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A LOOK BACK AT THE NCAA CONVENTION
Last week, intercollegiate athletics department representatives from around the country descended upon Washington, D.C. for what many felt would be one of the most important NCAA Conventions in some time. I was looking forward to the discussions on a number of different topics as we work collectively to try and ensure that college athletics is headed in the right direction.
Notably, this was the first convention that included an autonomy session, where representatives of the Pac-12, Big 12, Atlantic Coast, Big Ten and Southeastern conferences could address issues that directly affect their departments and student-athletes. Proposals on cost-of-attendance measures, four-year guaranteed scholarships, concussion protocols, and the ability for student-athletes to purchase loss-of-value insurance were passed during the session.
In addition, student-athletes were involved in the voting process for the first time. There were 80 total votes, 65 representing each school in the ‘Power 5’ conferences and 15 student-athletes from those conferences. With such varying opinions on these topics, it was great to have the student-athletes perspective involved in the decision-making process.
For instance, many believed that the four-year guaranteed scholarship proposal was one that everyone wanted unanimously, including the student-athletes, yet some student-athlete representatives spoke out against the proposal at the convention. Some were shocked by this but I wasn’t. I learned from our Student-Athlete Advisory Committee that a lot of student-athletes were against this idea. They actually voted against it 18-2 here on campus. It wasn’t a major concern for our group because we don’t make it a practice to run student-athletes off based on performance, but those that voted against it felt like their coaches should have the flexibility to remove someone from the roster if it was warranted (Note: We are still able to remove a student-athlete for non-athletic reasons such as academics, student conduct, etc.).
With so much information and rhetoric floating around, it’s important to point out that a lot of smart people have different opinions on how we should move forward. There are plenty who believe the collegiate model should be completely revamped, those that think the model needs a little tweaking and those who think we may already be going too far. Take this quote from Wake Forest President Nathan Hatch, the former chair of the NCAA Board of Directors, to the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Brad Wolverton on student-athletes, “There may be places where they are exploited. But, it’s almost a problem that they have too much privilege….” There is an interesting conversation to be had based on those two sentences alone.
Regardless of opinions, it’s clear that college athletics is evolving and the NCAA Convention only reinforced that. There was great discussion with varying ideas and suggestions on how we can provide student-athletes with the best possible experience on our campuses, which is critically important as we move through this process.
RED AND WHITE STRIPE NIGHT AT MCKALE
As men’s basketball hits the road to the Bay Area this weekend, we wanted to remind you that we return home to play Oregon on Wednesday, Jan. 28 and Oregon State on Friday, Jan. 30. The Oregon State game on Jan. 30 will be a Red and White Stripe game with each of you wearing a different color based off of the map below. We had a lot of success with this a few years ago and are excited to try this out again. Just find your seat section and wear the color associated with that section. You can also view the color out map on our website by clicking HERE.
TEMPE TAKEOVER
Our friends at Bon Voyage Travel have put together a bus trip for fans to travel from Tucson to Tempe for the Feb. 7 men’s basketball game against our rivals up north. Packages start at $68 per person and there are a limited amount of game tickets available. Snacks and refreshments are included. For more information or to make a reservation, call (520) 797-CATS. You can also book online by clicking HERE.
MEET THE TEAM DATE SET FOR BASEBALL
Spring is almost here and that means the baseball team is gearing up for the 2015 season. The annual Meet the Team day has been set for Saturday, Feb. 7 with an 11 a.m. first pitch. Join us at Hi Corbett for a team scrimmage that will include special fan experience prizes throughout the day. Following the scrimmage there will also be an autograph session. The Meet the Team event is free to all fans. Season tickets are still available and start at $115 or just over $3 per game with 36 home games on the schedule. Click HERE to purchase your tickets today.
BIG WEEKEND FOR SWIMMING AND DIVING
The men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams will open Pac-12 competition this weekend at the Hillenbrand Aquatics Center. The Wildcats will face Stanford on Friday at 2 p.m. and then take on California on Saturday at 11:20 a.m. Both Cal and UA feature multiple Olympians, including the Golden Bears’ Missy Franklin, who made a big splash at the 2012 Summer Olympics. As always, admission to our home swimming and diving meets is free. Hope to see you out there.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL WEEKEND HOMESTAND
The women’s basketball team will host Oregon State and Oregon this weekend as they continue Pac-12 conference play. The Cats face nationally ranked Oregon State this Friday at 8 p.m. for Social Media Night, which will include fun games and prize giveaways over social media. On Sunday, the team will face the Oregon Ducks in our Hoops for Troops game, honoring local military. The first 500 fans will receive a UA camo cooler. The game starts at 1 p.m. ClickHERE for tickets to either game.
