After two “heartbreaking, gut-wrenching” losses as Brent Brennan described them, the Arizona Wildcats had two choices heading into Boulder on Saturday. They could either let those losses define the rest of the season, or they could dig a little deeper and prove that they have what it takes to finish out games. Brent Brennan’s squad chose the latter, dominating Colorado at Folsom Field and spoiling homecoming for Buffalo fans who returned to Boulder. Check out our five reactions and takeaways from the Arizona Wildcats’ 52-17 beatdown over the Colorado Buffaloes.
1) Noah Fajita, er, Fifita stays sizzling hot:
Down the stretch of the season, Noah Fifita continues to prove that the 2024 season was nothing more than a fluke. Fifita has returned to 2023 form under first year play-caller Seth Doege, and the two’s chemistry has become increasingly emergent over the past several weeks of conference play. The junior signal caller connected on 11-of-19 passes for 213 yards, four touchdowns, and zero interceptions, before getting to rest midway through the third quarter. He is making quick and accurate reads, working through his progressions, using his legs when he needs to, and most importantly, taking care of the football.
Over the past two games, Fifita is on an impressive tear, connecting on 35-of-45 (77.8%) attempts for 482 yards, six touchdowns, and no turnovers. He is now just two touchdowns away from tying the program’s all-time record, set by Nick Foles and Willie Tuitama (67), with an opportunity to break the record at home next weekend.
The offense goes as Noah Fifita goes, and right now, it’s as hot as a plate of sizzling fajitas.
2) The offense is “perfectly balanced as all things should be”:
One area of focus heading into the game was how Seth Doege would balance Arizona’s offense. Colorado was as porous as it had been all season, giving up over 400 yards on the ground against Utah. But Noah Fifita was coming off the most efficient game of his career in the loss to Houston. So what did Seth Doege do? He called a nearly evenly split game in terms of yardage and attempts through the ground and air.
Arizona finished the game with 417 yards of total offense. 213 of those yard came through the air at the hand of Noah Fifita, while the other 204 were acquired by committee on the ground. Running back Ismail Mahdi was explosive, picking up 85 yards and a touchdown on just three carries, while veteran back Kedrick Reescano tacked on another 22 yards and a touchdown on five carries. Wide receiver Javin “Nunu” Whatley also found the end zone on the ground, punching it in from 13 yards out on a jet sweep in the second quarter.
With the game comfortably out of hand in the second half, it also gave freshmen running backs Cornelius Warren III and Wesley Yarbrough an opportunity to check into the backfield. The two combined for 52 yards on 16 carries, as “Corn” saw his first action of the season.
Colorado spent the week preparing for Arizona to try and run the ball down its throat, but a balanced attack of 25 passing attempts and 38 carries made sure the Buffaloes never quite knew what Arizona was going to throw, or run, at them. If Arizona can continue using the ground game to opening up its passing attack, and vice versa, the Wildcats will be one of the hottest offensive teams in the Big 12 in November.
3) Arizona won the turnover battle. Then it won the war:
Week in and week out, one of Brent Brennan’s keys to winning on the road has been to win the turnover battle. Well, against Houston, the Wildcats did not, coming away with zero takeaways in the 31-28 loss to the Cougars. Saturday was a different story for Danny Gonzales’ group, which played with its hair on fire, forcing five takeaways, including three interceptions and two fumble recoveries.
Jay’Vion Cole created problems for Colorado’s offense all night, intercepting quarterback Ryan Staub on the first passing play of the second half, before combining with Genesis Smith for a forced fumble and recovery later in the third quarter.
The Wildcats had some of their shortest drives of the year, with average starting field position at their own 49-yard line. Seth Doege and Co. also made sure to take advantage of the gifts from Danny Gonzales’ group, scoring 21 points off of the five turnovers.
Arizona has now forced five takeaways for the second time this season, the first time it has done so in at least two games since the 2000 season. If the Wildcats’ defense can return to its early-season form, while the offense stays as hot as its been, the UA won’t just clinch a bowl game berth, it will wind up with a seven- or eight-win season in Brent Brennan’s second year at the helm.
4) Defense ain’t done:
While the defense punished Colorado with five takeaways, there still are plenty of opportunities for Danny Gonzales’ crew to get better in the final month of the season. Arizona gave up 299 yards of total offense to Colorado, with freshman quarterback Julian Lewis providing a spark on offense for the Buffaloes in the second half.
Looking down the remainder of Arizona’s schedule, the Wildcats still have to face four of the Big 12’s most explosive offenses in Kansas, Cincinnati, Baylor, and ASU. All four of those programs like to air the ball out, but have athletic and physical quarterbacks that can use their legs to extend plays or pick up big chunks of yardage on the ground. The Wildcats struggled once again struggled to stop the run between the tackles, while also allowing starting quarterback Kaidon Salter, who had 27 yards on nine carries, to break contain on a number of plays.
As good as Arizona was at taking the ball away through the air, the Wildcats will need to tighten up against the run as they continue their push for a bowl game.
5) Sloppiness must stop:
As high-powered as Arizona looked on offense, and as effective as the defense was taking the ball away, there was plenty of sloppiness Arizona needs to clean up against more disciplined teams. The Wildcats were whistled for eight penalties, costing themselves or giving the Buffaloes 75 yards.
Kicker Michael Salgado-Medina also missed a chip shot 30-yard field, likely due to a lack of eye discipline as Colorado fans engaged in the shirtless fan trend sweep college football over the past few weeks. Other examples include an Ismail Mahdi fumble that was saved by tight end Cameron Barmore and a Noah Fifita interception that was negated by a roughing the passer penalty.
While none of these mistakes cost Arizona the game, against more disciplined and focused teams over the next month, these types of mishaps could be the difference between ending up in the win or loss column.