Takeaways From Arizona's Dominant Win Over Baylor
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Arizona wasn't messing around against Baylor, taking home a resounding 41-17 victory over the Bears on senior day.
The game was close in the first half, but Arizona's senior stepped up in a big way to close out the home slate in style at the newly renamed Casino Del Sol Stadium.
The Wildcats rattled off 27 unanswered points in the second half to cruise to win No. 8 on the year. It was the fourth win in a row for Brent Brennan's team as the Wildcats have gotten hot down the stretch.
Arizona's 28 seniors made a big impact, moving the ball down the field on offense and forcing three turnovers defensively. The seniors finished their final season as Wildcats 6-1 in Tucson, the lone loss coming in double-overtime to No. 11 BYU.
Danny Gonzales had his defense ready for its biggest test against an explosive Sawyer Robertson-led Baylor offense. After a tough start, virtually nothing came from a unit that entered as the nation's No. 2 passing offense and averaged 31.9 points per game.
Now, the Wildcats can look forward to a Friday night rivalry fight at Arizona State in search of win No. 9. Here are a few takeaways from Arizona's home finale.
Arizona's Pass Defense Rose To The Occasion
The big question entering this game was how Arizona's stout pass defense would fare against Robertson's big arm and athletic receivers in tight end Michael Trigg and wideout Josh Cameron.
To start the game, it looked like a potential track meet. Baylor finished the day with 343 total yards, but that is not indicative of how this game went.
Baylor ran 24 plays for 150 yards and put the ball in the end zone on its first two drives of the game. After that, the Bears ran 54 plays for 178 total yards, which is about 3.2 yards per play.
Treydan Stukes snagged his third interception of the season in the end zone in his final game in Tucson. That was the first of three second-half takeaways, which allowed Arizona to pull away quickly.
STUKES SNAGS IT ON SENIOR DAY. pic.twitter.com/4VuFNMDDCM
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 22, 2025
“Storybook ending, if you will," Stukes said of the play. "Any way I can help the team is good for everyone.”
On Arizona's next defensive snap, linebacker Taye Brown popped the ball loose from Baylor running back Bryson Washington, which turned into a quick touchdown for Arizona on the other end.
Arizona's defense suffocated the Bears from there. The Wildcats forced a turnover on downs on four plays on the ensuing possession. Then, linebacker Jabari Mann scored a 34-yard pick-six to put the game into blowout territory. The Wildcats forced one more turnover on downs, and then the Bears possessed the ball until the end of the game.
ADMIN'S KEYBOARD IS MELTING RN
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 22, 2025
PICK SIX JABARI 🗡️ pic.twitter.com/EUzoCj8vVJ
Robertson threw for just 162 yards, his second-lowest total in a game this season. Arizona's defense had four pass breakups and contended with Baylor's physical receivers in man coverage. The coverage was tight enough that the Wildcats managed three sacks as well.
Safeties Dalton Johnson and Genesis Smith also stuffed the box score. Johnson made a team-high 18 tackles, while Smith finished with 16 tackles and a forced fumble.
Run Defense Was A Different Story
One area the Wildcats had a tough time defending was the rushing attack for the Bears, which hasn't been great this season.
The Bears average 144.2 rushing yards per game, 13th in the Big 12. On Saturday, Baylor ran for 181 yards. Washington, Baylor's leading rusher, tallied 51 yards on the day. Caden Knighten, however, paced the backfield with 17 carries for 100 yards.
Knighten had two big bursts, but mainly churned out four or five yards per carry to keep Baylor in manageable distance.
Given the score, it wasn't a huge deal, and this could be seen as nitpicking. However, the Wildcats are about to go on the road to face a Sun Devils team averaging 181.8 rushing yards per game, and even more aggressive on the ground without quarterback Sam Leavitt.
Otherwise, the Arizona defense was fantastic. But if the Wildcats want to bring home the Territorial Cup next week, that is something that should be addressed during the short week.
Wildcats' Run Game Sealed The Deal
Arizona's run game was powerful as well. Even though running back Quincy Craig was absent for the game, the Wildcats had more than enough from their backfield to ice the game down the stretch.
The Wildcats ran for 172 yards and averaged 4.9 yards per carry. Kedrick Reescano took 13 carries for 46 yards and scored a hat trick of touchdowns. Ismail Mahdi had 14 carries for 93 yards and also scored one touchdown.
TD NO. 3 FOR #3 pic.twitter.com/jztP4hbP4q
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 22, 2025
Mahdi had a 28-yard touchdown run following the forced fumble by Brown. Despite the offensive line being banged up and missing players like right tackle Tristan Bounds, Arizona had a ton of push up front.
“Those guys are truly unbelievable," Mahdi said about the offensive line. "They’re warriors. They grind out every day. They all love each other, they all believe in each other. One man goes down, another one comes right up.”
Tour de Tucson is over but Mahdi’s showing off the wheels for six.
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 22, 2025
Arizona pushes the lead to 28-17. 🐻⬇️ pic.twitter.com/LWLkgWWORe
With the score in hand, Arizona still ran the ball for 120 yards in the second half. It was an impressive showing of strength and willpower on behalf of the offensive line, creating massive rushing lanes for Mahdi and Reescano. Noah Fifita also carried the ball for 30 yards in the win.
Balance has been something Arizona's offense has been searching for, and this was the best it could ask for.
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Logan Brown is an alumnus of the prestigious Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. He currently works as a General College Sports Reporter On SI. Logan has an extensive background in writing and has contributed to Cronkite Sports, PHNX Sports, and Motion Graphics.
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