It's been an extremely slow news week for Arizona, but recent commitments in the Pac-10 impact UA basketball, and it is an important weekend for the football team on the field and in recruiting.
Basketball:
It couldn't have been a slower week for news as far as Arizona recruiting is concerned, but Thursday was a significant day for the future of the conference, with two major 2011 recruits making decisions.
First off, five-star shooting guard Jabari Brown chose Oregon over Arizona State, which came a day after four-star small forward Juan Anderson picked Marquette over ASU. Earlier in the week, ASU felt it led for both players, so these were two big blows for the Sun Devils' staff.
We've heard that Brown is looking for a place to score points so he can be a one and done, and while he may not win many games, Oregon is a good place for him to accomplish that.
The good news for Arizona is that even with Brown, the Ducks have a long way to go before they're a legitimate contender, whereas ASU did have the pieces to have a pretty good team if you added Brown to the roster.
An interesting note on Brown's recruitment is that we've heard one of Herb Sendek's main sales pitches to the prospect was how Brown would help the Sun Devils beat Arizona, which is strange considering UA hasn't recruited Brown for over a year.
Also on Thursday, Tony Wroten finally made the commitment he had been long expected to make, which was to Washington, giving the Huskies the 30th rated prospect in the class. Wroten is a nice addition to what has been an otherwise somewhat disappointing class to date for Washington.
So with Brown choosing Oregon and Wroten headed to Washington, here is how we would rank the Pac-10 recruiting classes to date. The number by any player's name is their ranking in the Rivals150.
1. Arizona:
#10 Josiah Turner, PG
#40 Nick Johnson, SG
#71 Sidiki Johnson, PF
Notes: There's a very significant difference between the first team on the list and everyone else. Angelo Chol committing would take this class to the next level nationally. As it stands, it would be a big surprise if anyone in the conference surpassed the Wildcats.
2. Oregon:
#22 Jabari Brown, SG
#125 Brett Kingma, PG
NR Bruce Barron, PG
NR Austin Kuemper, C
Notes: Brown will put up big points right away and probably keep Oregon out of the Pac-12 basement. Kingma is considered a good shooter that's still developing into a point guard. Oregon is hoping to land five-star center Norvel Pelle and wing Amir Garrett.
3. Washington:
#30 Tony Wroten, PG
#111 Hikeem Stewart, SG
NR Andrew Andrews, PG
NR Jernard Jarreau, PF
Notes: Wroten is a high risk, high reward prospect. There's some baggage but he has the ability to be a very good player, although he hasn't progressed as expected. Hikeem Stewart is the younger brother of Lodrick (USC) and Rodrick (USC/Kansas); he can shoot and could be a decent player in the Pac-10. Washington is still involved with Pelle and Chol.
4. Arizona State:
#35 Jahii Carson, PG
Notes: Carson can be a high level Pac-10 point guard if the ASU staff keeps its word and changes to an up-tempo offense. Deandre Daniels's ASU's only remaining recruit on the board.
5. UCLA:
#59 Norman Powell, SG
Notes: A disappointing class so far for UCLA, Powell reluctantly chose the Bruins over San Diego State. Ben Howland really needs a commitment from Quinn Cook, who is believed to be leaning towards Duke.
6. USC:
#137 Byron Wesley, SF
NR Alexis Moore, PG
NR James Blascyzk, C
NR Dewayne Dedmon, C
Notes: I'm not one to reward quantity over quality, although to be fair I haven't seen Dedmon and Blascyzk, who didn't get off the bench as a freshman for Texas A&M before going JUCO. Wesley could be a decent wing in the Pac-12 and Moore is an underrated point guard that has a chance to eventually get on the court. USC is still on Deandre Daniels.
7. Oregon State:
NR Daniel Gomis, PF
Note: Gomis is underrated. I watched him once in July and really like his upside.
8. California:
NR David Kravish, PF
9. Washington State:
NR Davonte Lazy, SG
10. Utah:
NR Will Clyburn, SF
11/12: Colorado, Stanford :
No 2011 commits
* On paper, how is the Pac-12 recruiting compared to the other BCS conferences? Here's the amount of Rivals100 players signed, per conference, with 5-stars in parentheses.
SEC: 18 (7)
Big East 13 (3)
ACC: 10 (3)
Pac-12: 10 (2)
Big Ten: 8 (1)
Big 12: 5 (1)
There are still 35 Rivals100 players who have yet to commit, so this list will significantly change before it's all said and done.
