Opinion by Greg Hansen : Recruiting skills defy Olson's age

Jerry Tarkanian, his career in tatters, was pushed out at 72. Bob Knight retired last year at 67. Louisville forced Denny Crum to leave when he was just 64.

More than anything else — more than health, stamina and strategy issues — college basketball is age-sensitive as it relates to recruiting.

That's much of the reason John Chaney, 73, stepped down at Temple and Lou Henson, 72, quit at New Mexico State. Of Olson's contemporaries, only North Carolina's Dean Smith, walked away when he was on top, at 67. Eddie Sutton, at 70, left in controversy. Ralph Miller, at 70, left after winning a Pac-10 co-championship, but his Oregon State teams were almost a decade past their glory years.

But when Olson and his new coaching staff got a commitment from Seattle-area point guard whiz Abdul Gaddy last week, it put Arizona into the Pac-10's No. 1 recruiting position, and clearly so, for high school Class of '09 players.

That may change as UCLA completes its '09 class, but with Gaddy, Oregon's Mike Moser and Los Angeles' Solomon Hill committed to Arizona, the Wildcats already have enough to be no worse than No. 2, on paper, in any Pac-10 recruiting poll.

After 10 months of turbulence in the UA basketball program, it is beyond impressive that Olson has been able to out-recruit Cal, Washington, Oregon and especially ASU's Herb Sendek, who has commitments from two mid-level prospects.

The next trick will be for Olson to restore confidence and interest (season ticket sales have dropped by about 1,000) in the UA's 2008-09 team. The first college basketball periodical on the newsstand, Athlon Sports, picks Arizona No. 4 in the Pac-10 but unranked nationally and one-and-done in the NCAA tournament.

ARIZONA FINAL FOUR … 2003?

Wildcats fan purchases unusual item shopping at North Carolina swap meet

While shopping at a flea market in Raleigh, N.C., recently, Salpointe and UA grad Mike McDermott came across an unusual item: a red 2003 Arizona basketball Final Four T-shirt.

What?

The '03 Wildcats lost to Kansas 78-75 in an Elite Eight game in Anaheim, Calif. Nevertheless, McDermott and his wife, Erin, bought a T-shirt for their 3-year-old daughter, Sydney.

What gives? On most years, to beat deadline, sports paraphernalia marketers often order Final Four T-shirts for eight teams immediately after the Sweet 16 so that they can have them on the shelf as quickly as possible.

"It rocks," McDermott wrote in an e-mail. "Bright-red and rare. Bet no one in Tucson has one of these."

SHORT STUFF

Ex-UA discus thrower shines in PGA Q-School

Tucsonan Mike Rexroth was a discus thrower at the UA during his college days. He has since switched sports, to golf, and the results have been dramatically good. Rexroth last week breezed through the first test of PGA Tour's Qualifying School. In Roseville, Calif., Rexroth shot rounds of 68-76-70-74 to finish seventh overall; the top 37 advanced to next month's second of four stages of Q-School. This week, Tucsonan Matt Rosen, a St. Gregory's Prep grad, enters the Q-School madness. … In his college football debut, Cienega High grad Bryce Burnett caught two touchdown passes for Arizona Western College, including a 63-yarder on the first play of the season. Overall, Burnett caught six passes for 145 yards in AWC's first two games. … Catalina Foothills grad Brian Riley, a redshirt freshman tight end at NAU, caught a touchdown pass against Arizona State in his college debut. …The NCAA permits its student-athletes to work during the season — if they can find the time. Last weekend, UA football players Brandon Tatum, Ronnie Palmer, Terrell Turner and B.J. Dennard worked as part of customer service for the Al Green concert at Desert Diamond Casino. That was less than 24 hours after losing at New Mexico and after a work-school week in which football players have almost no free time. It tells you how important a few extra dollars can be to a college ballplayer.

