Arizona Football: Five take aways from last nights win over NAU

We have our first Arizona Football home game under our belt, and here are the five major takeaways from their game last night against NAU!

Coming in, it was a game that Arizona Football was expected to win, and win in convincing fashion. That they did as they cruised to 65-41 victory over the visiting Lumberjacks.

The game was littered with ups and downs, as this Wildcats team tried to regain their swagger as they head into a key match up against Texas Tech next weekend. While many are busy analyzing just how the Wildcats played, here we breakdown our five major takeaways from the NAU game that they can focus on, as they prepare for next weeks game.

Arizona Wildcats

Running Game:

Arizona has a lethal group in the backfield and it would be a shame if they did not go down swinging with them every game day. Both J.J. Taylor and Gary Brightwell combined for over 200 yards rushing on only 15 total carries. They also found pay dirt twice which helped the Wildcats extend their lead early in the game versus NAU. Not to mention, the future looks bright with Dante “Bam” Smith and Micheal Wiley, as they both showed flashes of what they are able to do between the white lines.

Khalil Tate:

There is a reason why Khalil Tate is still considered to be one of the best QB’s in college football and he showed why last night. His finishing stat line read 14-17 for 138 yards and two touchdowns. That’s also not to mention the lone touchdown he had rushing too!

Not only did he put up impressive numbers but he also showed the elusiveness and quickness that evaded him last year due to an injury. It will be crucial for the Arizona offensive line to keep him healthy if they plan on contending in the Pac-12, but last night he played well just as he should have!

Wide Receivers:

The wide out core came to play on Saturday! They were able to bust explosive plays all game long, and took advantage of an inferior secondary.

It was not just one receiver, but rather it was a complete effort which was a major positive for this Wildcats team considering this was a question mark heading into the season. The Wildcats were able to get five receivers over twenty total yards and as a group they caught a total of five touchdowns. This effort will need to continue if they plan on keeping up with a Texas Tech’s high-powered offense next week.

Jace Whittaker:

While the secondary overall has been a major concern and talking point just two games into the season, there has been one stand out this year and he goes by the name of Jace Whittaker.

The senior is having a breakout year so far just as many expected, and we all remember the game he had against Hawaii as he was a ball hawk all game long. Well, last night Whittaker picked up right where he left off, grabbing himself yet another interception (his third on the season).

The Arizona Football team would do themselves a major favor by putting Jace on the other teams’ best wide out the rest of the season!

Zona Zoo:

Coming in, there was a lot speculation as to what the attendance at Arizona Stadium would look like after a devastating loss to Hawaii. Luckily, the Zona Zoo did not let us down as they showed up BIG time for the first home game of the year… granted they left at half time, but remember, the team kicked-off at 7:45, and it was 51-13 at halftime!

They showed what it means to be a “True Fan” by supporting their team through the ups and downs! Other fans should take notes and than maybe just maybe we would see a packed Arizona Stadium more often this season.

At Zona Zealots, we’re happy to see the Wildcats come away victorious. Never mind the negatives, the major positive we saw last night was that Arizona won. As always, Bear Down, Arizona!