Three Areas Arizona Needs to Fix Ahead of Colorado
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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.
So far in the Brent Brennan era of Arizona football, the Wildcats have had their struggles on the road with four-straight losses dating back to last year. UA has lost those games by an average of 28 points and have fallen behind by double-digits in all four games.
Arizona (4-3, 1-3) was able to get things going early by striking quickly as quarterback Noah Fifita hit receiver Tre Spivey for a 70-yard touchdown pass, which seemed to set the tone early for the offense.
Despite the fast start, Arizona found itself trailing 21-14 to Houston (6-1-,3-1) at the half thanks to defensive struggles in the second quarter. And once again, the Wildcats lost the middle eight of the game, which resulted in a Cougars 31-28 win over the Wildcats.
Similarly to the BYU game, Arizona’s defense struggled against the run as Houston quarterback Conner Weigman sliced and diced the middle of the defense by racking 98 yards on 14 carries. Meanwhile as a team, the Cougars rushed for 232 yards for the game.
The rushing attack for Houston really opened things up in the secondary against Arizona as the Cougars totaled 164 yards through the air and racked up three passing touchdowns.
Just two weeks ago, the Wildcats’ defense hadn’t given up a passing touchdown all season. Now, Arizona has allowed four in two games.
Near the start of the fourth quarter, Arizona was able to cut into the lead with a rushing score from Spivey, which sparked the offense.
After getting a key stop with a missed 48-yard field goal by Houston, Arizona’s offense methodically moved the ball down field and tied the game up on a rushing touchdown from running back Kedrick Reescano.
Although the Wildcats battled back in the fourth quarter to tie the game, Houston got the ball back with under five minutes left and relied on its running game to set up the game-winning 41-yard field goal against Arizona.
It wasn’t just Weigman that gashed the Wildcats’ defense on the ground, Houston running back Dean Connors racked up 100 yards on 20 carries and really seemed to wear down Danny Gonzales’ defense.
Arizona gave itself a chance to come up with a late-game stop to get the ball back to the offense, but failed to roundup Weigman, who converted a 3rd and 2 situation.
At the end of the day, it was another heartbreaking loss for an Arizona team that seemed to be haunted by road games with the losing streak growing to five games for Brennan and his staff.
Now after the bye-week, Arizona will be hitting the road again to face off against Colorado (3-5, 1-4), which is coming off an embarrassing 43-0 loss against Utah from this past weekend.
Arizona lost 34-7 against the Buffs last season where Colorado sacked Fifita seven times and forced the team into three turnovers with two fumbles and an interception.
This season, the game will take place at 4 p.m. (MST) on FS1 for Colorado’s homecoming game and is already sold out. However, there have been reports that the game may be moved to FOX if the World Series wraps up before the game.
As we get closer to kickoff, we at Arizona Wildcats On SI have put together our three areas the Wildcats need to fix before facing the Buffs.
Third Down Defense
- For most of the season, Arizona’s defense has been a strength of the team and has had success in almost every facet of the game. However, in the last two games, the Wildcats’ defense has been carved up like swiss cheese on the ground and has allowed 490 yards rushing.
- That is a massive problem but as you look closer into the defensive issues, Gonzales’ unit has had a hard time getting off the field as opponents have gone 16 of 30 on third down situations to extend drives.
- This has really become a major problem for Arizona and if it doesn’t get fixed, the Wildcats will be at home during bowl season, once again.
Third Down Offense
- Arizona’s offense has clearly improved from a season ago where the Wildcats were averaging 21.8 and are now scoring 31.6 ppg thanks to new offensive coordinator Seth Doege. Nationally, UA ranks 48th, which is 41 spots ahead of rival ASU.
- However, although the Wildcats have made major improvements on the offensive side of the ball, Arizona has still struggled on third downs converting only 37% on 90 attempts. Right now, that places them 99th in the country and 17 spots ahead of the Sun Devils.
Tackling
- Most of the season, Arizona had been one of the better tackling teams in the country and rarely missed tackles. However, over the last two games, the Wildcats have seen several missed tackles that have led to 6 to 7-yard pick ups instead of tackles at the line of scrimmage.
- In the last game against Houston, Arizona really shot itself in the foot with missed tackles and it led to the Cougars rushing for 232 yards. When you are on the road in Colorado, you don’t want to give the Buffs extra yards and have the momentum swing on their side.
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Troy Hutchison grew up attending Arizona athletic events, which gave him a unique perspective and knowledge of the athletic department's rich history. He attended UA and began covering the Wildcats in 2018. As the Arizona Wildcats Beat Writer on SI, he is set to deliver wall-to-wall coverage to give fans an in-depth perspective.
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