Arizona Wildcats Seek Second Victory as They Prepare to Host Northern Arizona
One game down, 11 to go for the Arizona Wildcats. But they won’t all be like their opener against New Mexico.
The Wildcats (1-0) are preparing to face the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (1-0) on Saturday, the third time they will face the FCS school in the last four years.
It’s possible, however, this game could be more lopsided.
The Wildcats beat the Lobos behind the incredible performance of wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, who had a school-record 304 yards receiving and matched another with four touchdown catches. That helped quarterback Noah Fifita throw for 422 yards and those four scores.
Meanwhile, the ground game got going in the second half as Quali Conley rushed for three touchdowns and Jacory Croskey-Merritt — who played at New Mexico last year — rushed for more than 100 yards.
It’s impossible to know how good NAU (1-0) truly is, as the opponent it beat — Lincoln (CA) — is an independent school that is not affiliated with either the NCAA or the NAIA.
Here is a preview of the Wildcats and the Lumberjacks.
Northern Arizona (1-0) at Arizona (1-0)
Arizona Stadium, Tucson, Ariz.
Time: 7 p.m. MT
TV: ESPN+
Radio: KCUB 1290-AM (Flagship), KHYT 107.5-FM (sister station)
Coaches: New Mexico — Brian Wright (1-0 at NAU, 38-8 career as head coach); Arizona — Brent Brennan (1-0 at Arizona, 35-48 career as head coach).
Fun fact: Remember the Border Conference? Probably not. Back in the day, it was a league of teams in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. From 1931-52, the Wildcats and the Lumberjacks were in the same conference (New Mexico was also in the same conference). While Arizona remained in the conference until 1962 when it joined the Pac-8, which became the Pac-10, NAU left in 1953 for the New Mexico/Frontier Conference.
All-Times Series: Arizona leads series, 16-2.
Last meeting: Arizona def. NAU, 38-3 (2023).
Last week: NAU def. Lincoln (CA), 66-6; Arizona def. New Mexico, 61-39.
Series notes: The series goes all the way to 1931 when the two teams were conference rivals. But, Arizona has never played them in Flagstaff. The two teams have only played each other outside of Tucson one time — 1932 in Phoenix. Oddly enough, it was one of two times Arizona lost. The other time was in 2021.
About NAU: The Lumberjacks play in one of the best conferences in FCS, the Big Sky Conference, which features more than a dozen teams, several of which are regular playoff participants. The Lumberjacks have made the playoffs in FCS six times, but have only won once — back in 2003, when they beat McNeese State.
But the program has been in transition since the tenure of Jerome Souers ended after the 2017 season. He coached there for 20 years and won 123 games, leading NAU to five of its playoff appearances.
Wright was hired to get NAU going again after a 5-6 season last year. The long-time assistant coach led Division II Pittsburg State for four years, where he won two conference titles and led the Gorillas (yes, the Gorillas) to 23 wins and a pair of Top 5 rankings the last two years.
About Arizona: Arizona’s debut under Brennan went about as well it could have gone on the offensive side of the football. McMillan did something no FBS receiver had ever done before, Fifita looked like he was in midseason form and the running game got on track in the second half.
The defense needs some work. The Wildcats gave up 39 points and had trouble containing New Mexico’s quarterback. With new defensive coordinator Duane Akina calling the shots, it may take some time for the unit to become cohesive.
The Wildcats gave up 471 total yards, but did force two interceptions. So that’s a start for a defense that wants to force more mistakes from opponents this season.
Next Up: Northern Arizona will travel to Utah Tech on Sept. 14 while Arizona will play its first road game against Kansas State on Sept. 13. The contest is a non-conference affair, even though the two schools are now in the Big 12. This game was previously agreed-to before the Wildcats joined the conference.
MATT POSTINS