The opening of fall camps around college football is always filled with optimism for the new season, but for Arizona football, one thing is very clear — Rose Bowl or bust.
“A lot of guys are hungry for more and we’ve developed a good program and we know that we can win now at a high level,” said defensive end Ricky Elmore.
Donning their new white helmets with the block Arizona “A,” the Wildcats opened fall camp on Thursday morning at Rincon Vista Sports Complex with the straightforward message that head coach Mike Stoops had his players looking to Pasadena, Calif.
“We’ve had some success, but we have a chance do to something that’s never been done,” Stoops said. “I think our players understand just how wide open this thing is going to be and what a great year it’s going to be in the Pac-10 and what an opportunity we have.”
The Wildcat team’s mindset was firmly in place, even as they were working through conditioning drills. With the whole team reporting to camp, Arizona split time between offensive and defensive team drills, special teams positioning and ended the two-hour practice with 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 workouts.
Stoops said he was impressed with the way his team entered camp this season, especially noting the physical improvements of the offensive and defensive lines.