THIS AND THAT

18th UA gymnast placed in McKale Ring of Honor

Workers at McKale Center last week hoisted into the rafters the name "Karin Wurm" as part of the basketball-volleyball-gymnastics Ring of Honor. Wurm, an All-America gymnast for coach Bill Ryden's team, is the 18th UA gymnast so honored. That is one more name in the rafters than UA men's basketball, which has 17 honored names. … I came across an inaugural Tucson Toros 1969 game program the other day. Here's some context on how long Pacific Coast League baseball played in Tucson. The list of Hi Corbett Field 1969 concession prices: Hot dogs: 30 cents. Beer: 35 cents. Soft drinks: 10 cents. Cigars: 15 cents. … When the independent league Tucson Toros open play at Hi Corbett next summer, it would be wise if the club's first manager is someone with a strong Tucson baseball résumé. How about Ed Vosberg? The former Salpointe, UA and major-league lefty spent almost 20 years in the minor leagues and later served as a pitching coach in the Oakland A's organization. He would offer an instant identity. … Here's a recruiting name to remember: Phoenix St. Mary's tailback R.J. McGill rushed for 195 yards Friday night and scored on runs of 70 and 66 yards. He is the son of former UA tailback Reggie McGill, a pivotal element of Dick Tomey's option teams of the late '80s and early '90s. … Friday in the Dave Murray Cross Country Invitational, former Pima College All-American Craig Curley finished ahead of all UA runners and second overall. He could help cure the UA's distance-running ills, but is currently finishing classwork at PCC and hopes to run for the powerful Oregon Ducks next semester.

MORE SHORT STUFF

Salpointe's win over champ ranks among decade's best

Salpointe football coach Dennis Bene and his staff — which includes defensive coordinator Joe Bernier and offensive coordinator Todd Schulte — produced a coaching gem in Friday's 17-9 victory over No. 2-ranked Brophy, the defending 5A-I state champion. It was one of the most significant victories in Tucson prep football this decade. The Lancers (3-0) are in the middle of an extremely difficult schedule that includes a showdown at Sunnyside on Friday, followed by toughies against Mountain View and Ironwood Ridge. Bene's team already knocked off Phoenix-area teams Gilbert and Basha. … UA men's golf coach Rick LaRose is staging a program-fundraising golf outing Tuesday at the tony Del Mar Country Club near San Diego. He lined up some heavy hitters for the day: Steve Kerr, Ricky Barnes, Luke Walton, Harvey Mason and Ricky Anderson, among others. … High-profile NFL official Ed Hochuli, at the center of the Denver-San Diego controversy last week, was a first-team all-state defensive back at CDO in 1968. Born on Christmas Day 1950, he played four years at UTEP and returned to Tucson to get his law degree. To earn a few extra dollars, he started officiating Pop Warner football here, and subsequently was a Little League baseball umpire. From 1973 to 1984, Hochuli was a high school football referee here before breaking into the Big Sky and Pac-10. Now a Phoenix attorney who has worked two Super Bowls, Hochuli has two brothers, Daniel and Peter, who are Tucson-area attorneys, and a son, Shawn, who works in Conference USA, the Big 12, the WAC and the Arena League.

Pro basketball

Shakur signs on in Spain; 3 ex-Cats still job hunting

Former UA point guard Mustafa Shakur signed as a free agent last week with Spain's Tau Ceramica, one of the Euroleague's most traditionally strong franchises. Shakur averaged 7.6 points a game in his pro debut last year for a team from Poland. … A week before NBA teams go to training camp, Shakur's ex-UA teammate, Marcus Williams, continues to search for a tryout. The Los Angeles Clippers quietly released Williams in mid-July. … Damon and Salim Stoudamire are also unsigned free agents as the NBA season approaches. Salim was not offered a deal with Atlanta, and Damon, who finished the '08 season in San Antonio, is also trying to get a new deal. Damon, 35, told reporters last week that he wants to play two more seasons. He is also interested in becoming a college basketball coach. … Chris Ayer, a former center at Flowing Wells High School and Loyola Marymount, has changed teams in the Japan Pro Basketball League. For his third year as a pro, Ayer will play for Ryukyu Golden Kings. In Japan, Ayer's season begins Oct. 11 and runs through April 26; Ayer will play every Saturday and Sunday with a break for Christmas.

MY TWO CENTS

Livengood, NCAA quickly need to clear Lute's name

UA athletic director Jim Livengood last week revealed the NCAA is actively investigating a letter, signed by Lute Olson, sent to UA boosters last spring seeking financial support for an elite prep basketball tournament played in Tucson.

Allegedly, no money was raised and Olson denies sending the letter. Under normal circumstances, the UA would likely receive a warning from the NCAA and a minor hand-slap.

But Livengood's statement to the Pac-10 indicates there is a potentially greater trouble. He said in a statement released last week:

"Lute Olson adamantly denied knowledge of this letter having been sent. Others inside and outside of the department stated that they thought that he had requested that the letter be sent."

Olson hasn't knowingly broken any NCAA rules in his quarter-century at Arizona. To maintain his (and the UA's) good name and reputation, it is imperative that Livengood, or the NCAA, identify the mystery letter writer and remove Olson from suspicion.