Arizona's 2010 class is coming to a close, and the football team is done with spring ball. We'll lead off with UA basketball's newest recruit.
Basketball:
* It's been an overwhelming 24 hours of questions regarding Eloy Vargas so what I'm going to do is explain the situation of the Wildcats' newest 2010 recruit to the best of my ability and then discuss Arizona's 2010 recruiting situation as a whole.
The following information was gathered from a variety of sources close to Vargas and his recruitment.
As is known by now, Vargas, a 6-foot-11 PF/C, was the 26th ranked prospect in the 2008 class, signing with Florida. He struggled with his academics his first year at Florida, barely played, and left for Miami Dade Community College after the season.
Vargas has a close relationship with Kentucky assistant Orlando Antigua, and it had been expected that he would join Antigua at Kentucky throughout Vargas' sophomore season at Miami Dade C.C., where he averaged 21 points and 14 rebounds.
The SEC has some different rules for accepting transcripts from junior college students, and Arizona has landed football recruits, such as Jonathan Hollins, due to that rule in the past.
About a week or so ago, it became apparent that Vargas wouldn't be able to be accepted into Kentucky because of those rules. Due to some connections that the UA has to Vargas and those around him, the Wildcats were able to make a quick entrance into the forefront of the recruitment.
Vargas has numerous schools around the country who have offered him - he's got dozens of offers - but UA is currently in the best position, according to sources.
Vargas could possibly officially visit next weekend (4/23), although that hasn't been set up. I expect Arizona to try and confirm an exact date in the coming days. If Vargas were to visit UA, Arizona could probably land him pretty soon after.
So the question is, where does that leave Kadeem Jack? Because he's playing in a regional all-star game before the Jordan Classic on Saturday in New York, it doesn't look like Jack will take an official visit this weekend. It's believed that he'll officially visit Arkansas on 4/23, although that's not publicly confirmed.
Even though Jack has long favored Arizona, he's kind of strung along his recruitment, and it's possible that the end result is that he ends up somewhere else.
While it's also possible that Arizona takes Vargas and Jack if they both wanted to commit, it's doubtful, both from the perspective of the two players being willing to commit together and if UA is willing to allot so many scholarships to the front court when it's already in a scholarship crunch.
That means what is more likely is that Arizona takes the first of the two that wants to commit, and unless Jack speeds things up, Vargas could be that guy.
Looking at the scholarship breakdown the next two years, you see why taking both is so difficult:
2010-11:
Seniors (1): Jamelle Horne
Juniors (5): Kyle Fogg, Brendon Lavender, Alex Jacobson, Jesse Perry, Eloy Vargas
Sophomores (5): MoMo Jones, Kyryl Natyazhko, Kevin Parrom, Solomon Hill, Derrick Williams
Freshmen (3): Daniel Bejarano, Jordin Mayes, Kadeem Jack
That's 14 out of a possible 13.
2011-12:
Seniors (5): Kyle Fogg, Brendon Lavender, Alex Jacobson, Jesse Perry, Eloy Vargas
Juniors (5): MoMo Jones, Kyryl Natyazhko, Kevin Parrom, Solomon Hill, Derrick Williams
Sophomores (3): Daniel Bejarano, Jordin Mayes, Kadeem Jack
Freshmen (1): Sidiki Johnson
That's 14 out of a possible 12
Also, keep in mind for the 2011-12 season that Arizona badly wants Nick Johnson on that team and probably leads for him. So if you add him to the list, that's 15 out of 12, which means you need 3 of the above players to transfer or go pro early.
Furthermore, looking at that hypothetical and statistically impossible roster, 7 of the 14 players are 4's or 5's, which is a really bad imbalance.
For that reason, the most likely scenario is that Arizona takes the first to commit between Jack or Vargas. It's not impossible that UA takes both and we don't believe it's been completely ruled out, but all things considered, it has to be unlikely.
Beyond that, just looking at the numbers above, it's going to be difficult for Arizona to take more than one more player in 2011, possibly making the class just Sidiki Johnson and Nick Johnson. UA will continue to recruit others, but barring something unexpected, 2011 is a two-man class, and three at max.
The good news is that in 2012, a number of scholarships go off the books and that's the year you need those rides, since the West Coast is absolutely loaded and the UA staff has done a very good job targeting those recruits early.
In fact, while the rest of the country follows around 2011 recruits this summer, expect Arizona to devote the majority of its time following around Sidiki and Nick Johnson, a handful of other 2011 recruits, and then a large number of 2012 prospects.
This will give Arizona a one-year head start on evaluating and showing love to such an important class, and one that UA has planned from the beginning to make a statement in.
* Jack and Vargas are the only real 2010 recruits Arizona has on the board right now. I could see UA making an attempt at Rutgers transfer Mike Rosario but I don't know if that will go anywhere.
