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EXPLANATION ON FOOTBALL PLAYING 12 STRAIGHT WEEKS IN 2015
Since the 2015 Arizona football schedule was released earlier this year, we've received a number of questions asking why we're playing 12 consecutive weeks, so we thought it would be wise to address it. While we're not exactly thrilled about having to play 12 straight games without a bye, it is important to remember that, as a conference, the members don't necessarily agree on everything, but it is important to try and be good partners with the rest of our colleagues, and sometimes, outcomes like this arise.
To understand this situation, we'll need to delve into the scheduling practice within the conference. NCAA rules provide the league either 14 or 15 weeks, depending on the calendar, to schedule a 12-game regular season and a conference championship game. In 2015, there are only 14 weeks to play those 12 regular-season games and the Pac-12 Championship game, which takes place in week 14.
When the Pac-10 became the Pac-12, non-conference games were required to take place in the first three or four weeks of the season unless a waiver was granted. During the process, the league members discussed USC and Stanford's annual games with Notre Dame and agreed to grandfather in those games on the dates originally scheduled, meaning there would be a nonconference game on the final week of the regular season.
As the 2015 schedule was being put together, the Notre Dame at Stanford game resulted in the league not having a Pac-12 opponent for one institution on the last weekend. The league tried to find a member who could add a nonconference game on that weekend to balance out the schedule, but was unable to do so. As a result, we were left without an opponent the last weekend and we ended up with a schedule that has us playing 12 games in a row.
The same situation arose in 2012 with a 14-week season and California ended up being the school that played 12 games in a row. It wasn't an issue in 2013 and '14 because there were 15 weeks to play the 12 regular-season games and the championship game. The issue will come up again in 2016 due to a 14-week season unless one of the league's institutions can schedule a non-conference game in the final week to offset the Notre Dame at USC game. It also could have occurred in 2018, but there is a second non-conference game, BYU at Utah, on the final week to offset the situation with Notre Dame.
Moving forward, the Pac-12's scheduling parameters require the league to rotate the teams that would have to play 12 consecutive games and we would be exempt from it happening again until at least 2023, which is the duration of the current television agreement.
As I stated above, we're not thrilled with this and we did try to work with the conference on solutions, but unfortunately, we weren't able to resolve it. Fortunately for us, Arizona football is known for its Hard Edge and they won't let it hold them back from having another fantastic season. They'll Bear Down like they always do and find a way to work through it. We just hope you'll be there to support them as they do.
BEAR DOWN IN THE PINES WILDCAT WEEKEND SET FOR MAY 29-30
We want to make sure you are aware that the University of Arizona Alumni Association, the UA Foundation, the UA Executive Office of the President and Arizona Athletics are hosting the Bear Down in the Pines Wildcat Weekend on Friday and Saturday, May 29-30. The weekend will begin Friday, May 29 at 6 p.m. with a welcome reception and anArizona NOW campaign update from Dr. Hart. Both coach Rodriguez and I will be in attendance as well to provide updates on Arizona Athletics and the football program.
The Bear Down in the Pines Golf Classic will take place on Saturday, May 30 with registration beginning at 11:30 a.m. This event is presented by the White Mountain UA alumni, supporters and friends. The tournament is a scramble format with a shotgun start at 12:30 p.m.
For more information or to register, please go to arizonaalumni.com/PinetopGolf2015. Space is limited at both events so RSVP as soon as you can. We look forward to seeing all of our great Wildcat supporters in the area.
THANK YOU FOR RENEWING
Thank you to everyone who renewed football season tickets and/or Wildcat Club memberships on time. The McKale Ticket Office was busy all week handling renewals. It can't be stressed enough how important our Wildcat Club members and season ticket holders are to the success of the entire athletics department. To guarantee your same great season tickets and/or Wildcat Club benefits, and with the introduction of the All-In-One Ticket and Benefits Booklet, it was extremely important to get those renewals in by May 1. I think everyone is going to love this new booklet, but it requires some extra preparation and production time. We needed your renewal in by May 1 to ensure you'd receive these booklets around the normal season ticket and Wildcat Club benefits delivery time (early August).
