Programs on the Rise: Arizona heading back to roaring '90s

Lute Olson announced he was taking an indefinite leave of absence in November 2007.

Arizona spent the subsequent 17 months unsettled.

The Wildcats played one season under Kevin O'Neil, the next under Russ Pennell. And though both men snuck into the NCAA tournament (as a No. 10 seed in 2008 and No. 12 seed in 2009), neither team looked nor felt nor played like the Arizona program that rose to prominence under Olson, all of which put a tremendous amount of pressure on athletic director Jim Livengood.

He had to hit a home run with Olson's permanent replacement.

He could not mess up.

Lucky for him, Tim Floyd rejected his overtures -- Seriously, how lucky was that? -- and remained at Southern California (for a couple of months, at least). Countless other coaches also passed on the opportunity, forcing Livengood to look to Xavier and make a fantastic hire.

Mark my words: Sean Miller will kill it at Arizona.

It won't happen this year; the roster is down because of the uncertainty. But Miller has already secured commitments from five Top 100 prospects -- including in-state standout Daniel Bejarano -- in his six months on the job, meaning he's accumulating the kind of talent it'll take to compete annually with UCLA's Ben Howland. Consequently, the Wildcats will, before long, be back doing what the Wildcats have been doing for decades. And that's why Arizona highlights the CBSSports.com List of Programs on the Rise.

Five Programs on the Rise

(programs listed in alphabetical order)

Arizona

Why it's here: The key to any rebuilding project is recruiting, and Miller (like I mentioned already) is succeeding in that aspect of the job. Beyond that, he's restored confidence to a program that will challenge for Pac-10 titles even if this season might be tough.

California

Why it's here: The Bears made the NCAA tournament only once in Ben Braun's final five seasons, which is why Braun is no longer the Bears' coach. Mike Montgomery replaced him, led Cal to the NCAA tournament last season, won 22 games and has his team ranked 20th in the preseason Top 25 (and one). What's even better is that recruiting is going well; Cal already has commitments from three prospects ranked among the Top 100 of Scout.com's Class of 2010 rankings.

Cincinnati

Why it's here: Mick Cronin inherited a mess at Cincinnati, and it has taken a while to pull out of it. Various injuries -- Mike Williams missed the 2007-08 season; Cashmere Wright missed the 2008-09 season -- have complicated manners. But Cronin enters his fourth season with a roster talented enough to return the Bearcats to the NCAA tournament provided the "Lance Stephenson Experiment" doesn't blow up.

Kentucky

Why it's here: UK pushed Billy Gillispie out in March, hired John Calipari a few days later, and the Wildcats have been rolling ever since. Calipari convinced Patrick Patterson to return to school, enrolled six Class of 2009 prospects -- including five-star recruits John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins -- and rejuvenated the Wildcats' large and wacky fan base. Simply put, he took an NIT roster and reshaped it into a roster capable of winning a national title this season. There aren't many men who could accomplish such a feat.

Minnesota

Why it's here: I was skeptical when Minnesota tossed a life line to Tubby Smith and pulled him out of Kentucky, if only because I didn't believe a man who was struggling to recruit at UK would be successful recruiting at Minnesota. Clearly, I was wrong. Smith secured two Top 35 prospects from the Class of 2009 who should help Minnesota make the NCAA tournament for the second successive season, this after making the NCAA tournament only once in the previous nine years.