Brent Brennan Telling Arizona Players Their Magical Run Last Season is 'Over'
On Saturday, the Arizona Wildcats will officially get their new era of football underway.
Brent Brennan has been tasked with leading this program into their first year of the Big 12 Conference, something that was a result of Jedd Fisch leaving to take over the head coaching position at Washington.
There were signs that Arizona was heading in the right direction under Fisch. He took them from zero wins before he took over in 2020, to one victory in 2021, to a four-win improvement the following season, and then a magical run that resulted in 10 wins and an Alamo Bowl victory over Oklahoma last year.
Many of the players from last season are back, choosing to remain with the Wildcats instead of finding a new home in the transfer portal.
Because of that, there are high expectations for this Arizona team, something that has been foreign for this program in recent memory.
Hearing all of the outside noise, Brennan is making sure his team knows one thing before they take the field this season.
"We tell the players, 'You had a magical season, but that's over,'" he said to Jon Wilner of Tucson.com.
In football, holding onto the past can be as detrimental as not having any expectations at all, and since taking over as head coach on Jan. 16, Brennan is emphasizing that this is a new team in a new era.
"We have 46 new players, a new president, a new athletic director and a new coaching staff. We're looking at the best way this team can move forward," he added.
While that might be surprising to hear, it also makes sense for Arizona to approach things that way.
Sure, there are plenty of talented holdovers that will power this team to having success, but beyond Noah Fifita, Tetairoa McMillan, Tacario Davis, Jonah Savaiinaea, and other high-profile returners, success also lies with how the newcomers will perform.
Taking a look at the depth chart, there are some new faces who will be thrust into impactful roles, so if everyone is living off what this program did last season, then they will have a difficult time moving forward and being ready to prove themselves on the field once again this year.
"One of the hardest things for young people to do is to handle praise, and these guys have gotten a lot of it. It's not just a guy patting you on the back on University Avenue, either. It's hundreds of people hitting you up on social media. It's always there, everywhere you go. And you have to handle it. Focus on going to school, playing good football and being a good dude," Brennan said.
So, as the Wildcats get set for their opener against New Mexico on Saturday, the internal expectations have been made clear.
Perform how this team can perform, not like the ones in the past.
BRAD WAKAI