On Aug. 31, 1918, UA president听R.B. von KleinSmid听announced that normal UA classwork would be eliminated so that the school could be turned into a Student鈥檚 Army Training Camp, preparing soldiers for World War I.

The 1918 football season? Canceled.

A day earlier, 蜜柚直播 football coach/athletic director听Pop McKale鈥檚 wife,听Ada, had given birth to a baby daughter,听Ruth.

Despite World War I and despite the devastating global flu pandemic, life went on in 蜜柚直播 and elsewhere.

A year later, Pop McKale coached the Wildcat football team to a 7-1 record, beating opponents by a combined 235-19.

The events of a century ago help to put today鈥檚 COVID-19 crisis in perspective.

Before McKale was told the Wildcats would not field a football team in 1918, he had secured a pledge from Phoenix鈥檚 top football prospect,听Basil Wilky, to enroll at 蜜柚直播 and play for the Wildcats. But Wilky chose to enlist in the Army. On Halloween 1918, while in training at Salt Lake City, Wilky died of pneumonia 鈥� the Spanish flu.

Sports didn鈥檛 entirely fade from 蜜柚直播鈥檚 landscape in 1918. The Fighting Mechanics of the UA鈥檚 Student Army Training Camp began to play a town baseball team, Steinfeld鈥檚, on Sunday afternoons on the UA baseball diamond.

But as the Spanish flu became more and more deadly, those games were canceled.

UA president von KleinSmid ordered the baseball games to stop in early October. He said full attention would be paid to the war effort and to avoid spreading the flu.

鈥淣othing will be taught except that which has military value,鈥� von KleinSmid said.

But on Nov. 2, 1918, an intrasquad football game was held on campus. Attendance was limited to those from the SATC 鈥渙wing to the quarantine,鈥� the Star reported. A potential game with the Army Camp from Douglas was canceled.

It wasn鈥檛 until late September 1919 that McKale began coaching a UA football team again. School reopened. Classes in accounting, food and cookery, general psychology, physical training, sewing and Spanish were offered.

The Wildcats opened the football season beating 蜜柚直播 State, 59-0. Plans to build a football stadium were hatched.

鈥淭his will be 蜜柚直播鈥檚 greatest year in athletics,鈥� said McKale. 鈥溍坭种辈� should add new laurels to her name this fall and next spring.鈥�

Football came back. Life went on. McKale鈥檚 baby daughter, Ruth, lived until 2002.

UA coaches' salary reductions make a small dent

蜜柚直播 athletic director听Dave Heeke听last week told me the shutdown of college athletics and the uncertainty of playing the 2020 football season will likely lead to a 鈥渞eset of the deck鈥� when it comes to the industry鈥檚 skyrocketing spending 鈥� especially salaries for football and men鈥檚 basketball coaches. The leverage, now in the hands of a coach鈥檚 agent, seems sure to be recalibrated.

Put it this way: UA football coach听Kevin Sumlin听is taking a 20% reduction on his base salary of $2.6 million. He is paid $50,000 per week. Now he will 鈥渙nly鈥� be paid $40,000 per week.

How much will that help what Heeke said is likely to be a shortfall of about $7.5 million from the UA鈥檚 fiscal year 2019-20 athletic budget? Not nearly enough. With cash reserves applied, 蜜柚直播 will still likely have a budget deficit of about $1.5 million in the fiscal year 2019-20.

Sumlin鈥檚 assistant coaches are paid a combined $2.99 million a year. Combined, they will be reduced by about $600,000 in salary cuts. Again, it鈥檚 helpful, but given the potential for a financial disaster for all athletic departments in the fiscal year 2020-21, it鈥檚 almost pennies on the dollar.

The perception of paying coaches millions of dollars while tens of millions of Americans are out of work isn鈥檛 going to generate much sympathy. If big-money Power 5 conference athletic departments start pinching pennies and reducing staff, they might for the first time in decades wonder if trying to keep up with a school like LSU 鈥� one that has 13 full-time 鈥渁nalysts鈥� in its football program 鈥� is the right thing to do.