* Angelo Chol, who has already officially visited Alabama, now has four more trips set up:
Kansas: 10/16/10
North Carolina: 1/1/11
Arizona: 1/29/11
Washington: 2/12/11
Chol is Arizona's only real 2011 target right now, although theoretically the Wildcats could jump back in the Deandre Daniels race at some point. UA continues to do a very good job making up ground and is legitimately in the hunt for Chol.
* Arizona's coaching staff got some recruiting done this week. On Monday, Sean Miller and Book Richardson were in Houston to check out a couple five-star 2013 prospects in the Harrison twins.
That same day, Archie Miller saw 2013 Elk Grove (Calif.) Franklin shooting guard Ikenna Iroegbu. Archie was in Benicia (Calif.) for 2013 small forward Jabari Bird on Tuesday.
Football:
* Arizona will head into the Oregon State game healthy according to Mike Stoops. Taimi Tutogi was the only real question mark last week but he's expected to play.
* GOAZCATS.com's Inna Lazarev interviewedhttp://arizona.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1135516 UA co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Tim Kish this week. Not included in the posted video interview was Kish's thoughts about the progression of Stoops and his staff since first arriving to Tucson.
"Mike's been great," Kish said. "That's just part of the process. He was a first time head coach, we all were together for the first time, we all grew together and that's been the rewarding part about all of this.
"We've been able to go out and recruit the young men that we really wanted to be a part of this program and we feel like we've got the right personnel on board. The coaching staff, even though it's changed periodically, everyone is blending in well and that's a credit to Mike hiring people that all would work well together.
"It's an exciting thing to be a part of and we knew it wasn't going to happen overnight but the good news is it's starting to happen and we just want to keep raising the bar and see how good we can eventually get this program."
* Arizona will host five official visitors this weekend. Here's a rundown of four of them:
Jacob Fahrenkrughttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Jacob-Fahrenkrug-112224, OG:
The 6th ranked JUCO prospect in the country, Fahrenkrug has a final four of Arizona, Arkansas, Florida State and Auburn. He goes to the same school that Derek Earls went to. He's said in the past that the team's depth chart is important to him.
Christian Heywardhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Christian-Heyward-104599, DT:
The 165th ranked 2011 prospect in the country, Heyward is a big time prospect with offers from everyone in the west and several elite schools nationally. Arizona and UCLA are his two definite visits, with others up in the air. He was on Arizona's campus for an unofficial in July.
Rob Hankinshttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Rob-Hankins-87898, LB:
Hankins is committed to Arizona.
Joseph Carterhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Joseph-Carter-110584, DE:
Carter is committed to Arizona. (JG)
Jason Scheer's weekly recruiting breakdown:
* It looks as if the fact Arizona wants Rayshon Williams http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=90755 to play defense will cost it in his recruitment.
"As of right now if I had to pick a school right now it would be between Central Florida, Syracuse, and Arizona State," Williams tells CuseConfidential.com. "I do not know when I will decide, but maybe December or January. I am not really sure though."
Williams has been intent on playing on the offensive side of the ball and the Wildcats want him as a safety. At this point, unless something changes dramatically, we would not consider Williams to be a serious target.
* 5-foot-10, 195-pound San Jose Valley Christian running back Byron Marshall http://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Byron-Marshall-118317 will be one of the top backs in 2012.
He is the brother of ASU running back Cameron Marshall and will likely be more highly regarded coming out of high school.
"I'm pretty happy the way I'm playing so far," Marshall tells Rivals.com. "I feel like I'm playing hard but I also feel like I have a lot more in me. I'm not close to having my best game yet.
"I'm just taking my time and just letting everything happen. I'm looking at all my options right now. I'm not close to narrowing down any school I want to go to. I'm going to take my officials and I'm just going to take my time with it."
At this point, it is hard to see where the UA stands in the recruitment. However, it is pretty much a guarantee that the Wildcats will be going up against the majority of the Pac-10 to land a player of Marshall’s caliber.
* 6-foot-1, 210-pound Duncan (Okla.) linebacker Dominique Petties http://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Dominique-Petties-105395 is keeping his recruitment quiet, but his coach recently gave Rivals an update.
"OU, Oklahoma State, Arkansas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Missouri, Arizona and Tulsa," Jim Holloway tells PowerMizzou.com. "In no particular order."
Arizona has been on Petties for a while now and obviously is doing well in Oklahoma this year. Still, a true update on this recruitment is hard to come by. We have no reason to believe that the UA is not a legitimate option, but we will find out once he takes official visits after his senior season.
* Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro athlete Brock Hamanhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Brock-Haman-100959 has committed to Arkansas.
"It felt right," Haman tells Rivals.com. "It felt like it was the place to be for me. They've always been at the top of my list and I can see myself being there for the next four or five years."
