With Arizona Football (3-1, 1-0) beginning conference play with a narrow, 21-20 win over Stanford, we break down the numbers in the Wildcats’ win!
Well, Arizona Football has started the year 3-1 (1-0) much like many had anticipated or expected; however, the Wildcats have been flat and unimpressive, to say the least.
Playing in front of a sparsely packed Stanford Stadium, the Wildcats looked flat and disinterested as they took on the host Cardinal.
Enduring hundreds of miles in travel, injuries, and an uninspired game of football, the Wildcats somehow rallied, beating Stanford in Palo Alto for the first time in 17 years as they escaped with a 21-20 win!
Knocking off the Cardinal, Arizona Football begins its season 3-1 (1-0); however, the Wildcats will have a huge against a Top 10 Washington Huskies team.
5 – Coming in, Arizona’s offense has been rather inconsistent to start the season, and what many thought would be a strong point for the Wildcats, instead has been an area of concern, to say the least.
Disjointed and flat, the Wildcats could not seemingly sustain drives against the Cardinal, punting five times on Saturday. Overall, Arizona could only muster 21 points.
43.75 – Against Stanford, the defense did a fair job most of the game; however, the Wildcats did give up seven third down conversions, allowing the Cardinal to convert on 7-16 attempts (43.75 percent), some of those conversions coming in third-and-long situations.
That is a very concerning statistic, especially as the bulk of Arizona’s schedule is quickly approaching, and the competition only gets more challenging from here.
Arizona’s defense is going to have to do a better job of getting off the field in those situations.
7 – It is no secret that Arizona has had its fair share of struggles on offense in the first quarter of games, but through four games, the Wildcats have scored just seven points.
In the first quarter, Arizona is getting outscored 17-7. That’s just not acceptable, and with offensive powers like Washington, USC, and Washington State looming, the Wildcats are going to need to find a way to start quicker.
100 – In his limited action this season, Noah Fifita is a perfect, 8-8 passing with 69 yards. Granted, it is a small sample size; however, the accuracy is very promising, and should Jayden de Laura bounce back quickly, the coaching staff needs to take a long look at making the change at quarterback.
17 – Winning conference games on the road is never easy, and for an Arizona team that has endured a lot of heartbreaking losses over the last decade-plus, getting a win at Stanford was huge.
Arizona hasn’t won in Palo Alto in 17 years, and despite playing one of the ugliest football games I’ve ever seen, the Wildcats still came away victorious and are 3-1 (1-0) for the first time since 2019.
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