At this time, UA has no other serious recruits. That could change with coaching changes, players emerging and transfers, but that's where it's at as of today.
* Josh Selby and Doron Lamb will announce their college decisions on Saturday, but neither is expected to choose UA.
* Sidiki Johnson had an impressive showing at Boo Williams last week, according to Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Jerry Meyer:
"Not an overwhelming athlete, Johnson will need to outwork opponents when playing for Arizona in the Pac-10," Meyer wrote. "This weekend he displayed the type of energy he will need to be successful. He impressed with some strong drives to the basket and authoritative finishes."
* Some 2011 recruiting notes from around the Rivals.com network:
Nick Johnson, CG:
We think Arizona is in as good, if not better, shape than anyone as of now, but Johnson is keeping his recruitment close to the vest.
"It is just the same old, same old, Arizona, Kentucky, Arizona State, Oklahoma State, Wake Forest, Ohio State, and just a lot of people," said Johnson...
"Up until last week I was just focused on the season, but now as it gets to the summer I am going to being to pay more attention to my recruiting...
"I have been watching both schools (Arizona and Arizona State) since I was a little kid, and I have also had a chance to build a great relationship with both coaching staffs.
"ASU has been recruiting me since the eighth grade so I know them real well. With U of A, Coach (Sean) Miller has been recruiting me real hard since he got the job, and I have a great relationship with them."
Jahii Carson, PG:
Arizona is looking at Carson, but he's still probably unlikely at this point due to the aforementioned scholarship crunch. As we said last week, he's fresh off a decommitment from Oregon State.
"I felt like I love the Oregon State family but there were other people out there that were probably interested in me that I had no clue who they were because I committed at such an early age," Carson said. "I just wanted to open up my recruitment and see my other options...
"I'm going to take my time and make sure before I commit this time. I want to make sure I make the right decision."
Cezar Guerrero, PG:
The 2011 point guard had a good showing last weekend in Las Vegas and is someone UA will likely take a look at in the summer. He listed Arizona, Marquette, Stanford, UNLV, UTEP and Illinois as schools showing him the most interest.
Wesley Saunders, SF:
Saunders is a wait and see guy who likes Arizona and he continues to list the Wildcats.
"I'd probably rather stay close to home but Arizona isn't too far from home and Stanford's not that far from home so that's not too bad," Saunders said. "I'd be willing to go to the East Coast if it was the right fit."
Amir Williams, PF:
This is a player I don't see how Arizona could turn down. That said, he's a very good prospect and could move towards 5-star range if he continues playing well, so he'll be a difficult pull for the Wildcats.
He says he's wide open right now, so UA will have to continue to work to have a legitimate chance at him.
"I am looking for a coach that can develop me because my ultimate goal is to make it to the NBA," Williams said. "I want a coach who will push me to expand my game beyond what it is now."
Kyle Wiltjer, PF:
The Portland forward hasn't spoken much about UA, so I don't see Arizona sticking around in this recruitment for too much longer.
* Arizona signed Jesse Perry and Jordin Mayes on Wednesday, both of which UA associate head coach Archie Miller is excited abouthttp://arizona.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1074698.
"With Jordin, he's really going to take his game to the next level when he gets here and gets the strength and conditioning aspect taken care of," Miller said. "He has such a long frame and he's coming in light. When he adds to his frame, he's one of those guys you're going to look at as a bona fide big time player at some point in his career. But early on he's going to be asked to carry a lot of weight and do a lot of things and I think he's up for the challenge...
"You have to add certain personalities as you go through your program that really take on the personality of the coach. I think Jesse, more than anyone in recent memory, really fits how Sean does things. He's a blue collar guy who will do anything you ask of him and that was the biggest selling point to me - his work ethic."
* One of our posters on the Premium Hoops Suitehttp://arizona.rivals.com/forum.asp?sid=&fid=961, conejo23, had a number of questions he wanted us to ask Arizona Associate Director of Performance Enhancement Chris Rounds.
So, we asked them to him on Thursday:
GOAZCATS.com: After a guy commits or signs, will you give them any strength and conditioning tips to work on?
Chris Rounds: It depends on what they're doing in high school and if they have a good place to work out. I know Mayes is doing some stuff and his dad is pretty involved with him. They'll be here for the largest part of summer school, at least Jesse Perry will, and (Daniel) Bejarano will be down pretty soon, so I'm not worried about it. Jordin Mayes, because he's in California, will be a little later coming through. I'm sure I'll be in contact with his dad about what exactly he should be doing.
GOAZCATS.com: I assume you'll have the incoming guys just work on basic things until they get to you, right?
