By
Ryan Finley
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Senior wide receiver Brad Brennan is back as an Arizona wide receiver after missing most of the 1999 season as a medical redshirt.
As the Wildcats' No. 3 receiver in 1997 and 1998, Brennan had a combined 47 receptions and nine touchdowns. However, the receiver was forced to miss most of last season after aggravating a hamstring during a game against Stanford on Sept. 18.
Senior quarterback Ortege Jenkins is excited to have one of his favorite targets back.
"He's going to (have) a major impact," Jenkins said. "He's not one of the biggest players, but he's one of the best football players I've been around."
Brennan has been limited to conditioning drills of late due to a back injury, but UA head coach Dick Tomey claims he should be back by the season opener at Utah on Sept. 2.
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Following Friday's blue-white scrimmage at Arizona Stadium, senior quarterback Ortege Jenkins told reporters that he had talked to ex-Wildcat wide receiver Dennis Northcutt recently.
Northcutt, who holds the all-time UA record for receiving yards, was drafted 31st overall by the Cleveland Browns.
As a longtime Deion Sanders fan, Northcutt was eager to square off against Sanders, a defensive back of the Washington Redskins, Saturday night.
Sanders was signed by the Redskins this off-season after being released by Dallas.
"Dennis is eager to go up against Deion," Jenkins said. "He's real excited."
Things did not fare as well as the receiver had hoped, however - Northcutt had just three receptions for 23 yards in a 24-0 loss to Washington.
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Following a week at the team's summer training camp in Cochise, Tomey is excited about his team's intensity following a lackluster 1999 season.
"I think the intensity level is much higher," he said. "We were embarrassed about the way we played last year and we've worked hard to improve on it."
However, Tomey is quick to point out that his impressions of the team prior to the season mean little.
"It's hard to gauge," Tomey said. "How excited I am doesn't matter a bit. I like our attitude and how we've responded. We need to improve every week."
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Senior running Leon Callen's departure from the team was apparently expected. In an interview last week, Tomey hinted that Callen was no longer a part of the team.
"We have two running backs that I believe in very much," he said. "(They are) Leo Mills and Larry Croom."
Callen, who had faced academic problems throughout his career at UA, had figured to play significantly in the upcoming season.
Tomey, however, is optimistic about the chances of Mills, Croom, and freshman Clarence Farmer, who will apparently act as a backup for the two sophomores.
"They're going to have a big opportunity in the first game," Tomey said. "Their backups are going to be freshmen."
Farmer ran for 37 yards on eight carries last Friday.