Arizona finished second in the recruitment and was a very legitimate option for Haman. However, Arkansas is doing a solid job of recruiting Arizona this year and it seems to be paying off.
The original thought was that Haman was going to stay in state, but the pressure from others did not do much to change his mind and Arkansas won out.
"It was my decision and my parents told me they would support me wherever I went," Haman tells HawgSports.com. "The chance to stay closer to home was never a factor for me. The UA (Arizona) came in second, it was close and I loved both the UA and Oregon State. However, I think I will be just that much more happier at Arkansas."
* Arizona has initial interest in 6-foot-5, 304-pound Houston Westside offensive lineman athlete Germaine Ifedi http://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Germain-Ifedi-109365.
"I've been hearing from (Texas A&M), Texas Tech, Washington, Nebraska, TCU and Arizona," he tells AggieYell.com. "Tech and A&M seem to be pushing a little bit more."
Ifedi definitely likes Arizona and figuring an offer comes along, the Wildcats are going to be major players for the junior lineman.
* After visiting Arizona, 6-foot-4, 230-pound Corona (Calif.) defensive end DeVante Wilsonhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-DeVante-Wilson-97772 is taking the next step in his recruitment.
He is visiting Nebraska on October 16 and has two more visits in mind, as he works to get more offers.
"I'll probably take officials to Oregon and USC too,” he tells HuskersIllustrated.com. “Both of them have been talking to me and are getting pretty close to offering me."
Wilson is not claiming any public favorites, but said Arizona had a few things that stood out to him.
“Yes, the game did, and I liked the players and the coaches,” he said. “They were all pretty down to earth. I felt comfortable there, and that it could be my home."
* Arizona has offered 5-foot-11, 180-pound junior Thomas Johnsonhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Thomas-Johnson-110750.
Johnson is certainly going to be one of the top players in the country, as he has already has offers from Arizona, Auburn, Cal, Iowa, Miami, Texas A&M, and Purdue.
"I really never had a favorite team," he tells Rivals.com. "I always liked a couple of teams. If one team wasn't doing good, I'd go to the other team.
"I want to be recruited as a receiver, so I would want to go to a team that passes, so that's a big factor. Then proximity to home is a big factor too and then after that is coaching prestige, conference prestige and school prestige."
It is going to be a very difficult pull for the Wildcats, but the early start is a good idea from the UA coaching staff.
Basketball:
It couldn't have been a slower week for news as far as Arizona recruiting is concerned, but Thursday was a significant day for the future of the conference, with two major 2011 recruits making decisions.
First off, five-star shooting guard Jabari Brown chose Oregon over Arizona State, which came a day after four-star small forward Juan Anderson picked Marquette over ASU. Earlier in the week, ASU felt it led for both players, so these were two big blows for the Sun Devils' staff.
We've heard that Brown is looking for a place to score points so he can be a one and done, and while he may not win many games, Oregon is a good place for him to accomplish that.
The good news for Arizona is that even with Brown, the Ducks have a long way to go before they're a legitimate contender, whereas ASU did have the pieces to have a pretty good team if you added Brown to the roster.
An interesting note on Brown's recruitment is that we've heard one of Herb Sendek's main sales pitches to the prospect was how Brown would help the Sun Devils beat Arizona, which is strange considering UA hasn't recruited Brown for over a year.
Also on Thursday, Tony Wroten finally made the commitment he had been long expected to make, which was to Washington, giving the Huskies the 30th rated prospect in the class. Wroten is a nice addition to what has been an otherwise somewhat disappointing class to date for Washington.
So with Brown choosing Oregon and Wroten headed to Washington, here is how we would rank the Pac-10 recruiting classes to date. The number by any player's name is their ranking in the Rivals150.
1. Arizona:
#10 Josiah Turner, PG
#40 Nick Johnson, SG
#71 Sidiki Johnson, PF
Notes: There's a very significant difference between the first team on the list and everyone else. Angelo Chol committing would take this class to the next level nationally. As it stands, it would be a big surprise if anyone in the conference surpassed the Wildcats.
2. Oregon:
#22 Jabari Brown, SG
#125 Brett Kingma, PG
NR Bruce Barron, PG
NR Austin Kuemper, C
Notes: Brown will put up big points right away and probably keep Oregon out of the Pac-12 basement. Kingma is considered a good shooter that's still developing into a point guard. Oregon is hoping to land five-star center Norvel Pelle and wing Amir Garrett.