Chris Rounds: Everything I do is very basic. In every health club you go to, you'll have equipment that is at least satisfactory to work out on. It's more about learning how to train hard and with intensity; that's what kids have to learn. Any time I've sent information to a kid, when they get on campus, they still just get wrecked. As long as they're doing something and are working out but not damaging their body with stuff that's harmful, that's all I really care about.
GOAZCATS.com: So when a newcomer makes it to campus, do you immediately do a an assessment of the kid's body and diet?
Chris Rounds: We'll definitely test body fat, we'll test body weight, we'll see where their strength is, we'll put them on the same basic plan that I've used with every freshman coming through since I've started and that will kind of vary after the first couple of weeks to see how their bodies respond and what they need. We have a registered dietician on staff that we've been using and have had some really good feedback from our student athletes on it so I expect us to utilize that service even more.
GOAZCATS.com: Will you immediately send the newcomers there?
Chris Rounds: We'll start doing breakfast in groups so they can meet me every day, and as we can get these student athletes based on their schedules, with classes and all the things they need to do. We'll get them with the nutritionist as soon as possible and that will really start to help them.
GOAZCATS.com: How customized is that for the individual player?
Chris Rounds: I haven't met with the dietician; it's gone through (trainer) Justin Kokoskie. But Justin and I are going to meet with her sometime this week or next just to make sure we're on the same page. He's asking her a lot of questions similar to what you are in where I want kids and what I'm expecting. We'll sit down and go through that stuff.
GOAZCATS.com: Moving on to lifting, in general, what kind of strength work do you do? Is it mostly machines or free weights?
Chris Rounds: I'd say it's probably 70-30 free weight to machine, but the machines that we do use are very specific so if you walked into a room I design, it's going to look like there's a lot more machines than free weights. We'll have probably three to four racks in our (new) facility with sets of dumbbells going from 5 to 125.
You can do any free weight lift with that kind of stuff, especially with a team of 15. The equipment, from a team perspective, we'll probably need quite a few. Probably 20 to 30 initial pieces, just because they are specialized.
GOAZCATS.com: Do you have players do dynamic, functional strength type of work?
Chris Rounds: No, we don't do any functional work at all. The functional stuff is more of a fad. We just lift with basic strength and conditioning lifts that aren't Olympic in nature, so we don't do any explosive lifting.
Other than that it's all core work. So our kids will be playing and they'll be doing individuals, and that will help their agility and functional strength. But from a strength and conditioning perspective, it's not something I believe is my area. It will happen just by playing the game.
GOAZCATS.com: How do you address flexibility?
Chris Rounds: We do a lot of different things for flexibility. We have some jump stretch bands that we'll stretch with after every practice and before every game. We have some hurdles that we'll use for some dynamic flexibility stuff, which I guess could be considered functional, but it's just going over and under different hip movements. Other than that, I'll stretch guys if they're really tight individually.
Football:
Following spring ball, here are some thoughts on the depth chart:
Offense:
Quarterback: Matt Scott and Nick Foles are once again in a battle for the starting spot. Scott outplayed Foles in the Spring Game, so he does have some momentum heading into the summer. This competition will once again be determined in Fall Camp.
Wide Receiver: Not a lot of movement here. Juron Criner really established himself, and walk-on Gino Crump made a case for himself as well, but he's behind Criner on the depth chart at the X position.
Tight End: A.J. Simmons and Jack Baucus should both get playing time this season, and Baucus made a lot of improvement throughout the spring.
Offensive Line: Adam Grant is the solid starter at left tackle, Conan Amituanai at left guard, Colin Baxter at center, Vaughn Dotsy is at right guard and the main battle is Phillip Garcia and Jack Julsing at right tackle, which will continue into Fall Camp. Dotsy was out for the spring and Jovon Hayes looked good replacing him.
H-Back/Fullback: Taimi Tutogi made a big jump from last season, and should be a much bigger part of the offense next season.
Defense:
Defensive End: Between Ricky Elmore, Brooks Reed and D'Aundre Reed, Arizona is more than set at defensive end.
Defensive Tackle: Sione Tuihalamaka had a big spring at defensive tackle and could end up starting next to Lolomana Mikaele. Dominique Austin did miss spring with an injury, and Austin, Tuihalamaka and Jonathan Hollins will all compete for the three technique starting spot in the fall.
Linebacker: Jake Fischer will head into the summer as the starter at SAM with Cordarius Golston backing him up. Derek Earls has the starting MIKE spot, and Trevor Erno is behind him. The WILL position is up for grabs between Paul Vassallo and R.J. Young.
Cornerback: Marcus Benjamin had an impressive spring and is the starter at cornerback, unless the coaches want to move Robert Golden there, and then there might be a competition. Trevin Wade is solid on the other side.
