LAS VEGAS — The Arizona Wildcats will don new alternate helmets during the program’s inaugural season in the Big 12.
On Day 1 of the 2024 Big 12 football Media Days at Allegiant Stadium Tuesday, Arizona revealed via social media a white helmet that will feature a cursive “Cats” decal in red font — the same logo that’s currently on the hip of the team’s game pants. The helmet also has a chrome-red face mask and a red, white and blue decal down the crown of the helmet.
The Wildcats will continue to wear its traditional “Desert Swarm” white helmets with a navy blue face mask and a block “A” decal for most games.
It is believed Arizona’s alternate helmets are the first ones without some form of the block “A” since its cursive “UA” look in the mid-1970s, when Arizona was a part of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC).
Arizona kicks off the 2024 season against New Mexico at Arizona Stadium on Aug. 31 at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN.
Oklahoma State running back Ollie Gordon II celebrates with fans after the team’s win over BYU last November in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Gordon is the reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and recipient of the 2023 Doak Walker award, given annually to the top running back in major college football.
‘Better days are ahead’ for Cowboys’ running back Gordon following DUI arrest
Oklahoma State star running back Ollie Gordon II will not be suspended following his DUI arrest on June 30 in Oklahoma, OSU head coach Mike Gundy said on ESPN at the first session of Big 12 Media Days on Tuesday.
Gundy said the defending Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year is “going to play,” adding that “I’m going to do what we think is best for Oklahoma State football.
“I think it’s best for Ollie to play,” Gundy told ESPN. “If there’s any punishment, it’s making him carry the ball 50 times in the first game.”
Gordon, who rushed for 1,732 yards and 21 touchdowns last season while winning the Doak Walker Award as college football’s top running back, attended Big 12 media days at Allegiant Stadium. Gordon and Gundy both addressed the arrest.
“I said, ‘You’re not going into hiding. You’re going to face the music. You’re going to have to stand up and talk to people and answer questions. And, hopefully, more than football, you can learn from the situation you’ve been in,’” Gundy said. “Because if not, then we have a real issue.”
During the interview aired via ESPNU and ESPN+, the compassionate Gundy didn’t defend Gordon’s actions that led to his arrest but said he’s driven a vehicle after alcohol consumption in the past.
“I’m not justifying what Ollie did. I’m just telling you what decision I made. I thought, ‘Well I’ve probably done that about a thousand times in my life and was just fine.’ I got lucky, people get lucky,” he said. “Ollie made a decision that he wish he could’ve done better.”
Gundy added Gordon “is doing fine” since his offseason arrest.
“I visited with him multiple times over the last week. To be quite honest with you, yesterday we had another (hour-long) conversation. It was the first time that he smiled,” Gundy said earlier, during his media day news conference. “I think that it affected him like it would most people.
“We brought him (to Las Vegas) today so you guys could ask him that question,” Gundy added. “That was one of the reasons that I wanted to bring him here. It’s hard for me to speak for Ollie. I can only give you some indication on what I’ve seen over the last week.”
When asked about his arrest, Gordon said, “Better days are ahead, day by day. You gotta take it on the chin, move on. You can’t dwell on it too long,” without getting into the minutia.
“Just keep your head up,” Gordon said. “You can’t dwell on it for too long. Sometimes, you gotta man up and own your actions.
“Coach Gundy (is an) alpha male, for sure. He’s been great, texting to me and talking to me and telling me to keep my head up, stuff like that,” Gordon added. “Just make mistakes, but don’t make big ones, learn from what you do and don’t mess up again the same way you did the first time.”
Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy speaks during a press conference as part of the Big 12's college football Media Days Tuesday in Las Vegas.
Size and scope
Now at 16 teams, the Big 12 doesn’t just have more members than Arizona’s prior home, the Pac-12. On Tuesday, the UA’s first foray into the league’s season-opening media gathering — though Arizona coach Brent Brennan and players won’t officially be in front of the cameras until Wednesday — was super-sized in its own right.
Last year, the Pac-12’s single-day preseason media event at Houk Nightclub, attached to the Resorts World complex in Las Vegas, utilized the club’s 26,000-square foot space in addition to a large hotel ballroom.
This year: The roughly 57,000-plus-square foot playing surface of Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium — the home of the NFL’s Raiders hosted the 2024 Super Bowl and offers gameday seating for 65,000-plus — hosted the sprawling Big 12 festivities. The Big 12 also had use of two super-sized lounge venues in Allegiant’s CreditOne Bank Club and Champions Clubs, located on opposite sidelines.
It’s not just the physical size of the event (or the fact its two days instead of one); the scope is bigger too.
In addition to welcoming the UA, ASU, Utah and Colorado to make the 16-team league, the national discussions around college sports has drawn attention this month to major conferences such as the SEC, Big Ten, and Big 12.
During his opening remarks, Yormark said the league is estimating upward of 500 media members making the trip to Allegiant’s near-Strip location over the two days.
Second-year ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham is interviewed on Day 1 of the Big 12’s football Media Days event on July 9 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
He said it
“It feels like cheating.”
That’s how ASU second-year head coach Kenny Dillingham responded, somewhat with excitement, when asked Tuesday about the ability for coaches and players to have near-instantaneous in-game video replay at their fingertips with the introduction of Microsoft-built tablets to Big 12 sidelines this coming season.
Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham fields questions on stage during Day 1 of Big 12 football Media Days Tuesday at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
The big number
4: Speaking at the dais Tuesday, longtime Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham noted that he’s seen first-hand not one, not two, but three conference changes; the Big 12 now marks the fourth NCAA Division I conference to house the Utes since Whittingham has been on staff.
While Whittingham has been the program’s head coach since 2005, he started at the school in 1994, working then as defensive line coach under then-Utah coach Ron McBride (a former Arizona offensive line coach himself).
Whittingham moved up the assistant ranks, and stuck around when Urban Meyer was hired to run the Utes in 2002. When Meyer moved on to Florida in 2005, Whittingham got the top job, which he’s held ever since.
In 1994, Utah was a few years away from ending its long tenure in the Western Athletic Conference; in 1998, the Utes moved to the Mountain West, before helping the Pac-10 expand to the Pac-12 in 2011. And this year, they join the Big 12.
“So, nothing new for me personally as far as changing leagues,” Whittingham said.
How 'bout that ride in? (Big 12 YouTube)
