An outsider to Tucson’s hipster culture and spicy southwest cuisine would tell you that this isn’t much of a town to eat in, unless you wanted Mexican food, which, of course, you often did. Mexican restaurants always have been and always will be a staple and piece of this place, just like the wet August…
Northern Arizona University is located in Flagstaff, Ariz., which is quite a bit different than most of Arizona, particularly Tucson. It’s cold, but it’s beautiful.
It’s not exactly known for its basketball program, though.
The Lumberjacks have been to two NCAA tournaments in their history — once in 1998 when Ben Howland was the head coach, and again in 2000 with Mike Adras. But, NAU lost both games, albeit in close contests (in 1998 by three to Cincinnati, and in 2000 by six to St. John’s).
NAU reached an all-time low in the 2011-12 season when it finished 5-24 and 1-15 in conference. Obviously, it was time for a change at the top of the program — longtime head coach Adras left he program in the midst of the mediocre season. Now, enter Jack Murphy.
Tucson, Ariz.- Restaurants and shops along Fourth Avenue have a particular vibe of art, culture and tradition.
Martin’s Comida Chingona Mexican Restaurant fits this vibe perfectly.
Like many of the restaurants along Fourth Avenue, Martin’s is a small business independently owned by one man…. who is the one and only chef in the restaurant.
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University of Arizona engineers and doctors are teaming up to create some of the world’s most innovative medical gadgets.
Researchers develop intelligent wireless textiles into body-worn sensors that track diabetic ulcer formation, knee osteoarthritis, back pain, risk of stroke and elderly falls, while providing doctors vital feedback.
“The world is our lab,” says Dr. Bijan Najafi, Director of the UA Interdisciplinary Consortium on Advanced Motion Performance (iCAMP).
iCAMP is one of the only research and development collaborations that brings together professionals from all academic departments to develop practical interventions for medical needs. Researchers also include about 15 undergraduate students who are being taught the importance of innovation and marketing intellectual property.
First things first, let’s get this out of the way — college athletics is big business.
Sure, the phrase “student athlete” sounds great, but for college basketball, and especially college football, the bottom line is as big of a factor as anything happening on the hardwood.
During the 2013 March Madness tournament – where Louisville managed its way through the field to beat Michigan in a memorable championship game – advertisers spent more than $1.0 billion on advertising, according to Kantar Media. That total topped even the super bowl, which logged-in at a mere $976.3 million.
This exchange of cash is why CBS and Turner Broadcasting shelled out more than $740 million for rights to cover the games; it’s why ESPN invested $5.64 billion over 12 years to broadcast the coming college football playoffs; and it’s why the Pac-12 Network came to a $3.0 billion deal with Fox and ESPN in 2012.
The money is there in college athletics. And, it’s why every year Ryan Brewer, an assistant professor of finance at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus, comes out with a list every basketball and football season ranking the value of big time programs if they were bought and sold like professional franchises.
“If you want to do good, solid decision-making, thinking about a university like a business is the [right] idea,” Brewer said.
While not every basketball program is profitable, and in those cases a business decision must be made to see if it’s worth spending money there versus academics, Brewer said that schools that spend around $70 or $80 million typically hit a “magic spot” and brings in a positive cash flow.
So for universities like Louisville or Arizona, it’s not a worry about losing money. It’s about how much can they make.
