Arizona looking to replicate successful performance
It was an improbable win as Arizona (4-5, 3-3 Pac-12) took down Oregon to secure the first signature win for first-year Wildcats head coach Kevin Sumlin.
The 44-15 victory was made possible by success in all three phases, including help by the special teams by way of a blocked punt during the flurry of scoring and third-down stops at Arizona Stadium.
Running back JJ Taylor ran for more than 200 yards against one of the conference’s top run defenses while becoming the Power 5 leader in all-purpose yards with 1,579.
Defensively, the Wildcats were able to flip the script on a negative storyline — third-down defense. Arizona allowed the Ducks to convert just 3 of 16 third-down tries, which played a big part in the lopsided win.
To have all the parts of the team clicking at the same time has been rare for the Wildcats this season, but the team was able to make it happen against a ranked opponent.
“It felt good,” Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate, who returned to the field after resting his injured ankle for the team’s previous game against UCLA.
“I think it’s a long time coming. We haven’t been playing well all year, but it’s the first time we actually played four quarters. It showed offensively and defensively, and we came out with the W.”
For Arizona, the task will now turn to repeating Saturday’s performance on a short week against Colorado (5-3, 2-3) on Friday night.
“You’re only as good as your last game,” Arizona sophomore linebacker Colin Schooler said. “So, we can’t let this performance affect our future for the bad.”
Schooler’s head coach echoed a similar feeling as the Wildcats get ready for the Buffaloes.
“We’ve gotta stay hungry, too, and understand we’ve got a lot of football left to play against some other good teams,” Sumlin said. “Can we follow that up is the next challenge.”