Arizona Football has must Win Situation Versus Southern Utah

Arizona Football (0-2) enters week three of the season in a crucial, must-win situation versus FCS foe Southern Utah (0-2) on Saturday.

We’re two weeks into the season, and already Arizona Football fans are looking at their calendars wondering when the Arizona Basketball season starts. After being shocked by BYU at home, the Wildcats were completely throttled in their first road game of 2018 to Houston.

So far, this season has been a huge let down. The Wildcats were a dark horse favorite to win the Pac-12 South, and now it looks like it will be a miracle if this team even wins more than three games.

Arizona Wildcats

The Wildcats are 0-2 on the year, and have looked flat, emotionless and completely inept offensively and defensively. Blame it on the myriad of injuries (most notably on the offensive line), the poor depth and recruiting from years prior, or even the ineffectual schemes ran by this team.

Whatever the case, Arizona has not looked or played as nearly as good as what fans were hoping for. Moving forward, the schedule only becomes more daunting and disheartening for fans still holding on to hopes for a bowl game from here on out.

With that said, here is our preview of the Southern Utah Thunderbirds!

Know Thy Foe:

Team: Southern Utah (0-2, 0-0); lost to Oregon State 48-25 last week.

Conference: Big Sky Conference

2017 Record: 9-3 (7-1); lost 30-13 to Weber State in the second round of the FCS playoffs.

Head Coach: Demario Warren (15-10) enters his third season after initially taking the Thunderbirds to back-to-back winning seasons including an FCS Playoff appearance last year. So far, it’s been a tougher start to 2018, but nonetheless they have been a solid Big Sky program that shouldn’t be overlooked in this one.

Key Returners/ Starters: The Thunderbirds’ high-powered offense comes into this one ranked as the No.12 overall offense for all FCS schools. Led largely by quarterback Chris Helbig, Southern Utah has had some pretty solid production from the junior signal caller this season.

Overall, Southern Utah tends to have a very balanced approach offensively, having ran the ball 83 times this season, compared to throwing it just 86 times. Their backfield tends to be pretty evenly split in the number of attempts ran by either running backs Jay Green Jr. or James Felila, as well as quarterback Helbig.

Their receiving corp seems to be pretty evenly split as well. No one really jumps out at you production wise, outside of senior receiver Ty Rutledge. Tight end Logan Parker and receiver Landen Measom seem to be more of the favored targets for Helbig as well, but Rutledge certainly has had the most production and action thus far.

Defensively is where the Thunderbirds struggle the most. Currently they rank 113th among all FCS teams, and so far in 2018, they have been led by senior linebacker Chinedu Ahanonu and senior cornerback Taelin Webb.

Much like the Wildcats they don’t have much of a pass rush, but at least have had a couple sacks, whereas Arizona has yet to reach the quarterback. Outside of that, there have been a couple solid pieces to their defense, but overall, nothing to really write home about.

Key Injuries/ Missing Players: The Wildcats have injuries everywhere! They will be without Nathan Eldridge (who we doubt will play at all this season), PJ Johnson missed last week, so his status is unknown at this point. Defensive lineman Dereck Boles, and senior safety Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles both left the game versus Houston on Saturday, and their status is unknown at this time.

Jace Whittaker also missed the game versus Houston, but should finally be back this week along with Scottie Young Jr. Also, Khalil Tate tweaked his ankle versus Houston, but remained in the game. His status is unknown at this time too!

Seemingly the only good news is that offensive lineman Layth Friekh finally returns from his medical redshirt suspension and will start at left tackle for the Cats!

Game Information:

When: Saturday, September 15th, 2018

Time: 8:00 PM MST/PST – Pac 12 Network

Where: Arizona Stadium (Tucson, AZ)

Spread: TBD

Overall Series Record: 0-0

Last Meeting vs. Arizona: As far as I recall, this is the first match-up between the schools.

Our Prediction: Arizona 38 Southern Utah 24. This is a game Arizona needs to win, and should ultimately win. Regardless of the horrendous start, the Wildcats have absolutely no business losing this game, otherwise mail it in and just fast forward to 2019.

It is worth noting the Wildcats have a few crucial pieces that may miss time this week, but overall, a few other solid pieces return, most namely Friekh. His presence should really help bolster Arizona’s offensive line, and provide some much need experience and leadership there.

Also, as we stated previously, the Thunderbirds have been struggling defensively. This is a great opportunity for a tune-up game for the Wildcats, or at least to gain some confidence.

The only uncertainty heading into this one is whether Tate will play, but barring something drastic, I believe he will be out there and will be able to find some sort of rhythm.

Luckily, the Wildcats were able to get some things going late in the blowout loss to Houston last Saturday, but hopefully the team comes out with a bit more emotion and frustration than they have shown this season and get their first win of 2018.

Listen to Kevin Sumlin as he discusses his team following the Houston loss, as well as preparation for the game against Southern Utah:

Here’s to hoping Arizona can finally get things going this weekend and get a win against Southern Utah! The team and fans are certainly in need of something positive here! Bear Down and Beat the Thunderbirds!