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On Tuesday we announced the retirement of head volleyball coach Dave Rubio after 31 seasons at the helm of our program. I want to congratulate Coach Rubio again on a terrific career at the University of Arizona and building Arizona Volleyball into a point of pride for the entire Wildcat Family. Dave had an iconic career at the helm of our program that put him among the winningest volleyball coaches in the history of the Pac-12 Conference and the NCAA.

The tributes to Coach Rubio from Wildcat greats, coaches and staff have been pouring in since Tuesday morning, and we have added them to ArizonaWildcats.com for fans and supporters to see. We look forward to recognizing Dave and his tremendous career during Saturday's men's basketball game versus UCLA.

On behalf of the Wildcat Family, I would like to thank Dave once again for 31 years of outstanding service. Bear Down Coach Rubio and enjoy retirement!

INTRODUCING HEAD COACH RITA STUBBS

Arizona Athletics is excited to announce the promotion of Rita Stubbs as Arizona Volleyball's next head coach. Rita was a volleyball student-athlete and spent nearly 20 years on Dave Rubio's coaching staff, playing an integral part of the program's decades of success. A nationally respected figure in college volleyball, Rita is an outstanding developer of elite talent with a tremendous vision for the program.

Coach Stubbs has a strong Wildcat pedigree and will continue to recruit and develop future generations of academic, athletic and life champions. I am excited to watch Arizona Volleyball continue to be a point of pride for the entire Wildcat Family under Rita's leadership. Bear Down and Go Cats!

 

BREAKING MORE ACADEMIC RECORDS

The meteoric rise of success in the classroom by Arizona student-athletes continued last semester as our athletics department posted its highest semester GPA and cumulative GPA ever. Wildcat student-athletes posted a 3.300 overall semester GPA in Fall 2022, which eclipsed the previous record high of 3.172 in Spring 2021.  The outstanding young men and women in our athletic programs have now posted a department GPA of 3.00 or higher in 10 consecutive semesters.

Developing student-athletes into academic, athletic and life champions is at the core of Arizona Athletics, and we are fulfilling this mission in record-breaking fashion. Hats off to all our student-athletes for achieving excellence in the classroom and for proudly representing this outstanding university. I would also like to recognize our dedicated C.A.T.S. Academics staff who support our student-athletes and dedicate themselves to the academic accomplishments of all Wildcats. 

UPCOMING EVENTS 

• Men's Basketball will be facing off against USC this Thursday, January 19th at 7:00 PM! Click here to purchase tickets!

• Swim and Dive has two meets this weekend! They will go up against California on Friday, January 20th, at 2:00 PM, and then Stanford on Saturday, January 21st at 11:00 AM. Admission is free!

• Gymnastics takes on California on Friday, January 20th at 7:00 PM. It's decades night, so get ready to hear your favorite tunes from the past! Click here to purchase tickets!

• Men's Basketball will be up against UCLA this Saturday, January 21st, at 12:00 PM. The game is officially sold out but tune into ABC at 12:00 PM. ESPN will also be having live coverage from McKale starting at 9:00 AM!

• Women's tennis will have two matches this Sunday, January 22nd. Their first match will be against Cal Poly at 11:00 AM, and their second match will be against GCU at 3:00 PM. Admission is free! 

WILDCAT HEADLINES 

• Arizona Football's 2023 Schedule was released on Wednesday.

• A quartet of Wildcat greats from Arizona Men's Basketball will be inducted into the Ring of Honor this season, beginning with the iconic Ernie McCray this Saturday during the UCLA game in McKale.

• Pac-12 Names Tennis Athlete Jonas Ziverts as Player of the Week.

• Arizona Gymnastics wins their home opener against Illinois, Texas Woman's, and Bowling Green with a score of 195.875. 

• Women's Swim and Dive bests Washington and NAU in their Tri-Meet!

• Arizona Soccer Midfielder/Defender Ilianna Hocking was drafted by NJ/NY Gotham FC.

• Offensive Lineman Jonah Savaiinaea Earns FWAA Freshman All American.

• Baseball and Softball Single Tickets and Packages will be available Monday!

• Arizona Footballs' signing day event is on Thursday, February 2nd at 6:00 PM. Reserve your spot today to hear more about the new 2023 recruiting class!

SHOW YOUR COLORS 

I saw that the 50th anniversary of the McKale arena is this year, 1973-2023. My grandfather, Fred A Enke coached in Bear Down Gym 1925-1961, before Bruce Larsen and  Fred Snowden. However, the Plaza in front of the McKale Center was made and dedicated in 1988 in honor of my Grandfather.

Here is a picture of Fred W Enke (Coach Enke's son, a 3 sport letterman at UA, my Dad,)  his wife Marjorie and us 4 kids at the Plaza dedication 1988.

Fred A Enke died in 1985, back then UA would not dedicate anything until the person had passed away. Other picture is of 2 great-grandchildren to Fred W Enke, and great-great grandchildren to Fred A Enke standing in front of their pics when inducted into the UA Sports Hall of fame inaugural class of 1976.

 

I love out UA heritage!  Denise Enke Cameron #3 Daughter

Send us your photos of you wearing the colors! 

Thank you for wearing the colors and sharing your Arizona pride! Make sure to take a picture the next time you are wearing the colors and send it to us, we just might include it in next week's Wildcat Wednesday! And even if your photo submission doesn't make  next week's edition, please check our "Wear the Colors" album at facebook.com/ArizonaAthletics on Fridays. 

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. 

Bear Down and Go Cats! 

Dave Heeke 

Vice President and Director of Athletics 

University of Arizona 

uofaad@arizona.edu