The Arizona Wildcats report for training camp Sunday and will practice for the first time on Monday.
Who will their most valuable players be this season?
Here are 17 to watch for 2017, as selected by Star reporter Michael Lev.
It’s important to note that everyone on the roster — from the starting quarterback to the scout-team walk-ons — has value. This countdown should tell you something about what type of team Arizona will have this fall.
Before checking out the list, please note these two disclaimers:
“Most valuable” does not necessarily mean “best.” Rather, we’re defining it as the contributions and traits that most influence winning football. They include talent, leadership and projected role and production.
Newcomers were not eligible for the list. Although many might become major contributors this year, especially on defense, their roles are just too difficult to predict before training camp begins.
Let the countdown begin:
NO. 17: TIGHT END TREVOR WOOD
Height/weight/year: 6 feet, 6 inches, 265 pounds, redshirt junior.
Comment: Tight ends play a lot in coach Rich Rodriguez’s offense. They just haven’t caught a lot of passes.
But change might be afoot this season for a couple of reasons. Rodriguez specifically mentioned in spring that the tight ends are being trained to stay on the field more. They’re lining up in new and different places so that Arizona doesn’t have to sub as much when it goes to its “four-wide” package.
The other main factor is that Calvin Magee — Rodriguez’s most-trusted confidante — is now coaching tight ends in addition to running backs. If anyone has Rodriguez’s ear, it’s Magee. If Magee were to push for more passes to the tight ends, it’s likely Rodriguez would listen, at the very least.
NO. 16: CORNERBACK DANE CRUIKSHANK
Height/weight/year: 6-1, 204, redshirt senior.
Comment: From a purely physical standpoint, Cruikshank has everything you’d want in a top college cornerback. He has excellent size and very good speed for his size.
The question is whether Cruikshank can convert those attributes into consistent production.
Cruikshank accumulated promising raw numbers last season, his first as a member of Arizona’s active roster. Starting all 12 games, Cruikshank had 60 tackles, seven pass breakups and two interceptions.
What those stats don’t reveal is how often Cruikshank was in perfect position to defend a pass … but had trouble locating the ball.
Is that something that can be fixed? Can Cruikshank be taught techniques that will enable him to get his head around, locate the ball and knock it away at the last instant? Or is that an instinctive skill that Cruikshank simply doesn’t possess?
You’d like to think it’s the former — that new cornerbacks coach Marcel Yates can train Cruikshank through countless practice reps to improve his play and ball recognition. If Yates — Arizona’s defensive coordinator, who this offseason shifted from coaching linebackers to defensive backs, his longtime forte — can work his magic, Cruikshank can become one of Arizona’s most valuable contributors in 2017.
NO. 15: RUNNING BACK NICK WILSON
Height/weight/year: 5-10, 208, senior.
Comment: If you could guarantee that Wilson would be healthy for 12 games — even 10 — he’d rank much higher on this list. Even if he were in a timeshare, he’d have top-five potential.
Unfortunately, Wilson’s health is far from a guarantee. After a promising — heck, brilliant — freshman campaign, injuries undermined his sophomore and junior seasons.
Despite playing several times when he clearly wasn’t 100 percent, Wilson averaged 5.5 yards per carry as a sophomore and 5.8 as a junior, the latter matching his freshman mark. When healthy the past two seasons, he was the same player who earned multiple all-freshman accolades. He just couldn’t stay healthy.
NO. 14: D-LINEMAN PARKER ZELLERS
Height/weight/year: 6-1, 247, senior.
Comment: Arizona has spent considerable resources trying to find needed upgrades along the defensive line. Yet one of the players the UA has sought to replace happens to be one of its most irreplaceable players. Defensive line coach Vince Amey runs a meritocracy, and Zellers earned his spot by outplaying bigger, more sought-after players.
Which isn’t to say Zellers is an All-Pac-12 performer. He had 12 tackles in nine games last season. Three of those were sacks. That tied for the team lead. His two forced fumbles gave him solo top honors in that category.
NO. 13: SAFETY TRISTAN COOPER
Height/weight/year: 6-1, 180, sophomore.
Comment: When asked during spring practice what he was focusing on during the offseason, Cooper rattled off a lengthy inventory. The items on his to-do list included improving in man coverage, “triggering” faster, being less timid, cleaning up his technique and keeping his head up when he tackles.
That’s a lot, and it almost makes it seem as if Cooper was an ineffective player last season, his first at the UA. He was not. Appearing in 11 games at the “Spur” safety position, including five starts, Cooper accumulate 35 tackles, a sack, a pass breakup and a forced fumble. Not bad for a relatively unheralded freshman from the one part of Texas — El Paso — that isn’t known for football.
