After last week off, here's the first GOAZCATS.com War Room of 2011:
Basketball:
* We've had a lot of questions about the senior years of Arizona's three signees, Josiah Turner, Nick Johnson and Sidiki Johnson, so we caught up with UA associate head coach Archie Miller to get his thoughts on how the future Wildcats are playing.
To start, Archie is pleased with the play of five-star point guard Josiah Turner.
"Josiah just finished his Oaks Christian holiday tournament where, for the second year in a row, he's had a terrific outing," Miller said. "He played four games there and had a huge win over Price High School and had over 30 points with 9 or 10 assists.
"He's continued to have a really good senior year for his team and I think as they continue to move forward to January and February, he's really going to be in a position to win California State Player of the Year."
Miller says that the staff has made an effort to watch Turner, although they're only allowed a certain amount of evaluations per year, so they're trying to use them wisely.
"We're only allowed a certain amount of evaluations but we've been out to see him," Miller said. "Book (Richardson) was in L.A. over the holiday and he saw him play a few times there and he was terrific. We want to save as many days as we can for the state tournament."
Since the summer, Miller feels there's one area where Turner's game has really continued to improve.
"The thing he does the best is his passing," he said. "Sometimes a guy of his talent passing the ball doesn't get all the reaps and the rewards of an assist because high school teammates sometimes aren't up to speed as summer ball players and college when he gets to the next level. But he can really make people better and he has a unique ability to do that."
Nick Johnson's hot start to his high school season has been well-documented, and Miller has been keeping a close eye on how the combo guard has performed.
"Nick is off to a fabulous start," Miller said. "He was really on fire and I think that slowed a little bit but he had a huge game in Houston in front of about 10,000 people and on ESPN against Yates High School, which is obviously coached by Dondre Wise's father (Greg Wise), who had won 66 in a row.
"Nick was 8 of 8 from the floor for 24 points and 5 rebounds and he's really picked up a lot of momentum. He's on such a national schedule and they travel; the teams he's playing against and the competition are really at a high level. His team is obviously trying to win a national championship so it's great to have him there."
Several national analysts have made note of Nick Johnson's improvement over the summer, something that isn't lost on Miller.
"I think a lot of guys with his talent can stay the same with their athleticism, but I give a lot of credit to coach (Michael) Peck and some of those guys at Findlay. You see some of those guys that they're pumping out right now and they're having great success in college as freshmen in sophomores.
"Nick has really made some rapid improvement, not only in his overall game but he can really shoot the ball; he's got a niche in shooting it right now. Those guys do a tremendous job at Findlay and Nick has really benefited from being there."
That competition that Nick Johnson is facing game in and game out is something that Miller really thinks will prepare him for college.
"Nick, with his competitiveness and the way he's competing at Findlay, how they're trying to win, as well as the way they practice and play, he's in an unbelievable environment and he should really come to college and be ready," Miller said.
Out with a stress fracture in his foot has been Sidiki Johnson, who is making progress and should return to action soon.
"Sidiki I think just took the floor for the first time this week off his broken foot," Miller said. "From all we've heard, he has no soreness and no pain. I think he's really excited to get back. He was off to such a great start.
"Playing at Oak Hill, them being #1 in the country, I think he's really anxious to play but nervous about rushing it. He's just taking the floor now and I think he's targeting Jan. 15 as his first game back so we'll see how that goes. Sidiki is a really hard worker and I think he's going to be good for us."
While there's always a strength and conditioning adjustment for college freshmen, Miller feels that all three are going to be strong enough to make an impact immediately.
"Physically, all three of our guys will go against that first curve but believe me when I tell you, they'll be coming into college as physically gifted as some of the other guys in the country," Miller said.
Even though Miller is focused on getting UA's current squad to be as good as possible, he knows the program can use all three signees as soon as possible.
"I think we could use all those guys," Miller said. "Any of these guys coming in, we expect them to help. I think if you look at the improvement of some our freshmen that are sophomores now, it's just exciting to continue to add players that can help us."
