Arizona football sits with a 2-1 record in the midst of it's early season bye week and the assessment so far of the performance is a mixed bag of many things. With a coaching staff change bringing Brent Brennan in from San Jose State, there were bound to be some growing pains and while those are definitely evident on the field, Wildcats fans are hoping things will get clicking sooner rather than later.
The Wildcats have seen signs of optimism in different areas through three weeks but the only problem has been sustaining that positive play. The season opener against New Mexico showcased an explosive element from the Arizona offense that demonstrated it was one of the best in the nation and had the ability to hang with any team in the country. That 61-point, 627 yard game from offensive coordinator Dino Babers' group looks so far like a flash in the pan as they have not come close to replicating that type of production putting up half of that yardage in the NAU and KSU games with a combined 29 points since week 1.
On defense it is a similar story as to open the season Arizona's defense looked all over the place and in that allowed 39 points and 471 yards to the Lobos in a shocker that had fans severely worried about the upcoming contests. The Wildcats however bounced back defensively in week 2 allowing 10 points and just under 200 total yards to NAU. It was that rally on defense that arguably won the game for Arizona as the offense heavily struggled to sustain drives.
Week 3 against Kansas State brought each of the Wildcats greatest weaknesses and put them all on display in what was a commanding 31-7 victory for KSU where Arizona looked sluggish and allowed the other Wildcats to do whatever they wanted to.
That's why the bye week comes at an opportune time for the Wildcats to flush out the loss and negative plays and get back to the drawing board.
Here are the areas of struggle plaguing Arizona to start to 2024 campaign.
Lack of offensive rhythm
Having the ability to play lights out offense isn't something that is out of the realm of possibilities for this Arizona team. They proved that in week 1 but just haven't been able to return to form in that sense again yet. While it's unrealistic to expect quarterback Noah Fifita and co. to go out and score 50-60 points every single week, it's realistic seeing that capability to at least score a couple touchdowns a game and stay in it when the defense is playing sound as well.
There are a couple factors to point at as to why this has been an issue in the early part of the season such as major injuries along the offensive line making the lineup nearly different every week, receivers not named Tetairoa McMillan still coming along, but most importantly the play calling has been a big part of the mishaps.
It feels like Dino Babers calls a different philosophy each week and that's led to the team not really having an offensive identity. Against New Mexico it was extremely pass heavy, he called a run dominant game in the NAU game and then Kansas State was probably the most balanced he's called the offense before things got out of hand and the Wildcats had to pass because of negative game script. The rhythm is simply not visible yet and that'll be a big development going forward with No. 12 Utah on the horizon.
The under utilization of the tight ends
Back in training camp, maybe the biggest talking point from what Arizona was showing to the people in attendance was the heavy involvement of the tight end position. Whether it was Keyan Burnett who especially flashed, Roberto Miranda, or San Jose State transfer Sam Olsen, each of them looked like good players and like they could potentially be key players going into the season.
It's worth noting that Babers wasn't Brennan's play caller at San Jose State but in Brennan's final year with the program three tight ends combined for 49 receptions for 673 receiving yards and five touchdowns with Olsen playing a huge role in that. In three games at UA Burnett, Olsen, and Tyler Powell have combined for seven catches and 79 receiving yards.
It looked as if the tight end would be heavily involved in the Wildcats offense in camp and the production on the field just hasn't reciprocated for all that effort put into them in preparation for the season. The involvement of more tight ends, particularly the highly athletic Burnett could prove valuable for this offense.
Run defense allowing big holes
Let alone the NAU game that might be an outlier, Arizona's defense has not been able to stop the run at all. Whether it's scrambling quarterbacks or a running back that can see the hole, the Wildcats defenders are left in pursuit mode as the ball carrier takes a huge gain down field.
Rushing quarterbacks have especially hurt UA's defense as seen in UNM's Devon Dampier who ran for 130 yards and two touchdowns along with KSU's Avery Johnson who rushed for 110 yards last Friday. The pinpoint problem here is a little harder to navigate as there are many variables that go into stopping a quarterback when he gets his legs churning but each of the following could be improved upon.
The Wildcats need better contain off of the edge first and foremost. When a passer looks to takeoff, it is either around the edge of the offensive line or right through it as a gap opens up and Arizona has been particularly gashed when a quarterback rolls out. Rolling out is really tough to defend because containing the quarterback too close as a coverage player can allow the big play over their heads while playing to far back can allow the field general to scamper for a decent gain. That's why the edge rushers on the team desperately have to play their contain tighter to prevent the roll outs and if that doesn't work there are many athletic defenders on the team such as a Genesis Smith that could play a spy/overhang role when matched up against someone with legs.
Costly penalties on both sides of the ball
Anyone who has watched Arizona play so far has seen the sheer amount of penalties that have killed drives or extended them for the opposing team. The Wildcats have been called on at least nine penalties for 74 or more yards in every contest going all the way up to 95 and 100 in the NAU and UNM games respectively.
That amount of yardage is comparable to a skill player having a good or even great game for their team and that's inexcusable for a team with Big 12 Championship aspirations. Brennan would agree and he has even stated in press conferences that he "has to coach this team better" but that has yet to be seen on the football field.
Holdings and personal foul calls have been the primary suspects and one personal foul even had cornerback Tacario Davis ejected in week 1. These penalty losses make the Wildcats beat themselves and if there was an issue that needs prioritizing first, it's the penalty issue.
Offense and defense playing complimentary
One thing that Arizona football has yet to accomplish this season has been a "complete" or fundamentally sound football game and that's something that brought this team a lot of success in 2023. Yes, UA does have wins this season where one side of the ball significantly outperformed the other but that is not sustainable for a team that has immense expectations even for itself.
This has to be a focus for Coach Brennan in this bye week and in game preparation next week against No. 12 Utah because the last time the Wildcats when into a big test on the road they inflicted too many self-inflicted wounds to come out victorious and that showed as K-State dominated Arizona all game long.
Coaching up the offense, defense, and special teams to play cleanly and together is the recipe for success and the key to winning a big football matchup come week 5 in the college season.
arizona.rivals.com
