Grading Brent Brennan's Plan Against Colorado

Throughout the Brent Brennan era, thus far, Arizona has struggled on the road losing 5-straight games and having a 1-5 record. In the last game, the Wildcats battled back from a 28-14 deficit but couldn’t complete the comeback falling 31-28 against Houston.

Now, Arizona (5-3, 2-3 Big 12) went up against Colorado following the bye-week and started off hot hitting receiver Tre Spivey for a 57-yard touchdown setting the tone early in the game. From that point on, it was all Wildcats as they went on to hammer the Buffaloes 52-17 sealing the fifth win of the year.

Although the WIldcats lost to Houston, quarterback Noah Fifita had his best passing game of the season going 24 of 26 for 269 yards and two touchdowns. Fifita was able to build on that solid performance against Colorado.

Don't blink.@thenoah_fifita1 hits @Gio_Richardson_ on a deep cross and the freshman caps it off for six. pic.twitter.com/HRDaxUfqRl
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 2, 2025

Against Colorado, Fifita had another high-level passing game and was able to surgically pick apart the defense, going an impressive 11-for-19 totaling 213 yards while racking up four touchdowns on the night.

With the four passing touchdowns, Fifita is getting closer to the top of the all-time record sitting at 65, which puts him third on the list.

However, he is now two touchdowns away from tying the record held by quarterbacks Willie Tuitama and Nick Foles.

Oct1, 2011; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Nick Foles (8) during the second half of the game against the against the USC Trojans at the Los Angeles Coliseum. against the USC Trojans won 48-41. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Not only was Arizona able to get an elite passing performance by Fifita but the offense was able to score fast when it had the ball with five scoring drives under four minutes.

The game was so out of hand that with six minutes left in the third quarter, Arizona turned to backup quarterback Braedyn Locke to finish off the rest of the game.

As an offensive unit, Arizona racked up 390 total yards, 213 passing yards and rushed the ball for 177 yards while finding the end zone three times on the ground.

On the defensive side of the ball, Arizona has struggled the last two games giving up 490 yards on the ground. Both BYU and Houston were able to run right through the defense having the most success on the ground against the Wildcats than any other opponent this season.

Against Colorado, Arizona was able to hold the Buffs to 128 yards rushing and forced them into passing situations all game long.

In all, the defense gave up 261 yards in total offense and 133 yards passing. However, the defense was that Danny Gonzales’ unit was able to create five turnovers helping flip the field for the Wildcats’ explosive offense.

Nov 25, 2023; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita (11) against the Arizona State Sun Devils in the Territorial Cup at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Not only did the Wildcats snap their 5-game road losing streak but it was the largest win on the road dating back to the 2023 season against ASU where Arizona won 59-23, sealing a trip to the Alamo Bowl.

Arizona has gotten back in the win column and we at Arizona Wildcats On SI have put together our grade on the coaching performance by Brennan.

Coaches Grade

Brent Brennan: A-

Reason

Nov 1, 2025; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Arizona Wildcats running back Kedrick Reescano (3) scores a touchdown past Colorado Buffaloes linebacker Jeremiah Brown (42) in the second half at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

When looking at it, this was the most complete performance by Arizona on the road in the Brent Brennan era. Overall, the Wildcats are 2-5 in road games with this regime with four of those losses coming in blowout fashion.

So, when you look at how Arizona man handled Colorado and could do whatever it wanted on both sides of the football, this was a stellar coaching performance and gameplan by Brennan.

Nov 1, 2025; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Braedyn Locke (8) during the second half against the Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

However, after making the change from Fifita to Braedyn Locke in the third quarter with the game out of hand, Arizona’s offense couldn’t really do anything and went scoreless the rest of the way.

Still, this is a great game and plan by Brennan and his coaching staff.

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