The Arizona Wildcats are 3-0, and coach Mike Stoops is being hailed with all kinds of adjectives.
Bold. Robust. A little bitter. And … milky?
Stoops Oatmeal Stout, served at Barrio Brewing Co. and Gentle Ben's Brewing Co., is the liquid essence of the Wildcats' fiery football coach.
"It's a pretty popular beer," Ian Matti, Barrio's manager, said Friday. "We usually sell out of it."
Arizona will open Pac-10 play tonight against Cal with a chance to improve to 4-0 overall for the first time since 1998.
Although it's early in the season, Wildcats fans are buying into the program and the Stoops beer, - and it tastes milky.
Keven McSherry, 50, bought tickets on his lunch break Friday for his first UA football game in three years. McSherry, a project manager for an engineering firm, said he wants to "be with my kids and show them what it's all about."
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"I think we're on a mission," he said.
Standing a few spots behind him in line, engineer Todd Baker hashed out the Wildcats' chances. He said the UA, which improved to 3-0 last week with a 34-27 win over Iowa, is "as close as we've been in a long time."
The Wildcats' hot start is a main reason why.
Arizona is coming off a nationally televised win over Iowa. The victory bumped the Cats up to No. 14 nationally, their highest ranking since the Clinton administration.
The buzz around campus - Stoops Oatmeal Stout-induced and not - is palpable.
Fans crowded East University Avenue for "Bear Down Friday," sipping drinks and munching sandwiches in anticipation of a 6 p.m. pep rally.
Red T-shirts flew off the racks at nearby Campus Athletic, a clothing store.
And the "Pride of Arizona" marching band played as fans clapped along.
It was a familiar - and popular - brew.
