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By Tom Forbes
Cronkite News

TUCSON – Before the Arizona Wildcats travel to Provo, Utah, to take on BYU for the first time since 2021, the No. 14 Cougars have been studying last week’s game between Arizona and Texas Tech in search of weaknesses.

At Arizona’s Big 12 home opener, quarterback Noah Fifita struggled to gain an offensive rhythm in the first half, getting sacked on the Wildcats’ first possession and throwing an interception returned for a touchdown that allowed the Red Raiders to take the lead at halftime.

Arizona eventually picked up its offense but still lost, 28-22, dropping to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the conference.

“If we could have answered with touchdowns in the red zone, I think we could’ve kicked the door down on the game, but we didn’t,” Arizona coach Brent Brennan said. “And that’s the hard truth is that we did not.”

The Big 12 cauldron gets even hotter Saturday as the Wildcats face an undefeated and well-rested BYU at LaVell Edwards Stadium, with FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff on site.

BYU, fresh off its bye week, is paying close attention, reviewing the film of the first half of Arizona’s game against Texas Tech to see how the Red Raiders held their ground against Fifita and the Wildcats.

“Texas Tech was just physical, and I think that’s something that plays to our strength and something we can definitely do when we play them,” BYU safety Crew Wakley said.

The Cougars understand they need to emphasize their defense toward shutting down Arizona’s offense early.

“We’re going to have to do a good job disguising coverages,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. “We’re going to have to get some pressure in Fifita’s face.”

The Wildcats’ offensive resurgence in the second half shared some qualities with Arizona’s upset win over Utah in the previous week. Running back Quali Conley rushed for 97 yards with a touchdown, and kicker Tyler Loop was on the mark with five field goals to give Arizona a short-lived lead in the final stretch of the game before Texas Tech’s Tahj Brooks rushed 32 yards for his third touchdown to take down the Wildcats.

In practices this week, the Cougars have focused on schemes designed to contain Arizona’s offense, including trying to shut down Wildcats wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan.

And even though McMillan didn’t have a touchdown against Texas Tech, he still had 161 yards on eight catches, which BYU says will be a problem the Cougars need to solve.

“You have to adjust for guys like that,” Sitake said. “You’re facing one of the best wideouts in the country, you got to have a plan for him.”

Arizona’s offense wasn’t reliant on only McMillan. Tight end Keyan Burnett stepped up to keep the offense competitive. Bringing a tight end into the mix was the exact plan Brennan and offensive coordinator Dino Babers said they wanted to execute, and they did.

“I think we have a lot of faith in that tight end position, and I think we’re starting to get some good stuff from the other receivers too,” Brennan said. “If we can distribute the ball a little more evenly, it does make you harder to defend.”

The last meeting between the two teams came in 2021, when BYU beat Arizona 24-16 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas even though the Wildcats led with more yards, more first downs and had possession for over two minutes more than the Cougars – similar to what Arizona did against Texas Tech despite the loss.

Not only do the Cougars have home-field advantage, but they also benefit from coming off a bye week after defeating the Baylor Bears to improve their record to 2-0 in the conference and 5-0 overall, sharing the unblemished mark with Iowa State in the Big 12 Conference.

“It’s nice to recover, but I think I speak for a lot of people when I say we’re chomping at the bit to get back after it,” Wakley said.

While Arizona’s loss to the Red Raiders at home was a setback, the surging offense in the second half still shows some optimism the Wildcats hope to translate against BYU.

“Anyone can beat anyone in college football, so we got to come out with an edge every day,” Arizona defensive back Dalton Johnson said. “We have a lot of football left.”

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