Safety: Golden is currently the starter at strong safety, with Anthony Wilcox, who had a good spring, behind him. Joe Perkins made a lot of progress at free safety and is the starter there with Adam Hall backing him up. Perkins could move to nickel, getting Hall on the field as well. (JG)
Jason Scheer's weekly football recruiting update:
* Although we would not call it a great possibility, Arizona is definitely in 6-foot-3, 300-pound Tempe (Ariz.) Corona del Sol Todd Peat Jr.http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=100956’s recruitment more than people may think.
Peat is going to make sure that he gets a look at the schools recruiting him and Arizona will be trying hard to get him on campus.
"I want to see the players; that is a real big thing for me," Peat tells USCFootball.com. "Being able to see the players and talk to them, see how they're treated and how the coaches coach the players, things like that. Really seeing how I fit in there, what they have coming next year and what they have now that's leaving.
"I want to take my five visits so (my commitment) will be after the football season. Another big thing for me with some of the teams is I want to see what they do during the season."
* 6-foot-5, 270-pound Aztec (NM) offensive lineman Matt Hegartyhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Matthew-Hegarty-100223 continues to be one of the more highly recruited players in the country.
"I will look at the quality of education and what degree I want because I place a lot of value on that," Hegarty tells TigerBait.com. "One day I won't be playing football and I'd like to have something I could work with outside the football world. I'm also going to look at the stability of the coaching staff and see what kind direction the program's headed.
"It is tough to travel around for unofficial on your own dime and trying to find time that works," Hegarty said. "I'd like to be able to make a trip somewhere in the south and hopefully see a few places and consider everybody in this process. I definitely wouldn't turn down a chance to see LSU if I have the opportunity."
* 6-foot-4, 210-pound Chandler (Ariz.) quarterback Brett Hundley http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=100950 is getting closer to narrowing his list of schools.
"I'm going to probably start thinking about that a little heavier soon,” he tells AggieYell.com. “I'll be able to get it in my mind at what the schools are that I'm looking at a little more than the others. Right now, I don't have a timeline for any of that, though."
Arizona is still consistently recruiting Hundley, as are a lot of other schools. However, at this point, it is hard to tell if he is leaning one way or the other because of the way that he has handled his recruitment from the start.
* 6-foot-3, 225-pound Elk Grove (Calif.) Cosumnes Oak athlete Robert Ash http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=109189 is starting to see his recruiting attention increase.
"It has been a pretty exciting experience so far," Ash tells CougZone.com. "Most of the colleges are pretty much saying the same thing.
“I am not really sure when I am going to make a decision yet. Right now I am just very open minded to see what all the schools have to offer. I still have my senior season left."
Ash does not have an offer from Arizona, but the UA will likely try and convince him to come to a camp this summer and then proceed from there. At this point, he is definitely one to watch, as he could be the type to get offers in bunches and in a hurry.
* 6-foot-0, 174-pound Upland (Calif.) kicker Jake Van Ginkelhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Jake-Van Ginkel-109561 is getting attention from Arizona, among other schools.
"Kickers are normally last for recruiting," Van Ginkel tells Rivals.com. "Over the summer, they want to see your video and then they want you to come to their camps and see you in person so they can check you out. That's a lot of times when they offer you at camps. Hopefully, I'll have a big summer this year."
With Arizona’s kicking struggles and the basic need at the position, it would not be a surprise to see Arizona make an offer some time down the road as long as the tape is impressive.
"I'm done with the highlight tape so I'll be sending that out soon," Van Ginkel said. "I think it's going to be one of the biggest parts. Once the colleges can see what I can do in a game they'll give me offers. That's what college coaches want a lot from kickers - they want to see game film and consistency and the leg power."
* 5-foot-11, 173-pound Odessa (Texas) running back Bradley Marquez http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=94739 is considering Arizona, among others.
"I'm talking to a whole bunch of different schools right now, so I would like to keep my options open and I kind of have an idea right now, but no one really sticks out right now,” Marquez tells RedRaiderSports.com. "I like different things from all of the schools and I have seen Tech and OU, so I have will keep looking into them and I haven't seen things from these other schools that I would like to, so it's wide open."
The interesting aspect of Marquez’s recruitment will be baseball, as it may stop him from taking many more visits. Arizona needs to put in work in order to try and get him on campus and if that happens, the Wildcats will have a much better shot.
* Earlier in the week, we had a report on 6-foot-3, 180-pound Palmdale (Calif.) David Richards http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=94739 and his unofficial visit this past weekend.
Rivals.com caught up with him as well and it seems Richards his firm in his belief that the UA is his favorite.
"I had an extremely good time there and I'm very excited," Richards said. "I toured their facilities and they're awesome. I love how they spread the ball and passed it a lot in the spring game.
"They are on top of my list right now and I plan to take my official visit when they play USC."
Arizona is comfortable in the position it is in now, although the recruitment would likely feel much better if Richards chose not to take other visits and ended it on his official to Tucson.