Thanks again for your continued support. Excitement is building quickly for 2015-16. ESPN just released a Top 25 college football poll which had the Wildcats ranked 13th in the nation. It won't be long before football media day arrives and fall camps starts up. If you're like me, it can't come soon enough.
SPECIAL PROMOTIONS IN HONOR OF MOTHER'S DAY
In the spirit of Mother's Day coming up, we have a couple of special offers that might help those last minute shoppers out there. Football season ticket holders can receive a discount on leases for padded seat backs, which are attached to your bench seat for the season. The regular price is $50, but you can buy now for $42. Click HERE for more information.
We are also offering 50% general admission tickets to a baseball and softball game this weekend. The softball game is Saturday, May 9 and the baseball game is on Mother's Day, Sunday, May 10. Click HERE and enter the promo code BBMOM2015 for $4 baseball tickets and SBMOM2015 for $4 softball tickets.
BASEBALL HOSTS WASHINGTON THIS WEEKEND IN PAC-12 SERIES
Arizona baseball returns to Hi Corbett Field as they host Washington in a three-game series beginning Friday, May 8 at 7:30 p.m. Be sure to arrive early as we are celebrating Super Hero Night and the first 200 kids will receive a Super Hero Outfit! As you can see from the photos below, it's pretty popular. Saturday's game begins at 7 p.m. and Sunday's first pitch is set for 6 p.m. for a Mother's Day Celebration where the first 500 fans will receive a UA Cell Phone Card Holder. It's also Sunday Funday. Select concession items will be 50% off and kids will be able to run the bases after the game. For tickets or more information, call (520) 621-CATS or click HERE.
FINAL HOME STAND FOR SOFTBALL
Softball will host their last regular-season home series this week against the highly-ranked Oregon Ducks. The series between the Ducks and your Wildcats will begin this Thursday, May 7 at 7:00 p.m. Thursday will be Super Hero Night, and the first 500 fans will receive an Arizona cape and mask. The action continues on Friday, May 8 at 4:00 p.m. and will also be Senior Day at Hillenbrand! The Cats wrap up the series on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. Click HERE to buy your tickets today.
CATS IN THE COMMUNITY
Arizona's student-athletes continue to be active in the community. Here is a sample of what they've done recently:
April 27 – Volleyball players visited Sunrise Middle School. Their appearance was targeted toward the young players on the school's volleyball teams. The Wildcats not only provided the teams with skills and drills to improve their game, but they also spoke about tips to balance sport and school.
April 27 – The softball team went to Diamond Children's Medical Center and visited their Wildcat fans. They enjoyed bringing smiles to the patients and their families.
April 29 – Volleyball players visited Orange Grove Middle School and their girls volleyball teams. As with previous visits, the Wildcats shared their passion for the sport and provided insight into technique and drills to help young players improve their volleyball skills. (See image)
April 30 – The men's basketball team visited Wildcat patients at Diamond Children's Medical Center. They enjoyed bringing smiles to the patients and their families.
May 1 – Men's golf student-athletes spoke to the first graders of Los Amigos Elementary before their tour of the Arizona Athletic Facilities. They spoke on their experience as student-athletes and answered questions from the students.
May 2 – Women from the swimming and diving teams cheered for participants and signed autographs at the Mayflower Swim Meet in Oro Valley.
Our student-athletes are looking to continue volunteering in the Tucson Community. If you know of a non-profit that would benefit from the helping hands of our student-athletes, please let us know by submitting an online request by clicking HERE. We won't be able to fulfill every request, but we try to get to as many as we can.
TWITTER TRIVIA
Congrats to Matt Brokenshire (@sharkybuffett) for answering the last question correctly. Here was the last edition:
Q: How many collegiate records do University of Arizona track and field athletes currently hold?
