A lone cumulus cloud billowed over the horizon as the Arizona Wildcats football team scurried its way through a late summer practice on Saturday night.

The storm cloud never threatened the practice itself but served as a proper allegory for a squad coming off a tumultuous offseason.

That offseason, which included the dismissal of Coach Rich Rodriguez and the hiring of former University of Houston and Texas A&M Coach Kevin Sumlin, could forever alter the landscape of Wildcats football.

The first glimpse of the Wildcats’ future came last weekend, when the team held the first of its two-week-long fall camp practices.

The pad-less practices allow coaches to see how their players look in executing their assignments, while giving players a chance to earn a start in the Wildcats starting lineup.

Sumlin did not address the media after the team’s Saturday practice, though first-year offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone did.

Mazzone, who previously served the same capacity at Texas A&M with Sumlin, has coached since 1980—when he took his first gig as a graduate assistant at his alma mater (the University of New Mexico).

Mazzone’s main task is making sure that rising junior quarterback and Heisman Trophy hopeful Khalil Tate is ready to go for the team’s opener against Brigham Young University on Sept. 1.

Mazzone expressed confidence in the California gunslinger, saying Tate is further along in his development than he expected.

“[Khalil’s] done a good job the first two days right now. But like any quarterback, you’re looking for consistency and he’s shown that so far,” Mazzone said on Saturday. “But then it’s only been two days. So, I’m excited at where he’s at with him.”

The junior quarterback will look to one-up his gaudy statistics from a year ago, when he threw for 1,591 and ran for 1,411 yards with 14 passing and 12 rushing touchdowns for the Wildcats.

Mazzone believes that Tate has the right demeanor to do just that, working hard through summer and fall camp to improve his game.

“He’s a pretty grounded kid and I know that he knows where he’s at with this football team and in his career,” Mazzone said. “I think he just comes out every day to get better and help this football team win.”

Building depth

A key for Mazzone and the Wildcats this season will be their ability to build depth, so the team can cycle in players without missing a beat.

He’s encouraged by what he’s seen from the team’s wide receivers and tight ends so far, praising senior wideouts Shun Brown and Shawn Poindexter in particular for the efforts in practice. Mazzone knows that both seniors will be crucial in Tate’s development as a passer, providing sure-handed targets downfield to open up running lanes for the junior.

“I feel really good about those guys right now. We’ve got some good competition on the outside,” Mazzone said. “…It’s like any camp, what you’re always looking for is competition because competition builds good football teams.”

Mazzone said he’s thrilled with Tate’s willingness to work on making his game more versatile, working hard on his passing skills to compliment his athleticism.

“He's a dynamic runner and I think what he's trying to do now is become a rounded quarterback where he can also play the play the position the other way too in the pocket,” he said. “And that's what I think he's been working hard on.”

Brown expressed confidence in his ability to carry the Wildcats passing game this fall, saying his work over the offseason should propel him further than in year’s past.

The Louisiana native is thrilled with Mazzone’s pass-heavy offense so far, believing he’ll have more opportunities to make plays at receiver, a year after leading the team in receiving yards (521) and yards per catch (18.0).

Brown is confident in this year’s receiving corp, saying the veterans and young guys share a hunger to succeed not found in years past.

“I feel like those guys, when they came in, they're hungry. They ask me questions, they always want to throw, do extra stuff,” he said. “And I believe they want to win. So, that right there speaks for itself.”

Addressing a crowd of Tucson locals (and a few journalists) Wednesday afternoon, Ali Farhang had plenty of news to share about the NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl. The event’s founder and former chair, Farhang spoke to more than two dozen men and women at the AC Marriott downtown.

Last December’s matchup between New Mexico State and Utah State brought in just over 39,000 attendees to Arizona Stadium. NMSU, which played in its first bowl game since 1960, took home a 26-20 overtime victory.

It’ll be tough to one-up such a contest this December, with the game scheduled for 11:15 a.m. Arizona time on Saturday, Dec. 29, but Farhang said he believes that the community has the willpower to do just that.