UA coach Adia Barnes expecting second child in September

UA women鈥檚 basketball coach听Adia Barnes听told 1030-AM on Friday night that she is expecting a baby daughter in September. Barnes and her husband, Wildcats assistant coach听Salvo Coppa, have a 4-year-old son,听Matteo.

蜜柚直播 is expected to enter the 2020-21 season ranked in the top 10 nationally and contend for the Pac-12 championship. Having a baby just before preseason drills begin, however, is nothing new at the highest levels of Pac-12 sports.

蜜柚直播 State coach听Charli Turner Thorne听gave birth to sons in 1998, 2001 and 2005, a period in which she coached the Sun Devils to three NCAA Tournaments and followed with Elite Eight appearances in 2007 and 2009. She took a leave of absence from ASU, but not until the 2011-12 season.

蜜柚直播 women鈥檚 golf coach听Laura Ianello听gave birth to baby daughters听Natalie, 7, and听Joanna, 5, during an amazing run in which the Wildcats won the 2018 NCAA championship and finished Nos. 3, 5 and 7 nationally and were ranked in the top 10 again this season.

Ianello told me that balancing her daughters and coaching a world-class golf team is 鈥渁 happy chaos.鈥�

UA runner Carlos Villarreal postpones 4-minute mile attempt

UA distance running All-American听Carlos Villarreal, who had planned an attempt this month to become the first runner to ever break the four-minute mile in 蜜柚直播, has delayed his plans. The 2019 Pan American Games 1,500 meters gold medalist said he has pushed back his mile run to August or perhaps even next spring. He does not have access to Drachman Stadium facilities, nor to his UA coach,听James Li, per Pac-12 regulations. 鈥淪ince the Olympics are (next summer), we didn鈥檛 want to risk training at such a high level without access to a training room,鈥� Villarreal said. 鈥淭raining without proper treatment can cause injuries.鈥� Villarreal has a strong chance to make Mexico鈥檚 2021 Olympic team.

Jim Wing was unsung hero of UA baseball's national title run

I wrote a 鈥淏eating No. 1鈥� column on 蜜柚直播鈥檚 1986 national championship baseball team last week and failed to include the contributions of esteemed UA pitching coach听Jim Wing, who, for my money, was the top pitching coach in college baseball for two decades. 蜜柚直播 won 1976, 1980 and 1986 national titles with Wing handling the pitching staff. Wing鈥檚 modesty is such that he rarely got the credit deserved for helping build and sustain the glory days of UA baseball. When I talked to him last week all he would say was 鈥淚 did make the trip to Omaha a few times,鈥� before laughing. 鈥淭he credit goes to听Gary Alexander听and all those pitchers who got the job done.鈥�

Decorated high school careers of Salpointe Catholic football standouts near end

Bijan Robinson,听Lathan Ransom听and听Trent Strong, three of Salpointe Catholic鈥檚 elite football players from coach听Dennis Bene鈥檚 35-4 run from 2017-19, haven鈥檛 yet gone their separate ways. Robinson, bound for Texas, Ransom, who will play at Ohio State, and Strong, who will play for former UA offensive coordinator听Sonny Dykes听at SMU, get together at 5 a.m. each weekday to work out with notable 蜜柚直播 trainer听Carla Garrett. Their classwork at Salpointe runs for another two weeks. Then what? Robinson, Ransom and Strong are among thousands of college football players who will have to make it up as they go.

Sahuaro's Alyssa Brown has been discovered by major college basketball programs

The last time I spoke with Sahuaro High School girls basketball coach听Steve Botkin听鈥� whose team reached the state championship game and went 28-2 this year 鈥� he told me star junior forward听Alyssa Brown听had been recruited by smaller schools such as Bethune-Cookman and Elon.

