By
Ryan Finley
Their names read like a who's-who of Arizona sports.
Dick Tomey, Richard Jefferson, Gilbert Arenas, Michael Wright, Joe Tafoya, Ortege Jenkins, Reshea Bristol, Marisa DaLee, Ernie Durazo, Duane Akina, Lauren Bauer, Toni Mascarenas, Kara Fry, Dino Babers, Brandon Manumaleuna, Loren Woods, Eugene Edgerson, Becky Lemke and Bruce Wiggins are just a few of the UA athletes and coaches who won't be coming back around the time students start moving back into the dorms and tiny houses that dot the area come September.
Worse yet, Jason Gardner, Shelley Duncan and Jay John may be joining them shortly.
Not that it's too surprising. Much like the UA Mall, which has become a giant hole during construction, the UA athletic department is undergoing a facelift.
A huge one at that.
But there's no need to panic - the future looks great for Wildcat athletics, whether you believe it or not.
For starters, UA is finally going to enter the 21st century by opening the Eddie Lynch Pavilion, a new athletic facility adjacent to McKale Center, which is in the middle stages of construction. A new, state-of-the-art video screen is being installed inside McKale for basketball season.
But more important than the rebuilding of the Wildcats' facilities is the rebuilding of the personnel inside the buildings.
Dick Tomey didn't pass the ball enough and did radical things like running on third down. He resigned or was fired - depending on which story you believe - and was replaced by John Mackovic, a man whose offensive strategies could potentially do for Arizona football what Elvis did for rock music.
Four of this season's five starters from the men's basketball team are waiting on draft day and the paycheck that comes with it.
But there's no reason to worry there, either. They can be replaced.
Arizona isn't going to stop being a basketball powerhouse because a few sophomores and a junior don't want to play here anymore. There's more where they came from. Their names are Luke Walton, Ricky Anderson, Jason Gardner (if the prayers of thousands come true), Andrew Zahn, Channing Fry and Will Bynum. We might not know them yet, but we'll come to love them as much as we loved the others.
It's not just basketball, either.
David Rubio's teams will continue to be competitive in the world of women's volleyball despite the loss of Marisa DaLee.
If Jerry Stitt's baseball team can make it through the rest of the season without any setbacks, they'll be primed to compete nationally next year, even without Shelley Duncan, who will likely enter baseball's amateur draft at the end of the season.
Mike Candrea, softball's version of John Wooden, will bring in the nation's elite players to replace Becky Lemke, Lauren Bauer and Toni Mascarenas. So don't feel sorry for him, either.
Guess what, folks? UA sports are in good hands. Because it's not the athletes who won the games. It was the collective effort of players, coaches and fans.
Remember why Greg Brady was picked to be the next "Johnny Bravo" on "The Brady Bunch?" It was because he fit the suit.
That's all college athletes are - suit-fillers. They play roles - point guard, left tackle, right fielder, center midfielder. Players can be replaced.
The Seattle Mariners managed to do fine without Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Alex Rodriguez. The Denver Broncos compete even though John Elway isn't there. The Arizona Wildcats will be fine, though there are likely going to be a few bumps in the road.
The world's not going to stop spinning if the basketball team loses to Cal or if the football team can't handle Washington.
The college sports experience isn't about winning as much as it is about being a part of a complete effort - one that involves fans, locals, players, coaches, support staffs and a little luck.
Sports are about being a part of something that everyone believes in.
Right now, everyone seems to believe in what the Wildcats are doing. John Mackovic is drawing up new plays and looking for a quarterback to run them.
Lute Olson and his staff are combing the junior-college ranks, looking for someone to fill the roles that Jefferson, Wright and Arenas have left open.
Jerry Stitt is selling recruits of UA's baseball tradition. Joan Bonvicini is looking for a point guard to replace Bristol.
And, despite the attachments we might have to the players, we need to move on. Who's to say that this year's Tafoya could be next year's Eli Wnek? This year's Duncan be next year's Brian Anderson? This year's Jay John be next year's Josh Pastner?
What looks like a giant hole in the middle of UA's athletic department will one day in the near future become a sports powerhouse.
All we can do is be patient, believe in the future and wait for new heroes to emerge.