Cooper is the favorite to start at Spur, joining fellow sophomore Isaiah Hayes and junior Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles in what has the makings of a strong safety group. Cooper will be bigger in 2017 after playing at around 180 pounds as a freshman. He’ll also be wiser.
NO. 12: RECEIVER CAM DENSON
Height/weight/year: 5-11, 187, senior.
Comment: Let’s begin with the premise that the Wildcats’ passing game will be better than it was last season because, well, it has to be, right?
The receiving corps is in the midst of a major overhaul. Three of last year’s top four pass-catchers — trusted vets Nate Phillips, Trey Griffey and Samajie Grant — are gone. No. 2 and No. 5 return. Opportunities for Shun Brown and Denson, a Salpointe Catholic project, should be plentiful.
NO. 11: D-LINEMAN LARRY THARPE JR.
Height/weight/year: 6-5, 275, redshirt junior.
Comment: Of the defensive lineman who have played actual games for Arizona, Tharpe has the highest upside. He flashed it repeatedly over the second half of last season, when he forced his way into a prominent role. In eight games, he accumulated 16 tackles, including 2.5 for losses, and three pass breakups. The latter were the most for any non-defensive back on the UA roster.
Tharpe should continue to improve this season, when he’ll have several things going for him that he didn’t have a year ago. Tharpe joined the team when fall 2016 classes started, so he didn’t have the benefit of training camp. This year he’ll have a full offseason on campus — weight-room and conditioning workouts, spring practice and training camp — before suiting up for the Sept. 2 opener against Northern Arizona.
NO. 10: SAFETY ISAIAH HAYES
Height/weight/year: 6-0, 180, sophomore.
Comment: Hayes is the second sophomore safety to crack the top 17, joining classmate Tristan Cooper. Both are up-and-coming players and projected starters who will be expected to take on meatier roles this season.
As the projected free safety — the traffic-directing literal last line of defense — Hayes will play a particularly important part. He ranked sixth on the team last season with 36 tackles, including 2.5 for losses. He did not have an interception or a pass breakup; that’s an area where he clearly can improve.
NO. 9: CORNERBACK JACE WHITTAKER
Height/weight/year: 5-11, 180, junior.
Comment: Whittaker is the fourth defensive back on the list so far. That should tell you something about the composition of the UA defense.
Whittaker enters this year as Arizona’s most-accomplished returning cornerback. Despite not becoming a starter until the sixth game, Whittaker led the team with 11 pass breakups. He had five in his first start, at Utah on Oct. 8, the most by a UA player since Antoine Cason had five in 2007.
NO. 8: D-LINEMAN/ LINEBACKER DEANDRE’ MILLER
Height/weight/year: 6-3, 236, redshirt senior.
Comment: Few UA players have a wider range of potential outcomes this season than Miller. His value is predicated largely — if not exclusively — on his health. Miller suffered a foot injury during the summer and is expected to miss much of camp.
Consider Miller the Nick Wilson of the defense — a talented veteran who’s important to the team’s success but can’t seem to stay on the field. Except that Miller might have a higher upside than Wilson this season because there isn’t as much direct competition for playing time at his position.
Barring a major leap from a youngster, Miller will get the majority of the snaps at Stud — if he’s available to play. It’s one of the biggest “ifs” of 2017.
NO. 7: QUARTERBACK KHALIL TATE
Height/weight/year: 6-2, 212, sophomore.
Comment: It wasn’t easy figuring out where to put Tate on this list. He’ll enter training camp in a battle for the starting quarterback job with incumbent Brandon Dawkins and newcomer Donavan Tate (no relation). It’s entirely possible Khalil Tate will win the job, in which case he’d be a candidate for team MVP. It’s also possible he’ll be relegated to backup duty, which wouldn’t preclude him from playing a meaningful role at some point.
NO. 6: CENTER NATHAN ELDRIDGE
Height/weight/year: 6-3, 290, redshirt sophomore.
Comment: Eldridge ranking this high on a projected MVP list would have been inconceivable a year ago. But a tragic set of circumstances forever altered his career path.
Eldridge entered last year’s training camp as a projected backup. But just days into camp, senior center Zach Hemmila passed away in his sleep. Eldridge probably wasn’t ready to take his place, but did his best.
Eldridge was a better player in Game 12 than Game 1; see Arizona’s school-record 511 rushing yards in the Territorial Cup. (The UA also ended up leading the Pac-12 in rushing, at 235 yards per game.)
