Roundup: Johnson leaves, Zeus and Wallace stay
It was expected but now it’s official – Arizona basketball’s Stanley Johnson declared for the NBA draft, Arizona announced Thursday. He figures to be a lottery pick in June. But here’s a reason to cheer up, 'Cats fans – Kaleb Tarczewski told ESPN he is returning to Arizona for his senior season.
Big news for the Cal men’s basketball team – Tyrone Wallace is returning for his senior season, he announced Thursday. Wallace finished in the top five in the conference in points, rebounds and assists. Jeff Eisenberg writes that expectations are rising for Cal with Wallace’s return (that incoming recruiting class won’t hurt things either).
I love this headline from Yahoo Sports’ Sam Cooper – Arizona State head coach Todd Graham says scheduling weak opponents is “un-American.” I’ll take a side of freedom fries with that neutral-site game against Texas A&M, please.
Please do read this story on how a teacher in Fresno helped propel Utah wide receiver Tyrone Smith to a future in Division I football. Thanks for the link, Matthew Piper.
Dennis Dodd features former Oregon quarterback Bryan Bennett, who transferred to Southeastern Louisiana (did some serious work there) and is now hoping for a shot in the NFL.
Former Stanford golfer Tiger Woods says he will play at the Players Championship (May 7-10). Woods had a solid showing at the Masters, nabbing a top-20 finish.
Kevin Gemmell writes that USC quarterback Max Browne is waiting patiently for his opportunity in Troy.
Sort of along that front, Gemmell also tells us that the Washington quarterback competition is a work in progress at the moment.
BuffZone’s Laura Mishkind takes a look at how Ann Elliott is building the Colorado lacrosse program. Elliot led the Buffs to a winning record and MPSF tournament berth in the program’s inaugural campaign in 2014, and they’re on track to do the same thing this year.
Gina Mizell is of the opinion that the Oregon State running backs are in good hands with position coach Telly Lockette.
Jacob Thorpe tells us that Washington State linebacker Peyton Pelluer is a reflection of how the defense wants to play in 2015.
Here’s a Sports Illustrated feature on UCLA defensive coordinator Tom Bradley from Colin Becht. We’ve linked to a couple of these from other publications already, so we’ll get SI in on the fun as well.