I watched Arizona's game again (I know haha) and my perception of what I saw last night didn't change much. It still felt like a very strange game at points, but it is hard to deny Arizona made the right adjustments when it needed to in the second half to somehow pull out the road win in Boulder.
Here is a breakdown of each position group after last night's 38-31 win on the road over Colorado.
Quarterbacks: It was clearly not one of Anu Solomon's best days Saturday. He threw a great ball to Samajie Grant early in the game that should have been caught but he reverted back to some of his old ways with over throws on some other passes and then there was the botched snap which was not necessarily his fault. Still, he just didn't look sharp and one of the things Rich Rodriguez talks about most with him - seeing the field better than anyone else on the roster - he just wasn't doing Saturday night. I still think he didn't look right after that no-call late hit he took, but Rodriguez said after the game his move to bench him was play related and not injury related. Either way he just didn't look like himself although you have to hand it to him for coming in and throwing that touchdown to Baker later in the game.
Jerrard Randall came in and did what he does running the ball effectively and giving Arizona the opportunity to take the win. At this point the redshirt senior is what he's going to be and yesterday that was enough to get the win. It will be interesting to see how much playing time he gets buts it is hard to argue with results right now.
Running backs: Although Nick Wilson was suited up and warmed up with the team pregame it was Jared Baker's show Saturday night. Rodriguez always talks highly of his senior and coming off a game in which he rushed for a team-high 123 yards Baker was back at it again with 207 yards on the ground. As crazy as it sounds there were times when he was just not effective, however, but the Wildcats were able to work through that and the offensive line picked things up late. Baker had another big run that set him up and led to those big numbers early on with a 79-yard pick up.
The Wildcats even used Tyrell Johnson a few times on the ground and that is something that you should expect to continue to take place and grow over the next few games. The big mystery was still Orlando Bradford who did not register a carry after having three touchdowns in the win over Oregon State two weekends ago. He was on the trip and suited up but there was no sign of him during the game.
Receivers: As strange as it seemed at the time with so many errant passes it actually ended up being one of Arizona's more productive nights through the air. Eight different players caught a pass and the group was led by a great effort from Nate Phillips with his six catches for 106 yards that probably could have been more. Cayleb Jones turned in a performance you're more used to out of him with six catches of his own for 94 yards. And the 'Cats even used the tight end a couple times as Josh Kern scored a touchdown early in the game.
Still there continues to be some issues with drops from the group but it took some steps forward against Colorado.
Offensive line: It was pretty apparent Saturday night and it was once again that way when I watched the game again today. There were times when Arizona's offensive line just looked awful. Solomon was under pressure quite a bit seemingly the whole night but much like the game things took a turn for the better later in the game as the running game improved so too did the blocking up front. Then with a running quarterback in there the 'Cats were able to simplify things and be more effective. There is clearly going to have to be some more improvement moving forward but much like the team as a whole Saturday night it stood up when it needed to.
Defensive line: Much like on the offensive side of the ball Arizona's defensive line was ineffective for a lot of the night allowing Colorado to do what it wanted when it didn't get in its own way. However, you have to hand it to that group as it made the adjustments it needed to and played much better late in the game. The unit started getting some more pressure and wore down the Buffs forcing Sefo Liufau into some mistakes and was even able to get a couple sacks. There are going to have to be some adjustments made now that Anthony Fotu is out for the year but Jack Banda actually did a solid job stepping in and getting some pressure and making plays in his extended time Saturday.
Right now there is nobody coming to save the group so what you have is what you have seven games in, but I still believe there is enough talent there to give Arizona what it needs to make the defense run like it should. It's all about effort and playing up to its ability.
Linebackers: Arizona rolled a lot of bodies in at linebacker and it was actually one of the more consistent groups of the night I thought and a lot of that had to do with Paul Magloire again bringing his skill set to the unit. He finished seven tackles and fumble recovery in the game and again he just brought some stability to the group that it has needed with all the injuries. Another player who had a lot do with that group being a little more consistent was Jake Matthews who finished with 11 tackles and just looks much more comfortable and has made a bigger impact at the middle linebacker spot. He was able to generate some pressure himself and he just looks like a more natural fit at that spot right now.
Secondary: Arizona had to work through some injury issues with Tellas Jones going down during the game and it was again without DaVonte' Neal who only came in on a kickoff attempt "hands" team in addition to Jarvis McCall not seeing any action until the second half. That meant starting freshman Jace Whittaker and that meant Colorado attacking freshman Jace Whittaker. He ended up as the leading tackler Saturday night, but there was a reason for it. Arizona's corners were really getting picked on at times by Colorado and as has been the case during different points this year that meant getting torched a couple times for big plays. Still, the group locked things down enough late in the game to help Arizona get a win although Shay Fields really had himself a day from start to finish.
Cam Denson did a good job of making up for some of those big plays that the team was giving up by forcing a fumble and finishing with eight tackles. The safety group had to make up for losing Jones, but I thought Anthony Lopez really played a nice game in extended field time for the Wildcats Saturday and used that experience to quietly bring some stability to the group in a tough situation.
