NEW STUDENT-ATHLETE WELFARE INITIATIVES PASSED
Last week, a few of us from the athletics department attended the NCAA Convention and took part in the autonomy session, which consists of representatives from Power 5 schools (Pac-12, ACC, Big 10, Big 12, SEC), to discuss time demands of student-athletes around the country. The focus was to ensure student-athletes are both successful in athletics and in academics. The five conferences voted on NCAA legislation that will allow more rest and recovery in their sport, along with allowing additional time to pursue internship opportunities, study abroad opportunities and academic initiatives.
As a way to take advantage of this new legislation, we will be working with our student-athletes at the beginning of each year to establish an athletics schedule. We want them to be aware of the time demands and be able to use the schedule to identify and pursue opportunities outside of athletics.
Previously, the Autonomy Five focused on guaranteed athletic scholarships and ensuring that athletic scholarships would not be cancelled for an athletics reason. They also voted to provide student-athletes full cost of attendance to attend their schools, including the University of Arizona.
Our Commitment to an Athlete's Total Success (C.A.T.S.) can be seen throughout our department, from our academic program to our life skills curriculum. We fully support these initiatives and will continue to do everything we can to develop our student-athletes athletically, academically and socially.
RENEWAL CAMPAIGN COMING UP
Our renewal campaign for 2017 football season tickets and 2017-18 Wildcat Club donations (including men's basketball priority seating) will launch this Saturday. If you're a football season ticket holder or Wildcat Club member, expect an email on Saturday with instructions on how to renew. Our football season ticket holders will receive a special PURL (personalized URL), which will provide a simplified presentation of your account information. Wildcat Club members will also receive a PURL at a later date.
Our football season ticket holders and Wildcat Club members are the lifeblood of our athletics program in regards to providing the resources our teams need to compete on the field and excel in the classroom. We thank you for your outstanding support in the past and encourage you to renew for our exciting future.
RELEASE OF JOINT SLEEP STUDY FINDINGS
If you recall, we informed you last year about a joint sleep study being conducted by Dr. Michael Grandner, the director of the UA's Sleep Health Research Center, and our very own Dr. Amy Athey, who leads our sport psychology services. Last week, they presented their findings at the NCAA Convention in Nashville and introduced Project REST, which stands for Recovery Enhancement and Sleep Training.
The pair surveyed 189 UA student-athletes and found that 68 percent said their sleep quality was poor, while a number stated they weren't getting the recommended eight or more hours of sleep. Because poor sleep can impact student-athletes physically and mentally, the research team developed Project REST to positively impact sleeping habits.
Forty student-athletes were involved in the initial intervention program, which included a two-hour education and Q&A session to cover the importance of good sleep and tips for improving sleep. The participants tracked their sleeping habits over a 10-week period, while utilizing 24/7 support, reminders on the study, tips for healthy sleep and sleep facts.
At the conclusion of the 10-week period, an overwhelming majority of participants reported getting better sleep, which had a positive effect on their performance and ability to focus, while minimizing stress.
Dr. Grandner and Dr. Athey are hopeful both student-athletes and non-student-athletes can utilize this research. Sleeping habits are an issue for all college students and these resources can make a difference.
To learn more about the program, click HERE.
GET YOUR HOTEL ROOM FOR THE PAC-12 TOURNAMENT NOW
The Pac-12 Men's Basketball Tournament is right around the corner and we want to share some information with you to assist in your travel plans. There happens to be one of the larger conventions taking place at the same time as the tournament (March 8-11), so we recommend booking your hotel rooms as soon as possible.
To assist with this, the Pac-12 has created a link for fans to search options at MGM properties. The rates will vary based on hotel and time of booking. To utilize this option, click HERE.
You can also contact our excellent travel partners Bon Voyage Travel for your hotel needs by calling (520) 797-CATS.
We're looking forward to seeing you as we, once again, show why Vegas is Wildcat Country.
REGISTRATION CONTINUES FOR FOOTBALL SIGNING DAY CELEBRATION
National Signing Day for football is just a week away. There is still time to purchase tickets for our Football Signing Day Celebration held Feb. 1 at 6 p.m. in the Sands Club. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. For more information or to purchase tickets, click HERE. You can also purchase tickets by calling the McKale Ticket Office at (520) 621-2287.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL BUS TRIP TO ASU
The deadline to reserve a spot on the ASU Bus Trip is Friday, Feb. 10. Come watch the women's basketball team on the road when they take on Arizona State in Tempe on Sunday, Feb. 19 at 4 p.m. The cost is $55 per person, which includes a seat to and from Tempe, plus food and a general admission ticket to the game. To reserve your seat or for more information, call (520) 797-CATS or click HERE.
HOME OPENER FOR WOMEN'S TENNIS
Head coach Vicky Maes and the women's tennis team open the 2017 spring season with a doubleheader this Saturday. The Wildcats will play Northern Arizona at 10 a.m. followed by a match vs. Grand Canyon at 2 p.m. All home tennis matches are played at the Robson Tennis Center, located on campus, just east of Hillenbrand Stadium. Admission to home tennis matches is always free.
CATS IN THE COMMUNITY
Our Wildcats are currently participating in the Cats Give Back effort that takes place each January. This effort gets 100% of our teams committed to volunteering in the local community. Team visits include speaking to Cub Scouts, helping American Red Cross, packing food with Feed My Starving Children, visiting schools and having fun at the Boys and Girls Club just to name a few. The most recent team event had gymnastics visiting patients at Tucson Medical Center. They passed out Journey Journals to the patients in the Pediatric Department.
With the help of Tucson-Taichung Taiwan Sister City Association, the Taiwan Little League Championship team was able to visit Hi Corbett Field. During their visit, they were able to hear what life is like in the United States as a student-athlete from a few of the baseball players.
Members of the soccer program volunteered at the Soccer Olympics. They helped run dribbling relays, worked with participants and signed autographs for those in attendance.
Additionally, between practice, competition and schoolwork, some of our student-athletes volunteer on an on-going basis. GymCat Krysten Howard volunteers weekly with Therapuetic Riding of Tucson (TROT). Baseball's Jared Oliva and Casey Bowman along with track and field's Avery Mickens also frequently volunteer at Doolen Middle School. Softball student-athlete Merrilee Miller also writes letters back and forth to soldiers overseas through Soldiers' Angels.
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. If you have any questions, please contact Natasha Harrison at naharris@arizona.edu.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
To view the list of upcoming events, broadcast information, start times and stat links, click HERE. (Note: All times are listed as Mountain Standard Time, i.e. Tucson time.)
To access live stats from your desktop or mobile device, visit ArizonaLiveStats.com.
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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