Out three games

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GAME INFO

Who: Arizona vs Western Oregon (Exhibition)
When: 7:00 p.m MST
Where: McKale Center | Tucson, Arizona
TV: Pac-12 Network


Hey everybody! Im getting the game thread started early here with about an hour until the 7:00 p.m MST tip-off at McKale Center.

GAME NOTES:

• Courtney Ramey will be missing the first three games of the regular season due to suspension. We will see the guards today in an expanded role that could potentially fill his position.
• Keep an eye on the returners and the new additions as they will get their first opportunity to face a team other than themselves

GAME INFO

Who: Arizona (3-5, 1-4 Pac-12) vs. No. 14 Utah (6-2, 4-1)
When: 4:30 p.m MST
Where: Rice-Eccles Stadium| Salt Lake City, Utah
TV: Pac-12 Network
All-time series: Utah leads 25-19-2 (Last meeting: 38-29 Utah win; Nov. 13, 2021)
Odds: Utah (-17.5) O/U 67.5



Hey everybody! Im getting the game thread started early here with about an hour and a half until the 4:30 p.m MST kickoff at Rice-Eccles Stadium

It was another frustrating performance by the Wildcats run defense while the offense had some costly mistakes as well in a 45-20 loss tonight against Utah.

Here is my recap:

GAME INFO

• Who: Arizona (3-5, 1-4 Pac-12; last week: 45-37 loss to USC) at No. 14 Utah (6-2, 4-1 Pac-12; last week: 21-17 win over Washington State)
• When: 4:30 p.m. MST
• Where: Rice-Eccles Stadium | Salt Lake City, Utah
• TV: Pac-12 Networks
• All-time series: Utah leads 25-19-2 (last meeting: 38-29 Utes win; Nov. 13, 2021)
• Odds: Utah -17 1/2 | O/U: 68 (VegasInsider)

Here is all the week's game coverage leading into Saturday's matchup in SLC. We will have more coming before the game and our preview show will be released tomorrow as well. In case you missed anything, here are all the videos and stories from the week focused on Arizona's next matchup with a top-15 team.

VIDEOS

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ARTICLES

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Derick Hunter signed with Texas A&M out of high school as a high three-star prospect in the 2019 class and played for three seasons in College Station. Ahead of the 2021 season he was moved to the offensive line and ultimately played in four games before deciding to head to a junior college in Mississippi hoping to retool his career. He is now back on defense and has added some weight allowing him to move inside to defensive tackle. That has sparked some renewed interest from around the country, and Arizona is now the latest school to enter the mix with the 6-foot-5 prospect from Florida. Hunter is fresh off a visit to Tennessee and recently visited LSU. It will no doubt be an uphill climb for the Wildcats, but he's someone the staff would love to have on the roster next year. Arkansas and Texas have also offered him in recent weeks.

Louisville, Mississippi State and Auburn have been some of the other schools in the mix up to this point.

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The Arizona women's basketball team defeated Cal State LA 104-46 Wednesday night at McKale Center.

Jade Loville: 26 points (4-5 3PT)
Esmery Martinez: 15 points, 12 rebounds
Helena Pueyo: 15 points, 7 assists, 5 steals

The big difference between this year's team compared to last year is the number of scorers. Last year, Arizona would go long stretches at times struggling to score. I don't see that being an issue this season.

Hey guys, I'll be doing live updates from Jedd Fisch's Monday press conference.

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Rhino Tapaatoutai was one of Arizona's earliest commitments in the 2023 class, and now he is one game away from finishing up his senior season. It hasn't gone as he would have hoped for his team, but the two-way lineman from Alemany High School in the Los Angeles area is keeping his spirits up as his high school career comes to a close. I was out at his game Friday night and you wouldn't have guessed that he was playing one of his final high school games. Alemany lost, but Tapaatoutai played hard and with a high level of energy throughout the night. He was just as effective defensively as he was on offense, but it's clear to see what the UA coaches like him at offensive tackle. He put a lot of defenders into the ground Friday night and overall performed well on that side of the ball.

Brennan Carroll stopped by Alemany during the bye week, and the relationship Tapaatoutai has with the Arizona offensive coordinator and offensive line coach has continued to grow strong. They have similar personalities in a lot of ways, so it could work very well when Tapaatoutai arrives in Tucson. As Jedd Fisch mentioned last week, most of the incoming recruits will arrive at the midyear point. Tapaatoutai is part of that group as he is set to enroll at Arizona in January meaning he will get to participate in spring ball.

He is set to take an official visit to Arizona in December before signing, but other programs are still trying to make a push. Louisville recently offered him, and Tapaatoutai is open to listening to the pitches from other schools. Still, he says Arizona is where he is committed and right now he doesn't have plans to change that.