Basketball:
* It's been an overwhelming 24 hours of questions regarding Eloy Vargas so what I'm going to do is explain the situation of the Wildcats' newest 2010 recruit to the best of my ability and then discuss Arizona's 2010 recruiting situation as a whole.
The following information was gathered from a variety of sources close to Vargas and his recruitment.
As is known by now, Vargas, a 6-foot-11 PF/C, was the 26th ranked prospect in the 2008 class, signing with Florida. He struggled with his academics his first year at Florida, barely played, and left for Miami Dade Community College after the season.
Vargas has a close relationship with Kentucky assistant Orlando Antigua, and it had been expected that he would join Antigua at Kentucky throughout Vargas' sophomore season at Miami Dade C.C., where he averaged 21 points and 14 rebounds.
The SEC has some different rules for accepting transcripts from junior college students, and Arizona has landed football recruits, such as Jonathan Hollins, due to that rule in the past.
About a week or so ago, it became apparent that Vargas wouldn't be able to be accepted into Kentucky because of those rules. Due to some connections that the UA has to Vargas and those around him, the Wildcats were able to make a quick entrance into the forefront of the recruitment.
Vargas has numerous schools around the country who have offered him - he's got dozens of offers - but UA is currently in the best position, according to sources.
Vargas could possibly officially visit next weekend (4/23), although that hasn't been set up. I expect Arizona to try and confirm an exact date in the coming days. If Vargas were to visit UA, Arizona could probably land him pretty soon after.
So the question is, where does that leave Kadeem Jack? Because he's playing in a regional all-star game before the Jordan Classic on Saturday in New York, it doesn't look like Jack will take an official visit this weekend. It's believed that he'll officially visit Arkansas on 4/23, although that's not publicly confirmed.
Even though Jack has long favored Arizona, he's kind of strung along his recruitment, and it's possible that the end result is that he ends up somewhere else.
While it's also possible that Arizona takes Vargas and Jack if they both wanted to commit, it's doubtful, both from the perspective of the two players being willing to commit together and if UA is willing to allot so many scholarships to the front court when it's already in a scholarship crunch.
That means what is more likely is that Arizona takes the first of the two that wants to commit, and unless Jack speeds things up, Vargas could be that guy.
Looking at the scholarship breakdown the next two years, you see why taking both is so difficult:
2010-11:
Seniors (1): Jamelle Horne
Juniors (5): Kyle Fogg, Brendon Lavender, Alex Jacobson, Jesse Perry, Eloy Vargas
Sophomores (5): MoMo Jones, Kyryl Natyazhko, Kevin Parrom, Solomon Hill, Derrick Williams
Freshmen (3): Daniel Bejarano, Jordin Mayes, Kadeem Jack
That's 14 out of a possible 13.
2011-12:
Seniors (5): Kyle Fogg, Brendon Lavender, Alex Jacobson, Jesse Perry, Eloy Vargas
Juniors (5): MoMo Jones, Kyryl Natyazhko, Kevin Parrom, Solomon Hill, Derrick Williams
Sophomores (3): Daniel Bejarano, Jordin Mayes, Kadeem Jack
Freshmen (1): Sidiki Johnson
That's 14 out of a possible 12
Also, keep in mind for the 2011-12 season that Arizona badly wants Nick Johnson on that team and probably leads for him. So if you add him to the list, that's 15 out of 12, which means you need 3 of the above players to transfer or go pro early.
Furthermore, looking at that hypothetical and statistically impossible roster, 7 of the 14 players are 4's or 5's, which is a really bad imbalance.
For that reason, the most likely scenario is that Arizona takes the first to commit between Jack or Vargas. It's not impossible that UA takes both and we don't believe it's been completely ruled out, but all things considered, it has to be unlikely.
Beyond that, just looking at the numbers above, it's going to be difficult for Arizona to take more than one more player in 2011, possibly making the class just Sidiki Johnson and Nick Johnson. UA will continue to recruit others, but barring something unexpected, 2011 is a two-man class, and three at max.
The good news is that in 2012, a number of scholarships go off the books and that's the year you need those rides, since the West Coast is absolutely loaded and the UA staff has done a very good job targeting those recruits early.
In fact, while the rest of the country follows around 2011 recruits this summer, expect Arizona to devote the majority of its time following around Sidiki and Nick Johnson, a handful of other 2011 recruits, and then a large number of 2012 prospects.
This will give Arizona a one-year head start on evaluating and showing love to such an important class, and one that UA has planned from the beginning to make a statement in.
* Jack and Vargas are the only real 2010 recruits Arizona has on the board right now. I could see UA making an attempt at Rutgers transfer Mike Rosario but I don't know if that will go anywhere.
At this time, UA has no other serious recruits. That could change with coaching changes, players emerging and transfers, but that's where it's at as of today.
