It's time once again for our look at the Pro Football Focus grades for Saturday's game. It was Arizona's first win of the season as FCS team Southern Utah was simply overmatched and it showed in the second half when the Wildcats wore down the Thunderbirds. The Wildcats needed the win and things came together more on the offensive side of the ball, but the questions about UA's defense remain heading into conference play.
Here is a look at both the offense and the defense plus how the groups graded out and the direction the team has gone when compared to the other FBS programs.
If you missed it here is a link to last week's grades for the Wildcats in their game against Houston.
Offense (players who played 20+ snaps)
1. Shun Brown - 85.4 (21 snaps)
2. Khalil Tate - 85.2 (50 snaps)
3. Tony Ellison - 77.4 (25 snaps)
4. Devaughn Cooper - 77.0 (22 snaps)
5. Bryson Cain - 71.3 (50 snaps)
6. Layth Friekh - 69.2 (50 snaps)
7. Donovan Laie - 66.6 (50 snaps)
7. Josh McCauley - 66.6 (50 snaps)
9. Shawn Poindexter - 66.4 (40 snaps)
10. Cedric Peterson - 62.2 (20 snaps)
11. JJ Taylor - 58.7 (23 snaps)
12. Cody Creason - 58.2 (50 snaps)
13. Tre Adams - 55.7 (21 snaps)
14. Bryce Wolma - 42.6 (28 snaps)
Defense (players with 50+ snaps)
1. Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles - 78.2 (86 snaps)
2. Finton Connolly - 76.2 (56 snaps)
3. Tristan Cooper - 75.8 (76 snaps)
4. Jarrius Wallace - 73.8 (64 snaps)
5. Tony Fields II - 72.5 (53 snaps)
6. JB Brown - 70.9 (54 snaps)
7. Lorenzo Burns - 67.5 (78 snaps)
8. Colin Schooler - 66.2 (59 snaps)
9. Kylan Wilborn - 65.6 (55 snaps)
10. Anthony Pandy - 64.8 (51snaps)
11. Jalen Cochran - 62.0 (50 snaps)
12. Kurtis Brown - 61.8 (50 snaps)
13. Abraham Maiava - 53.8 (57 snaps)
Final thoughts
* Offense: Shun Brown only played 21 snaps but he finished with the best grade in Saturday's game. As far as who had the top grade for a certain category, Khalil Tate was the only player to get above a 90 in one of the categories as his passing earned him a 92.5. Both players were in the middle of the group last week against Houston so it was a nice rebound week for them. Interestingly enough, it was Tate's running that held his overall grade back. He had one of the worst numbers out of any offensive player against Southern Utah in a single category with his running earning him a 38.3. Brown's run blocking brought him down with a 56.5 in that category.
Bryson Cain took the top honors among the offensive linemen but Layth Friekh was right behind him in his first game of the season. Both graded out high in their pass protection with Friekh getting the advantage there, but Cain's run blocking helped him get the better overall grade in Saturday's game. Shawn Poindexter has gone up and down so far in the PFF grades. He was at the top of the list last week but with only one catch against SUU he dropped down to No. 9 on the list even with his one catch being a 75-yard touchdown.
When it comes to players who had the best grade for players who played between 10 and 20 snaps it was running back Anthony Mariscal who took the top grade with a 75.1 overall. He scored his first career touchdown in the game. Meanwhile, fellow running back Branden Leon was the top player who was on the field for less than 10 snaps earning a 72.2 for his two plays in the game, one of which resulted in a rushing score.
* Defense: Despite not getting the start, Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles graded out best for players who were on the field for 50 plays or more. His tackling (82.5) and rush defense (79.0) were his best grades with his pass coverage (74.6) earning the lowest grade of his performance Saturday. Finton Connolly continues to be one of the top players each week according to PFF. He has been in the top five of every list so far this season. This week he finds himself at No. 2 on the list for players who were on the field for 50 or more snaps with an overall grade of 76.2. He had the best run defense grade on the team with an 81.2. This is where production and grades are two different things considering Connolly, who started in place of PJ Johnson, only had two tackles in the game.
