Breaking Down the Wildcats' Bowl Game Predictions Ahead of Baylor

Welcome! To another edition of the Arizona Wildcats Insiders Podcast featuring your host Troy Hutchison, who will be delivering a daily podcast discussing everything happening surrounding Arizona athletics giving you an inside look at all the programs on campus.

Hutchison has been covering Arizona for the last seven years with his coverage spanning all-across UA’s campus from football and men’s basketball to Title IX sports. Plus, with so many former Wildcats playing at the next level in their prospective sports there will be moments where he will take a deep dive into the Cats excelling outside of Tucson.

Arizona’s (7-3, 4-3 Big 12) defense set the tone with a tipped ball interception from cornerback Jay’Vion Cole that set up an early touchdown to put the Wildcats up 7-0 against the Bearcats.

Nov 15, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Arizona Wildcats defensive back Dalton Johnson (43) celebrates on the sidelines after intercepting a pass against the Cincinnati Bearcats in the first half at Nippert Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

Although the game started off good for Arizona, its defense had its struggles in the first quarter. However, Brent Brennan and his team were able to fix those issues and put drives together down the stretch to pull off the 30-24 upset of Cincinnati.

At one point this season, the Wildcats were riding a 5-game road losing streak dating back to the 2024 season which included four blow out losses.

Now, following the win over the Bearcats, Brennan and his team have won back-to-back road games and have climbed over Mount 500 in the Big 12 for the first time this season.

Nov 8, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Brent Brennan against the Kansas Jayhawks in the second half at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Arizona was able to pick Sorsby off two times with Cole and safety Dalton Johnson coming up with the turnovers and giving the offense the chance to get back in the groove.

On the offensive end of the field, Arizona had issues converting in the red zone during the first half with two missed field goals by Michael Salgado-Medina. One miss from 40 and a blocked kick the next time out.

However, with the Wildcats up 27-24 late in the fourth quarter, Salgado-Medina was able to redeem himself with a clutch 51-yard field goal to make it a 6-point game with 1:34 left in the game.

Arizona was able to get its offense going in the second half with two drives that finished with a touchdown. Running back Kedrick Reescano had the go-ahead score on a 50-yard run and the Wildcats never looked back.

Meanwhile, quarterback Noah Fifita had another great road game going 23 of 31 on his passing attempts while racking up 294 yards and slinging an important touchdown late in the game.

Nov 15, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita (1) drops back to pass against the Cincinnati Bearcats in the first half at Nippert Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

The one touchdown pass from Fifita was a record breaking one with him now sitting at 68 passing touchdowns in his career passing Willie Tuitama and Nick Foles for the program-record.

On the final drive for Cincinnati, Arizona’s defense came up strong and forced the Bearcats into a turnover on downs to seal the road win.

With the game in the books, we at Arizona Wildcats On SI took a look at the national landscape of bowl projections and where the Wildcats stack up against the rest of the country.

National Bowl Projections

CBS Sports: Sun Bowl | Arizona vs. SMU (Dec. 31)

College Football News: LA Bowl | Arizona vs. San Diego State (Dec. 13)

ESPN No. 1: LA Bowl | Arizona vs. San Diego State (Dec. 13)

ESPN No. 2: Sun Bowl | Arizona vs. Pittsburgh (Dec. 31)

Sports Illustrated: Sun Bowl | Arizona vs. Georgia Tech (Dec. 31)

USA Today: LA Bowl | Arizona vs. San Diego State (Dec. 13)

Arizona will now be back at home to play in the final regular season game of the season as the Wildcats take on Baylor (5-5, 3-4), which is coming off a 55-28 loss to Utah.

This marks the first time the two programs have gone up against each other since the 1992 Sun Bowl where Baylor beat the Wildcats 20-15 in the only game between the two teams.

After looking at where the WIldcats stack up nationally in the bowl projections, we at Arizona Wildcats On SI have come up with our own bowl game prediction for Arizona with two games remaining on the schedule.

Bowl Prediction

Arizona Wildcats On SI: Sun Bowl | Arizona vs. Miami (Dec. 31)

Reason

Nov 15, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita (1) reacts to throwing a touchdown against the Cincinnati Bearcats in the second half at Nippert Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

When you look at the Wildcats as a whole, Arizona has improved drastically from the first year under Brennan but still has room to grow on both sides of the ball. Now, getting out to the fast 3-0 start, which went a long way to help the Wildcats clinch a bowl berth against the Jayhawks a few weeks back.

At the beginning of the season, we predicted Arizona winning seven games going 7-5 during the regular season. Now, Arizona is sitting at 7-3 and has a realistic shot at winning nine games this season and exceeding our expectations.

Dec 28, 2023; San Antonio, TX, USA; Arizona Wildcats running back DJ Williams (8) runs for a touchdown in the second half against the Oklahoma Sooners at Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images | Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images

Arizona will now face off against Baylor, in the final home game of the season with seniors and the team looking to capture the eighth win of the year.

Please be sure to share your thoughts with us on our bowl prediction and where we have the Wildcats going. To do so, follow us on our X account by clicking on the link.