鈥淪he鈥檚 going to be discovered pretty soon,鈥� said Botkin. 鈥淎 lot of schools are going to find out how good she is.鈥�

Brown finished the season with averages of 31.4 points and 9.7 rebounds per game and was selected the 蜜柚直播 Gatorade Player of the Year. Just as the NCAA women鈥檚 basketball recruiting period closed a week ago, Brown was offered scholarships by Colorado, Houston UNLV, UTEP and UC Santa Barbara. With 2,094 career points, Brown, who is 6 feet 4 inches, is likely to be rated as a four-star recruit by the time her Sahuaro career ends next winter.

Catalina Foothills golf star, former Wildcat Krystal Quihuis play in amateur tournament听

Incoming UA freshman golfer听Maya Benita,听the defending state champion from Catalina Foothills, played as an amateur in her first event on a professional tour听last week, finishing tied for 17th in the Cactus Tour event at Longbow Golf Course in the Phoenix area. Benita shot 75-72-73 in a field that included Salpointe Catholic High School and UA grad听Krystal Quihuis, who has finished fifth and sixth in two Cactus Tour events while waiting to learn if the LPGA Symetra Tour will reopen this year. Quihuis鈥� former 蜜柚直播 teammate,听Haley Moore, won a Cactus Tour event five weeks ago, and has finished second and third in the last two events.

MLB managers flock to 蜜柚直播 for quarantine

蜜柚直播 has become a haven for two MLB managers, Cleveland鈥檚听Terry Francona听and Toronto鈥檚听Charlie Montoyo. Both returned from spring training six weeks ago and are communicating with the Indians and Blue Jays, respectively, in virtual meetings from their winter homes.听Chip Hale, bench coach of the world champion Nationals, has also returned to his winter home in 蜜柚直播. Francona last week was part of a Zoom meeting held by Utah Utes head coach听Bill Kinneberg, who surprised his team by having his former 蜜柚直播 teammate take part in the team meeting online.

COVID-19 could force ASU-UNLV out of Raiders' new Las Vegas stadium

One of the financial blows from COVID-19 to college sports involves ASU鈥檚 scheduled Sept. 12 football game at UNLV. The contest was originally scheduled to be the second game ever played at the $2 billion Allegiant Stadium, owned by the Las Vegas Raiders. But the small print of the UNLV-ASU contract guarantees UNLV only one home nonconference game and that is Aug. 29 against Cal. Thus, the UNLV-ASU game now appears headed for 50-year-old Sam Boyd Stadium, which is, in my opinion, the worst college football venue I鈥檝e been in since 蜜柚直播 played at TCU鈥檚 ancient Amon G. Carter Stadium in 1999 (it was given a $164 million renovation in 2010). Now it鈥檚 uncertain if UNLV and ASU will even play one another in football this year.

My two cents: Expect to see a lot of Steve Kerr in Sunday's episodes of 'The Last Dance'

Steve Kerr听will get a lot of time on camera in episodes 7 and 8 of 鈥淭he Last Dance,鈥� which air Sunday night on ESPN. The episodes will spend much of the time on the Chicago Bulls鈥� NBA titles in 1996, 1997 and 1998.

The now famous 鈥渇ight鈥� Kerr and听Michael Jordan听had in practice in 1995 is expected to get a lot of attention.

Kerr last week told ESPN: 鈥淥n the one hand I鈥檓 really happy that this stuff is archived. I鈥檓 happy my kids get to see footage from when they were just toddlers or not even born yet. And for them to see what my life was like back then is really cool.鈥�

He also said there is no footage of the fight with Jordan.

One thing Kerr does so well is deflect attention. He has a self-deprecating sense of humor that has served him well since he began playing basketball for听Lute Olson听at 蜜柚直播 in 1983.

But one thing most people forget is that Kerr was a really good NBA player and a strong contributor to the Bulls. From 1996-98, with three NBA titles, Kerr shot 604 3-pointers for the Bulls, averaging 24 minutes per game. He made 47.8% of those 3-pointers, which was among the league鈥檚 best.

What鈥檚 more, in crunch time Kerr was money from the foul line, making 177 of 200 foul shots over those three regular seasons, or 88.5%.

鈥淚t鈥檚 definitely weird,鈥� Kerr told ESPN when asked about 鈥淭he Last Dance.鈥� 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 about to get weirder.鈥