“We’re going to pack Arizona Stadium,” he said. “This is Tucson’s game. It’s for us, by us, with all net proceeds going to charity and all the good work that we do. There is no reason why Arizona Stadium can’t have over 50,000 in the stands this year.”

Farhang said last year’s game raised $200,000 for local charities, and $2.8 million in the event’s first three games, thanks to 100 percent of the gate receipts going to local nonprofits.

That generosity, in combination with the 13,000 tickets that Tucsonans donated to first responders, military members, underprivileged kids and teachers, shows the heart that the community has.

“That says a lot about us. That’s a testament about the kind of people that we are in Tucson and Southern Arizona,” Farhang said. “And as happy as we are about the giving, we are also gratified about the economic impact we had.”

Last year’s game drew 87 percent capacity at city hotels on game day, and close to 70 percent capacity the week of the game.

Farhang also introduced his successor, Kym Adair, who touched on the game’s unique crowd-centric nature. The Arizona Bowl comes with a downtown block party, which Adair said will take place Friday, Dec. 28, and called it a key to the game’s unique nature.

“We have surpassed all expectations of a bowl our size and we’ve done it in three years and we’re proud of that,” Adair said. “But it’s not enough and this is why 100 percent of our net proceeds go to charity.”

Adair implored the community to buy seats to this year’s game, even if they can’t make the game, so that they can give as much money to charity as possible. Every empty seat in Arizona Stadium symbolizes dollars that could have gone directly back to support needy children, homeless veterans and teachers in the community, Adair said.

“We’ve got to get more dollars back into our community,” she said. “This game has tangible results for Southern Arizona. So, Tucson, it’s time to recognize that this is our game.”

On the road to selling more tickets this year, Farhang believes the bowl’s city-centric advertising approach will help out, even if a bowl-starved program like NMSU is not invited.

“The energy’s got to resonate from our community,” he said. “And as difficult as it is for me as a high school football coach to admit this, it’s about more than just football. So, if we build a tradition of weeklong events that shows the best of our community, then it really shouldn’t matter what teams are playing.”

One thing that Adair and Farhang hope will boost attendance is an agreement they’ve struck with New Mexico State—who departed the Sun Belt Conference to play football as an independent this fall. The agreement, announced on Aug. 1, allows the Aggies to play in Tucson, should the Mountain West and Sun Belt (the bowl’s two contracted conferences) not have enough teams to send a representative to the Old Pueblo.

Adair is thrilled about the possibility of having NMSU back in future games, given the energy that their fans brought last December.

“This is a terrific opportunity for us to bring back New Mexico State University should one of our conference not be able to give us a team this year,” she said. “The enthusiastic fans that came to Tucson last year from Las Cruces created remarkable energy in Arizona Stadium. We would enthusiastically welcome them back if one of our bowl conferences can’t produce that team.”

Fans of watching college athletes duke it out under the blinding lights of Arizona Stadium will now be able to enjoy a cold one in the stands.

That's because the University officially announced its intention to sell both beer and wine inside the stadium, starting with the Wildcats' home opener against Brigham Young University on Sept. 1.

The move, which comes in the months after the University's announcement of beer and wine sales at nearby McKale Center, will allow loyal Wildcat fans to buy their favorite beverages inside the stadium.

Arizona Stadium already sold both beer and wine, but only in the reserved club sections. The beverages will now be available to all 21+ fans.

Arizona is the fourth Pac-12 Conference school, after ASU, Oregon State and Washington State to sell beer and wine at sporting events.

Now the venue, which opened its doors in 1928, joins baseball's Hi Corbett Field and McKale as a full-scale outlet of alcoholic vending, a move that Director of Athletics Dave Heeke believes will boost fan turnout this fall.

The other improvements, which include additional in-game performances by the Pride of Arizona marching band and the $25 million renovation of the lower east side of the stadium, are among the first wave of investments made in the venerable venue.

Other revelations, such as the acceptance of credit cards at all concession stands in Arizona Stadium and the addition of new public address announcer Jeff Dean were revealed in the University's release on Thursday.

The Wildcats will show off their new digs, alcohol and all, against the Cougars at 7:45 p.m. Arizona time on September 1.