* Josh Selby and Doron Lamb will announce their college decisions on Saturday, but neither is expected to choose UA.
* Sidiki Johnson had an impressive showing at Boo Williams last week, according to Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Jerry Meyer:
"Not an overwhelming athlete, Johnson will need to outwork opponents when playing for Arizona in the Pac-10," Meyer wrote. "This weekend he displayed the type of energy he will need to be successful. He impressed with some strong drives to the basket and authoritative finishes."
* Some 2011 recruiting notes from around the Rivals.com network:
Nick Johnson, CG:
We think Arizona is in as good, if not better, shape than anyone as of now, but Johnson is keeping his recruitment close to the vest.
"It is just the same old, same old, Arizona, Kentucky, Arizona State, Oklahoma State, Wake Forest, Ohio State, and just a lot of people," said Johnson...
"Up until last week I was just focused on the season, but now as it gets to the summer I am going to being to pay more attention to my recruiting...
"I have been watching both schools (Arizona and Arizona State) since I was a little kid, and I have also had a chance to build a great relationship with both coaching staffs.
"ASU has been recruiting me since the eighth grade so I know them real well. With U of A, Coach (Sean) Miller has been recruiting me real hard since he got the job, and I have a great relationship with them."
Jahii Carson, PG:
Arizona is looking at Carson, but he's still probably unlikely at this point due to the aforementioned scholarship crunch. As we said last week, he's fresh off a decommitment from Oregon State.
"I felt like I love the Oregon State family but there were other people out there that were probably interested in me that I had no clue who they were because I committed at such an early age," Carson said. "I just wanted to open up my recruitment and see my other options...
"I'm going to take my time and make sure before I commit this time. I want to make sure I make the right decision."
Cezar Guerrero, PG:
The 2011 point guard had a good showing last weekend in Las Vegas and is someone UA will likely take a look at in the summer. He listed Arizona, Marquette, Stanford, UNLV, UTEP and Illinois as schools showing him the most interest.
Wesley Saunders, SF:
Saunders is a wait and see guy who likes Arizona and he continues to list the Wildcats.
"I'd probably rather stay close to home but Arizona isn't too far from home and Stanford's not that far from home so that's not too bad," Saunders said. "I'd be willing to go to the East Coast if it was the right fit."
Amir Williams, PF:
This is a player I don't see how Arizona could turn down. That said, he's a very good prospect and could move towards 5-star range if he continues playing well, so he'll be a difficult pull for the Wildcats.
He says he's wide open right now, so UA will have to continue to work to have a legitimate chance at him.
"I am looking for a coach that can develop me because my ultimate goal is to make it to the NBA," Williams said. "I want a coach who will push me to expand my game beyond what it is now."
Kyle Wiltjer, PF:
The Portland forward hasn't spoken much about UA, so I don't see Arizona sticking around in this recruitment for too much longer.
* Arizona signed Jesse Perry and Jordin Mayes on Wednesday, both of which UA associate head coach Archie Miller is excited abouthttp://arizona.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1074698.
"With Jordin, he's really going to take his game to the next level when he gets here and gets the strength and conditioning aspect taken care of," Miller said. "He has such a long frame and he's coming in light. When he adds to his frame, he's one of those guys you're going to look at as a bona fide big time player at some point in his career. But early on he's going to be asked to carry a lot of weight and do a lot of things and I think he's up for the challenge...
"You have to add certain personalities as you go through your program that really take on the personality of the coach. I think Jesse, more than anyone in recent memory, really fits how Sean does things. He's a blue collar guy who will do anything you ask of him and that was the biggest selling point to me - his work ethic."
* One of our posters on the Premium Hoops Suitehttp://arizona.rivals.com/forum.asp?sid=&fid=961, conejo23, had a number of questions he wanted us to ask Arizona Associate Director of Performance Enhancement Chris Rounds.
So, we asked them to him on Thursday:
GOAZCATS.com: After a guy commits or signs, will you give them any strength and conditioning tips to work on?
Chris Rounds: It depends on what they're doing in high school and if they have a good place to work out. I know Mayes is doing some stuff and his dad is pretty involved with him. They'll be here for the largest part of summer school, at least Jesse Perry will, and (Daniel) Bejarano will be down pretty soon, so I'm not worried about it. Jordin Mayes, because he's in California, will be a little later coming through. I'm sure I'll be in contact with his dad about what exactly he should be doing.
GOAZCATS.com: I assume you'll have the incoming guys just work on basic things until they get to you, right?
Chris Rounds: Everything I do is very basic. In every health club you go to, you'll have equipment that is at least satisfactory to work out on. It's more about learning how to train hard and with intensity; that's what kids have to learn. Any time I've sent information to a kid, when they get on campus, they still just get wrecked. As long as they're doing something and are working out but not damaging their body with stuff that's harmful, that's all I really care about.