So the feeling going into the game was that Scottie Young Jr. would get to play a lot, and he started at free safety but only ended up playing 27 snaps. With Arizona getting some players back in the secondary it felt like Jarrius Wallace and Tristan Cooper were two players who would see their time on the field decrease. Instead, Wallace started at bandit and played 64 snaps while Cooper played spur for the injured Day Day Coleman and finished the game playing 76 snaps. The duo finished third and fourth on the list, for players with more than 50 snaps played, as Cooper had a grade of 75.8 and Wallace finished with a 73.8.
Defensive tackle Dereck Boles finished with the best grade among players who played between 25 and 50 snaps ending his night with an overall grade of 70.5. He had two tackles in the game. Meanwhile for players who played less than 25 snaps it was safety Isaiah Hayes who had the big day finishing with an overall grade of 82.0, which was the top grade on the entire team for Saturday's game. He played just 20 snaps, but his best grade came in the pass coverage category where he had an 82.6.
* Here how Arizona currently stacks up nationally through three games when it comes to the top categories.
- Offense: 73.9 (No. 55 - up from No. 85)
Definitely some interesting movement for the entire team, but maybe it should be expected with the win. Some of the categories that have been good for Arizona this year only continued to move up this week with the big win with UA's pass blocking still being the best category for the Wildcats now up to No. 12 in the FBS. It was a huge jump for Arizona in the tackling department as the 'Cats moved all the way up into the top 20 this week after being at No. 104 after the first two games. The only category on defense that went down was the pass rush category as UA dropped a few spots there this week despite having a couple sacks. Special teams moved back up this week after dropping from No. 61 after the Houston game. UA didn't punt it this week, but it did have a big kickoff returned for a touchdown that helped the team move back up the list into the top 50 for the first time this year.
Here is a look at both the offense and the defense plus how the groups graded out and the direction the team has gone when compared to the other FBS programs.
If you missed it here is a link to last week's grades for the Wildcats in their game against Houston.
Offense (players who played 20+ snaps)
1. Shun Brown - 85.4 (21 snaps)
2. Khalil Tate - 85.2 (50 snaps)
3. Tony Ellison - 77.4 (25 snaps)
4. Devaughn Cooper - 77.0 (22 snaps)
5. Bryson Cain - 71.3 (50 snaps)
6. Layth Friekh - 69.2 (50 snaps)
7. Donovan Laie - 66.6 (50 snaps)
7. Josh McCauley - 66.6 (50 snaps)
9. Shawn Poindexter - 66.4 (40 snaps)
10. Cedric Peterson - 62.2 (20 snaps)
11. JJ Taylor - 58.7 (23 snaps)
12. Cody Creason - 58.2 (50 snaps)
13. Tre Adams - 55.7 (21 snaps)
14. Bryce Wolma - 42.6 (28 snaps)
Defense (players with 50+ snaps)
1. Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles - 78.2 (86 snaps)
2. Finton Connolly - 76.2 (56 snaps)
3. Tristan Cooper - 75.8 (76 snaps)
4. Jarrius Wallace - 73.8 (64 snaps)
5. Tony Fields II - 72.5 (53 snaps)
6. JB Brown - 70.9 (54 snaps)
7. Lorenzo Burns - 67.5 (78 snaps)
8. Colin Schooler - 66.2 (59 snaps)
9. Kylan Wilborn - 65.6 (55 snaps)
10. Anthony Pandy - 64.8 (51snaps)
11. Jalen Cochran - 62.0 (50 snaps)
12. Kurtis Brown - 61.8 (50 snaps)
13. Abraham Maiava - 53.8 (57 snaps)
Final thoughts
* Offense: Shun Brown only played 21 snaps but he finished with the best grade in Saturday's game. As far as who had the top grade for a certain category, Khalil Tate was the only player to get above a 90 in one of the categories as his passing earned him a 92.5. Both players were in the middle of the group last week against Houston so it was a nice rebound week for them. Interestingly enough, it was Tate's running that held his overall grade back. He had one of the worst numbers out of any offensive player against Southern Utah in a single category with his running earning him a 38.3. Brown's run blocking brought him down with a 56.5 in that category.