* Angelo Chol visited North Carolina this past weekend, and told the UNC Rivals site, CarolinaBlue.com, that everything went well.
"I got to see how they really play and how they use their bigs," he said.
Other than that, Chol offered little details of the trip. He'll visit Arizona on Jan. 28 and Washington on Feb. 12 before his Feb. 17 decision.
We've heard that UA continues to do a good job with him, but his official visit to Tucson will be big.
It's important to note that Chol and his coaches are keeping this recruitment completely close to the vest and don't want to offer any hints publicly.
* I took a tour of the new Arizona locker room on Thursday, which is night and day from the Wildcats' previous locker room. It's not yet completed - the UA is still building a trophy case in the center of the room - but it should be one of the better locker rooms in the country.
Everything in the room is controlled by an iPad that's mounted on the wall. There's several speakers that make up a very high quality sound system and players can connect to it with their iPods.
Here's a few pics of the locker room, with the first one being where the glass trophy case will be:
Football:
* With the departure of offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator Bill Bedenbaugh, there's been plenty of speculation about where the Wildcats' offense goes from here.
UA hired former BYU offensive coordinator Robert Anae, although what his role beyond offensive line coach will be has been somewhat of a mystery.
Mike Stoops has kept his plans for the offense close to the vest and during a Tuesday press conference plans to announce exactly how the staff will look moving forward.
However, on Thursday KVOA sports director and my CatsCast partner Ryan Recker interviewedhttp://www.kvoa.com/player/?video_id=4275 UA athletic director Greg Byrne, who hinted that Anae and co-offensive coordinator Seth Littrell could be running the offense together.
"Robert will bring a lot to us offensively," Byrne said. "He's got a great background. He'll partner well with Seth Littrell with their spread offense background at Texas Tech. Robert also brings a tremendous recruiting base for us, especially in Hawaii where we need to make sure we're heavily involved.
"He's been a very good offensive line coach and obviously if you don't have an offensive line to work with, you're going to have a hard time succeeding. I feel very good about his ability to develop our young linemen."
Also of note from the interview, Byrne said he hopes Stoops is the coach to lead UA into the future.
"I certainly want Coach Stoops to be here for a long time," Byrne said. "I'm a big believer in stability within your coaching ranks.
"I think what you see in today's world is because of the instant communication and because of everything that's out there, when things don't go exactly as you want them to, people have forums and opportunities to voice their opinions and obviously when you're on the outside looking in you don't always know all of the details that are taking place.
"Coach Stoops has really elevated the program and raised the bar and we want to continue to raise that bar and we certainly want Coach Stoops to be the person doing that."
Byrne stressed the importance of the UA improving its facilities in order to be more competitive nationally.
"Facilities are a part of it, absolutely," Byrne said. "A lot of our peers have probably been a little more aggressive than we have as far as investing in their facilities and we're going to address that."
* On top of my interviewhttp://arizona.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1172671 with Bedenbaugh, I asked him his thoughts on the players he's leaving behind in the program.
His response:
"I think Mickey (Baucus) and Fabbians (Ebbele) have the chance to be unbelievable; as good as anyone I’ve ever coached. Trent Spurgeon has the talent; obviously he has to continue to get stronger and improve at everything, at toughness, those things.
"I think Carter (Lees) will be good, I think Kyle (Quinn) has the chance to be really good. He’s talented, he’s a smart kid, he’s passionate and wants to do well. I think the foundation is there, I think the experience isn’t exactly what you’d like it to be but the talent is there and I think those kids will develop and become really good players." (JG)
* Jason Scheer's weekly recruiting breakdown:
There has been some movement since the last War Room and most of it is not good news, so we will get right to it.
* Glendora (Calif.) Citrus Community College offensive lineman Jason Peacock http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=109167 has decided to go to Arkansas.
"I wanted to play for them ever since Darren McFadden was there," Peacock tells HawgSports.com. "I was looking at them, but I didn't have the opportunity then to play for them. Arkansas though has always been one of the schools I followed. I always wanted to play in the SEC too."