Tickets can be purchased for the BYU contest online, or by phone at 621-2287.  

It may be 110 and swelteringly hot outside in the bastions of Southern Arizona, but we're mere months away from the temporary solitude of watching a bunch of unpaid athletes playing basketball inside an undersized gym in the tropical paradise that is Maui.

The young men of the Arizona Wildcats will take center stage at this year's event in Hawaii, playing with fellow heavyweights Duke, Xavier, San Diego State and Gonzaga at this year's Maui Invitational.

The Wildcats' tropical getaway starts with a matchup against Iowa State in the 35th iterate of the tournament, with the game tipping off at 7:30 p.m. Arizona time on Monday, Nov. 19 in Lahaina.

From there, the Wildcats or Cyclones will face the winner of the Gonzaga-Illinois game, with the final pairing of either Auburn, Xavier, SDSU or Duke in the finals on Nov. 21.

The Wildcats are making their first appearance in the tournament since 2014, when they won their seventh Maui Invitational title.

Arizona Coach Sean Miller is thrilled to head back to the island, saying his team will learn a lot from the experience.

“Our program is honored to once again be a part of one of the storied events in college basketball.
Arizona Basketball and the Maui Jim Maui Invitational have a great history together that goes back
years. This season’s bracket is full of excellent programs and will prove to be one of the marquee events in our game yet again. Our players, staff and great fans are excited for another tremendous trip to Hawai’i.”

They are tied with the University of North Carolina for the most titles in the tournaments's history, which dates back to 1982.

Ticket packages to the November hardwood free-for-all are sold-out, but can still be found sparingly on the Invitational's website.

It’s been four months since the University of Arizona men’s basketball team lost in unceremonious fashion to the Buffalo Bulls in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

Fast-forward some 16 weeks, after the loss of the team’s top five scorers (Deandre Ayton, Allonzo Trier, Rawle Alkins, Dusan Ristic and Parker Jackson-Cartwright) and addition of prized recruit Brandon Williams.

The core of what’s left for coach Sean Miller’s team, in rising sophomore guards Brandon Randolph and Alex Barcello, as well as incoming transfer forward Chase Jeter, made their case for why the team’s brightest days are ahead of them.

The trio addressed a litany of topics on Friday afternoon, ranging from the team’s standing in what should be a stacked Pac-12 Conference to how the team will overcome the loss of a generational center like Ayton.

The group, who combined to average 6.1 points per game last season, seem confident that the Wildcats’ won’t falter this winter.

Randolph, who appeared in 31 games as a freshman, has embraced the team’s under-the-radar status nationally, with many college basketball experts picking them to finish in the middle of the conference.

“It’s cool … It’s actually getting me kind of hyped. I can’t wait 'till we surprise people,” Randolph said.

For Barcello, this season provides a fantastic opportunity to show what on-court camaraderie and chemistry can do, working together to take the conference by storm.

“I feel like that's our motivation right now. There's a lot of people doubting us and we use that as motivation,” he said. “Every time we step into the weight room in the gym and even off the court. I mean, we're taking care of our bodies every day. We're busting our butts. Every time we step out on that court were together. And if you watch one of our workouts, I mean our energy levels up, no matter if it's 6:45 AM or 4:30 PM we're were working.”

Barcello says fans can expect the Wildcats to run a more up-tempo offense this year, with a team full of smaller, quicker players than in previous years.

He believes the team will provide the type of can’t-miss action that has been its calling card of-late, with returning three-point specialist Dylan Smith returning for the Wildcats.

Barcello says that Miller and assistant coach Mark Phelps have high expectations for the team and that there will be no pity party for the Wildcats in the Conference of Champions.

“They expect a lot from us returning guys and I mean they expect a lot from the freshmen too because it's going to be, collectively with this team, we're obviously not as talented, but I mean we have a great mindset right now,” Barcello said. “I mean those coaches are only helping us with that mindset because they come ready to work every day ready to push us to be the best that we can be.”

Long time coming

For Jeter, the thrill of getting to lace up the sneakers and take the court for Miller and company is something he won’t take for granted.

