With Lute as with Bush, mums the word

There is an old saying that you should not talk politicise or religion at work.

In Tucson you can add something to that list, Lute Olson.

When it comes to Arizona’s head basketball coach, they way he handled his leave of absence and everyday since then has created a divide almost never seen. Say the wrong thing and you’ll loss friends. Say the wrong thing and your mom, dad, brother or sister might never talk to you again. That how strong people feel.

The best thing to do is not even talk about it. Keep it to yourself.

It doesn’t matter if your in the camp that says Olson has mistreated his staff. He did, after all, fire both Kevin O’Neil and Miles Simon.

Or if your in the camp that says both O’Neil and Simon got what they had coming. After all, last season was the worst in decades for Arizona basketball.

It doesn’t matter if your in the camp that says Arizona Daily Star writers Greg Hanson and Bruce Pascoe should be getting the silent treatment for digging too hard as to what was really going on with coach O’s absence.

Or if your in the camp that says said reports were doing there jobs and really never said anything that horrible anyway.

The dividing line is similar to politics. You say Lute has done nothing but the wrong thing for the past year, your not a true Cats fan. Sounds familiar, after all if you disagree with the president you must be against America, right?

You support him, your just blindly supporting him right? Just like the president. You must be for everything he does, right? Olson could have killed someone in his infamous press conference and you’d still support him, right?

Of course no one should be or is comparing major political issues like, war, hunger and then environment to sports. It’s no where near as important. But to a lot of people it is just as passionate.

Several recent exchanges on the message board at Wildcat Sports Report slowly turned into name calling and stubbornness by several posters, myself included. One thread even boiled down to if the pro Lute or the anti Lute people are the conservatives or liberal of the Arizona basketball world.

So for now just remember this: don’t talk about Lute at work, with your girlfriend or boyfriend or with your family and you’ll be ok. Maybe I should listen to myself.

YouTube Clip of the week

Crack open the Thursday morning beer, put your feet up on the table and get ready for a good time. That's right, it's time for the You Tube Clip of the week! Wha hooooooo!

This is from a U of A versus Arizona State hockey game. A little fight broke out. You can not really see a lot on this clip, but the funny part is I was just one section over getting drink with Shu, Brad, Rob, Mike, the ZDs and others.

I should have got in on the action. Well, maybe not.

So enjoy the action!

Russ Pennell Named Assistant Coach

In one of the worst kept secrets in Tucson Lute Olson today announced the hiring of Russ Pennell as an assistant coach. Pennell replaces Kevin O'Neil, who as of today still works for the AD's office but is not a coach.

Pennell served as an assistant coach for Arizona State for eight seasons from 1998-2006. Pennell has worked with former ASU coach Rob Evans since 1992 both at Mississippi and Arizona State. He also spent two years at Oklahoma State under coach Eddie Sutton from 1990-1992.

For the past two years he has worked on the Arizona State Radio Network.

“We’re happy to be adding a coach like Russ to our staff with his wealth of experience,” said Arizona head coach Lute Olson. “He is an outstanding coach, a hard worker and a wonderful family man. I’m sure Russ and his family will fit into the Tucson community very nicely.”

Pennell was widely rumored to be taking over for O'Neil even prior to him being moved to another department with in the AD's office. Basketball coaches at the university are considered state job, thus they most be posted for two weeks prior to someone being hired-explaining the delay in the official introduction.

Pennell will be the third assistant head coach in as many years. Besides O'Neil, Jim Rosborough also held that job. He too now holds other duties with in the athletic department.

Olson now has a second job to fill, Miles Simmon did not have has contract renewed Friday.

Josh Pastner out too?

Rumours are flying that U of A assistant coach Josh Pastner has or soon will take a job as the assistant head coach at Memphis, a job left open when Derek Kellogg became the head coach at UMass.

If this happens, it will mean all three of head coach Lute Olson assistant coaches left the program since Olson returned in April. No word yet from Memphis, Arizona or Pastner on the validity of this rumor.

Stay tuned.

BREAKING NEWS

Arizona assistant mens basketball coach Miles Simmon has been let go. Simmon also played at Arizona and was the MOP of the 1997 tourney. He has been a coach with the team since 2005. The U of A will not need to pay him any money since his contract is up. Simmon is the secound coach in as many weeks to leave the staff. Kevin O Neil now has another job with the ADs office.

YouTube Clip of the Week

It's Thursday and that can only mean one thing.....The YouTube Clip of the Week!!!! Well this is the first ever, but every Thursday from now on.

This week it's from 1996. Arizona v Cincinnati. Cincinnati was number one in the country at the time. Lute Olson was going for his 500th win. It was one of the greatest plays in the history of college basketball, in my opinion.

Arizona Golfer wins Pac-10

From the Arizona Daily Star

By Patrick Finley
ARIZONA DAILY STAR
Creighton Honeck picked at his buffet lunch. He couldn't eat.
After double-bogeying the second-to-last hole of Wednesday's Pac-10 men's golf championships in Fairfax, Calif., the UA senior figured he lost any chance to win the individual title.
"You get that emptiness feeling in your stomach when something like this happens," the senior said.
After about an hour off — one that included a few practice shots — Honeck learned he had completed 18 holes in a first-place tie and would be paired with UCLA's Kevin Chappell, a good friend, in a sudden-death playoff.
Honeck said he "bombed a driver" just to the left of the fairway, and hit a four-foot putt to birdie — and win — the first playoff hole.
"I don't really remember much after that," he said.
It marked the first tournament victory of his collegiate career. Honeck finished with a 71 on the day, the only one of the tournament's top five finishers to make par. For the tournament, he shot a 3-under 281.
He is the seventh UA golfer to win the Pac-10 title and the first since Henry Liaw in 2004.
The Texan wasn't as thrilled as you would think — the UA finished sixth as a team, and Arizona State beat USC in a one-hole playoff.
Walking up the last fairway of regulation, he started thinking it was the last tournament he would play with his college teammates.
"You get those feelings," he said. "I'm walking down the fairway and I have my whole team in red and white watching me come in. Seeing all those guys — they're my friends, they're my family — and knowing it was my last tournament with all them, it's pretty sad."
Coach Rick LaRose expected that.
"You'd have to say he was the team leader this year," the UA coach said. "He fit the mold. He was a pleasure to have around."