Arizona Wildcats Football Could Use a Do-Over After Disastrous Season Start
The Arizona Wildcats have not had the season they expected in 2024.
As they strived to find their new identity under new head coach Brent Brennan, many still believed the program could be a contender in its first year in the Big 12 conference. Unfortunately, that has been anything but the case.
After eight games, the team is on the verge of missing out on bowl season for the seventh time in nine years. After making it to the Alamo Bowl (and winning it) for the first time since 2017, the Wildcats are taking a step in the wrong direction.
On Wednesday, ESPN released a list of six ‘Power Four’ teams in the AP Preseason Top 25 poll that desperately need a do-over. Arizona was certainly one of those teams mentioned. The team started the year ranked 21st in the country and is now on the verge of its sixth losing season in the last seven seasons.
When Max Olson and Adam Rittenberg discussed what went wrong for the Wildcats, the biggest focus was pushed toward Arizona's search for a “new offensive identity.” Despite the coaching change, Brennan’s staff was able to return key offensive starters to the roster, including star quarterback Noah Fifita and a projected first-rounder in next year’s NFL Draft wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan. However, the production on the offensive side has not lived up to expectations. Some of Brennan’s staff could be the main reason why this hasn’t improved.
“Some Big 12 assistants wondered whether Dino Babers, the former Syracuse coach beginning his second stint as Arizona's offensive coordinator (1998 to 2000), would truly be empowered, or whether the offense would operate more like the ones Brennan had at San Jose State,” said Olson and Rittenberg. “The answer is the latter, as Babers handed off playcalling duties to tight ends coach Matt Adkins after the Wildcats' first loss.”
The change in play calling hasn’t helped much, as the Wildcats are currently on a four-game losing streak.
One problem that can’t be ignored is how they have protected the football. Fifita and the rest of the offense have recorded 16 turnovers on the season, putting them 120th in the country in that category. This is mainly due to the decline of the Wildcats quarterback in his passing game. The sophomore’s completion percentage has dropped from 72.4% last season to 59.9% heading into this weekend’s game. He has also thrown 10 interceptions through the first eight games.
There isn’t much time to salvage their season and even less room for error as the Wildcats must win three of their final four games to reach the bowl season. They will look to snap their losing streak as they travel to Orlando to take on the UCF Knights this Saturday at FBC Mortgage Stadium. The kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 pm ET and will be available on FS1.