Jeter, who missed all of last season after transferring from Duke, averaged 2.1 points and 2.2 rebounds in 48 games with the Blue Devils in two seasons in Durham.

The 6-foot-10-inch forward will be trusted with manning the paint on both sides of the ball for Miller this season, a role he covets.

“For me it's been a long time coming, so I'm going to say, I mean for me it feels like I really haven't played in three years so getting an opportunity now, I feel like my table kind of set,” Jeter said. “It's going to be a great opportunity for everybody this year to kind of step up and show their worth their value on the court and we got a lot of great guys so it's going be good for everybody.”

The Las Vegas native said his love for the game of basketball only grew as he was forced into a sabbatical of sorts last season.

“You just develop an appreciation for it, you know, when you're not allowed to play the game,” he said. “The amount of appreciation you have being away from getting on a court and actually playing in games. So, I feel like that's the biggest thrill of playing the game of basketball and when you can't do that, it takes your spirit a little bit, but it also makes you appreciate them a lot more.”

Jeter expressed some level of disappointment in how his time with the Blue Devils turned out, but, said he’s excited for the potential that’s available in Tucson.

He and his newfound Wildcat brethren are chomping at the bit to hit the hardwood this season, with Jeter expressing gratitude for the opportunity to don the cardinal and navy going forward.
“Initially when I went to Duke it was opportunity in the role that I wanted it to feel. Things didn't work out for me there,” he said. “So, once I got the opportunity in Arizona, I don't think anything could have worked out better for myself and for my teammates as well.”

We're midway through the doldrums of summer in the heart of the Sonoran Desert, which means that college basketball is four months away.

The Pac-12 Conference released its yearly breakdown of home and away games between conference foes, starting the week of January 2 and ending the week of March 6.

The University of Arizona's quest to repeat as regular season conference champions begins with road games against the University of Colorado and Utah, followed by a Bay Area swing through Stanford and Cal the following week.

The 'Cats home opener will take place the week of January 16, when Oregon and Oregon State come to the Old Pueblo, followed by UCLA and USC the following week.

The biannual rivalry with the Arizona State Sun Devils takes place the week of Jan. 30—when Arizona will travel to Tempe's Wells Fargo Arena, followed by a home clash at McKale on the final weekend of the season, on the week of March 6.

All times and TV carriers will be announced at a later date for said games, with all 108 of the Pac-12 conference contests carried by either the Pac-12 Network, ESPN, Fox or CBS.

There’s plenty of pulse-pounding action to come from the soccer pitches of Russia this weekend.

But before getting into the next stage of the World Cup, I have to mention a few things that happened in this week’s knockout phase (or round of 16).

The last few games were a whirlwind, with some of the best soccer players in the world getting eliminated.

Lionel Messi and Argentina fell to France, with their new wonder boy, Kylian Mbappe, and Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal could not handle the power of a full team like Uruguay.

Both of them may have played their last World Cup—and even with all of their accomplishments, they will always be remembered by the tournament they could never conquer.

Perhaps the most surprising aspect of this year’s event was the defeat of longtime power Spain by host Russia in penalties, with the hosts advancing to the quarterfinals since 1966.

The Spain-Russia match was far from the only one to go into penalties in the knockout stage, with England-Colombia and others going to PKs.

The Brazil-Mexico clash was pretty much set in stone before the opening kick, with the South American power breezing to a 2-0 victory. Brazil was the clear favorite and even though they played well and deserved to pass to the next stage all of that was clouded by Neymar’s antics.

The Brazilian player was the target of criticism for not being a good player because of all the fouls he created out of nowhere, and every time someone would touch him he would act like his leg was being cut off.

There is an understanding that players have to create these types of plays to create opportunities to score, but it shouldn't be your only play every game.

Neymar is very well-known for this type of play, and to be honest he does not need it. He is a great player with a lot of talent, but for some reason he does not understand what fair play is.

Another shocking game was Belgium-Japan, in a major shocker, Japan was winning the game 2-0, but a soccer match has 90 minutes and for the last 25 minutes Belgium dominated and were able to pull a win in the last minute, literally.