GOAZCATS.com: So when a newcomer makes it to campus, do you immediately do a an assessment of the kid's body and diet?
Chris Rounds: We'll definitely test body fat, we'll test body weight, we'll see where their strength is, we'll put them on the same basic plan that I've used with every freshman coming through since I've started and that will kind of vary after the first couple of weeks to see how their bodies respond and what they need. We have a registered dietician on staff that we've been using and have had some really good feedback from our student athletes on it so I expect us to utilize that service even more.
GOAZCATS.com: Will you immediately send the newcomers there?
Chris Rounds: We'll start doing breakfast in groups so they can meet me every day, and as we can get these student athletes based on their schedules, with classes and all the things they need to do. We'll get them with the nutritionist as soon as possible and that will really start to help them.
GOAZCATS.com: How customized is that for the individual player?
Chris Rounds: I haven't met with the dietician; it's gone through (trainer) Justin Kokoskie. But Justin and I are going to meet with her sometime this week or next just to make sure we're on the same page. He's asking her a lot of questions similar to what you are in where I want kids and what I'm expecting. We'll sit down and go through that stuff.
GOAZCATS.com: Moving on to lifting, in general, what kind of strength work do you do? Is it mostly machines or free weights?
Chris Rounds: I'd say it's probably 70-30 free weight to machine, but the machines that we do use are very specific so if you walked into a room I design, it's going to look like there's a lot more machines than free weights. We'll have probably three to four racks in our (new) facility with sets of dumbbells going from 5 to 125.
You can do any free weight lift with that kind of stuff, especially with a team of 15. The equipment, from a team perspective, we'll probably need quite a few. Probably 20 to 30 initial pieces, just because they are specialized.
GOAZCATS.com: Do you have players do dynamic, functional strength type of work?
Chris Rounds: No, we don't do any functional work at all. The functional stuff is more of a fad. We just lift with basic strength and conditioning lifts that aren't Olympic in nature, so we don't do any explosive lifting.
Other than that it's all core work. So our kids will be playing and they'll be doing individuals, and that will help their agility and functional strength. But from a strength and conditioning perspective, it's not something I believe is my area. It will happen just by playing the game.
GOAZCATS.com: How do you address flexibility?
Chris Rounds: We do a lot of different things for flexibility. We have some jump stretch bands that we'll stretch with after every practice and before every game. We have some hurdles that we'll use for some dynamic flexibility stuff, which I guess could be considered functional, but it's just going over and under different hip movements. Other than that, I'll stretch guys if they're really tight individually.
Football:
Following spring ball, here are some thoughts on the depth chart:
Offense:
Quarterback: Matt Scott and Nick Foles are once again in a battle for the starting spot. Scott outplayed Foles in the Spring Game, so he does have some momentum heading into the summer. This competition will once again be determined in Fall Camp.
Wide Receiver: Not a lot of movement here. Juron Criner really established himself, and walk-on Gino Crump made a case for himself as well, but he's behind Criner on the depth chart at the X position.
Tight End: A.J. Simmons and Jack Baucus should both get playing time this season, and Baucus made a lot of improvement throughout the spring.
Offensive Line: Adam Grant is the solid starter at left tackle, Conan Amituanai at left guard, Colin Baxter at center, Vaughn Dotsy is at right guard and the main battle is Phillip Garcia and Jack Julsing at right tackle, which will continue into Fall Camp. Dotsy was out for the spring and Jovon Hayes looked good replacing him.
H-Back/Fullback: Taimi Tutogi made a big jump from last season, and should be a much bigger part of the offense next season.
Defense:
Defensive End: Between Ricky Elmore, Brooks Reed and D'Aundre Reed, Arizona is more than set at defensive end.
Defensive Tackle: Sione Tuihalamaka had a big spring at defensive tackle and could end up starting next to Lolomana Mikaele. Dominique Austin did miss spring with an injury, and Austin, Tuihalamaka and Jonathan Hollins will all compete for the three technique starting spot in the fall.
Linebacker: Jake Fischer will head into the summer as the starter at SAM with Cordarius Golston backing him up. Derek Earls has the starting MIKE spot, and Trevor Erno is behind him. The WILL position is up for grabs between Paul Vassallo and R.J. Young.
Cornerback: Marcus Benjamin had an impressive spring and is the starter at cornerback, unless the coaches want to move Robert Golden there, and then there might be a competition. Trevin Wade is solid on the other side.
Safety: Golden is currently the starter at strong safety, with Anthony Wilcox, who had a good spring, behind him. Joe Perkins made a lot of progress at free safety and is the starter there with Adam Hall backing him up. Perkins could move to nickel, getting Hall on the field as well. (JG)
Jason Scheer's weekly football recruiting update:
* Although we would not call it a great possibility, Arizona is definitely in 6-foot-3, 300-pound Tempe (Ariz.) Corona del Sol Todd Peat Jr.http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=100956’s recruitment more than people may think.