A: Four. Brigetta Barrett (Outdoor HJ), Meg Ritchie (Discus), Lawi Lalang (Indoor Mile, 5K)
With women's golf headed to the NCAA Regional, here is this week's question:
Q: How many national championships has Arizona women's golf won and in what years did they win them?
In order to be eligible for the weekly prize, you must respond with your answer by tweeting to me @Greg_Byrne using the hashtag #ByrneTwitterTrivia. We'll choose a winner randomly out of the group that answers the question correctly. Once you've won, you'll have to wait at least six months to win again, but that doesn't mean you can't play along. I really enjoy awarding prizes so good luck.
COMPLIANCE CORNER
With finals starting this week and the spring semester ending, we will soon be entering into the summer vacation period. During this time period, student-athletes in most sports are permitted to participate in competition while not representing the University of Arizona. Depending on an individual's sport, one could participate as an individual or on another amateur team, and potentially even win permissible amounts of prize money. It's a unique time of the year for a large number of student-athletes to break out of their normal routine while still engaging in competition with a wide variety of individuals.
ARIZONA NUGGETS
Softball's Chelsea Goodacre leads the nation with 79 RBI and Katiyana Mauga is tied for eighth with 66 … Women's Tennis will have three student-athletes competing at the NCAA Championships this month. Lauren Marker will compete in the singles draw, while the team of Briar Preston and Shayne Austin will play in the doubles draw … Former Women's Basketball great Ify Ibekwe helped lead Spar CityLift Uni Girona to the Spanish League Championship on April 23. She scored a game-high 22 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, while shooting 10-of-14 from the field in the title game … George Cunningham from Men's Golf was selected to play in the NCAA Regional as an individual. He will play in San Diego at The Farms Golf Club starting on May 14.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Here is a look at the upcoming events for Arizona Athletics (Home events in BOLD). All times are listed as Mountain Standard Time. To purchase tickets for home events, click here. To access live stats from your desktop or mobile device, visit ArizonaLiveStats.com.
Thursday
11:09 a.m.: Women's Golf at NCAA Regional (in South Bend, Ind.)
7:00 p.m.: Softball vs. Oregon (TV:Â Pac-12 Networks) (Radio: KTUC AM 1400)
Friday
TBD: Women's Golf at NCAA Regional (in South Bend, Ind.)
4:00 p.m.: Softball vs. Oregon (TV:Â Pac-12 Networks) (Radio: KTUC AM 1400)
7:30 p.m.: Baseball vs. Washington (TV:Â Pac-12 Networks) (Radio: Sports Radio 1290 AM)
Saturday
All Day: Track & Field at Pac-12 Multis Championships (in Los Angeles, Calif.)
TBD: Women's Golf at NCAA Regional (in South Bend, Ind.)
7:00 p.m.: Baseball vs. Washington (TV:Â Pac-12 Networks) (Radio: Sports Radio 1290 AM)
8:30 p.m.: Softball vs. Oregon (TV: ESPNU) (Radio: KTUC AM 1400)
Sunday
All Day: Track & Field at Pac-12 Multis Championships (in Los Angeles, Calif.)
6:00 p.m.: Baseball vs. Washington (TV:Â Pac-12 Networks) (Radio: Sports Radio 1290 AM)
Monday
No Events Scheduled
Tuesday
No Events Scheduled
Wednesday
No Events Scheduled
WEAR THE COLORS – SHARE THE PHOTOS
Thank you for wearing the colors and sharing your Arizona pride! If your photo submission did not make this week's edition of the Wildcat Wednesday, please check our "Wildcat Wednesday" album at facebook.com/ArizonaAthletics.
NOTE: Please submit photos for Wildcat Wednesday with an original email to uofaad@arizona.edu using the subject line 'Wildcat Wednesday photo.' Also, please ensure all submissions are clear and properly lit. We also ask that you identify everyone in the photo so we can highlight them accordingly.
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