Arizona's Lopsided Loss Leaves an Impact on Rankings

Arizona wanted to get back on the right track after an underwhelming first season under Brent Brennan where the team finished 4-8 and missed a bowl game despite preseason high expectations.

Coming into the game, Arizona (3-1, 0-1 Big 12) felt like it had momentum with an impressive start to the season and getting healthy during the bye-week. However, on the first drive of the game, the Wildcats marched down the field looking for points but missed a 46-yard field goal by kicker Michael Salgado-Medina, which seemed to set the tone of the game against No. 14 Iowa State.

Arizona, found itself in an early 22-0 hole against Iowa State due to missed opportunities, sloppy play and unforced errors. The Wildcats would score right before half making it a 15-point game.

Iowa State Cyclones' running back Carson Hansen (26) breaks tackle from Arizona Wildcats defensive back Dalton Johnson (43) and runs for a first down during the first quarter in the Big-12 conference showdown on Sept. 27, 2025, at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa. | Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Still, the Wildcats fell 39-14 against Iowa State as the early errors and slow start to the second half proved to be too much for Arizona to overcome.

Arizona’s defense had been one of the better units nationally coming into the game holding opponents to 8.7 PPG, which was tied for sixth in college football. But, the Wildcats’ defense clearly hit a pump in the road against the Cyclones.

Iowa State Cyclones' defensive back Jamison Patton (2) breaks a pass from Arizona Wildcats wide receiver Chris Hunter (11) during the first quarter in the Big-12 conference showdown on Sept. 27, 2025, at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa. | Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

In the first three games of the season, Arizona had done a good job of eliminating explosive plays with the only one that really stood out being the 75-yard touchdown run by KSU.

Through the first three quarters against Iowa State, the Wildcats allowed SIX explosive plays with all of them coming through the air against Arizona’s secondary.

Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht was able to go 14 of 20 passing for 243 yards with most of his yardage coming on those six plays.

Following the loss to ISU, the latest AP Poll was released on Sunday with Ohio State remaining at No. 1 in the country following the win over Washington.

BREAKING: College Football AP Poll🚨https://t.co/dcCZPsWxbm pic.twitter.com/YGBcORMtbL
— On3 (@On3sports) September 28, 2025

With no surprise, Arizona did not make the AP Poll and received zero votes in the top 25 rankings.

As for the Big 12 as a conference, they had four teams in the AP Poll wit No. 11 Texas Tech, No. 14 Iowa State, No. 23 BYU and No. 25 Arizona State rounding out the rankings.

Now, the Wildcats have two ranked games on their schedule with BYU and Arizona State. However, there is the potential for more ranked games with other teams hovering around the rankings.

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