You can watch the full interview with some game clips above.

Kind of a strange week for some of the grades. The offense again outshined the defense for PFF, and Jayden de Laura set another season high. One other theme is that the moves to play some younger/new players more has continued to bring in good results and that is reflected in the PFF grades.

Reporter Dylan Grausz has a breakdown of the latest grades.

Ahead of Arizona's exhibition matchup against Western Oregon tonight at McKale Center, we wanted to bring you these interviews with some of the key players on this year's team. We recently had the chance to catch up with many of the players and below you can find those interviews to get you all up to speed on what to expect this season from the Wildcats.

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- Azuolas Tubelis, Oumar Ballo and Adama Ball

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- Henri Veesaar, Filip Borovicanin

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- Cedric Henderson Jr., Courtney Ramey

Arizona has started the process of updating its official roster online and now the newcomers have received jersey numbers plus official measurements. Here's a look at what numbers those newcomers will be wearing whenever we get football again. I'll add some comments about the things that stand out to me after you get a glimpse at the jersey numbers and measurements. The process is still being updated so if there's anybody you don't see on the list who you expect to be there just know that they could still be added. Don't just immediately assume they aren't on the roster since it is continually being updated today – I've had to refresh it a couple times already.

Scholarship players

• RB "Hollywood" Frank Brown Jr. – #8/6-foot, 200 pounds
• LB Jabar Triplett – #10/6-foot-1, 226 pounds
• DB Edric Whitley – #11/5-foot-11, 144 pounds
• DB Isaiah Mays – #13/6-foot-1, 190 pounds
• WR Dyelan Miller – #14/6-foot-2, 192 pounds
• QB Will Plummer – #15/6-foot-1, 208 pounds
• DL Regen Terry – #17/6-foot-4, 289 pounds
• WR Ma'Jon Wright – #18/6-foot-2, 197 pounds
• LB Derick Mourning – #18/6-foot-3, 229 pounds
• DB Khary Crump – #20/5-foot-11, 164 pounds
• RB Jalen John – #21/5-foot-11, 222 pounds
• K Tyler Loop – #33/6-foot, 164 pounds
• DL Shontrail Key – #44/6-foot-4, 248 pounds
• DL Roy Lopez – #51/6-foot-2, 318 pounds
• DL Aaron Blackwell – #52/6-foot-3, 293 pounds
• OL Matthew Stefanski Jr. – #54/6-foot-4, 326 pounds
• OL Sam Langi – #58/6-foot-5, 329 pounds
• OL Leif Magnuson – #65/6-foot-4, 284 pounds
• OL Woody Jean – #73/6-foot-4, 314 pounds
• OL Josh Baker – #75/6-foot-3, 285 pounds
• OL Anthony Patt – #76/6-foot-4, 280 pounds
• WR Roberto Miranda – #85/6-foot-2, 227 pounds
• TE Stacy Marshall – #87/6-foot-5, 238 pounds
• DL Dion Wilson Jr. – #94/6-foot-4, 276 pounds
• DL Paris Shand – #95/6-foot-5, 272 pounds

Walk-ons

• WR Valen Jones – #25/6-foot, 164 pounds
• DB Donte Bowers Jr. – #29/5-foot-10, 163 pounds
• DB Trey Cartledge – #31/6-foot, 170 pounds
• DB Treydan Stukes – #34/6-foot, 168 pounds
• DB Adama Fall – #35/6-foot-3, 200 pounds
• DB RJ Edwards – #36/6-foot-1, 198 pounds
• DB Jaydin Young – #37/6-foot, 182 pounds
• LS Kameron Hawkins – #39/5-foot-11, 227 pounds
• LB Mike Saliba – #41/6-foot, 188 pounds
• LB Jeremiah Fletcher – #42/5-foot-11, 203 pounds
• LB Thor Canales – #46/6-foot-3, 224 pounds
• OL Jacob Bracamonte – #62/6-foot-3, 298 pounds
• OL Darrell Branch – #71/6-foot-2, 319 pounds
• DL Ugochukwu Nosike – #93/6-foot-3, 280 pounds


◻ One of the things that stands out most to me is the collective size of the offensive and defensive line groups. The Wildcats put a lot of emphasis on adding size up front on both sides of the ball while also looking to improve the depth up front as well. The staff did a good job of accomplishing that across the board but especially on the defensive side of the ball. Of the six defensive line scholarship newcomers four of them have officially measured in at 6-foot-4 or taller. Only one member of the offensive line group, center Josh Baker, measured in at shorter than 6-foot-4. There is also some good overall size to the group with a player like Regen Terry coming at 6-foot-4 and nearly 290 pounds as a freshman. That is an impressive starting point for a player the coaching staff has high hopes for heading into his college career. The Wildcats also have four 300-pounders among that group led by offensive lineman Sam Langi who checks in at 329 to begin his Arizona career.