In the end, location played a major role for Peacock. Once he got legitimate offers from the SEC, it was somewhat of a foregone conclusion that he would wind up there because he is originally from Georgia.
Arizona was definitely the school to beat before that and Peacock actually told us that he was headed to Arizona once he sat down and talked to his parents, but that obviously was not the case.
* 6-foot-2, 190-pound Inglewood (Calif.) athlete Patrick Onwuasor http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=108482 continues to take his time through the recruiting process.
"I'm making (an official) trip up to Miami on the 21st of January," Onwuasor Onwuasor tells HuskersIllustrated.com, "and I'm holding a slot for an official to Washington on the 28th but I haven't locked that one in yet.
"I'm also going to go to Arizona State, probably on the 14th, for an unofficial visit."
Arizona is definitely still a player for Onwuasor and David Nichol is handling the recruitment.
Colorado will likely try to get involved now that Mike Tuiasosopo is there, so there is plenty of time left before Onwuasor makes a final decision.
* Chicago Simeon offensive lineman Chris Bryant http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=107605 has seen his possible future position coach at Arizona and head coach at Michigan leave.
While Rodriguez’s firing from Michigan is a much bigger deal than Bedenbaugh leaving, Bryant was planning to announce his decision later this month.
"I'm going to have a press conference to announce my college decision," Bryant tells EdgyTim.com. "It's going to be on January 21st at my school. It just seems like the best way to make my news known to everyone and the plan is to have it at my school on the 21st. I'm getting closer and closer to making a decision and I want to get this process soon."
Bryant’s decision will likely come down to Michigan and Arizona, although an Ohio State offer still remains a possibility.
"I'm down to Michigan and Arizona and maybe Ohio State, but Ohio State is the only other school I'll consider making any more official visits to see,” he said. “I'm done with the visits but I'd consider visiting Ohio State if they offer.
“I just want to focus in on a few schools and then make my final choice from those schools. I made official visits to both Michigan and Arizona and I feel good about both schools and both programs."
Michigan was considered the favorite by many, but it will be interesting to see how Bryant reacts to a change in head coaches.
* San Diego Point Loma defensive tackle Christian Heyward http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=107605 is getting into the thick of things with his recruitment.
"I've been to U of A and USC so far," he tells Rivals.com. "I liked the atmosphere at USC. The coaching and everything over there is good too. Arizona was good too. They have a good environment there.
"I'm going to use my other three visits to go to UCLA (Jan. 14), Oregon (Jan. 21) and San Diego State (Jan. 28).”
Sources say that San Diego State has made a major push and could actually be the favorite now. However, should Brady Hoke leave to Michigan, that would likely change.
* Cornerback Tamani Carter http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=107605 is visiting Minnesota and will likely have a decision soon.
"I have been to Arizona on an official visit about a month ago,” he tells GopherIllustrated.com. “I had a good time on that trip, it was good. If I like things at Minnesota I will probably take an official visit there. If I really feel comfortable at Minnesota then there is a chance that I could commit this week.
“It really just depends on how I feel about the coaches and the school. Right now I am down to pretty much just Minnesota and Arizona, those are the two schools I am really concentrating on."
Our guess is that Carter winds up at Minnesota. Ever since we started talking to him, there has been pressure for Carter to stay close to home and the assumption here is that the pressure will win out.
* Days after telling us that he was solid to Arizona, Ezekiel Bishop http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=113486 is having second thoughts.
Arizona State was in Bishop’s house Tuesday night and it appears he is now considering the Sun Devils.
"They most definitely did make a big impression because the head coach came into my living room and the head coach at Arizona, Mike Stoops, hasn't come to see me yet so that says a lot right there," Bishop said.
"It's a big deal when a head coach comes down and sits in your living room. It was just a blessing. I appreciated him coming just to listen to him talk about their program. It was a very good experience."
The UA coaching staff is going to need to do some work in order to keep Bishop. If it does, the guess is that he stays with Arizona but, if not, all bets are off.
