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Arizona Football: Cats pounced in Pullman, fail to become Bowl Eligible

By Kevin Jiang

Nov 5, 2016; Pullman, WA, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Anu Solomon (12) pitches the ball ball against the Washington State Cougars during the second half at Martin Stadium. The Cougars won 69-7. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 5, 2016; Pullman, WA, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Anu Solomon (12) pitches the ball ball against the Washington State Cougars during the second half at Martin Stadium. The Cougars won 69-7. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-USA TODAY Sports /
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The skid continues as the Arizona Football team (2-7, 0-6) drop their 6th straight conference game to the No. 25 Washington State Cougars (7-2, 6-0) by a score of 69-7.

Glad that’s over…

From the onset, the Arizona Football team was not ready for the Cougs. With the Martin Stadium crowd buzzing from Wazzu’s debut in college football’s Top 25 poll for the first time since 2003, and it being the annual WSU Dad’s Weekend, the Cougs took advantage of the injury-ridden Wildcats by scoring early and often.

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The current state of the Arizona Wildcats can be summarized by taking a look at the UofA sideline during this game. Defeated.

The offense went on to the field only to quickly return and force the defense back onto the field.

When the offense catches a breath, starting QB Brandon Dawkins would try to stay warm by using the stationary bike, while other QBs Anu Solomon and Khalil Tate would play toss to warm each other up. On the bench, senior receiver Samajie Grant could be found hunched over a playbook too quickly learn rushing plays, as the Cats’ emergency running back due to injuries sustained by the backfield corps.

Nov 5, 2016; Pullman, WA, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Anu Solomon (12) drops back to pass against the Washington State Cougars during the first half at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 5, 2016; Pullman, WA, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Anu Solomon (12) drops back to pass against the Washington State Cougars during the first half at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-USA TODAY Sports /

Grant would prove to be one of few bright spots in this game, picking up 77 yards on the ground on eight carries. Tucsonan Cam Denson, was also responsible for 77 yards and the Wildcats’ only score on the day as he collected an Anu Solomon pass on a 47-yard touchdown connection.

Defensively, there wasn’t much to highlight, but perhaps one of the few encouraging things we saw, was the stellar play of freshman safety Isaiah Hayes. His dad, former WSU-great Chris Hayes, was in the stands.

Honestly, the score could’ve been a bit worse as WSU head coach Mike Leach took out the Cougs star-QB Luke Falk in the third quarter. While this was likely due to the 52-7 score at that point of the ballgame, the substitution was also likely made to keep Falk out of harm’s way.

In his career, Leach has been known to be somewhat abrasive with his Pac-12 colleagues. Take for instance his altercation with ASU head coach, Todd Graham earlier this year.

He has also doesn’t seem to shy away from running up the score, whenever the opportunity presents itself, but with the game in hand and Pac-12 North Championship aspirations still alive, it was in Washington State’s best interest to take Falk out.

The Arizona Daily Star appropriately labelled the game a ‘Nightmare’, here’s the post game conference with the frustrated and dissapointed head coach:

Next: 6 thoughts fans should ponder

While the Cats have dashed away any possibility of bowl eligibility, their season continues next week as they host the Pac-12 South-leading Colorado Buffaloes. RichRod has never lost to the Buffs, but he also has never had to lead such an injury-ridden team for the duration of a season. Times are tough, but the tough Bear Down.

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