Quick hitters from the Arizona Wildcats’ weekly news conference Monday afternoon at the Lowell-Stevens Football Facility:
* UA coach Rich Rodriguez described upcoming opponent Washington as “one of the best teams in the country” and “maybe the most talented in our league” with “a whole bunch of dudes” who will go on to play in the NFL. The Huskies are 3-0 and ranked No. 9 in the AP Top 25.
* Rodriguez said tailback J.J. Taylor has learned as quickly as any freshman he has ever coached. Rodriguez compared him to former West Virginia star Noel Devine. I’ll have more on Taylor later.
* Rodriguez said junior Tyrell Johnson will practice mostly at tailback. He had been working more as a slot receiver, but Arizona’s depth at running back has vanished with Orlando Bradford being dismissed from the program and Nick Wilson getting hurt last week.
* Regarding Bradford’s situation, Rodriguez said there’s no wiggle room when it comes to physical abuse of a female: “We have a rule. You put your hands on a woman, you’re done.” Bradford faces multiple domestic-violence charges after a series of incidents led to his arrest last week.
* Rodriguez praised QB Brandon Dawkins for his decision-making and decisiveness against Hawaii. Rodriguez thought Dawkins took a big step forward from his first start and believes he’ll play faster the more experience he gets.
* Rodriguez gave no indication as to who would start at quarterback against Washington. Dawkins has started the past two games while Week 1 starter Anu Solomon recovers from a knee injury.
* Rodriguez said Washington’s ultra-efficient Jake Browning is a “very intelligent” quarterback who is “composed beyond his years” and doesn’t get fooled often by defenses.
* Rodriguez said redshirt freshman Cody Creason played “pretty well” at right tackle and that “the game didn’t seem too big for him.” Creason found out he’d be making his first career start just minutes before kickoff when it was determined Gerhard de Beer couldn’t go because of an undisclosed injury.
* Rodriguez said freshman Isaiah Hayes had been practicing at safety and cornerback and got moved to the latter spot when starter Dane Cruikshank got hurt.
* Rodriguez is hopeful that safety Tellas Jones will return for the Washington game. Jones has missed the past 2½ games because of an ankle injury. He suited up and participated in warmups before the Hawaii game.
* Rodriguez said he has a rule that anyone who scores a touchdown or gets the ball on a turnover is supposed to hand it to the nearest official. Already this season, at least two players on other college teams have dropped the ball before crossing the goal line.
