QB Kovalcheck leads offense on two TD drives

The Arizona football team closed its fall camp Saturday night, putting a heavy emphasis on the passing game in a 75-play intra-squad scrimmage.

The Wildcats started the game with 11 passes in the first 13 plays and got good production out of the three quarterbacks - junior Adam Austin, redshirt sophomore Richard Kovalcheck and freshman Willie Tuitama -expected to line up under center this season. [Read article]

Here at the Wildcat sports desk, the start of a new year brings the obvious questions: Will the football team finally emerge from the Pacific 10 Conference cellar and reach its first bowl game since 1998? Can the soccer team overcome the loss of two key seniors - defender Lindsey Peeples and forward Candice Wilks - and take its first outright Pac-10 championship?

Invariably, the answers to these questions depend on the athletes themselves. More than preening, holdout-happy panjandrums, they're as likely to be seen huddled in a study room at the ILC as poised to deliver the game-saving hit, catch, goal or dive. [Read article]

Baseball World Series bid ends in regionals

The summer ended in a festive way with the Lute Olson All-Star Classic on August 14 and a weekend of events honoring the 1988 Arizona Final Four team.

Gilbert Arenas, currently with the NBA's Washington Wizards, poured in 45 points to give his team a one-point victory in the Lexus/Infiniti Shootout.

After that game, the Wildcats retired the jersey of former Arizona guard Jason Gardner, the 2003 Frances Pomeroy Naismith Player of the Year. He is the Wildcats' career leader in minutes played (4,825) and has the most points scored (1,984) of any guard in school history. [Read article]

Supporters of Arizona football congregated at Arizona Stadium on Saturday for the program's annual Fan Appreciation Day.

An estimated 7,000 people attended the event, which included an hour-long autograph session on the Arizona Stadium field and later an intrasquad scrimmage.

"It's a great chance to meet the coaches and players face-to-face and tell them good luck, show our support," said Derryl Friberg, 26. [Read article]

Budinger rated as high as fifth in the nation

The next Tracy McGrady is coming to Tucson.

That may be a little too much hype for high school senior Chase Budinger, who in a news conference Wednesday committed to play basketball for Arizona in 2006. Still, Budinger is considered by some experts to be the real deal.

A 6-foot-7-inch, 190-pound wing from La Costa Canyon (Calif.) High School, he has all the attributes of the Houston Rockets superstar, according to his personal trainer, Trent Suzuki, who has coached Budinger since about sixth grade. [Read article]

The 2005 Arizona soccer team made its final preparations for the regular season Saturday, as it defeated Northern Arizona 2-0 in an exhibition game, the finale of a four-day training session in Flagstaff.

"It was a good way to play against someone other than ourselves and see where we're at," said head coach Dan Tobias, last year's national coach of the year. "It was positive all the way around." [Read article]