cardinal back above .500 for the year.

9. Arizona State Sun Devils (2-2)

Boy have we reached the bottom of the barrel, or the “soon to be actively searching for new coaches” portion of the conference.

The Devils, fresh off a thrilling two-point win over the Ducks on Saturday, earn the right to call themselves the best of the worst this week, though that’s damning with faint praise.

The Devils will be hard-pressed to slow down Bryce Love, who leads the conference in rushing yards (787). I say this, not out of partisanship towards the Wildcats, but because ASU’s rush defense is fourth worst in the conference, giving up 155.5 yards per game.

Even Arizona, whose defense is the football equivalent to two tin cans and a string, is holding opponents to 118 yards per game on the ground, which paints a dire portrait for Todd Graham and Baylor castaway Phil Bennett, who could find themselves in the unemployment line soon.

10. UCLA Bruins (2-2)

Few coaches could actively so thoroughly screw up the gift from the football gods that is Josh Rosen quite like Jim Mora and company.

The Bruins somehow find themselves at 2-2 for the year, despite Rosen’s Heisman level output thus far, leading FBS in passing yards (1,763) and touchdowns (16), with a mere four interceptions so far, despite throwing the second-most passes this year (200).

Even the “Rosen One” can’t save the Bruins, however, as Mora’s husk of a defense is surrendering the second-most points per game (43.2), and most yards per game (524.8) so far, thanks to giving up a mind-boggling 307.5 rushing yards per contest.

Mora’s team also ranks 10th in rushing yards per game (120), which seems hard to believe, given how dominant UCLA’s been historically in said facet of the game.

The Bruins will be hard-pressed to avoid a second-straight losing season this fall, given their only winnable games are against Arizona, ASU and Cal, with the latter two at home.

It may be time to start the “Chip Kelly to Westwood,” chants, if that’s not already a thing.

11. Arizona Wildcats (2-2)

At long last, we’ve reached the team that serves as an unsavory appetizer on the sports calendar to the promise of basketball season in Tucson.

The Wildcats are fresh off another clunker, losing to Utah 30-24 in front of an announced crowd of 36,651 fans — the smallest turnout at Arizona Stadium since a 1997 contest against Alabama-Birmingham, which drew 36,309 to the unfriendly confines of Arizona Stadium.

It’s clear that the team’s 63-point outburst two weeks ago against UTEP was a one-week mirage in the middle of the Sonoran Desert, as redshirt junior quarterback Brandon Dawkins bumbled (and fumbled) his way through a night of abject failure under-center, with three interceptions and a fumble, while posting a season-low 100.3 quarterback ranking in the loss.

The chorus of boos that rained down from those who ventured to the stadium on Star Wars Night made it clear that we’re living in dark times in Tucson.

Coach Rich Rodriguez enters the team’s bye week scratching his head, with a team that leads the conference in rushing yards per game (296), while ranking dead-last in passing (182.8).

12. Oregon State Beavers (1-3)

Rodriguez and company should breath a deep sigh of relief that the Beavers are in their conference, for it provides them a scapegoat.

The Beavers might be the worst Power Five team in the nation, with Kansas at least showing some signs of life in the Big 12, ranking ninth in rushing yards (135.2) and 10th in passing yards (220.8).

Coach Gary Andersen’s defense isn’t much better — ranking 10th in pass defense (286.8) and 11th against the run (198.8).

The Beavers’ failure to show much, if any, signs of progress on either side of the ball is downright shocking, considering how much was said about Andersen’s coaching talents coming into the year.

Given Wayne Tinkle’s struggles of-late on the hardwood, it might be time to start the countdown clock to next spring’s baseball campaign in Corvallis.

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Follow Christopher Boan on Twitter at @cgboan

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