Arizona returns home to host Texas Tech at Arizona Stadium

INDIVIDUAL NOTES ON THE LAST MATCH:

• TE Keyan Burnett posted career highs in both receptions (5) and yards (76) on Saturday night. His fourth quarter touchdown was the first of his career.
• QB Noah Fifita threw two touchdowns and tied Arizona for 12th all-time with his 33rd career touchdown.
• K Tyler Loop made 3-for-4 field goals and capped his career with three shots.
• DL Stanley Ta'ufo'ou recorded his first sack for the Wildcats late in the first half.
• Safety Genesis Smith picked off Utah QB Isaac Wilson for his third career interception and second of the 2024 season.
• DB Tacario Davis recorded five pass breakups, a career-high in a single game, and gave him 21 career passes defended.
• Safety Gunner Maldonado also recorded an interception on Saturday, giving him four career picks.
• RB Kedrick Reescano set career highs in attempts (7) and yards (73) in Saturday's win.
• LB Taye Brown led the Wildcats with 10 total tackles, marking his second double-digit tackling performance of the season.
• DB Gunner Maldonado also recorded an interception on Saturday, giving him four career picks.
• RB Kedrick Reescano set career highs in attempts (7) and yards (73) in Saturday's win.
• LB Taye Brown led the Wildcats with 10 total tackles, marking his second double-digit tackling performance of the season.

ON THE WAY AGAIN: Saturday marked the Wildcats' first road win at Utah since 2014. They have now won two straight games against Utah for the first time since their four straight wins from 2012-14. Arizona has nine wins over the last 20 seasons, which puts it ahead of AP top-10 ranked teams, the most in the nation during that span. Arizona picked up its second road win against a top-10 opponent in the last 10 seasons. (Won at No. 9 UCLA in 2022).

FIRST BIG 12 WIN: Arizona won its first Big 12 Conference game in program history and improved to 3-1 on the year. The Wildcats are now 21-26-2 all-time against Utah. Last Saturday marked the first win over an AP Top 25 program for head coach Brent Brennan. The 23-10 win for Arizona is Utah's first home loss to an unranked team since the 21-7 loss to Washington on September 15, 2018.

OFFER ON THE 4TH: Arizona's defense denied Utah four times on fourth down, marking its first 0-for-4 performance since Oregon in 2006.

THE TRE WAY: Arizona defensive lineman Tre Smith is third in the nation in rushing and has rushed the quarterback 17 times in three games so far this season, per PFF. Keldric Faulk (Auburn) is first nationally with 20. Smith joined the Wildcats as a transfer from San Jose State prior to the 2024 season. Smith has recorded 105 total tackles (51 solo, 54 ast) in 27 games. He has 10.5 career sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss between Arizona and San Jose State.

GETTING TO THE BALL: Defensive back Tacario Davis recorded five pass breakups in last Saturday's game at Utah. These five separations place him in second place in the Big 12, trailing only Korie Black (Oklahoma State) with six. Davis is tied for first with 1.25 passes defended per game. He has now defended 21 passes in his career.

QUALI GETS THE FLIGHT: RB Quali Conley recorded his first 100-yard rushing game with Arizona (112 vs. NAU, 9/7) and has since ran for 155 yards against San Diego State on 11/18/23. Conley broke off a 58-yard rush on Arizona's first drive of the game, marking his longest rush with the Wildcats and the second-longest of his career (longest: 68 yards vs. New Mexico, 10/14/23). Conley tied his career high in receptions with five against NAU (9/7) (2x; most recent: vs. Air Force, 9/22/23).

MAKING MANUAL: Linebacker Jacob Manu leads the Wildcats again this season with 34 tackles (16 solo, 18 ascent). Manu ranks 13th in the Big 12 in total tackles, with an average of 8.5 per game, which is 6th in the Big 12.

WELCOME TO THE BIG 12: The Arizona Wildcats are embarking on a new journey in a new conference after joining the Big 12 in August 2024. The Wildcats end a Pac-10/12 era that began in 1978 and ended with a record of 277-256-7, including a 171-202-6 conference record over 45 years in the conference. The legendary Dick Tomey led the Wildcats through 13 seasons in the Pac-10/12 Conference and recorded the most wins of any head coach in program history (95).

Hasty offense: The Wildcats totaled 161 yards, with Kedrick Reescano (74 yards) and Quali Conley (75 yards) combining for 149 yards. It was the third of four games in which the Wildcats totaled more than 160 yards on offense. So far, the Wildcats are averaging 5.9 yards per carry (17th nationally) and averaging 152.5 yards per game.

T-MAC: After four touchdown grabs in Game 1 against New Mexico, wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan ranks 6th in program history in receiving touchdowns in his career (22) and 6th in receiving yards in his career career receiving points in program history (2,557). McMillan posted the second-most receiving yards in a single season in program history in 2023 (1,402). He has now recorded the most receiving yards in a single game (304) and the second-most receiving yards in a single game in program history in 2023 (266; at ASU, November 25, 2023). Currently, McMillan ranks 10th in the FBS with four touchdown grabs.

