TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — No. 20 Arizona had a memorable opening game under coach Brent Brennan on offense, racking up huge numbers in a blowout win over New Mexico.
The Wildcats weren’t nearly as good on defense, missing numerous tackles while failing to get much pressure on agile Lobos quarterback Devon Dampier.
Arizona had a week to shore up its defensive deficiencies and gets a chance to see if the improvements stick in Saturday night’s game against Northern Arizona.
“In terms of the film versus New Mexico, that’s put to bed. We’re all about NAU now,” Brennan said during his weekly news conference on Monday. “We can fix those errors and we had some correction work in practice today, but now it’s all about the next opponent. We don’t have time to look backwards. You have to look forward.”
From an offensive standpoint, Arizona (1-0) picked up where it left off last season.
Quarterback Noah Fifita was sharp and repeatedly found receiver Tetairoa McMillan in stride for long gains.
McMillan set a school record with 304 yards receiving and matched another with four touchdown catches on 10 catches. Fifita finished finished with 422 yards and four touchdowns on 19-of-31 passing with an interception in an offense that racked up 627 total yards in Arizona’s eighth straight win over two seasons.
Defensively, the Wildcats looked like a team trying to work out the first-game kinks.
Arizona allowed New Mexico to score 24 points in the first half and led by just three at halftime. Lobos quarterback Devon Dampier eluded the Wildcats all night, accounting for 390 yards and five touchdowns.
Arizona compounded its defensive issues with numerous missed tackles and far too many penalties, including two unsportsmanlike flags on cornerback Tacario Davis, leading to his ejection in the fourth quarter.
“There’s some things that we can be a little more clean on, in terms of our contain and some of those rush lines,” Brennan said. “That’s something the defensive staff is working hard cleaning up. We’ll be ready to go this weekend.”
NAU’s opener
Northern Arizona also kicked off its first season under a new coach last week.
Former Pittsburg State coach Brian Wright took over the program after Chris Ball was fired following his fifth season.
Like Arizona, the Lumberjacks (1-0) got off to a stellar start under a new coach, scoring on eight straight possessions in a 66-6 win over independent Lincoln (CA).
Northern Arizona had one of the biggest wins in program history three years ago in Tucson, knocking off Arizona 21-19. The Wildcats were mired in the worst stretch in program history back then and are now on the upswing, so the odds of another NAU upset aren’t great.
Arizona run game
McMillan and Fifita garnered the headlines in Arizona’s opening win, but the ground game played a big role as well, particularly in the second half.
Quali Conley ran for 90 yards and three touchdowns, all in the second half. Jacory Merrit-Croskey led the Wildcats with 106 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, and the Wildcats finished with 205 yards, averaging 7.9 yards per carry.
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