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Why Arizona and UConn won't play on an aircraft carrier; Miller's contract approved

By Kevin Zimmerman
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Yes, yes, yes. The big news is the Arizona baseball team's opening game at the College World Series. Kyle Kensing talked to ESPN's Kyle Peterson in the preview for the Wildcats' matchup against the Florida State Seminoles, which has been bumped down our blog feed thanks to the news of Rich Rodriguez losing another football player in linebacker Brian Wagner.

There's a lot of other news going on this Friday.

Remember when we were hyped to learn that the Arizona Wildcats were going to play the UConn Huskies on an aircraft carrier?

Well, the second Carrier Classic isn't going to happen -- not for the Huskies or Wildcats at least. When I saw today's Jeff Eisenberg story about four potential games on boats, the omission of the Arizona and UConn game was surprsing. Maybe I missed it.

Turns out that about three weeks ago, the Hartford Courant reported that UConn pulled out of the event, The Carrier Classic's event organizer told the paper. Organizers decided to move the event to the East Coast, and Arizona, who looked like the favorite to sign on with the Huskies, decided against playing in the game after the move.

So without a set opponent, UConn backed out, according to the organizers. San Diego officials then decided to put on their own game on an aircraft carrier.

So when you see Syracuse and San Diego State playing off the West Coast, now you'll know why it's not the Wildcats.

  • AD Greg Byrne tweeted that Sean Miller's one-year contract extension has been approved by the Arizona Board of Regents. That takes his contract through the 2016-17 season, which Byrne committed to when Miller toyed with taking the Maryland job last year. Bruce Pascoe has the details of the extension, which brings the contract to a $2.6 million total by the end of it; the board also approved a $500,000 buyout.
  • Speaking of contracts, ABOR also presented guidlines that must be followed before any coaching hire of men's basketball, women's basketball, football and baseball, writes Pat Finley.
  • Kyle Fogg worked out for the Phoenix Suns as part of a West Coast workout tour, reports Pascoe. While he's making the rounds for NBA teams, don't expect Fogg to be nabbed for anything more than a Summer League roster. He's getting his passport, and even if he makes a Summer League roster, the odds are the former lockdown defender and three-point specialist will cement his basketball roots somewhere in Europe.
  • 2013 guard commitment Eric Cooper Jr. is extending his high school career and reclassifying to the 2014 recruiting class, Pascoe reports. He's still young, and after suffering through leg and knee injuries, his father and coach, Eric Cooper Sr., believe it's the right move.

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