It’s not always easy being tall. Just ask UA sophomore walk-on Will Menaugh.
He shot up to 6 feet as as sixth-grader. He added 8 more inches over the next two years. While at Catalina Foothills High School, Menaugh grew another 2 inches. He now stands 6-10.
It’s unlikely Menaugh will have another growth spurt. The goal now is to add muscle to his frame. He’s put on nearly 20 pounds since arriving on campus last fall, and he says it’s made a big difference in his performance.
UA center Oumar Ballo has seen the jump up close.
“Oh, Big 2 ... we call him Big 2,” Ballo said. “Will is a force. He helps me so much. Will is really, really strong and every day in practice just ducking him and taking Will’s hits helps me to get stronger and better. I’m glad to have that guy helping us night in and night out. He’s a guy who doesn’t talk much. He shows up every day to do what he has to do for the team. ...
“You cannot play at the highest level unless you go against guys like Will — really, really big and strong. That kind of matchup physically is going to help you down the road.”
Menaugh was one of Tucson’s top players as a high schooler, leading Foothills to the school’s first state championship. Menaugh was named the Class 5A Player of the Year after averaging 15 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots per game.
Menaugh said he he didn’t lift weights during high school. When he arrived at the UA, “Will was not strong at all. It was easy to back him down and push him around,” said Ballo, a 7-footer. “But now he is a different player, different person in the weight room. He works really hard to lift heavy, heavy weights and he just changed his body.”
Said Menaugh: “I just dedicated myself to it ... and I started trying to eat a little better. I lost body fat and put on muscle. Playing as hard as we do here, you’re going to lose body fat. And then I was able to lose that but also put on muscle mass at the same time.”
Menaugh is a third-generation Wildcat. Both sets of grandparents, as well as his parents, Brice and Jill, attended UA. No one in the family played sports, yet nearly all of them are 6-feet tall. Menaugh said he “got lucky, for sure. I hit the genetic lottery.”
Menaugh received interest from smaller schools out of state when Arizona’s former coaching staff reached out to ask if he was interested in joining the team as a preferred walk-on.
Menaugh was in. “Ultimately, it’s every Tucson native’s dream to play for UA,” he said.
As a reserve walk-on, Menaugh’s job is to push the Wildcats’ big men in practice.
Last season, Menaugh went up against both Ballo and former UA standout Christian Koloko.
“It was tough,” he said. “Great athletes ... great players, who are way better than me.”
Menaugh got better by battling with Ballo and Koloko. The added weight — and increased confidence — should make him even tougher this season.
“I’m a little more mentally aware on the court than I was before — just the stuff that’s going on,” Menaugh said. “I realized what it’s like to play at this level. Because before, playing in high school, it was very different. There are not a whole lot of big guys like me in Tucson. Just being able to come up to that level of competition and then seeing how it’s different. I think it’s something that has really changed.”
