Want to hear a story? Two years ago, a long-standing coach in the Pacific 10 Conference was so close to being fired his assistants should have carried around fire extinguishers.

He hadn't had a successful season in just enough years for the fans of his team to forget he had the second-most wins in school history, and had led the team to three of its only seven bowl berths in 106 years.

But the athletic department let the coach come back for one more year. It was clear to everyone that the coach ÷ and his team ÷ would have to work some miracles if he was to keep his job.

So all the coach ÷ and his team ÷ did was go out and win 10 games for only the third time in program history and finish the season ranked No. 10 in the polls.

That coach turned out to be Mike Price at Washington State, the 2001 Pac-10 Coach of the Year and runner-up for national Coach of the Year.

And, surprisingly enough, there's no one out there demanding he be fired now.

It's an interesting lesson in how quickly fortunes can change, and how quickly a coach can go from being on the firing line to being considered one of the best in the business.

A similar situation might be developing at Arizona, where second-year head coach John Mackovic has come under fire as the Wildcats stumble to another terrible season in conference play.

Is the team's 3-6 record Mackovic's fault? It's difficult to say in the face of the injuries that have ravaged this team and the obvious talent gap suffered at some key positions.

Obviously, it wasn't Mackovic that took out the knees of Clarence Farmer and Michael Jolivette, and it wasn't the coach that broke Jarvie Worcester's arm. And it's definitely not Mackovic who's missing blocks, blowing tackles and not getting the ball in the end zone.

That Mackovic calls the plays and leads the team is certainly a factor in its performance. But there have been few opportunities this season to see how Mackovic, with a healthy team, stacks up against the competition. And for that reason alone, his job shouldn't be in danger.

But there are other reasons, not the least of which is common sense.

In the intensely competitive world of recruiting, nothing damages a team worse than instability with the coaching staff. Very rarely do high school athletes want to go to a specific school, with the rare exceptions being programs like Notre Dame and Nebraska.

More often than not, players sign to a school for the coach. And that's precisely why Mackovic was hired by UA.

Dick Tomey, while strong in under-recruited areas like American Samoa, was unable to lure top recruits from nearby hotbeds California and Texas. Mackovic is expected to be able to compete in at least one of the two, Texas, thanks to his ties to the state from his days with UT. Furthermore, Mackovic is well known in football circles thanks not only to his college coaching career, but also his days in the NFL and on ESPN as a broadcaster. That kind of Q rating works well when he's in a recruit's livingroom.

In the last two years, Mackovic has already nabbed two top quarterback prospects in Nic Costa and Ryan O'Hara, in addition to some other strong recruits.

But right now, Mackovic is still playing with Tomey's guys for the most part, and therein lies the final reason the coach needs at least one more year. Come next season, this team will be in large part driven by players Mackovic has brought in himself.

And then, and only then, if the team continues to flounder, can the blame rest squarely on Mackovic's shoulders.

Until then, UA fans might be able to take solace in what's happened in Pullman, Wash., in the last couple of years.