The most boring match went to Switzerland and Sweden, which the Scandinavian nation won 1-0, advancing to the quarters.

Belgium is now a favorite alongside Uruguay and France, and all my top picks have been eliminated. Even teams that were my second choice have gotten eliminated. It's been rough.

One side of the bracket seems so hard, chocked full of clear winners and with very entertaining matches to be played and the other side of the bracket lacking both.

There are clear frontrunners but as I said before, this World Cup continues to surprise everyone who is watching it. At this point, Sweden and Russia could be winners.
So who will win? I really have no clue.

Quarterfinal Games

Friday, July 6

Uruguay vs France 7:00 a.m.
Belgium vs Brazil 11:00 a.m.

Saturday, July 7

Sweden vs England 7:00 a.m.
Russia vs Croatia 11:00 a.m.

Red, White and Brews at the Maverick. Start your Fourth of July celebrations a day early at the Maverick. Get your groove on with dance lessons from 6 to 7 p.m. for $5 each, and then the Jack Bishop Band will take over at 7 p.m. for live music. Sip on domestic beers, house wines and well drinks for $1 off. If that’s not enough of a draw, there will be giveaways, too. But come early: there will be a $5 cover charge after 8 p.m. 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. Tuesday, July 3. 6622 E. Tanque Verde Road. Details here.

Red, White & Brew. Same name, different event. Hacienda del Sol is celebrating the Fourth of July with a good ol’ fashioned barbeque picnic, complete with live music. Sip on American wines and local brews and sample barbeque staples like pigs in the blanket, potato salad and corn on the cob. The event upgrades barbeque classics with fancier fare like spiced rubbed lemon chicken and watermelon beet salad. $65 per person or $45 without alcoholic beverages. 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, July 3. 5501 N. Hacienda del Sol Road. For tickets call (520) 529-3500. Details here.

FC Tucson vs. Albuquerque Sol FC. Root, root, root for the home team as they face off against their fellow minor league soccer players from Albuquerque. After all, what’s a more American way to spend the Fourth of July week than calling “futbol” soccer? While you’re at it, how about you measure things using the Imperial system, just to show some extra patriotism? When the match is over, stick around for a spectacular fireworks show! 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 3. Kino North Stadium, 2500 E. Ajoy Way. $3 to $13+. Details here.

Events compiled by Emily Dieckman, Dylan Reynolds, BS Eliot, Ava Garcia and Jeff Gardner.

There will be a new face manning the bench area at Tucson Arena this fall when the Tucson Roadrunners kick off their third season of regular season play.

Jay Varady, who spent four years in the United States Hockey League and one in the Ontario Hockey League, was tabbed as the team’s third coach in as many years on Monday.

The Cahokia, Illinois native is tasked with picking up where the team left off this season, posting the best winning percentage in the American Hockey League’s Western Conference (.662), making the postseason for the first time in franchise history.

Varady is ready for the challenge ahead in his first professional coaching stop in America (he began his career spending two seasons as the coach of a pro team in Angers, France).

“It’s been a long-term career goal of mine, to coach in the American Hockey League,” Varady said in a teleconference Monday. “If you look at my résumé of where I’ve been, my career goal has always been to be a professional hockey coach … I think over the last few years, with my head coaching experience, I was able to get the opportunity to be a part of pro hockey at the American League level.”

It’s been another week of preliminary games at the World Cup, and the matches have been full of excitement, surprise and heart wrenching moments.

The round of 16 starts this weekend, and the top two teams from each group have been decided. Most of the games played this week were extremely difficult to predict, and many were playing in eliminations.

Many favorites went through like Portugal, Spain, Brazil and France, but to say they did so easily would be a huge understatement.

One of the week’s more exciting games was Argentina versus Nigeria. The Argentineans were facing elimination, though they survived, by the grace of Marco Rojo. The Manchester City player scored the winning goal for the Argentineans at the 86th minute. This game was expected to be a true nail bitter, but it was beaten by the group of Mexico, Sweden, South Korea and Germany.

This group was seen as the toughest. Germany, for instance, were the defending champions, yet been a complete surprise since the beginning.