In an ideal world, the Arizona Wildcats probably would groom redshirt freshman Kwabena Watson behind veteran Jalen Harris at the boundary linebacker position.
The primary responsibility of the boundary ’backer in Paul Rhoads’ 3-4 defense is to rush the passer, and it’s what Watson does best. The 6-foot-2-inch, 230-pounder registered 21 sacks in 34 games at Edison High School in Fresno, California. He also was a nationally ranked wrestler.
“So you know what kind of hands he’s got,” UA coach Kevin Sumlin said. “You know what kind of flexibility. You know what kind of bend he has. He shows that.”
Unfortunately, the Wildcats aren’t living in an ideal world. They lost three-year starting inside linebackers Tony Fields II and Colin Schooler to transfers this offseason while the Pac-12 grappled with the coronavirus pandemic. That forced them to move Anthony Pandy — the projected starter at the field OLB spot — to middle linebacker.
And it left a void opposite Harris that Watson is striving to fill.
The outside linebacker to the field, or wider, side must be able to play in space — drop into coverage and guard a receiver or patrol an area. That doesn’t come as naturally to Watson, his coaches said.
“If we just tell him, ‘Go sic ’em,’ he’s good,” Sumlin said. “When somebody moves around, they spread out the sets, he gets out there in space, he’s a little lost, because that’s not what he did in high school.”
Watson is learning on the fly, along with the rest of his defensive teammates. They had only four spring practices to absorb Rhoads’ scheme before getting shut down and sent home. Zoom has proved to be an invaluable tool during the pandemic, but it has its limitations.
“We always say, you only learn 10% of what you hear, 30% of what you hear and you write, and then it goes up to 50-60% if we can put you in that situation,” outside linebackers coach Andy Buh said. “And then obviously the teacher learns the most; it goes up to 90% if they can teach it back to us.
“Those are the pieces that we were missing. When you go through a Zoom meeting, you don’t know how much they’re actually getting. We can probably guarantee about 30%. And so now we’re catching up.”
Arizona is about a week and a half into fall camp. The coaches are still installing the defense. Watson, among others, is still trying to figure things out.
“He’s got a ways to go,” Buh said. “He’s young. He’s got a lot of natural gifts. He does have some twitch off the edge. Those are some of the things that we like about him.
“But he’s never played in space. There’s a lot that goes along with that. So he’s going through a process, and we’re breaking it down for him. We’re putting him in positions that he’s never been in, and he’s getting better every day. We just gotta keep going with the plan with him.”
Andy Buh said remote learning has its limitations. “When you go through a Zoom meeting, you don’t know how much they’re actually getting,” he said.
The Wildcats’ options are limited. With the departures of Fields and Schooler, plus veteran pass rusher Kylan Wilborn, Arizona has only six healthy scholarship linebackers. Freshman Derick Mourning joined Pandy and Derrion Clark on the inside. Redshirt sophomore Issaiah Johnson moved from defensive end to linebacker and is backing up Harris.
The other player in contention for playing time at the field OLB position is walk-on Rourke Freeburg. Freeburg is a redshirt junior from Scottsdale Desert Mountain who has appeared in 15 games over the past two seasons, mostly on special teams. He’s listed at 6-2, 204 and previously played safety. He’s lighter than Watson but has more experience as a space defender.
Pandy will be a “swing guy” based on injuries and other factors, Buh said. Arizona is expected to vacillate between its base defense and a nickel look (five defensive backs) depending on opponents and matchups.
“Ultimately, when we take the field against Utah, we’re going to have our best 11 out on the field,” Buh said.
‘Incredible talent’
Harris is the most established player at either outside linebacker position. He has made a smooth transition to playing as a stand-up defender after operating out of a three-point stance for much of his UA career.
Harris, who’s 6-5, also has bulked up to 260 pounds. Buh expects big things.
“He is an incredible talent,” Buh said. “We’ve been working on his game, and he’s got a great game. He really does. He just needs the reps, and he needs to play more football. That’s all.”
Harris had a team-high four sacks last season but didn’t play as large a role — or have as large an impact — as expected after a promising 2018 season and a dominant performance in the ’19 spring game. Buh believes Harris possesses the inner drive to fulfill his potential.
“He works extremely hard,” Buh said. “He studies the game. And that’s what’s going to set him aside.
“A guy gets better by how much he studies and knowing what he’s going to catch on a particular play or a particular Saturday. Knowing the opponent. Knowing particular things that they’re showing us that he could say, ‘All right, this is what I’m going to get, this is how I’m going to counter it, this how I’m going to beat that block, this is how I’m going to beat this guy.’
“I think you’re gonna see that. The guy is fully committed. He’s banging at my door all the time to get more work in.”
Extra points
- Quarterback Grant Gunnell on Sumlin testing positive for COVID-19 shortly before fall camp: “It was kind of like, ‘OK, we need to take this really serious.’ … It’s kind of an eye opener to see that anyone can (get it), even our head coach.” Sumlin missed the first two practices before returning on Oct. 12.
- KFNX 1100-AM will be the new flagship station in Phoenix for Arizona football and men’s basketball game broadcasts, the school announced. The station has a five-year agreement with the UA and also will broadcast the one-hour coach’s shows featuring Sumlin and Sean Miller.
- The Wildcats practiced at Arizona Stadium on Wednesday. UA president Robert C. Robbins attended and spent time chatting with Sumlin, analyst Chuck Cecil and others.
- Center Josh McCauley (knee) remained out. Tailback Gary Brightwell returned after not being spotted during Tuesday's open period.
- The team worked on kickoff returns during Wednesday's open session. The returners were Brightwell, Stanley Berryhill III, Tayvian Cunningham, Christian Roland-Wallace and Michael Wiley.