There is obviously going to be some work to do if Arizona wants to finish things out here over the next five games. They only get tougher from here on out and only two of them are at home. Still, it the 'Cats did what they needed to do to piece together another win Saturday night.
Here is a breakdown of each position group after last night's 38-31 win on the road over Colorado.
Quarterbacks: It was clearly not one of Anu Solomon's best days Saturday. He threw a great ball to Samajie Grant early in the game that should have been caught but he reverted back to some of his old ways with over throws on some other passes and then there was the botched snap which was not necessarily his fault. Still, he just didn't look sharp and one of the things Rich Rodriguez talks about most with him - seeing the field better than anyone else on the roster - he just wasn't doing Saturday night. I still think he didn't look right after that no-call late hit he took, but Rodriguez said after the game his move to bench him was play related and not injury related. Either way he just didn't look like himself although you have to hand it to him for coming in and throwing that touchdown to Baker later in the game.
Jerrard Randall came in and did what he does running the ball effectively and giving Arizona the opportunity to take the win. At this point the redshirt senior is what he's going to be and yesterday that was enough to get the win. It will be interesting to see how much playing time he gets buts it is hard to argue with results right now.
Running backs: Although Nick Wilson was suited up and warmed up with the team pregame it was Jared Baker's show Saturday night. Rodriguez always talks highly of his senior and coming off a game in which he rushed for a team-high 123 yards Baker was back at it again with 207 yards on the ground. As crazy as it sounds there were times when he was just not effective, however, but the Wildcats were able to work through that and the offensive line picked things up late. Baker had another big run that set him up and led to those big numbers early on with a 79-yard pick up.
The Wildcats even used Tyrell Johnson a few times on the ground and that is something that you should expect to continue to take place and grow over the next few games. The big mystery was still Orlando Bradford who did not register a carry after having three touchdowns in the win over Oregon State two weekends ago. He was on the trip and suited up but there was no sign of him during the game.
Receivers: As strange as it seemed at the time with so many errant passes it actually ended up being one of Arizona's more productive nights through the air. Eight different players caught a pass and the group was led by a great effort from Nate Phillips with his six catches for 106 yards that probably could have been more. Cayleb Jones turned in a performance you're more used to out of him with six catches of his own for 94 yards. And the 'Cats even used the tight end a couple times as Josh Kern scored a touchdown early in the game.
Still there continues to be some issues with drops from the group but it took some steps forward against Colorado.
Offensive line: It was pretty apparent Saturday night and it was once again that way when I watched the game again today. There were times when Arizona's offensive line just looked awful. Solomon was under pressure quite a bit seemingly the whole night but much like the game things took a turn for the better later in the game as the running game improved so too did the blocking up front. Then with a running quarterback in there the 'Cats were able to simplify things and be more effective. There is clearly going to have to be some more improvement moving forward but much like the team as a whole Saturday night it stood up when it needed to.
Defensive line: Much like on the offensive side of the ball Arizona's defensive line was ineffective for a lot of the night allowing Colorado to do what it wanted when it didn't get in its own way. However, you have to hand it to that group as it made the adjustments it needed to and played much better late in the game. The unit started getting some more pressure and wore down the Buffs forcing Sefo Liufau into some mistakes and was even able to get a couple sacks. There are going to have to be some adjustments made now that Anthony Fotu is out for the year but Jack Banda actually did a solid job stepping in and getting some pressure and making plays in his extended time Saturday.
Right now there is nobody coming to save the group so what you have is what you have seven games in, but I still believe there is enough talent there to give Arizona what it needs to make the defense run like it should. It's all about effort and playing up to its ability.
Linebackers: Arizona rolled a lot of bodies in at linebacker and it was actually one of the more consistent groups of the night I thought and a lot of that had to do with Paul Magloire again bringing his skill set to the unit. He finished seven tackles and fumble recovery in the game and again he just brought some stability to the group that it has needed with all the injuries. Another player who had a lot do with that group being a little more consistent was Jake Matthews who finished with 11 tackles and just looks much more comfortable and has made a bigger impact at the middle linebacker spot. He was able to generate some pressure himself and he just looks like a more natural fit at that spot right now.
Secondary: Arizona had to work through some injury issues with Tellas Jones going down during the game and it was again without DaVonte' Neal who only came in on a kickoff attempt "hands" team in addition to Jarvis McCall not seeing any action until the second half. That meant starting freshman Jace Whittaker and that meant Colorado attacking freshman Jace Whittaker. He ended up as the leading tackler Saturday night, but there was a reason for it. Arizona's corners were really getting picked on at times by Colorado and as has been the case during different points this year that meant getting torched a couple times for big plays. Still, the group locked things down enough late in the game to help Arizona get a win although Shay Fields really had himself a day from start to finish.
Cam Denson did a good job of making up for some of those big plays that the team was giving up by forcing a fumble and finishing with eight tackles. The safety group had to make up for losing Jones, but I thought Anthony Lopez really played a nice game in extended field time for the Wildcats Saturday and used that experience to quietly bring some stability to the group in a tough situation.
There is obviously going to be some work to do if Arizona wants to finish things out here over the next five games. They only get tougher from here on out and only two of them are at home. Still, it the 'Cats did what they needed to do to piece together another win Saturday night.
