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The Daily Wildcat

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The Daily Wildcat

The Daily Wildcat

 

    The luck of the Wilbur

    I’ll be the first to say it. Re-hire alumnus mascot Kirk Sibley.

    Sibley is the Wilbur Wildcat who presided over 1997’s national championship basketball team and 1998’s 12-1 football team. Since Sibley left, Arizona hasn’t returned to a bowl game.

    But Sibley does make special appearances from time to time, bringing his magical pair of Red Converse to last year’s 52-14 blowout against then-No. 7 UCLA and, most recently, Saturday night’s 24-20 shocker against then-No. 8 California.

    After Saturday night’s game, Sibley ran into UA head coach Mike Stoops at Championships Bar and Grill. He congratulated Stoops on the team’s victory and then informed him that he is short just one recruit (Sibley).

    Stoops laughed.

    But from a coach who mentioned the football gods on Saturday, this may not be a laughable suggestion. Sibley is a man blessed by the football gods, and he needs to re-enroll.

    Sure, you can talk all you want about Arizona’s gutsy rally and the timely interceptions. You can pore over all the stats and analysis that you want, provided here for you by my colleagues. But I’m talking about something different than that, something bigger.

    I’m talking about the intangibles.

    You can do your part too.

    Besides clamoring for the return of Kirk Sibley, the once and future Wilbur Wildcat, just take note of something. What were you wearing on Saturday? What did you eat for breakfast? What position were you standing in at the exact moment of the Wildcats’ victory?

    If you do your part in realigning the forces of the universe to a position relative to Saturday’s game, then you too can help guide your team into the postseason.

    Of course, not for every game. That would be silly. I just mean the important ones.

    Especially if a win means a bowl game, that means Nov. 25 against ASU.

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