This post was edited on 1/7 10:14 AM by Jason_Scheer
This post was edited on 1/7 1:33 PM by Josh Gershon
Basketball:
* We've had a lot of questions about the senior years of Arizona's three signees, Josiah Turner, Nick Johnson and Sidiki Johnson, so we caught up with UA associate head coach Archie Miller to get his thoughts on how the future Wildcats are playing.
To start, Archie is pleased with the play of five-star point guard Josiah Turner.
"Josiah just finished his Oaks Christian holiday tournament where, for the second year in a row, he's had a terrific outing," Miller said. "He played four games there and had a huge win over Price High School and had over 30 points with 9 or 10 assists.
"He's continued to have a really good senior year for his team and I think as they continue to move forward to January and February, he's really going to be in a position to win California State Player of the Year."
Miller says that the staff has made an effort to watch Turner, although they're only allowed a certain amount of evaluations per year, so they're trying to use them wisely.
"We're only allowed a certain amount of evaluations but we've been out to see him," Miller said. "Book (Richardson) was in L.A. over the holiday and he saw him play a few times there and he was terrific. We want to save as many days as we can for the state tournament."
Since the summer, Miller feels there's one area where Turner's game has really continued to improve.
"The thing he does the best is his passing," he said. "Sometimes a guy of his talent passing the ball doesn't get all the reaps and the rewards of an assist because high school teammates sometimes aren't up to speed as summer ball players and college when he gets to the next level. But he can really make people better and he has a unique ability to do that."
Nick Johnson's hot start to his high school season has been well-documented, and Miller has been keeping a close eye on how the combo guard has performed.
"Nick is off to a fabulous start," Miller said. "He was really on fire and I think that slowed a little bit but he had a huge game in Houston in front of about 10,000 people and on ESPN against Yates High School, which is obviously coached by Dondre Wise's father (Greg Wise), who had won 66 in a row.
"Nick was 8 of 8 from the floor for 24 points and 5 rebounds and he's really picked up a lot of momentum. He's on such a national schedule and they travel; the teams he's playing against and the competition are really at a high level. His team is obviously trying to win a national championship so it's great to have him there."
Several national analysts have made note of Nick Johnson's improvement over the summer, something that isn't lost on Miller.
"I think a lot of guys with his talent can stay the same with their athleticism, but I give a lot of credit to coach (Michael) Peck and some of those guys at Findlay. You see some of those guys that they're pumping out right now and they're having great success in college as freshmen in sophomores.
"Nick has really made some rapid improvement, not only in his overall game but he can really shoot the ball; he's got a niche in shooting it right now. Those guys do a tremendous job at Findlay and Nick has really benefited from being there."
That competition that Nick Johnson is facing game in and game out is something that Miller really thinks will prepare him for college.
"Nick, with his competitiveness and the way he's competing at Findlay, how they're trying to win, as well as the way they practice and play, he's in an unbelievable environment and he should really come to college and be ready," Miller said.
Out with a stress fracture in his foot has been Sidiki Johnson, who is making progress and should return to action soon.
"Sidiki I think just took the floor for the first time this week off his broken foot," Miller said. "From all we've heard, he has no soreness and no pain. I think he's really excited to get back. He was off to such a great start.
"Playing at Oak Hill, them being #1 in the country, I think he's really anxious to play but nervous about rushing it. He's just taking the floor now and I think he's targeting Jan. 15 as his first game back so we'll see how that goes. Sidiki is a really hard worker and I think he's going to be good for us."
While there's always a strength and conditioning adjustment for college freshmen, Miller feels that all three are going to be strong enough to make an impact immediately.
"Physically, all three of our guys will go against that first curve but believe me when I tell you, they'll be coming into college as physically gifted as some of the other guys in the country," Miller said.
Even though Miller is focused on getting UA's current squad to be as good as possible, he knows the program can use all three signees as soon as possible.
"I think we could use all those guys," Miller said. "Any of these guys coming in, we expect them to help. I think if you look at the improvement of some our freshmen that are sophomores now, it's just exciting to continue to add players that can help us."
* Angelo Chol visited North Carolina this past weekend, and told the UNC Rivals site, CarolinaBlue.com, that everything went well.
