We continue our countdown to the start of spring football for the Arizona Wildcats, asking β and answering - five key questions before the first practice Saturday.
Weβve already addressed the quarterback and linebacker situations. Letβs bounce back to the offensive side of the ball for this next installment.
Question No. 3: Was the offensive lineβs performance in the 2016 season finale a sign of things to come in β17?
Arizona played with previously unseen desire and intensity in its 56-35 Territorial Cup victory over Arizona State. No unit exemplified the UAβs heightened state more than the offensive line.
The line manhandled the Sun Devilsβ front, opening massive expanses for quarterback Brandon Dawkins and running backs Samajie Grant and Zach Green. Each topped 100 yards as Arizona rushed for a school-record 511 yards. The Wildcatsβ run game was so dominant that they didnβt need to attempt a pass in the second half.
The line played decently in previous games, helping Arizona rush for more than 300 yards against Hawaii and, more impressively, Washington. But those performances were nothing like the Territorial Cup, so itβs fair to ask whether that outing is repeatable.
The pieces appear to be in place for the offensive line to be a team strength next season. Four of five starters return, plus two players β Cody Creason and Christian Boettcher β who combined for 11 starts.
Three of the projected starters β assuming Gerhard de Beer is able to hold off Creason at right tackle β will be seniors. Two of them β left tackle Layth Friekh and right guard Jacob Alsadek β have combined for 54 career starts.
The one starter who isnβt back, left guard Freddie Tagaloa, missed about half the season because of injuries. He ended up starting seven games there to Boettcherβs five.
Despite the experience he gained last year, Boettcher isnβt the favorite to start at left guard. That would be redshirt freshman Michael Eletise, one of Arizonaβs top 2016 recruits and one of its biggest (6-3, 318), strongest players.
The Wildcats appeared to have the makings of a strong line last year as well, yet it didnβt completely come together until the end of the season. The reasons were multifold. They included Tagaloaβs inability to stay healthy and play consistently; center Nathan Eldridgeβs adjustment to starting for the first time after the sudden death of senior Zach Hemmila in August; and de Beerβs inconsistency in his first long-term starting role.
Tagaloa obviously is gone now. Eldridge should be more comfortable in Year 2. The same goes for de Beer, who will be pushed by Creason, who fared well in four starts as an untested redshirt freshman.
The reserves are talented if largely unproven. Boettcher and Creason are the only projected backups with starting experience. Three of the top seven reserves β Bryson Cain, Harper Sherman and Keenan Walker β redshirted as freshmen last season.
Rich Rodriguez never seems satisfied with the depth up front, and the way the latest recruiting cycle shook out didnβt help. Arizona did not have an offensive lineman in its initial signing class of 23 players, creating a potential gap a few years down the road.
But for 2017, the prospects are promising.
SPRING PREVIEW SERIES
Part 1:Β The QB competition
Part 2: The lack of linebackers
