RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
Returning starters: SR Samajie Grant (WR), SR Nate Phillips (WR)
Also returning: RS FR Brion Anduze (TE), SO Shun Brown (WR), JR Cam Denson (WR), RS SO Tony Ellison (WR), RS SR Trey Griffey (WR), RS FR Darick Holmes Jr. (WR), JR Tyrell Johnson (WR), RS SR Josh Kern (TE), RS SR Matt Morin (TE), RS FR Cedric Peterson (WR), RS SO Trevor Wood (TE)
Newcomers: RS JR Zach Benjamin (WR), FR Devaughn Cooper (WR), FR Jamie Nunley (TE), JR Shawn Poindexter (WR)
Burning question: Will Trey Griffey make headlines for football-related reasons this fall?
If you Google “Trey Griffey,” the first item that pops up is his Arizona football bio. Eight of the next nine are about the Seattle Mariners selecting Ken Griffey Jr.’s son in the 24th round of the 2016 MLB draft.
The move was 95 percent publicity stunt/homage to Junior, who wore No. 24 for the Mariners and entered the Baseball Hall of Fame this summer. The Mariners are expected to sign the younger Griffey to a no-compensation contract that won’t affect his football eligibility but will enable them to retain his rights should he decide to give baseball a try. (That’s the other 5 percent.)
The Mariners’ move had the intended effect, becoming a thing on the internet for a few days in June. The hope on the UA campus is that Trey Griffey will change the search results by fulfilling his potential and having a breakout senior season on the gridiron.
Griffey has shown flashes of stardom during his Arizona career, especially at the end of last year. Griffey missed the first half of the season because of a foot injury. In the final two games, he caught four passes for 202 yards, including an extraordinary 95-yard touchdown against Arizona State. Griffey caught the ball at the 15-yard line, weaved through the Sun Devils defense and dove headlong over the left pylon.
With the departures of Cayleb Jones, Johnny Jackson and David Richards, Griffey should play a significantly larger role in Arizona’s offense. As noted previously, Griffey is the only returning “big” receiver on the UA roster.
Grant and Phillips are back to do the dirty work out of the slot, and converted cornerback Denson is among several other intriguing options at what might be the Wildcats’ deepest position. But Griffey is the only receiver with plus size (6-3, 209) who has displayed big-play ability on the Division 1 level.
Griffey also has shown he can track the ball like this dad. Griffey had the highest catch rate (78.6 percent) among UA receivers last season, according to Bill Connelly of SB Nation. Fourteen targets obviously represents a small sample size. But consider this: Griffey averaged 20.3 yards per target – more than double the next-closest Wildcat (Jones, 9.8).
Griffey has the talent – and the opportunity – to become a No. 1 receiver. If he does it, he could get drafted again next spring – by the NFL.