3. Washington:
#30 Tony Wroten, PG
#111 Hikeem Stewart, SG
NR Andrew Andrews, PG
NR Jernard Jarreau, PF
Notes: Wroten is a high risk, high reward prospect. There's some baggage but he has the ability to be a very good player, although he hasn't progressed as expected. Hikeem Stewart is the younger brother of Lodrick (USC) and Rodrick (USC/Kansas); he can shoot and could be a decent player in the Pac-10. Washington is still involved with Pelle and Chol.
4. Arizona State:
#35 Jahii Carson, PG
Notes: Carson can be a high level Pac-10 point guard if the ASU staff keeps its word and changes to an up-tempo offense. Deandre Daniels's ASU's only remaining recruit on the board.
5. UCLA:
#59 Norman Powell, SG
Notes: A disappointing class so far for UCLA, Powell reluctantly chose the Bruins over San Diego State. Ben Howland really needs a commitment from Quinn Cook, who is believed to be leaning towards Duke.
6. USC:
#137 Byron Wesley, SF
NR Alexis Moore, PG
NR James Blascyzk, C
NR Dewayne Dedmon, C
Notes: I'm not one to reward quantity over quality, although to be fair I haven't seen Dedmon and Blascyzk, who didn't get off the bench as a freshman for Texas A&M before going JUCO. Wesley could be a decent wing in the Pac-12 and Moore is an underrated point guard that has a chance to eventually get on the court. USC is still on Deandre Daniels.
7. Oregon State:
NR Daniel Gomis, PF
Note: Gomis is underrated. I watched him once in July and really like his upside.
8. California:
NR David Kravish, PF
9. Washington State:
NR Davonte Lazy, SG
10. Utah:
NR Will Clyburn, SF
11/12: Colorado, Stanford :
No 2011 commits
* On paper, how is the Pac-12 recruiting compared to the other BCS conferences? Here's the amount of Rivals100 players signed, per conference, with 5-stars in parentheses.
SEC: 18 (7)
Big East 13 (3)
ACC: 10 (3)
Pac-12: 10 (2)
Big Ten: 8 (1)
Big 12: 5 (1)
There are still 35 Rivals100 players who have yet to commit, so this list will significantly change before it's all said and done.
* Angelo Chol, who has already officially visited Alabama, now has four more trips set up:
Kansas: 10/16/10
North Carolina: 1/1/11
Arizona: 1/29/11
Washington: 2/12/11
Chol is Arizona's only real 2011 target right now, although theoretically the Wildcats could jump back in the Deandre Daniels race at some point. UA continues to do a very good job making up ground and is legitimately in the hunt for Chol.
* Arizona's coaching staff got some recruiting done this week. On Monday, Sean Miller and Book Richardson were in Houston to check out a couple five-star 2013 prospects in the Harrison twins.
That same day, Archie Miller saw 2013 Elk Grove (Calif.) Franklin shooting guard Ikenna Iroegbu. Archie was in Benicia (Calif.) for 2013 small forward Jabari Bird on Tuesday.
Football:
* Arizona will head into the Oregon State game healthy according to Mike Stoops. Taimi Tutogi was the only real question mark last week but he's expected to play.
* GOAZCATS.com's Inna Lazarev interviewedhttp://arizona.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1135516 UA co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Tim Kish this week. Not included in the posted video interview was Kish's thoughts about the progression of Stoops and his staff since first arriving to Tucson.
"Mike's been great," Kish said. "That's just part of the process. He was a first time head coach, we all were together for the first time, we all grew together and that's been the rewarding part about all of this.
"We've been able to go out and recruit the young men that we really wanted to be a part of this program and we feel like we've got the right personnel on board. The coaching staff, even though it's changed periodically, everyone is blending in well and that's a credit to Mike hiring people that all would work well together.
"It's an exciting thing to be a part of and we knew it wasn't going to happen overnight but the good news is it's starting to happen and we just want to keep raising the bar and see how good we can eventually get this program."
* Arizona will host five official visitors this weekend. Here's a rundown of four of them:
Jacob Fahrenkrughttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Jacob-Fahrenkrug-112224, OG:
The 6th ranked JUCO prospect in the country, Fahrenkrug has a final four of Arizona, Arkansas, Florida State and Auburn. He goes to the same school that Derek Earls went to. He's said in the past that the team's depth chart is important to him.
Christian Heywardhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Christian-Heyward-104599, DT:
The 165th ranked 2011 prospect in the country, Heyward is a big time prospect with offers from everyone in the west and several elite schools nationally. Arizona and UCLA are his two definite visits, with others up in the air. He was on Arizona's campus for an unofficial in July.
Rob Hankinshttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Rob-Hankins-87898, LB:
Hankins is committed to Arizona.
