Arizona Running Back Making A Difference After Return From Injury
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The Arizona Wildcats' running back room has been a potent unit so far this season after a nearly complete rehaul of it, which was one of the big priorities that head coach Brent Brennan and staff said needed rebuilding.
Junior running back Kedrick Reescano is the only veteran in that room who has experience with the Arizona offense and is the feature back, in a rotation also consisting of Texas State transfer Ismail Mahdi and Quincy Craig out of Portland State.
Reescano had himself a massive night in the first game of the season, running for 50 yards on 10 carries with a touchdown to cap off the night.
After that, Reescano missed three games with an injury to his foot. He was seen during warm-ups before the game against Weber State wearing a walking boot.
He was on the roster and suited up to play against Iowa State, but was used as a "Just in case back" according to Brent Brennan.
After that, he logged a minimal two carries against the Oklahoma State Cowboys. It was clear to see that the Wildcats' coaching staff was taking his injury seriously and eased him back into the running back rotation in the safest way possible.
Finally back
It is clear to see that Reescano has been through a lot since first being sidelined with an injury, but now that he is finally back in the rotation, he has looked like the same starting running back that bulldozed his way through the Rainbow Warriors in week one.
"I don't really want to talk about what I've been dealing with physically, but what I can say is that it's great to be back," Reescano said. "All my teammates embraced me, coming back from what I came back from, but it just feels good."
Because the coaching staff didn't rush Rescano's recovery process, he feels that he is now at 100% and was fully healthy for the last game against the now No. 15-ranked BYU Cougars.
Reecsno stated that he felt as if he was in "Top physical condition," but also felt that "I think I have more to offer."
Reescano's big game after coming back
Reescano played his first full game back from injury this past Saturday against No. 15 BYU and had himself a huge return.
In that game, Reescano ran for 90 yards on 13 carries, which led the running back room. His hard-nosed, bruising style of running helped the Wildcats gain momentum on offense and overcome a 14-point deficit.
His 36-yard touchdown on 4th down really sparked the offense, leading to 24 unanswered points.
Despite his efforts, Arizona lost that game by a score of 33-27 in double overtime. Even though the loss was heartbreaking for the program, there was no time to sulk over it, with the next game in its sights.
"I think for the mentally weak teams, it's easy to lose that hunger or the mindset that we need," Reescano said. "Everybody on the team, we feel how close we are. So, I think we're still hungry and and I don't think this loss defines us as a team at all."
Homecoming for Reescano
The Wildcats are set to play the Houston Cougars this Saturday, which is a homecoming game for Reescano and a number of other players on the team.
Reescano played high school football at New Caney High School in New Caney, TX, which is not too far from Houston.
During his career there, he rushed for 5.000 yards and was recruited as a four star player and the 23rd best player in the State.
He eventually chose to play at Ole Miss in 2023 and transferred to Arizona in 2024. It was with the Wildcats that he rushed for 359 yards, which was the second most on the team.
"Three headed snake"
With Reescano finally at full health, Craig nearing that point, and Mahdi having the impressive season that he has had, Reescano believes that it will be difficult to stop all three running backs over the season.
"I think we're like a three-headed snake, no way you can stop all three of us, it's dangerous," Reescano said.
"One thing I can say about the offense evolving was more like not really physically or conceptually or anything like that, but our mindset has become stronger throughout the year as we've been winning games or as we've been like getting coached under Doege, we've started to like adapt his mindset as a collective."
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Nathaniel Martinez and a set of shoulder pads at 7 years old. He later graduated from Pima Community College in 2023, where he began writing for the Pima Post. He is working to achieve a Bachelor’s in Mass Communication and Media Studies.