◻ I also like the look of Arizona's running back duo of Frank Brown and Jalen John. Both guys measured in at 200 pounds plus as they arrived on campus with Brown coming in at an even 6-feet and John measuring in at 5-foot-11. Both of those guys figure to be a big part of the running back unit and they have the size to get going right away this season.

◻ The linebacker group needs all the help it can get and freshman Derick Mourning checking in at 6-foot-3 and 229 pounds is a good thing for the Wildcats. Obviously, the coaching staff has seen him in person but having him arrive to campus with that good size should give him a leg up on getting into the action this season. The coaches are going to need him to learn the defense quickly this fall since he will more than likely get on the field early in the season because of his skill set and size plus the need for players at his position. He could play either outside or inside for the Wildcats.

◻ It won't get as much attention from the outside, but this is an impressive walk-on group for Arizona. Someone who stands out to me is defensive back Jaydin Young who had several notable offers last season as a senior at Centennial High in Peoria. I watched him play when his team came down to Vail to face Cienega and he is one heck of an athlete. Purdue, San Diego State, Colorado State and Nevada all offered him so for Arizona to get him to come play for the Wildcats as a walk-on is certainly impressive. His brother Dedrick was a one-time Arizona target who played with Layth Friekh in high school and eventually went to Nebraska. Kameron Hawkins plays a position that doesn't get any attention until something goes wrong, but the California native is one of the best freshman long snappers in the country who should help solidify things with the special teams unit as far as snapping goes. Defensive back Adama Fall is another intriguing walk-on player who has really good size and could help the Wildcats with their depth issues at safety.

Bye week so I thought we could put up a thread and help solve our defensive issues. What would you change? Some common thoughts.

Fire Johnny Nansen
Move guys around
Change schemes
Youth movement

no way they should fire Nansen in my opinion. One year is not enough and we can’t break the good will he provides in the poly community and recruiting in general. He gets two more years from me

I would love to see some personnel changes. Move Harris inside and bring in Davis off the edge. Harris is just yo slow from the edge. I would like to see CRW move to a safety spot asap.. Other changes in a bit

Our scheme, the 4-2-5 is really predicated on getting pressure from that front. In three conference games we have had zero sacks. I have seen them stunt and loop but they are simply not winning the one on one battles. Manu and Warnell were great additions to the run stop but Warnell got torched in coverage as does CY except on the TE. I think this is where the disconnect is because the players are not being put in position to succeed.

I have never seen Stukes play as poorly as he did last game. He got beat on consecutive plays for 6 (one called back) and seemed clueless out there. Rutherford has been a disappointment since he got here. I would love to see Prysocks and Davis play corner with CRW and Turner/Taylor at the other safety spot. It’s time to force feed these freshman, especially on defense.

Looking for your thoughts

GAME INFO

Who: Arizona (3-4, 1-3 Pac-12) vs. No. 10 USC (6-1, 3-1)
When: 4:00 p.m MST
Where: Arizona Stadium | Tucson, Arizona
TV: Pac-12 Network
All-time series: USC leads 36-8 (Last meeting: 41-34 USC win; Oct 30, 2021)
Odds: USC (-14) O/U 74

Hey everybody! Im getting the game thread started early here with about three and half hours until the 4:00 p.m MST kickoff at Arizona Stadium.

PREGAME NOTES

• Arizona is averaging 4.26 yards per rush
• USC is averaging 5.40 yards per rush
• Arizona is averaging 45.6% 3rd down conversions
• USC is averaging 52.6% 3rd down conversions
• Arizona is averaging five penalties per game
• USC is averaging 7.14 penalties per game

Injury Update:
The word is that Jordan Addison and Eric Gentry are both OUT for today's contest

Cole Davis and Humberto Lopez are getting into the NIL game. I've been mentioning that Arizona's 2022 class likely would not have come together like it did in the non-NIL era. Well, Arizona's top supporters have unveiled the first big initiative to generate the football programs and other sports at UA. The Friends of Wilbur and Wilma Collective is up and running and will give community members, businesses and UA supporters an opportunity to take part in NIL deals with athletes on campus. The focus will be football, but other sports will be involved as well with women's basketball, softball and baseball being specifically mentioned in the press release announcing the collective today.

"We're proud of our University of Arizona student-athletes that compete at the highest athletic levels, strive for success in the classroom, and aim to make a difference in our community," Cole Davis said in the release. "Our focus is helping these young women and men achieve their dreams and become future leaders."

