Arizona’s 2007 schedule was released by the Pac-10 Friday, highlighted by the first ASU rivalry game marked for December in nearly 40 years.
The annual Territorial Cup game will be played Dec. 1 in light of a USC-ASU game the Pac-10 scheduled for Nov. 22, Thanksgiving Day.
That game will be one of two Thursday-evening contests to be broadcast on ESPN as per the conference’s new television deal with the network starting next season. The other is the Wildcats’ Nov. 15 meeting with Oregon at Arizona Stadium.
Traditionally, the Arizona-ASU matchup has occurred during Thanksgiving weekend. The last meeting to take place after November was on Dec. 5, 1970, at Arizona Stadium.
Because of the scheduling snafu, the Wildcats will play one game in four weeks after hosting UCLA on Nov. 3.
Tentative Arizona football schedule
| Sept. 1 @ Brigham Young Sept. 8 NAU Sept. 15 New Mexico Sept. 22 @California Sept. 29 Washington State Oct. 6 @ Oregon State |
Oct. 13 @USC Oct. 20 Stanford Oct. 27 @Washington Nov. 3 UCLA Nov. 15 Oregon Dec. 1 @ASU |
Arizona opens the season Sept. 1 at Brigham Young. The team’s non-conference slate includes a Sept. 15 home game with New Mexico, an Arizona rival during the program’s stint in the Western Athletic Conference from 1962-1977.
The Wildcats haven’t met the Lobos since defeating them 20-14 in the 1997 Insight.com Bowl.
Arizona’s roughest patch should come in a four-game span starting Sept. 22 at Oregon State. Arizona returns home to meet Washington State, and then travels to California and USC on consecutive weekends.
The four teams had a combined 37-15 record in 2006 and are expected to return nearly all of their impact players.
The Wildcats host NAU Sept. 8. The Lumberjacks came to town in each of Stoops’ first two seasons before being left off Arizona’s schedule last season in favor of a trip to Louisiana State.
Henry not coming back next season
It’s official: Chris Henry has jumped into the NFL Draft pool.
The junior running back was among 40 athletes who received permission from the NFL Friday to enter the April 28-29 draft.
Henry declared for the draft a month ago, saying he wanted to test the professional waters rather than return to the Arizona football team in an uncertain role under new offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes.
Second Texas Tech assistant joins ‘Cats
Arizona lost a key recruiting cog during the Stoops era last week but has installed another from Dykes’ backyard.
The athletics department announced Friday that Texas Tech assistant coach Bill Bedenbaugh (BEE-den-bow) has joined the UA staff and will help oversee the team’s offensive linemen.
He enters as Dan Berezowitz, the Wildcats’ director of personnel and research since 2001, resigned to take a similar position at Minnesota, the Arizona Daily Star reported Friday.
