Jedd Fisch wouldnβt go there.
After his dynamic trio of wide receivers β Jacob Cowing, Dorian Singer and Tetairoa McMillanΒ β continued their early-season excellence with a stellar performance vs. Colorado, the Arizona coach was asked if theyβre the best group in the Pac-12.
"Iβm not a general manager or a draft expert," said Fisch, whose squad hosts No. 12 Oregon on Saturday. "Iβm just looking at our team. I believe that our team has good receivers, and I really love coaching our team of receivers. ... Weβre excited about our receivers."
Defensive end Hunter Echols was willing to go a bit further. Echols played with multiple future NFL receivers at USC, including Amon-Ra St. Brown, Drake London and Michael Pittman.
"This is the closest thing that I've seen to that," Echols said.
Defensive coordinator Johnny Nansen, a former USC assistant, held the same view.
"They're very similar," Nansen said. "These guys are playmakers. They have the ability to break it anytime they catch the football. Itβs a special group."
Special as in best-in-the-league special?
There was only one place, one man, to call to answer that question.
Before he became the preeminent authority on Pac-12 football for Pac-12 Networks, Yogi Roth played wide receiver at Pittsburgh. His teammates included soon-to-be Hall of Fame wideout Larry Fitzgerald. It would be hard to find anymore more qualified to assess receiver play in the Pac-12 than Roth.
So when Roth says Arizona has the second-best receiver unit in the conference, it gets your attention.
Thatβs how highly Roth thinks of Cowing, Singer and McMillan. The only group Roth ranks ahead of them is USCβs, led by Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison. Washingtonβs wideouts are also in the discussion.
Before he flew from Los Angeles to Tucson, where he’ll call the Wildcats-Ducks clash at sold-out Arizona Stadium, Roth offered his assessment of Arizona’s top three wide receivers. AZDesertSwarm.com dubbed them the "Three Amigos." They indeed offer a plethora of playmaking skills.
Jacob Cowing
Height, weight, year: 5 feet 11 inches, 175 pounds, junior
How he got here: Cowing transferred to Arizona from UTEP, where he caught 69 passes for 1,354 yards and seven touchdowns last season. He prepped at Maricopa High School and has a son who lives in the Chandler area.
By the numbers: Cowing leads the Pac-12 in receptions (40), receiving yards (566) and receiving touchdowns (seven). He ranks in the top six nationally in all three categories. Heβs on pace to surpass the school record for catches in a season (93, Bobby Wade, 2012) and shatter the record for TD catches (11, accomplished six times by five players).
Roth says: "He's so explosive through his route. When he breaks β whether it's an in-breaking route, an out-breaking route, a hook route, a hitch route, it doesn't matter β there's no wasted movement. As he runs through cuts, he's running through them at full speed. That stands out dramatically. He reminds me a lot of the Alabama receiving corps. They all did this in 2020. When you watch their route runners and the way they were deployed in space, it was so impressive. He reminds me of that.
"He's so twitchy as a receiver. I don't know what his 40 (time) would, but man, he flies through his routes. He's a technician vs. press coverage. When you watch him in motion, his timing is never off. He understands the whole concept of the play."
Rothβs comps: Marqise Lee, USC; Tyler Lockett, Kansas State
Dorian Singer
Height, weight, year: 6-1, 185, sophomore
How he got here: Singer came to Arizona in the summer of 2021 as a preferred walk-on. He was planning to sign with Texas, but that fell through when UT fired Tom Herman and his staff. Singer is from Saint Paul, Minnesota, but spent his senior year of high school at Phoenix Pinnacle.
By the numbers: Singer ranks second in the Pac-12 in receptions (32) and receiving yards (450). Since he became a regular in Game 8 last season, Singer has 50 catches for 745 yards and one touchdown in 10 games.
Roth says: "The biggest thing that's impressed me is his catch radius. He can clearly run. They can move him all over. He can play the slot. But his catch radius is so impressive.
"Also, as a former walk-on, I always lean into that. You gotta have an incredible inner belief. All three of these guys have that.
"You have to have an inner belief in yourself, and then a trust in the system. Dorian has both of those at a really high level."
Rothβs comps: Dante Pettis, Washington; Bryce Treggs, Cal
Tetairoa McMillan
Height, weight, year: 6-5, 205, freshman
How he got here: Originally committed to Oregon, McMillan flipped to Arizona toward the tail end of the December signing period and enrolled in January. McMillan was rated as the No. 12 prospect in the country by Rivals, No. 51 by 247Sports. He joined three other teammates from Servite High School in Anaheim, California.
By the numbers: McMillan has 16 catches for 290 yards and three touchdowns. His receiving yardage is the most for any true freshman in the nation. His 18.1-yard average per catch ranks third in the Pac-12.
Roth says: "Golly, man. I don't know if I've seen a guy like T-Mac. I've seen big receivers, seen a lot of receivers. I've seen talented receivers at the line of scrimmage. I think T-Macβs got a chance to be an all-timer in this league. I think he's got a chance to be a Biletnikoff Award winner. Heβs got a chance to make a lot of noise at that position.
"The most impressive thing to me is from spring ball to now. When he looks back on his career, the best thing that happened to him is that he had to go up against Christian Roland-Wallace and Treydan Stukes every day. He didn't get to be the best player on the field just (based on) natural talent. He had to bring it every day. That would knock any of the high school wideout off of your repertoire. He immediately had to become a college receiver."
Rothβs comps: JJ Arcega-Whiteside, Stanford; Alshon Jeffery, South Carolina