Explosive offense: The Wildcats recorded 627 total yards of offense in their season-opening win over New Mexico on August 31. That was the highest since 673 (178 rush, 495 passes) against Colorado in 2022. The offensive production ranked 8th in program history (627; California, September 20, 2014).

TRENDING UP: Quarterback Noah Fifita continues to climb Arizona's passing record charts with another outstanding performance to open the 2024 season, throwing for 422 yards and four touchdowns. In 16 of 19 career games, Fifita has posted a completion rate above 60%. He never threw more than one interception in a single game in his college career (19 games; 482 pass attempts). Fifita's career completion percentage is 69.4% (332-482) for 4,057 yards and 33 touchdowns. Fifita has surpassed the 1,000-yard passing mark with 1,060 yards in four games this season. He has thrown seven touchdowns and four interceptions.

HELLO BIG 12 RECORD BOOK: McMillan became the first player in FBS history to have a game with more than 10 receptions, more than 300 receiving yards, more than 30.0 yards per reception and more than four receiving TDs (per OptaSTATS). In Arizona's first game as a member of the Big 12, McMillan etched his name in the record books and recorded the second-most receiving yards (304) in a single game in Big 12 history. His four touchdowns were also the third-most in a single game in the History of the Big 12.

GOLDEN BOOT: Tyler Loop has led the program in multiple kicking records, first with most consecutive extra points (115), and he is on the hunt for the highest field goal percentage of his career (84.85%, 56 of 66) in the Program history. Loop is chasing the record for most consecutive games with a field goal made (24) in program history. He ranks fourth in career scoring in program history (283; 2022-present). Loop currently ranks 14th in career target rate. (84.85%) in college football history, who ranks second among active kickers in FBS (1st; Jonah Dalmas, 88.3% – Boise State), ahead of last year's Lou Groza Award winner Graham Nicholson (Alabama, 83.6%). Loop was a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award in 2023. On August 31, he threw for 54 yards against New Mexico. He also made two of three field goal attempts against NAU and kicked a 48-yarder against New Mexico the Lumberjacks. Arizona's all-time leading scorer, Max Zendejas, was an honorary captain before the NAU game. Loop hit a 53-yarder on three made field goals in Utah's 23-10 win.

POLYNESIAN PIPELINE: Arizona continues to grow its program and has some of the best Polynesian college football players in the country on its roster. The Wildcats had seven players named to the watch list for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award, including quarterback Noah Fifita, defensive lineman Keanu Mailoto, linebacker Jacob Manu, wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, offensive lineman Jonah Savaiinaea and defensive lineman Stanley Ta'ufo 'ou and defensive lineman Ta'ita'I Uiagalelei. The seven players included on this watch list are second in the nation only to BYU in 2024. This was also the highest number for the Wildcats since the inception of the awards preseason watch list. Fifita was placed on the college watch list for the first time. Savaiinaea appears on the list for the second consecutive year. McMillan advanced to the 2023 awards final after being named to the preseason list. Mailoto, Manu, Ta'ufo'ou and Uiagalelei made their first appearances as Wildcats on this awards watch list.

WILDCATS IN THE NFL: Arizona currently has 11 players on the NFL roster for the 2024 season. Former offensive lineman Jordan Morgan was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the first round (25th overall) following the 2023 season. He was the first first-round selection since Antoine Cason was selected 27th overall in 2008. He joined a list that includes Cason (2008; 27th, San Diego), Trung Canidate (2000; 31st, St. Louis) and Chris McAlister (1999); 10th, Baltimore), John Fina (1992; 27th, Buffalo), Chris Singleton (1990; 8th, New England), Anthony Smith (1990; 11th, Oakland), Rickey Hunley (1984; 7th, Cincinnati) , Mike Dawson (1976; 22nd, Arizona), Bill Lueck (1968; 26th, Green Bay) and Walt Nelson (1939; 10th, New York Giants), selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. Wide receiver Jacob Cowing was selected in the fourth round (135th overall) by the San Francisco 49ers, becoming the most selected wide receiver since Mike Thomas in 2009 (4th round, 107th overall by Jacksonville) and the first wide receiver selected since Juron Criner (5th). Rd, 168th overall by Oakland) in 2012. Tight end Tanner McLachlan was the third Wildcat selected in the 2024 NFL Draft when the Cincinnati Bengals selected him in the 6th round (194th overall). The three draft picks were the most selected in a draft since 2014, when Ka'Deem Carey (4th Rd, 117th overall), Shaquille Richardson (5th Rd, 157th overall) and Marquis Flowers (6th Rd, 212th overall) were selected in the 2014 NFL Draft.

Current Wildcats on NFL rosters (as of September 2, 2024)

*Practice squad