"Tell them … tell the team to bear down"

Hard to believe Antoine Cason was only a two-star recruit on Scout.com./Chargers.com photo

By Anthony Gimino

As part of a larger story I did at TucsonCitizen.com on the early success of the Class of 2008 recruits, I started researching all of coach Mike Stoops’ recruiting efforts. It’s pretty amazing the kind of two-star talent he and his coaching staff have uncovered and developed.

The following players were rated only two stars by either Rivals.com or Scout.com, or both:

2004
DL Yaniv Barnett
OL Joe Longacre
DB Dominic Patrick
CB Antoine Cason

2005
LB Spencer Larsen (coming back from a church mission)

2006
DT Lolomana Mikaele

2007
CB Trevin Wade
WR Bug Wright

2008
RB Greg Nwoko
WR Juron Criner
WR David Douglas
OL Herman Hall

That’s a major-award winner and a first-round draft pick (Cason), a first-team all-conference linebacker and valuable 2008 NFL rookie (Larsen), a 40-game starter on the offensive line (Longacre) … and seven players from 2006 to 2008 who look to be significant contributors for a few more years (except for Hall, who was a JC transfer).

Wade, in particular, could be a major star.

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    Eben Britton

It was an eventful training camp for players with Arizona ties.

Fan favorite Tedy Bruschi retired from the Patriots and joined ESPN as an analyst. Rookie free agent safety Nate Ness was cut three times — from the Browns, Jets and Saints. Wide receiver Bobby Wade, entering his eighth season in the league, was cut Thursday from the Vikings despite 107 catches in two years with the team. He won’t be catching passes from Brett Favre.

Elsewhere, the Browns plucked running back Chris Jennings — who arrived at Arizona as a junior college walk-on — from the Canadian Football League. He didn’t survive the final cut, but was re-signed to the practice squad.

Meanwhile, former All-Pro cornerback Chris McAlister is looking for work, trying to come back from two seasons of knee problems. He tells the L.A. Times he’ll be back next week. And, oh yeah, his Beverly Hills-area home is for sale at $7.9 million.

For now, 14 ex-Cats are on active NFL rosters. Here is the list:

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UA career sack leader “would rather have heart than talent any day”

Former UA coach Dick Tomey on Tedy Bruschi (in a 2008 USA Today interview): “At Arizona, his will to win and love for the game made players around him better. He’s negotiated his own contracts with the Patriots. He’s never wanted to leave them. He’s just a unique individual in the present-day NFL. Tedy was as impressive a player on tape as I’ve ever seen coming out of high school. Yet people doubted him because of his height. He’s proven everybody wrong throughout his entire life because of his intelligence, competitiveness and commitment to excellence. He does it right whether it’s being a parent or a husband or teammate. He’s the best.”

RELATED LINK: Anthony Gimino’s review of Bruschi’s book “Never Give Up”

RELATED LINK: Gimino: UA’s goodness has flowed over N.E.

AUDIO LINK: NBC-TV commentators Rodney Harrison (a former teammate of Bruschi’s with New England) and Cris Collinsworth pay tribute to Bruschi during Chicago-Denver telecast, Sun., Aug. 30.

By Javier Morales

NBC-TV announced during halftime of its Chicago-Denver preseason telecast that former UA defensive end Tedy Bruschi will announce his retirement from the NFL in a press conference Monday. He played all 13 of his years as a linebacker with New England and won three Super Bowls with the Patriots.

The Boston Herald is is confirming the NBC report, adding that Bruschi told coach Bill Belichick that he will be retiring. Bruschi was no longer playing with the first unit during the preseason.

Bruschi, 36, tied the NCAA Division I-A sack record with 52 while with the Wildcats. He was a two-time consensus All-American in 1994 and 1995 and winner of the 1995 Morris Trophy as the PAC-10′s best defensive lineman. Bruschi compiled 185 total tackles (137 solos), with 74 tackles for losses, 52 quarterback sacks and forced six fumbles and recovered five others.

As if by fate, the Chicago-Denver game had a distinct UA flavor to it after the Bruschi announcement in the third quarter. Former UA linebacker Lance Briggs with Chicago made a couple of tackles on one drive, and ex-UA linebacker Spencer Larsen with Denver was inserted in a goal-line play as the blocking fullback, springing a Broncos running back free for a touchdown run.

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Related: Mike Thomas leads voting for UA’s Player of the Decade on offense

By Anthony Gimino

Much like on offense, Arizona’s problems on defense this decade are apparent on the line. UA is the only Pac-10 team this decade to not have a first-team all-league defensive lineman.

USC has had a first-team all-league defensive lineman 11 times since the 2000 season. Oregon State is next with six. The Wildcats haven’t had such a player since Joe Salave’a in 1997.

What the Cats have had this decade are two of the best at their position in the entire league — linebacker Lance Briggs (first-team all-conference in 2000, 2001 and 2002) and cornerback Antoine Cason (winner of the Jim Thorpe Award in 2007). Take your pick: One of these guys is your Arizona Defensive Player of the Decade.

How could the 2009 season change things? When we revisit this in a few months, defensive end Brooks Reed will be on this list if all goes well, and so to could cornerback Devin Ross and maybe even punter Keenyn Crier, who has a 43.8-yard average in his first two seasons.

Note that one of the most prominent UA alums — New York Giants mega-millionaire linebacker Antonio Pierce — is absent. First of all, he played at UA for only one season of the decade (2000) when he had an honorable mention all-league season (77 tackles, 10 for loss). Good, not great.

Here are WILDABOUTAZCATS.com’s choices for UA’s All-Decade team for defense:

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