Arizona Defensive Players to Watch vs. No. 3 Oregon

Through 3 games, Arizona has already matched its interception total from 2020.

Author:
Dylan Mickanen
Publish date:
Sep 24, 2021 4:48 PM EDT

The No. 3 Oregon Ducks open up conference play Saturday night against the winless Arizona Wildcats as 28.5-point favorites.

While the Ducks are expected to run away with the game, Arizona did lose to FCS-representing Northern Arizona, the Wildcats still have Power-5 football players and the Ducks are not taking them likely.

Arizona employs Don Brown as its defensive coordinator who comes with the nickname "Dr. Blitz." He spent five seasons as the defensive coordinator at Michigan before joining the Wildcats last offseason. In 2016, Brown was a finalist for the Broyles Award, which goes to the nation's top assistant coach.

Here are the Wildcats' defenders to keep an eye on.

Kyon Barrs (No. 92) - Defensive End

The third-year sophomore leads Arizona with 3.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. In fact, Barrs' sack total single-handily surpasses the team total from 2020. Heading into 2021, Barrs hadn't recorded a sack nor tackle for loss in his career. If Arizona wants to stay with Oregon, it needs to put the Ducks' offense in uncomfortable third-and-long situations. Barrs needs to perform for that to happen.

Anthony Pandy (No. 8) - Linebacker

The fifth-year senior has started for the Wildcats since the 2019 season and under first-year head coach Jedd Fisch has been named a team captain. The 6-foot-1 linebacker leads the Wildcats with 25 tackles, which also ranks fourth among all Pac-12 players. Against San Diego State, Pandy had a career-high 11 tackles and forced a fumble against Northern Arizona in Week 3.

Treshaun Hayward (No. 24) - Linebacker

Prior to joining the Wildcats in 2021, Hayward played four seasons for Western Michigan. In that time span he was named the 2019 MAC Defensive Player of the Year. In 39 games as a Bronco, he totaled 229 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks.

For Arizona this season, the 6-foot-1 Hayward has recorded 20 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss.

Isaiah Rutherford (No. 2) - Cornerback

Rutherford transferred to Arizona from Notre Dame this past offseason and has won one of the starting cornerback jobs. Coming out of high school, he was a 4-star prospect with offers from Alabama, LSU, Oklahoma, Oregon, USC, and more before signing with the Fighting Irish.

He appeared in three games for Notre Dame before entering the transfer portal. Through three games as a Wildcat, the cornerback has recorded five tackles, broken up two passes, and recovered a fumble.

Christian Roland-Wallace (4) - Cornerback

The third-year sophomore has started for Arizona since his true freshman season and in 2021, has 14 tackles, one tackle for loss, one pass breakup, two passes defended, and an interception. His interception against Northern Arizona was one of two the defense picked off that evening. Those two picks matched the team's total in 2020.