Bryson Cain took the top honors among the offensive linemen but Layth Friekh was right behind him in his first game of the season. Both graded out high in their pass protection with Friekh getting the advantage there, but Cain's run blocking helped him get the better overall grade in Saturday's game. Shawn Poindexter has gone up and down so far in the PFF grades. He was at the top of the list last week but with only one catch against SUU he dropped down to No. 9 on the list even with his one catch being a 75-yard touchdown.
When it comes to players who had the best grade for players who played between 10 and 20 snaps it was running back Anthony Mariscal who took the top grade with a 75.1 overall. He scored his first career touchdown in the game. Meanwhile, fellow running back Branden Leon was the top player who was on the field for less than 10 snaps earning a 72.2 for his two plays in the game, one of which resulted in a rushing score.
* Defense: Despite not getting the start, Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles graded out best for players who were on the field for 50 plays or more. His tackling (82.5) and rush defense (79.0) were his best grades with his pass coverage (74.6) earning the lowest grade of his performance Saturday. Finton Connolly continues to be one of the top players each week according to PFF. He has been in the top five of every list so far this season. This week he finds himself at No. 2 on the list for players who were on the field for 50 or more snaps with an overall grade of 76.2. He had the best run defense grade on the team with an 81.2. This is where production and grades are two different things considering Connolly, who started in place of PJ Johnson, only had two tackles in the game.
So the feeling going into the game was that Scottie Young Jr. would get to play a lot, and he started at free safety but only ended up playing 27 snaps. With Arizona getting some players back in the secondary it felt like Jarrius Wallace and Tristan Cooper were two players who would see their time on the field decrease. Instead, Wallace started at bandit and played 64 snaps while Cooper played spur for the injured Day Day Coleman and finished the game playing 76 snaps. The duo finished third and fourth on the list, for players with more than 50 snaps played, as Cooper had a grade of 75.8 and Wallace finished with a 73.8.
Defensive tackle Dereck Boles finished with the best grade among players who played between 25 and 50 snaps ending his night with an overall grade of 70.5. He had two tackles in the game. Meanwhile for players who played less than 25 snaps it was safety Isaiah Hayes who had the big day finishing with an overall grade of 82.0, which was the top grade on the entire team for Saturday's game. He played just 20 snaps, but his best grade came in the pass coverage category where he had an 82.6.
* Here how Arizona currently stacks up nationally through three games when it comes to the top categories.
- Offense: 73.9 (No. 55 - up from No. 85)
- Passing: 77.0 (No. 42 - up from No. 91)
- Pass blocking: 88.9 (No. 12 - up from No. 39)
- Receiving: 73.0 (No. 32 - up from No. 55)
- Rushing: 68.6 (No. 85 - down from No. 76)
- Run blocking: 54.3 (No. 151 - up from No. 171)
- Defense: 75.9 (No. 93 - up from No. 138)- Pass blocking: 88.9 (No. 12 - up from No. 39)
- Receiving: 73.0 (No. 32 - up from No. 55)
- Rushing: 68.6 (No. 85 - down from No. 76)
- Run blocking: 54.3 (No. 151 - up from No. 171)
- Run defense: 83.2 (No. 63 - up from No. 92)
- Tackling: 85.3 (No. 18 - up from No. 104)
- Pass rush: 55.0 (No. 178 - down from No. 174)
- Coverage: 72.8 (No. 102 - up from No. 166)
- Special teams: 72.1 (No. 47 - up from No. 104)- Tackling: 85.3 (No. 18 - up from No. 104)
- Pass rush: 55.0 (No. 178 - down from No. 174)
- Coverage: 72.8 (No. 102 - up from No. 166)
Definitely some interesting movement for the entire team, but maybe it should be expected with the win. Some of the categories that have been good for Arizona this year only continued to move up this week with the big win with UA's pass blocking still being the best category for the Wildcats now up to No. 12 in the FBS. It was a huge jump for Arizona in the tackling department as the 'Cats moved all the way up into the top 20 this week after being at No. 104 after the first two games. The only category on defense that went down was the pass rush category as UA dropped a few spots there this week despite having a couple sacks. Special teams moved back up this week after dropping from No. 61 after the Houston game. UA didn't punt it this week, but it did have a big kickoff returned for a touchdown that helped the team move back up the list into the top 50 for the first time this year.
