The Wildcats’ season started rather average. They beat up on Northern Arizona and University of Texas-El Paso, but lost to the Houston Cougars, who are 6-3, and to the Utah Utes by six points. The next game on Oct. 7 in Boulder, Colorado, changed the trajectory of the Wildcats’ season.
Arizona starting quarterback Brandon Dawkins left the game with an injury on the opening possession and so entered sophomore backup quarterback Khalil Tate. He set the Football Bowl Subdivision record for rushing yards by a quarterback with 327, adding four rushing touchdowns and a passing touchdown in a win over the Colorado Buffaloes.
Since then, including the win over Colorado, Arizona has won 5-of-6 games, with the only loss coming two weeks ago to the USC Trojans. Tate enters Saturday with six consecutive 100-yard rushing games and is ranked seventh in the nation in rushing yards with 1,293 and 11 touchdowns.
“The kid is gifted,” Oregon defensive line coach Joe Salave’a said. “There’s some things that he’s doing that you can’t coach. It’s an attribute to him and his competitive nature. But also in the scheme that [Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez] plays. It’s a perfect match.”
So how do you stop the sophomore sensation?
“We need a 12th guy,” defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt said. “We need 11 guys to play defense and another guy to go after [Tate].”
The majority of the offense goes through Tate, but the Wildcats do have a pair of running backs that help open up the field for Tate to run. J.J. Taylor has rushed 114 times for 699 yards and Nick Wilson has 88 rushes for 461 yards. Each have four rushing touchdowns.
At wide receiver, Tony Ellison and Shun Brown each have 431 yards. Brown leads the team with five touchdown catches.
“For us, it’s another opportunity to establish what we’re trying to build here,” Salave’a said. “You can’t go into a contest with a half-hearted attitude.”
Josh Pollack has handled the majority of the kicking duties this season. He is 53-of-55 with extra points and 10-of-14 kicking field goals, but he has not kicked from fifty yards or longer. Backup kicker Lucas Havrisik has made three kicks this season, from 43, 45 and 57 yards.
Oregon should have success moving the ball against the Wildcats’ defense, which ranks 115th in the country. Opposing teams have averaged 459.2 yards per game against the Wildcats. However, the Wildcats have had success intercepting passes. Whoever Oregon has at quarterback will need to be careful. The Wildcats rank third in the nation with 16 interceptions and have returned two for touchdowns.
The Ducks are going to need a big effort on Saturday in all phases if they’re going to pick up their sixth win and become bowl eligible.
“You’ve got to go in full speed, and I don’t know any better,” Salave’a said. “In our room you’ve got to compete — compete to win — and let the chips fall where they may.”
Follow Zak Laster on Twitter @zlast3445
The post Deep Dive: Get to know the Arizona Wildcats appeared first on Emerald Media.