Three Keys to Success as Arizona Wildcats Face Kansas State Wildcats
The Arizona Wildcats have never paid a visit to Manhattan, Kan., but they’ll rectify that oversight on Friday when they face the Kansas State Wildcats.
Arizona (2-0) and Kansas State (2-0) are two of five ranked Big 12 teams, with K-State currently at No. 14 and Arizona at No. 20.
Both had to fight to win last week, though Arizona’s fight was downright strange. It struggled to beat Northern Arizona, 22-10, a team against which it was a heavy favorite. Kansas State fended off Tulane, 34-27, with a go-ahead defensive touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Green Wave, to some are a contender for the Group of Five’s berth in the College Football Playoff.
While both teams are in the Big 12 Conference, this won’t be a league game. This contest was originally scheduled as a non-conference affair before Arizona migrated to the conference. In an effort to make their schedules work, the two schools agreed to keep the game a non-conference affair this year.
Here are three keys to success for the Wildcats as they face Kansas State on Saturday.
Get Consistent on Offense
In the opener against New Mexico, the Wildcats were about as explosive as an offense could be. Arizona scored 61 points and wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan had a game for the ages.
Then, against Northern Arizona, the offense just sputtered, at times inexplicably so. Arizona scored 22 points and won, but no one walked away from that game feeling confident about the offense.
As usual, the truth is somewhere in the middle. A new coaching staff and new systems lengthen the time needed to create that consistency on offense.
Some of this could be new systems and new personnel. But the Wildcats likely are going back to the drawing board a bit this week to find what works.
Consistency usually starts with running the ball, and Quali Conley has done that well the past two weeks. Kansas State coach Chris Klieman was unhappy with his defense’s performance against Tulane. There are areas to exploit. Arizona has to find them and consistently hit those spots.
Hold the Edge
Remember how much trouble New Mexico quarterback Devon Dampier was for Arizona two weeks ago? He rushed for 126 yards and two scores and threw for another 252 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.
Kansas State has a similar problem at quarterback in Avery Johnson. He had 181 yards passing and 40 yards rushing against Tulane last week. The Green Wave did a good job of holding him back because they minded the edge. Johnson has quality speed and can get outside, so Arizona must keep that from happening.
Johnson is not the only problem, either. The running back combination of D.J. Giddens and Dylan Edwards has speed to burn. It’s just as vital to keep that pair between the tackles. Once either gets a step on a defender they’re hard to catch.
Calibrate For the Road
Kansas State’s Bill Snyder Family Stadium is a difficult place to play. It sells out on a regular basis and its traditional “Wabash Cannonball” is a sight to behold. It also helps create an intimidating environment for opponents. Few stadiums in the Big 12 are more difficult to play in than this one.
This is Arizona’s first road trip of the season. It’s also the program’s first trip to Manhattan, Kan. K-State is returning from a hostile environment at Tulane and likely wants to dish some of that out on Friday.
Arizona will need to plan for a noisy game that might require silent counts on offense. The best thing it can do is score early and try and take one of the best crowds in the Big 12 out of the game early.
MATT POSTINS