The Arizona Wildcats have practiced together almost 50 times since last season ended. They have held full-contact scrimmages and in-stadium dress rehearsals.
They have done so much to prepare for the 2017 season. Yet heading into the opener against Northern Arizona on Saturday night, not much is truly known.
Even sixth-year UA coach Rich Rodriguez isn’t sure what to expect.
“I want to see what this team is all about,” Rodriguez said. “I wish we had a preseason or exhibition game so we can fix our problems and know what we have. The exciting part is that you don’t really know what you’re going to get out of your team until they start playing games.”
“Exciting” is one word for it. Rodriguez also used the words “anxiety” and “stress” to describe the buildup to Week 1 for him and his staff.
It’s undoubtedly a common feeling across the country in college football; turnover is inherent to the sport. But feelings of uncertainty are especially applicable to this particular UA squad.
Arizona has 42 freshmen, including walk-ons; 16 redshirt freshmen who never have played in a college game; and five transfers. Many of the newcomers will play this season, especially on defense. Some will start against the Lumberjacks on Saturday night.
Rodriguez used the term “reboot” to describe the state of the program at Pac-12 Media Days. Rebooting is what you do when your computer isn’t working properly.
The Wildcats went 3-9 last season. They had to make changes.
Glenn Parker, for one, has an idea of how things might go Saturday night. The former Arizona lineman, a frequent visitor to UA practices, is calling the opener for Pac-12 Networks.
“They will win this game and make mistakes,” Parker said. “It is the first game of the season, and they have a lot of youth. If we see a dominant win with lots of kids getting to play, they’ve met expectations.”
Lots of kids will play on defense, regardless of the score. Three freshmen are penciled in as starters: “Stud” Kylan Wilborn, linebacker Tony Fields II and safety Scottie Young Jr. Another linebacker, Colin Schooler, is listed as a co-starter. Six additional freshmen or redshirt freshmen appear on the Week 1 depth chart.
This was the plan from the moment the 2017 signing class became official. The message has been consistent throughout the offseason: The players that the coaches deem the best will play, regardless of their experience.
“I don’t even think about it, to be honest with you,” second-year defensive coordinator Marcel Yates said. “At this point, it’s time to play. So, freshman, senior, sophomore, I don’t care. Who’s gonna play is who’s gonna play.”
The youth movement isn’t as far-reaching on offense. The Week 1 depth chart features six true freshmen, but none in starting roles. That total includes two quarterbacks, Rhett Rodriguez and Donavan Tate, who only would play in an emergency scenario.
Still, it’s possible that at some point veteran quarterback Brandon Dawkins will have freshman tailback Nathan Tilford alongside him, freshman tight end Bryce Wolma on the wing and freshman receiver Gary Brightwell in the slot. Although Dawkins considers himself a coach on the field — ready and willing to help anyone who needs it — he won’t treat the freshmen any differently once the game begins.
“It doesn’t really faze me or cross my mind,” Dawkins said. “That’s not going to change how I run the offense. It’s all still going to run the same, smooth way as it should be run.
“I trust everybody they put in the game. I don’t care if they put a watergirl in the backfield.”
Dawkins is entering his fourth season at Arizona and started nine games last year. He isn’t an unknown quantity anymore — but the degree to which he has improved as a passer is at least a source of curiosity.
The opener, regardless of the opponent, gives Dawkins another chance to prove himself and alter the perceptions skeptics have about his game — and his team.
“It kind of sets the tone for the entire season,” Dawkins said. “It’s kind of where you establish who you are. We’re excited to put our offense back on the map and put our school back on the map.”
As last season unraveled, the Wildcats slipped into irrelevance — a quick, steep fall from the 10-win heights of 2014. Rich Rodriguez told his players at the start of the week that the only way to change the narrative is to play and win.
“When you start playing games,” Rodriguez said, “they’ll talk about what’s going on right now.”
Of course, the coaches have offered the players plenty of reminders about last year. Even the newcomers who weren’t on campus have heard about it from their returning teammates.
“Being here since January and hearing them (teammates) and the coaches chime on about 3-9, 3-9, 3-9 — it’s like I went 3-9,” Fields said. “So I just try to embrace it and help the team out, make sure we’re all on each other’s backs when we’re slacking and not going hard. We gotta remind each other — 3-9, 3-9.”
No one knows exactly what will happen Saturday night. A 1-0 start wouldn’t bring complete clarity, but it would be a step in the right direction.