Peat is going to make sure that he gets a look at the schools recruiting him and Arizona will be trying hard to get him on campus.
"I want to see the players; that is a real big thing for me," Peat tells USCFootball.com. "Being able to see the players and talk to them, see how they're treated and how the coaches coach the players, things like that. Really seeing how I fit in there, what they have coming next year and what they have now that's leaving.
"I want to take my five visits so (my commitment) will be after the football season. Another big thing for me with some of the teams is I want to see what they do during the season."
* 6-foot-5, 270-pound Aztec (NM) offensive lineman Matt Hegartyhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Matthew-Hegarty-100223 continues to be one of the more highly recruited players in the country.
"I will look at the quality of education and what degree I want because I place a lot of value on that," Hegarty tells TigerBait.com. "One day I won't be playing football and I'd like to have something I could work with outside the football world. I'm also going to look at the stability of the coaching staff and see what kind direction the program's headed.
"It is tough to travel around for unofficial on your own dime and trying to find time that works," Hegarty said. "I'd like to be able to make a trip somewhere in the south and hopefully see a few places and consider everybody in this process. I definitely wouldn't turn down a chance to see LSU if I have the opportunity."
* 6-foot-4, 210-pound Chandler (Ariz.) quarterback Brett Hundley http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=100950 is getting closer to narrowing his list of schools.
"I'm going to probably start thinking about that a little heavier soon,” he tells AggieYell.com. “I'll be able to get it in my mind at what the schools are that I'm looking at a little more than the others. Right now, I don't have a timeline for any of that, though."
Arizona is still consistently recruiting Hundley, as are a lot of other schools. However, at this point, it is hard to tell if he is leaning one way or the other because of the way that he has handled his recruitment from the start.
* 6-foot-3, 225-pound Elk Grove (Calif.) Cosumnes Oak athlete Robert Ash http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=109189 is starting to see his recruiting attention increase.
"It has been a pretty exciting experience so far," Ash tells CougZone.com. "Most of the colleges are pretty much saying the same thing.
“I am not really sure when I am going to make a decision yet. Right now I am just very open minded to see what all the schools have to offer. I still have my senior season left."
Ash does not have an offer from Arizona, but the UA will likely try and convince him to come to a camp this summer and then proceed from there. At this point, he is definitely one to watch, as he could be the type to get offers in bunches and in a hurry.
* 6-foot-0, 174-pound Upland (Calif.) kicker Jake Van Ginkelhttp://rivals.yahoo.com/arizona/football/recruiting/player-Jake-Van Ginkel-109561 is getting attention from Arizona, among other schools.
"Kickers are normally last for recruiting," Van Ginkel tells Rivals.com. "Over the summer, they want to see your video and then they want you to come to their camps and see you in person so they can check you out. That's a lot of times when they offer you at camps. Hopefully, I'll have a big summer this year."
With Arizona’s kicking struggles and the basic need at the position, it would not be a surprise to see Arizona make an offer some time down the road as long as the tape is impressive.
"I'm done with the highlight tape so I'll be sending that out soon," Van Ginkel said. "I think it's going to be one of the biggest parts. Once the colleges can see what I can do in a game they'll give me offers. That's what college coaches want a lot from kickers - they want to see game film and consistency and the leg power."
* 5-foot-11, 173-pound Odessa (Texas) running back Bradley Marquez http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=94739 is considering Arizona, among others.
"I'm talking to a whole bunch of different schools right now, so I would like to keep my options open and I kind of have an idea right now, but no one really sticks out right now,” Marquez tells RedRaiderSports.com. "I like different things from all of the schools and I have seen Tech and OU, so I have will keep looking into them and I haven't seen things from these other schools that I would like to, so it's wide open."
The interesting aspect of Marquez’s recruitment will be baseball, as it may stop him from taking many more visits. Arizona needs to put in work in order to try and get him on campus and if that happens, the Wildcats will have a much better shot.
* Earlier in the week, we had a report on 6-foot-3, 180-pound Palmdale (Calif.) David Richards http://arizona.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?Sport=1&pr_key=94739 and his unofficial visit this past weekend.
Rivals.com caught up with him as well and it seems Richards his firm in his belief that the UA is his favorite.
"I had an extremely good time there and I'm very excited," Richards said. "I toured their facilities and they're awesome. I love how they spread the ball and passed it a lot in the spring game.
"They are on top of my list right now and I plan to take my official visit when they play USC."
Arizona is comfortable in the position it is in now, although the recruitment would likely feel much better if Richards chose not to take other visits and ended it on his official to Tucson.