"I got to see how they really play and how they use their bigs," he said.
Other than that, Chol offered little details of the trip. He'll visit Arizona on Jan. 28 and Washington on Feb. 12 before his Feb. 17 decision.
We've heard that UA continues to do a good job with him, but his official visit to Tucson will be big.
It's important to note that Chol and his coaches are keeping this recruitment completely close to the vest and don't want to offer any hints publicly.
* I took a tour of the new Arizona locker room on Thursday, which is night and day from the Wildcats' previous locker room. It's not yet completed - the UA is still building a trophy case in the center of the room - but it should be one of the better locker rooms in the country.
Everything in the room is controlled by an iPad that's mounted on the wall. There's several speakers that make up a very high quality sound system and players can connect to it with their iPods.
Here's a few pics of the locker room, with the first one being where the glass trophy case will be:
Football:
* With the departure of offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator Bill Bedenbaugh, there's been plenty of speculation about where the Wildcats' offense goes from here.
UA hired former BYU offensive coordinator Robert Anae, although what his role beyond offensive line coach will be has been somewhat of a mystery.
Mike Stoops has kept his plans for the offense close to the vest and during a Tuesday press conference plans to announce exactly how the staff will look moving forward.
However, on Thursday KVOA sports director and my CatsCast partner Ryan Recker interviewedhttp://www.kvoa.com/player/?video_id=4275 UA athletic director Greg Byrne, who hinted that Anae and co-offensive coordinator Seth Littrell could be running the offense together.
"Robert will bring a lot to us offensively," Byrne said. "He's got a great background. He'll partner well with Seth Littrell with their spread offense background at Texas Tech. Robert also brings a tremendous recruiting base for us, especially in Hawaii where we need to make sure we're heavily involved.
"He's been a very good offensive line coach and obviously if you don't have an offensive line to work with, you're going to have a hard time succeeding. I feel very good about his ability to develop our young linemen."
Also of note from the interview, Byrne said he hopes Stoops is the coach to lead UA into the future.
"I certainly want Coach Stoops to be here for a long time," Byrne said. "I'm a big believer in stability within your coaching ranks.
"I think what you see in today's world is because of the instant communication and because of everything that's out there, when things don't go exactly as you want them to, people have forums and opportunities to voice their opinions and obviously when you're on the outside looking in you don't always know all of the details that are taking place.
"Coach Stoops has really elevated the program and raised the bar and we want to continue to raise that bar and we certainly want Coach Stoops to be the person doing that."
Byrne stressed the importance of the UA improving its facilities in order to be more competitive nationally.
"Facilities are a part of it, absolutely," Byrne said. "A lot of our peers have probably been a little more aggressive than we have as far as investing in their facilities and we're going to address that."
* On top of my interviewhttp://arizona.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1172671 with Bedenbaugh, I asked him his thoughts on the players he's leaving behind in the program.
His response:
"I think Mickey (Baucus) and Fabbians (Ebbele) have the chance to be unbelievable; as good as anyone I’ve ever coached. Trent Spurgeon has the talent; obviously he has to continue to get stronger and improve at everything, at toughness, those things.
"I think Carter (Lees) will be good, I think Kyle (Quinn) has the chance to be really good. He’s talented, he’s a smart kid, he’s passionate and wants to do well. I think the foundation is there, I think the experience isn’t exactly what you’d like it to be but the talent is there and I think those kids will develop and become really good players." (JG)
* Jason Scheer's weekly recruiting breakdown:
There has been some movement since the last War Room and most of it is not good news, so we will get right to it.
* Glendora (Calif.) Citrus Community College offensive lineman Jason Peacock http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=109167 has decided to go to Arkansas.
"I wanted to play for them ever since Darren McFadden was there," Peacock tells HawgSports.com. "I was looking at them, but I didn't have the opportunity then to play for them. Arkansas though has always been one of the schools I followed. I always wanted to play in the SEC too."