Davis and Lopez have been the most active financial supporters of the UA football program recently, so having them on board with NIL opportunities certainly could be very important for the program.

"Helping others is a passion and including student-athletes in building this community is a unique opportunity," Lopez said. "We recognize these student-athletes have numerous commitments and many pressures, and our goal is to support them as they overcome challenges and empower them to accomplish their goals on and off the playing field."

Here's more from the press release: "Friends of Wilbur & Wilma" will be an industry-leading NIL program designed to welcome alumni, fans, and businesses who wish to engage and work with the student-athletes at the University of Arizona. "Friends of Wilbur & Wilma" now can galvanize the nationwide community who loves and supports the student-athletes who represent the University of Arizona. Interested community members will now be able to learn more about the student-athletes and explore the best ways to work directly with them.

The Wildcats fell 45-37 in a shootout against No. 10 USC.

Here were some takeaways from the press conference after the game:

- Jedd Fisch mentioned the rebuild taking a step forward with another close game

- "There were some stops that weren't stops... I thought we had a third-and-8 stop." - Jedd Fisch on the questionable penalty on Jerry Roberts

- "There are some catches I don't even know what to say about them really." - Fisch on Dorian Singer

- "I thought that was great." - Fisch on the way the first half ended

- "That made a difference." - Singer on Arizona's first two red zone possessions resulting in field goals

- "We trust them." - Kyon Barrs on the younger defenders stepping up for Arizona

The recap will be updated with quotes soon.

GAME INFO

• Who: Arizona (3-4, 1-3 Pac-12; last week: BYE) vs. No. 10 USC (6-1, 4-1 Pac-12; last week: BYE)
• When: 4:00 p.m. MST
• Where: Arizona Stadium | Tucson, Arizona
• TV: Pac-12 Networks
• All-time series: USC leads 37-8 (last meeting: 41-34 Trojans win; Oct. 30, 2021)
• Odds: USC -15 1/2 | O/U: 75 1/2 (VegasInsider)

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It is officially a game week again, and here's the first of our coverage for the week as the Wildcats begin preparations for 10th-ranked USC ahead of Saturday's game in Tucson. Both teams are coming off a bye week and both teams are coming off of losses as well. We will have full coverage throughout the week, and above you can check out the first three press conferences featuring Jedd Fisch, Johnny Nansen, Brennan Carroll, Hunter Echols and Dorian Singer.

Fish will meet the media one more time before Saturday's game during his Thursday press conference at which time the Wildcats will release this week's depth chart.

Read about the first two press conferences here:

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San Diego offensive lineman Jonah Rodriguez is set to announce his decision this week. Arizona has been involved for a while, but he's coming off a visit to Nevada last weekend. One a visit leads to an announcement it tends to go a certain way, but the Wildcats have definitely been on his radar. I'm planning to speak with him shortly to get a better feel for everything overall but this is one to watch for when it comes to Arizona. There's been a good relationship there and he plays a position of need.

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"I wanted to go make plays and I wanted to be somewhere where I can be the guy."

My latest on Hunter Echols ahead of a big game against his former team in USC this week.

Check out my article on Cate Reese heading into her final season.

Hunter Echols and Dorian Singer, along with Brennan Carroll and Johnny Nansen spoke to the media Tuesday afternoon ahead of Saturday's game against USC.

Here is my story on my top-five takeaways:

Hey guys, I'll be doing live updates throughout Jedd Fisch's press conference.

With Pac-12 media days coming up this week, the conference has announced its two preseason media polls for the men's and women's teams across the league. Arizona was well represented on the lists with three all-conference selections on the women's side and four players earning recognition on the men's side with Azuolas Tubelis earning a nod as a member of the first team. You can see the full teams below.

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Azuolas Tubelis (1st team), Kerr Kriisa (2nd team), Pelle Larsson (2nd team), Oumar Ballo (honorable mention)

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Jade Loville (all-conference), Shaina Pellington (all-conference), Cate Reese (all-conference)

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Four-star offensive guard Iapani Laloulu is officially off the board to Oregon today. The Wildcats had been the favorite, but there had not been much competition up until recently. The Ducks had some other priorities fall through and land elsewhere prompting that staff to make a bigger push for the 4-star recruit from Hawaii. Ultimately, that new push set the Ducks apart since his brother already plays at Oregon.

Arizona has already focused its attention more on landing Caleb Lomu at this stage. There are some other offensive line options, but Lomu remains the priority at the position in the class.

Hey guys, since it is Arizona's bye week, I wanted to jump in here and ask you to send in some questions regarding the team that I will answer in a mailbag later this week.