A-CLUB LETTERWINNER SPOTLIGHT
Rob Gronkowski aka ‘Gronk’ left Arizona as the all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards by a tight end. After his second round selection in the 2010 NFL draft, Rob has been one of the league’s best at his positon. In 2011, his second season, Rob set an NFL record for touchdowns and receiving yards by a tight end. Also, in 2011, he became the first TE to lead the NFL in touchdown receptions. With the exception of the 2013 season, which was shortened by injury, Rob has caught at least 10 touchdown passes, making him the only NFL tight end to have four seasons with 10 TDs. Arizona Athletics is proud to recognize ‘Gronk’ for all of his accomplishments and we want to wish him good luck as the Patriots take on the Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX.
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:
Jan. 10 – Women’s tennis volunteered with Habitat for Humanity. Players and coaches helped construct homes for those in need in the Tucson community. The ladies went to work nailing boards, painting homes and picking up trash.
Jan. 13 – Women’s tennis visited fifth graders at Pueblo Gardens School. As part of the Cats in the Community program, the team is building a semester long relationship with the teachers and students. This quarter, the team discussed the importance of academics and balancing school with extracurricular activities.
Jan. 14 – Student-athletes from men’s track and field visited seventh graders at Pueblo Gardens School. The relationship with these students and teachers is also part of the Cats in the Community program. The men introduced themselves and spoke on the importance of academics.
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 Tuchi (@Benezdaddy) for answering the last question correctly. Here was the last edition:
Q: What year was head women’s tennis coach Vicky Maes named Pac-10 Player of the Year?
A: 1996
With men’s golf hosting the Arizona Intercollegiate at Sewailo Golf Club next week, here is this week’s question:
Q: What men’s golfer holds the Arizona record for career scoring average?
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
We wanted to use the compliance corner this week to introduce you to our new Associate A.D. for Compliance Kevin Sergent. Many of you knew our previous compliance head, Gretchen Bouton, who left to take a senior position on our friend Chris Del Conte’s staff at TCU. Kevin came to us from USC, where he spent seven years overseeing the day-to-day compliance operations for football and was instrumental in guiding the Trojans through NCAA sanctions. He also has athletics department experience in ticketing and academics.
When performing our search to replace Gretchen, we reviewed a number of qualified candidates and we felt Kevin’s combination of experience and knowledge of the Pac-12 Conference, among other qualities, would make him an excellent addition to our staff. Welcome aboard Kevin and we’re happy to have you as a part of our Wildcat family.
ARIZONA NUGGETS
Softball returns 95 of its NCAA-best 109 home runs from a season ago. The 95 homers would still have led the country last year … Stanley Johnson from Men’s Basketball was named NCAA.com’s National Player of the Week and the Wayman Tisdale National Freshman of the Week for his performances against Colorado and Utah … Lauren Marker from Women’s Tennis finished 3-2 at the National Collegiate Tennis Classic in Palm Springs, Calif. … Baseball will officially begin practice on Friday, Jan. 23.
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
7:00 p.m.: Men’s Basketball at Stanford (TV: ESPN2) (Radio: TuneIn)
Friday
2:00 p.m.: Swimming & Diving vs. Stanford
8:00 p.m.: Women’s Basketball vs. Oregon St. (TV: Pac-12 Networks) (Radio: KTUC AM 1400)
Saturday
10:00 a.m.: Track & Field at Lobo Collegiate Open (in Albuquerque, N.M.)
11:20 a.m.: Swimming & Diving vs. California (TV: Pac-12 Networks at Noon)
12:00 p.m.: Men’s Tennis vs. UC Riverside
12:00 p.m.: Women’s Tennis vs. New Mexico St.
5:00 p.m.: Gymnastics at Washington
8:30 p.m.: Men’s Basketball at California (TV: Pac-12 Networks) (Radio: TuneIn)
Sunday
1:00 p.m.: Women’s Basketball vs. Oregon (Live Stream) (Radio: KTUC AM 1400)
Monday
8:00 a.m.: Men’s Golf hosts Arizona Intercollegiate (at Sewailo Golf Club)
Tuesday
8:00 a.m.: Men’s Golf hosts Arizona Intercollegiate (at Sewailo Golf Club)
Wednesday
8:00 p.m.: Men’s Basketball vs. Oregon (TV: Pac-12 Networks) (Radio: TuneIn)
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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