If you're glad this semester is almost over, just think how the Arizona football program must feel.
Over the last four months, the Wildcats have suffered through one of the worst semesters in school history. They have been through three head coaches, lost a school-record 10 games and finished last in the Pacific 10 Conference for the first time ever.
The good news for the Wildcats, though, is they don't have a football grade point average that will stick with them the rest of their college career - and with the addition of new head coach Mike Stoops, who arrived in Tucson yesterday to resume his head coaching duties on a permanent basis, everyone gets a clean slate.
Here's a look at what the Wildcats have coming back for next year, and what that means in Stoops' system.
Quarterbacks
Arizona returns all three quarterbacks who saw action this year, including true freshman Kris Heavner, who took the majority of the snaps in the last eight games of 2003. Heavner looks to be the frontrunner for the starting spot, showing a strong arm and the ability to escape pressure at times.
Heavner has all the tools to start for Arizona the next three seasons, but both sophomore Nic Costa and redshirt freshman Ryan O'Hara could challenge for time.
Stoops said he plans on running a spread-style offense that is similar to what the Wildcats have been running and will need a quarterback who can control a football game and make big plays.
Running backs
The Wildcats are about as thin as you can get at running back. Arizona played its last game against Arizona State with just two healthy rushers in sophomores Mike Bell and Beau Carr, proving a need to add more depth to the position. Bell has proven he can be a top tailback in the Pac-10, but he needs to be more consistent.
Over the first six games of the season, Bell split time with senior Clarence Farmer and had only 207 yards on the ground, 119 coming in the season opener against UTEP. But Bell finished the season just short of 1,000 yards and had a four-game stretch in which he ran for over 600.
He earned All-Pac-10 second team honors and will come into the spring as the Wildcats' No. 1 back. Bell also fits well in a spread-style offense and is successful running the zone run plays, which the team spent most of the late season running.
Wide Receivers
The receiver position is almost as thin as that of the running backs. During the Wildcats' last game, against the Sun Devils, walk-ons Ryan Eidson and Willis Morrison saw quality time, and O'Hara even got some reps at receiver. Sophomore Biren Ealy has shown flashes that he could be a big-play receiver, but must stay out of trouble. Ealy was suspended for the ASU game for violating team rules.
The team also returns freshmen Mike Jefferson and Syndric Steptoe along with junior Ricky Williams. A major problem for this group was dropped balls, and all of them must improve in that area. The Wildcats will also have to find a couple more quality receivers in order to be successful in the spread offense.
Offensive line/tight ends
The offensive line started five different combinations throughout the season and still managed to be successful. The unit finished the season second in the Pac-10 in fewest sacks allowed, and if it can manage to avoid the injury bug next season, could be one of the best in the Pac-10. But that's a big "if." The Wildcats lost six linemen over the course of the year, and continuity on an offensive line is key.
Junior Steve Fleming had a quality year at tight end and should be the number one guy come spring. He will battle sophomore Matt Padron for playing time.
Defensive line
Stoops said he wants the defense at Arizona to be one that attacks the offense and will start up front. At Oklahoma, Stoops had the luxury of one of the best defensive lines in the country, but that's not the case at Arizona. The most athletic of the group seems to be sophomore Marcus Smith, and like much of the rest of the team, this group is young.
Freshmen Paul Phillip and Clifton Stanford, sophomore Copeland Bryan and junior Carlos Williams will all be back next year with more experience.
Linebackers
This is another area that is extremely depleted. The Wildcats will lose their top three linebackers, and this group will have to learn on the fly next season.
Juniors Kirk Johnson and Pat Howard have the most experience of any of the returning Arizona linebackers and both could be look upon to be the defensive leaders. Freshmen Marcus Hollingsworth and John McKinney are two more players who could start on the Wildcats' defense next year.
Secondary
Arizona struggled this season on the corner, and could be even worse next year. Freshman Gary Sheppard and juniors Zeonte Sherman and Luis Nunez are the three Wildcats who will challenge for playing time, but none are shutdown-type cornerbacks.
Because the team is so thin at corner, Stoops probably won't be able to blitz as often as he'd like, which makes the play of the defensive line that much more crucial.
The only positive about the Arizona secondary is the safeties. Both sophomores Darrell Brooks and Lamon Means are the type of players that Stoops loves. They both fly to the football and will come up and hit people.
Kicking/Special Teams
Arizona finished the season an atrocious 2 of 11 on field goal attempts. Redshirt Freshman kicker Nicolas Folk finished the year as the teams place kicker, but never hit a field goal. Folk was successful at putting the ball through the endzone on kick offs. Expect the Wildcats to either go out and recruit someone who can put the ball through the up rights or get a walk-on to do the duties. Sophomore Danny Baugher did a decent job with the punting game and show signs that he could be among the best in the conference if he can be consistent.
Coaching
Stoops arrived in Tucson yesterday and continued with his recruiting duties. Since day one, he has preached the ideas of hard work, and has exemplified that in his efforts since accepting the job. No one will argue that it will take a lot of work to get the Arizona football program back into the national spotlight, but with the rough 2003 season now officially behind them, there is no place to go but up.