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Before UA athletic director Jim Livengood left for the Pac-10 summer meetings last week, he completed the most lucrative contract in the history of UA sports: an agreement with IMG Sports for — get this — $124 million. It is guaranteed through 2024.

Here's what it means: Instead of fidgeting and worrying with uncertain financial issues each season, the UA can now budget about $8.2 million per year from its IMG deal. Better yet, the 12 on-site IMG employees at McKale Center are paid by IMG and not via Livengood's budget.

Instead of splintering its resources to pursue corporate relationships, broadcast revenue, advertising dollars and income through publications, the Internet and from corporate signage, Livengood's staff will have more time to focus on student-athlete issues and sport-by-sport competitive matters. The pressure to produce $124 million is on IMG, not the UA athletic department.

IMG, which represents 12 BCS conference schools, among them Tennessee, Florida and Michigan, said that it expanded the UA's corporate partner program by about 30 percent in the original contract, 2005-09, in which it paid the UA an estimated $18 million.

The UA-IMG partnership goes far beyond the bigger dollars of football and basketball. For example, at Arizona softball games at Hillenbrand Stadium, each strikeout this season was sponsored by a local credit union. The PA announcer would say "that's a Vantage West Credit Union whiff," at which time someone would toss three softballs (with VWCU markings) into the crowd.

In effect, it's almost like creative minor-league baseball promotions of the last 30 years. IMG will attempt to find sponsors for every conceivable facet of UA sports. In an era of unimaginable expense — such as a $1 million signing bonus for basketball coach Sean Miller — Livengood continues to find ways to keep the Wildcats financially competitive.

If you compare their three UA basketball seasons, Chase Budinger was a significantly more productive player than Richard Jefferson.

Budinger scored 1,697 points to Jefferson's 944. Jefferson's highest scoring average was 11.3. He did not make the All-Pac-10 team. Budinger's lowest scoring average was 15.6.

Jefferson was the No. 13 overall pick of the 2001 draft but Budinger, who is virtually the same size and plays the same position, is considered no more than a mid-20s selection this month. Why?

At last week's NBA pre-draft combine in Chicago, Budinger recorded exactly the same vertical jump, 38 1/2 inches, that Jefferson did in the 2001 combine. The difference is that Jefferson's wingspan measured 7 feet 1 inch. Budinger's wingspan: 6-7. That's six inches. It led draft geeks to conclude that Budinger has "gator arms" and even though that's not a nice term, it is probably one reason Budinger was not the flat-out star player many expected when he arrived in Tucson.

After examining the numbers collected from the NBA's combines the last 10 years, there is also less mystery now why Marcus Williams was only a second-round selection in 2007. His vertical jump was just 28 inches. Compare that to the 34 1/2 of Andre Iguodala and even the 33 1/2 of Michael Wright, who was never considered much of a jumper.

Former Sabino High School and Pima College right-hander Tim Wood became the 39th baseball player from a Tucson high school to reach the major leagues. Wood, who was Florida's 44th-round draft pick in 2002, was promoted to the Marlins roster on Thursday night as they battled his former high school teammate, Milwaukee Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy. Wood spent 6 1/2 seasons in the minor leagues, twice requiring arm surgery, before a breakout performance at Class AAA New Orleans this season. … The 40th Tucson prep ballplayer to reach the majors? It could be another Sabino product, John Bannister, who has 20 relief appearances for the Texas Rangers' AA and AAA teams this year. … Former Pima College and Sierra Vista Buena left-hander Donald Veal has been put on the disabled list by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Veal pitched in just five games for the Pirates, 6 1/3 innings, as they carefully nurture him, believing he is a prospect of note. But they cannot return him to the minor leagues by the Rule 5 winter draft regulations, by which they acquired him from the Cubs. To get around the rule, the Pirates can now dispatch Veal to the minors for "injury rehab assignments," to get him the experience they are not willing to give him in big-league games. With Veal and Wood in the majors this year, it means that 10 former PCC players have reached the big leagues. … In Oregon's process of hiring a new softball coach, they are sure to examine UA pitching coach Teresa Wilson and Yavapai College coach Stacy Iveson of Tucson. Ironically, the school that seems to have unlimited funding might not be able to attract Iveson because the Duck softball program operates on a relative shoestring.