Eldridge should be one of the Wildcats’ most-improved players this year.
NO. 5: SAFETY DEMETRIUS FLANNIGAN-FOWLES
Height/weight/year: 6-2, 199, junior.
Comment: If you had to pick one UA defensive player who’s poised to earn all-Pac-12 honors, you’d pick Flannigan-Fowles.
The Tucson product emerged as one of the defense’s premier playmakers in 2016, and finished second on the team with 78 tackles and tied for first with two interceptions. He also ranked in the top four in tackles-for-loss (four) and pass breakups (six).
No Arizona defender enters 2017 with a more jam-packed résumé. As the “Bandit” in Marcel Yates’ scheme, Flannigan-Fowles is asked to do a lot, from defending the run to covering tight ends and receivers.
NO. 4: GUARD JACOB ALSADEK
Height/weight/year: 6-7, 315, redshirt senior.
Comment: If this were a ranking of Arizona’s best leaders, Alsadek would sit atop the list.
The veteran offensive lineman stood tall during the program’s lowest, bleakest moments last year — and we’re not just saying that because he’s 6-7. When someone needed to represent the offensive line following Hemmila’s death, Alsadek stepped up. His composure was remarkable.
Alsadek remains the spokesman for the offensive line — and maybe the entire team. His enthusiasm and work ethic make him a role model for every Wildcat.
NO. 3: QUARTERBACK BRANDON DAWKINS
Height/weight/year: 6-3, 210, redshirt junior.
Comment: If he were the clear-cut starter, Dawkins would be No. 1, no questions asked.
What’s keeping Dawkins from the top spot is precisely what precludes him from owning the job outright: It remains to be seen whether he can make significant progress as a passer.
Dawkins trended in the opposite direction last season, his first as the most-of-the-time starter. In his first three games — against Grambling State, Hawaii and Washington — Dawkins completed 61.7 percent of his passes, had a 3-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio and averaged 7.72 yards per pass attempt. In his final seven games, those numbers dropped to 47.5, 5-5 and 7.16.
Dawkins has worked to get bigger and stronger, the better to withstand the hits he’s bound to take as an ultra-aggressive runner. He averaged 94.4 rushing yards per game last season, the most by any quarterback in the Pac-12. Dawkins is a threat to score every time he takes off and runs. He’s also susceptible to injury because of his upright running style and disdain for sliding or going out of bounds.
NO. 2: RECEIVER SHUN BROWN
Height/weight/year: 5-8, 175, junior.
Comment: There’s a ton of uncertainty around the Arizona program. There’s no disputing who the Wildcats’ No. 1 wide receiver is.
Brown is by far Arizona’s most-accomplished returning pass catcher. You could make the case he was the UA’s top target a year ago as a sophomore, even though he didn’t lead the team in receptions.
Brown finished second with 29, which is about three games’ worth for a Washington State wideout. But bear in mind that Arizona finished last in the Pac-12 with 157 completed passes. That number is likely to go up in 2017, and Brown should corral an even greater percentage.
NO. 1: RUNNING BACK J.J. TAYLOR
Height/weight/year: 5-6, 170, redshirt freshman.
Comment: Taylor has appeared in only four games. He has started only once. He is listed on the roster as a redshirt freshman, which in most cases means a player has yet to even make his college debut.
But in the minimal time he did play, Taylor flashed so much ability and promise that there simply was no other choice: The diminutive, dynamic tailback is the no-brainer pick for 2017 team MVP.
Taylor flashed through Tucson like a lightning storm last September. Replacing Wilson midway through the first quarter of Game 3 against Hawaii, Taylor rushed for 168 yards on just 18 attempts. He made moves that appeared to defy physics.
Taylor came back the following week against a considerably tougher opponent in Washington. The Huskies couldn’t stop him either, yielding 97 yards on 19 carries through three quarters.
Unfortunately, near the end of the third quarter, Taylor’s brief, brilliant star turn came to an end. He got rolled up on a play that probably should have been whistled dead and suffered a broken left ankle.
Taylor enters the 2017 season with genuine superstar potential, assuming he stays healthy. Although the injury he suffered against the Huskies could be categorized as fluky, it’s fair to question Taylor’s durability simply because he hasn’t made it through a full season.
But don’t make the mistake of diminishing his chances because of his size. As Mike Riley once said of former Oregon State tailback Jacquizz Rodgers, “He’s not small. He’s just short.” That’s Taylor, too.