In the end, location played a major role for Peacock. Once he got legitimate offers from the SEC, it was somewhat of a foregone conclusion that he would wind up there because he is originally from Georgia.
Arizona was definitely the school to beat before that and Peacock actually told us that he was headed to Arizona once he sat down and talked to his parents, but that obviously was not the case.
* 6-foot-2, 190-pound Inglewood (Calif.) athlete Patrick Onwuasor http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=108482 continues to take his time through the recruiting process.
"I'm making (an official) trip up to Miami on the 21st of January," Onwuasor Onwuasor tells HuskersIllustrated.com, "and I'm holding a slot for an official to Washington on the 28th but I haven't locked that one in yet.
"I'm also going to go to Arizona State, probably on the 14th, for an unofficial visit."
Arizona is definitely still a player for Onwuasor and David Nichol is handling the recruitment.
Colorado will likely try to get involved now that Mike Tuiasosopo is there, so there is plenty of time left before Onwuasor makes a final decision.
* Chicago Simeon offensive lineman Chris Bryant http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=107605 has seen his possible future position coach at Arizona and head coach at Michigan leave.
While Rodriguez’s firing from Michigan is a much bigger deal than Bedenbaugh leaving, Bryant was planning to announce his decision later this month.
"I'm going to have a press conference to announce my college decision," Bryant tells EdgyTim.com. "It's going to be on January 21st at my school. It just seems like the best way to make my news known to everyone and the plan is to have it at my school on the 21st. I'm getting closer and closer to making a decision and I want to get this process soon."
Bryant’s decision will likely come down to Michigan and Arizona, although an Ohio State offer still remains a possibility.
"I'm down to Michigan and Arizona and maybe Ohio State, but Ohio State is the only other school I'll consider making any more official visits to see,” he said. “I'm done with the visits but I'd consider visiting Ohio State if they offer.
“I just want to focus in on a few schools and then make my final choice from those schools. I made official visits to both Michigan and Arizona and I feel good about both schools and both programs."
Michigan was considered the favorite by many, but it will be interesting to see how Bryant reacts to a change in head coaches.
* San Diego Point Loma defensive tackle Christian Heyward http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=107605 is getting into the thick of things with his recruitment.
"I've been to U of A and USC so far," he tells Rivals.com. "I liked the atmosphere at USC. The coaching and everything over there is good too. Arizona was good too. They have a good environment there.
"I'm going to use my other three visits to go to UCLA (Jan. 14), Oregon (Jan. 21) and San Diego State (Jan. 28).”
Sources say that San Diego State has made a major push and could actually be the favorite now. However, should Brady Hoke leave to Michigan, that would likely change.
* Cornerback Tamani Carter http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=107605 is visiting Minnesota and will likely have a decision soon.
"I have been to Arizona on an official visit about a month ago,” he tells GopherIllustrated.com. “I had a good time on that trip, it was good. If I like things at Minnesota I will probably take an official visit there. If I really feel comfortable at Minnesota then there is a chance that I could commit this week.
“It really just depends on how I feel about the coaches and the school. Right now I am down to pretty much just Minnesota and Arizona, those are the two schools I am really concentrating on."
Our guess is that Carter winds up at Minnesota. Ever since we started talking to him, there has been pressure for Carter to stay close to home and the assumption here is that the pressure will win out.
* Days after telling us that he was solid to Arizona, Ezekiel Bishop http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=113486 is having second thoughts.
Arizona State was in Bishop’s house Tuesday night and it appears he is now considering the Sun Devils.
"They most definitely did make a big impression because the head coach came into my living room and the head coach at Arizona, Mike Stoops, hasn't come to see me yet so that says a lot right there," Bishop said.
"It's a big deal when a head coach comes down and sits in your living room. It was just a blessing. I appreciated him coming just to listen to him talk about their program. It was a very good experience."
The UA coaching staff is going to need to do some work in order to keep Bishop. If it does, the guess is that he stays with Arizona but, if not, all bets are off.
This post was edited on 1/7 10:14 AM by Jason_Scheer
This post was edited on 1/7 1:33 PM by Josh Gershon