When the UA track team competes in the NCAA championships this week, long jumper Luis Rivera, shot-putters Zack Lloyd and Megan Howard, and high jumpers Liz Patterson and Jasmin Day are expected to seriously contend for national championships. Patterson is the defending NCAA high jump champ. But keep an eye on freshman 1,500-meter runner Abdi Hassan, who suddenly has the sixth best time in school history (3:42.04) in the event once dominated by Wildcat stars Martin Keino, Thom Hunt, Robert Cheseret and Ed Arriola. "Abdi has such ability that if he someday got to the level of a Bernard Lagat, I would not be surprised,'' said UA coach Fred Harvey. No better endorsement necessary. … If you were watching closely, behind the Orlando Magic bench on Thursday night, you could see UA basketball coach Sean Miller, who interrupted his busy series of meet-and-greet-Tucson summer luncheons — everything from the Sertoma Club to Rotary clubs this month — to visit with Magic coach Stan Van Gundy. … The Pac-10 last week voted not to eliminate its round-robin football schedule and play just eight conference football games. Here's why: Nobody is willing to "miss" USC, and to an extent, UCLA, even for one season. The Los Angeles factor is a great one. The USC home football game is a guaranteed sellout at premium ticket prices. Follow the money. … Former UA basketball player Mohamed Tangara has been invited to the Korean Basketball League draft camp this month after working out for Korean teams last week in Phoenix. He also has been asked to play for the Milwaukee Bucks' summer league team. Tangara was a first-team All-Pacific West player at Chaminade (Hawaii) last season, averaging 14.4 points and 8.7 rebounds. … Former Ironwood Ridge state championship basketball player Austin Smith has transferred from Liberty to NAU for his sophomore season. Smith, a forward, played in 28 games, with six starts, as a Liberty freshman.

Outgoing Pac-10 commissioner Tom Hansen told me last week he does not expect the league to expand "in the next 20 or 25 years," which defuses those who suspect Utah, Boise State and BYU would be good additions. Sports Illustrated last week speculated that Utah and Boise State would make the league stronger. No way. "The Utah institutions just don't have enough TV homes," said Hansen. "We would just have more mouths to feed without adding income." … Both of Hansen's children graduated from the UA: Bryan was a team manager on Lute Olson's basketball team, and Sarah married Craig Reeves, a former UA and Sahuaro High School football receiver. … Typical of the talent among Tucson junior golfers at the American Junior Golf Association's Colorado Open last week, Salpointe Catholic junior Matt McClure and Ironwood Ridge junior Alex McMahon tied for sixth in a 75-man field. McClure shot 75-68 and McMahon 73-70. Cienega High School's Sun Park was fourth among 75 girls in the field, shooting 74-73. … In the annual baseball draft this week, expect Pima College slugger Justin Zumwalde of Sabino, Mike LaChapelle of Sahuaro and Kody Johnson of Cienega to be selected. Johnson already has accepted a scholarship offer from Oregon State. LaChapelle, who pitched a no-hitter against Yavapai this season, is deciding between offers from North Carolina State and New Mexico.

It's absurd that anonymous Web message-board posters are citing Mike Candrea's 2008 Beijing Olympics sabbatical as a key reason Arizona went 0-2 at the Women's College World Series. They infer that Candrea neglected recruiting to attend to his personal business, and it wrecked the Wildcats.

The truth is this: Once high school pitching phenom Amanda Williams left school, academically ineligible in 2007, there was nothing Candrea could do in the short term to acquire a pitcher good enough to help Arizona win the title this season.

No other pitcher entered college softball in 2008 or 2009 capable enough, or ready, to pitch Arizona to the national title. As it was, with its least effective pitching in more than 20 years, Arizona was just one player away from Candrea's ninth NCAA title. Doesn't seem like neglect to me.

With the addition of Canyon del Oro All-America pitcher Kenzie Fowler, the UA probably will be picked No. 2 in the nation entering 2010. But national champ Washington returns the NCAA's premier pitcher, Danielle Lawrie, and thus the Huskies will surely open the season No. 1.

By May 2010, however, I'll take Candrea's chances against the field.