Joseph Carterhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Joseph-Carter-110584, DE:
Carter is committed to Arizona. (JG)
Jason Scheer's weekly recruiting breakdown:
* It looks as if the fact Arizona wants Rayshon Williams http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=90755 to play defense will cost it in his recruitment.
"As of right now if I had to pick a school right now it would be between Central Florida, Syracuse, and Arizona State," Williams tells CuseConfidential.com. "I do not know when I will decide, but maybe December or January. I am not really sure though."
Williams has been intent on playing on the offensive side of the ball and the Wildcats want him as a safety. At this point, unless something changes dramatically, we would not consider Williams to be a serious target.
* 5-foot-10, 195-pound San Jose Valley Christian running back Byron Marshall http://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Byron-Marshall-118317 will be one of the top backs in 2012.
He is the brother of ASU running back Cameron Marshall and will likely be more highly regarded coming out of high school.
"I'm pretty happy the way I'm playing so far," Marshall tells Rivals.com. "I feel like I'm playing hard but I also feel like I have a lot more in me. I'm not close to having my best game yet.
"I'm just taking my time and just letting everything happen. I'm looking at all my options right now. I'm not close to narrowing down any school I want to go to. I'm going to take my officials and I'm just going to take my time with it."
At this point, it is hard to see where the UA stands in the recruitment. However, it is pretty much a guarantee that the Wildcats will be going up against the majority of the Pac-10 to land a player of Marshall’s caliber.
* 6-foot-1, 210-pound Duncan (Okla.) linebacker Dominique Petties http://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Dominique-Petties-105395 is keeping his recruitment quiet, but his coach recently gave Rivals an update.
"OU, Oklahoma State, Arkansas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Missouri, Arizona and Tulsa," Jim Holloway tells PowerMizzou.com. "In no particular order."
Arizona has been on Petties for a while now and obviously is doing well in Oklahoma this year. Still, a true update on this recruitment is hard to come by. We have no reason to believe that the UA is not a legitimate option, but we will find out once he takes official visits after his senior season.
* Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro athlete Brock Hamanhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Brock-Haman-100959 has committed to Arkansas.
"It felt right," Haman tells Rivals.com. "It felt like it was the place to be for me. They've always been at the top of my list and I can see myself being there for the next four or five years."
Arizona finished second in the recruitment and was a very legitimate option for Haman. However, Arkansas is doing a solid job of recruiting Arizona this year and it seems to be paying off.
The original thought was that Haman was going to stay in state, but the pressure from others did not do much to change his mind and Arkansas won out.
"It was my decision and my parents told me they would support me wherever I went," Haman tells HawgSports.com. "The chance to stay closer to home was never a factor for me. The UA (Arizona) came in second, it was close and I loved both the UA and Oregon State. However, I think I will be just that much more happier at Arkansas."
* Arizona has initial interest in 6-foot-5, 304-pound Houston Westside offensive lineman athlete Germaine Ifedi http://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Germain-Ifedi-109365.
"I've been hearing from (Texas A&M), Texas Tech, Washington, Nebraska, TCU and Arizona," he tells AggieYell.com. "Tech and A&M seem to be pushing a little bit more."
Ifedi definitely likes Arizona and figuring an offer comes along, the Wildcats are going to be major players for the junior lineman.
* After visiting Arizona, 6-foot-4, 230-pound Corona (Calif.) defensive end DeVante Wilsonhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-DeVante-Wilson-97772 is taking the next step in his recruitment.
He is visiting Nebraska on October 16 and has two more visits in mind, as he works to get more offers.
"I'll probably take officials to Oregon and USC too,” he tells HuskersIllustrated.com. “Both of them have been talking to me and are getting pretty close to offering me."
Wilson is not claiming any public favorites, but said Arizona had a few things that stood out to him.
“Yes, the game did, and I liked the players and the coaches,” he said. “They were all pretty down to earth. I felt comfortable there, and that it could be my home."
* Arizona has offered 5-foot-11, 180-pound junior Thomas Johnsonhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Thomas-Johnson-110750.
Johnson is certainly going to be one of the top players in the country, as he has already has offers from Arizona, Auburn, Cal, Iowa, Miami, Texas A&M, and Purdue.
"I really never had a favorite team," he tells Rivals.com. "I always liked a couple of teams. If one team wasn't doing good, I'd go to the other team.
"I want to be recruited as a receiver, so I would want to go to a team that passes, so that's a big factor. Then proximity to home is a big factor too and then after that is coaching prestige, conference prestige and school prestige."
It is going to be a very difficult pull for the Wildcats, but the early start is a good idea from the UA coaching staff.
