Three BOLD Observations From Arizona's Win Over No. 25 Cincinnati
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Arizona’s (7-3, 4-3 Big 12) defense set the tone with a tipped ball interception from cornerback Jay’Vion Cole that set up an early touchdown to put the Wildcats up 7-0 against the Bearcats.
Although the game started off good for Arizona, its defense had its struggles in the first quarter. However, Brent Brennan and his team were able to fix those issues and put drives together down the stretch to pull off the 30-24 upset of Cincinnati.
At one point this season, the Wildcats were riding a 5-game road losing streak dating back to the 2024 season which included four blow out losses.
Now, following the win over the Bearcats, Brennan and his team have won back-to-back road games and have climbed over Mount 500 in the Big 12 for the first time this season.
Arizona was able to pick Sorsby off two times with Cole and safety Dalton Johnson coming up with the turnovers and giving the offense the chance to get back in the groove.
On the offensive end of the field, Arizona had issues converting in the red zone during the first half with two missed field goals by Michael Salgado-Medina. One miss from 40 and a blocked kick the next time out.
However, with the Wildcats up 27-24 late in the fourth quarter, Salgado-Medina was able to redeem himself with a clutch 51-yard field goal to make it a 6-point game with 1:34 left in the game.
Arizona was able to get its offense going in the second half with two drives that finished with a touchdown. Running back Kedrick Reescano had the go-ahead score on a 50-yard run and the Wildcats never looked back.
Meanwhile, quarterback Noah Fifita had another great road game going 23 of 31 on his passing attempts while racking up 294 yards and slinging an important touchdown late in the game.
The one touchdown pass from Fifita was a record breaking one with him now sitting at 68 passing touchdowns in his career passing Willie Tuitama and Nick Foles for the program-record.
On the final drive for Cincinnati, Arizona’s defense came up strong and forced the Bearcats into a turnover on downs to seal the road win.
With the game in the books, we at Arizona Wildcats On SI have put together out three observations from Arizona’s win over the Bearcats.
Three Observations
Rushing Attack
50 YARD HOUSE CALL
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 15, 2025
GO OFF REESCANO pic.twitter.com/Q74JKXZF4p
- After an interception by Jay'Vion Cole on the first play of the game, Arizona running back Ismail Mahdi was able to quiet the crowd early with a 27-yard rushing touchdown two plays later.
- The run game remained strong all afternoon for the Wildcats as the backfield combined for 181 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
- Kedrick Reescano ran for 94 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, including a 50-yard score that gave Arizona a 20-14 lead in the third quarter.
- Quincy Craig also had some timely runs, finishing the day with 52 yards on the ground on 11 carries.
- This is the production Arizona had been looking for from its backfield heading into the season.
- Noah Fifita
- Over the last two road games, Fifita has played his best football going 35 of 45 with 482 yards passing and six touchdowns to zero turnovers. Now, he had to face maybe the toughest test of the season for the team with an early morning game against Cincinnati.
- That didn’t seem to matter for Fifita, who helped lead the team to the upset win to secure the seventh victory of the year.
- Against Cincinnati, Fifita went an impressive 23 of 31 on his passing attempts where he totaled 294 yards and tossed one touchdown pass.
For the record book.@thenoah_fifita1 has officially become Arizona Football's career passing touchdown leader with his 68th career TD pass. pic.twitter.com/M0l1fToEzw
— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 15, 2025
- The one touchdown gives Fifita 68 in his career, which puts him at the mountain top with a program-record passing Willie Tuitama and Nick Foles for the all-time career passing touchdown leader.
- Over the last three road games, Fifita has racked up 776 yards while completing 76% of his passing attempts and recording seven touchdowns to zero turnovers.
Creating Turnovers
- Danny Gonzales’ group of ball hawking defensive backs came into Nippert Stadium boasting a squad that was tied with BYU in interceptions with 12 and left as the conference's leader with 14.
- The Wildcats defense faced a huge obstacle in Brendan Sorsby, who was picked off just twice all season. Gonzales recognized the efficiency of Cincinnati’s talented quarterback and knew they had to create turnovers and disrupt him in the pocket if they were to have a chance.
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— Arizona Football (@ArizonaFBall) November 15, 2025
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- On the very first play of the game, safety Dalton Johnson tipped Sorsby’s pass and the ball landed in the hands of Jay’Vion Cole, swinging momentum in Arizona’s favor.
- Johnson then caught an interception of his own in the second quarter, which matched Sorsby’s total through the entire season. In Johnson’s career with Arizona, he had one interception. He now has three this year.
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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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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.
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.