Three Keys to Success Offensively for Arizona Against Weber State
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Last week, one of the top keys to success offensively for Arizona was establishing the run against Hawaii. The Wildcats did just that with three straight runs to end their opening drive that ended with a 13-yard rushing touchdown by Kedrick Reescano.
Overall in the win, the Wildcats ran for 185 yards and four touchdowns on 32 carries with all three of Reescano, Quincy Craig and Ismail Mahdi finding the end zone on the ground.
It was a mixed bag for Noah Fifita in the passing game, completing 13-of-23 passes for 161 yards and one touchdown. He also added another score on the ground as a runner. He'll look to take a step forward this weekend in his second game in the new offense under OC Seth Doege.
Here are three offensive keys for the Wildcats heading into Saturday's game.
Giving Noah Fifita more confidence in the pocket:
There were some good moments from Fifita in last Saturday's win, including his five-yard touchdown pass to Sam Olson to open the second half. It was clear he didn't feel the most comfortable, though, throughout the night. Following the game, Arizona coach Brent Brennan noted to the media that Fifita was missing some throws.
This is a big chance for Fifita to gain more confidence in the new offense under Doege. Arizona welcomes Kansas State to Tucson on Friday next week, ahead of the start of conference play. The Wildcats were decimated by Kansas State on the road last week in the same game ahead of the start of Big 12 play. While it isn't a conference game, it would be a huge confidence boost if Arizona comes out on top in that game and that will start with Fifita leading the way on the offensive side of the ball.
Arizona will look for Fifita to have a better performance as a passer this weekend to gain more confidence heading into next week's game. It should help that he'll likely be getting some of his starting wide receivers back on the field, who he didn't have to throw to in the season opener.
Continue to establish the run:
Arizona was able to do this and some last week in its season-opening win against Hawaii with 185 combined rushing yards on the ground.
While it is important to get Fifita more confidence in the passer, the Wildcats will still likely look to establish the run game early.
They welcome a Weber State team to Tucson that allowed over 313 yards rushing and four touchdowns on the ground in last week's loss against James Madison. They also allowed over seven yards per carry with the two lead backs running for over nine yards per carry.
Reescano, Mahdi and Craig should all continue to be involved early and often out of the backfield.
Special teams continuing to look strong:
It was a strong night for Michael Salgado-Medina last Saturday as he connected on all four extra point attempts and both of his field goals, including one from 52 yards out.
It will be huge for the Wildcats heading into conference play if they can rely on Salgado-Medina heavily all season after what Tyler Loop was able to do during his Arizona career.
There were some moments where he struggled to get a punt off at times due to a bad snap. That is an area they'll need to clean up moving forward.
What are your keys to success on the offensive side of the ball for Arizona in Saturday's game? Let us know and be sure to follow us on our X account by clicking on the link.
Ari Koslow is a sports writer covering the University of Arizona athletics at On SI. Koslow has been covering Arizona sports for several years. Born and raised in Seattle, he is a diehard Seahawks fan and a longtime sufferer of the Mariners. He is a huge fantasy football fanatic. Koslow is a graduate of Arizona’s School of Journalism.