The school colors are cardinal red and navy blue since 1900, though originally sage green and silver.

[8] Both schools compete in the State Farm Territorial Cup Series, a head-to-head competition in 18 different sports.

Arizona has two dormant rivalries with two other former Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association members, the New Mexico Lobos and Texas Tech Red Raiders, with the latter being a Big 12 opponent starting in 2024.

[12] The University of Arizona sponsors teams in eight men's and twelve women's NCAA sanctioned sports.

Arizona's baseball teams have appeared in the NCAA College World Series more than fifteen times.

Their championship team was led by future NBA players Mike Bibby and Michael Dickerson, as well as Final Four MVP Miles Simon.

They defeated three number-one seeds in the same tournament: Kansas, North Carolina and Kentucky in the Championship Game.

After 25 years of coaching Arizona, Lute Olson retired shortly before the 2008–2009 season, largely due to on-going health issues.

After 12 years at the helm, Arizona and head coach Sean Miller parted ways.

During the 1980s under coach Larry Smith, Arizona began a resurgence of winning and was notably successful in the 1990s under Dick Tomey and his dominant "Desert Swarm" defense that was characterized by tough, hard-nosed tactics.

In 1993, the Wildcats had their first 10-win season and captured a share of the Pac-10 title, and drubbed the powerhouse Miami Hurricanes in the 1994 Fiesta Bowl by a score of 29–0.

His successor, John Mackovic took over in 2001 and would become a disaster for the program, as he mistreated and abused players while continuously losing games, all of which led to his firing in 2003.

Former West Virginia and Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez was hired to lead the Wildcats in 2012.

However, they would lose big to Oregon in the conference championship game that prevented Arizona from earning a possible trip to the inaugural College Football Playoff.

[17] He would go into rebuilding mode and in 2023, he led Arizona to their fourth ten-win season and defeated Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl.

After the season concluded, Fisch was hired by Washington to take over as head coach, which forced Arizona to find his successor.

Jim Furyk, the 2003 U.S. Open champion attended the University of Arizona prior to turning professional in 1992.

Annika Sörenstam won an individual national title in 1991, and Lorena Ochoa was NCAA Women's Player of the Year in 2001 and 2002 before leaving UA early to turn pro.

[20] Former National Champion & NCAA All-American Caitlin Lowe was hired as only the 6th coach in team history.

Arizona has three sports in its "Cactus Tier", an elevated level of intercollegiate club competition: ice hockey, lacrosse, and rugby.

[25] The team has played at the 7,000-seat Tucson Convention Center, affectionately known as "The Madhouse on Main Street,"[25] since the 1980–81 season and are consistently one of the university's top draws with an average attendance of 3,000 fans per game.

The new Wildcat hockey team is organized under the auspices of the Campus Recreation Department and began receiving increased financial backing from the university, which they have never had in their history under former head coach and general manager Leo Golembiewski.

[27] Beginning in the 2013–14 season, the team will join the newly formed Western Collegiate Hockey League (WCHL).

The Wildcats reached the D1-AA national playoffs in 2014, where they defeated Long Beach State, Stanford, and Bowling Green, but ultimately lost to Central Florida in the final.

[31] Results † Won sudden-death playoff The Arizona Wildcats competed in the NCAA tournament across 22 active sports (9 men's and 13 women's) 526 times at the Division I FBS level.

[48] Notable Wildcat Olympians include Delaney Schnell (women's diving, silver), Amy Van Dyken (women's swimming, gold), Josh Green (men's basketball, bronze), Jennie Finch (softball, gold and silver), Andre Iguodala (men's basketball, gold), Amanda Beard (women's swimming, multiple medals), and Richard Jefferson (men's basketball, bronze).

From his airplane window, Lee observed the huge letters on the roof of the UA gymnasium reading "BEAR DOWN".

The day before the first game of the 1926 football season, Salmon and three friends were involved in an automobile accident and their vehicle flipped over a ravine.

The following year, the University of Arizona student body approved that "Bear Down" would be the new slogan for all Wildcat athletic teams.

A heritage committee, organized by current and former longtime athletics department staff, manages these through reviews and makes recommendations based on all available information, resources, and considerations.