The Arizona Wildcats are about to enter game-week preparations for their season opener against Northern Arizona. They participated in a dress rehearsal Friday night, and if you were paying close attention to the “Beanie Bowl” – which I was; it’s my job, after all – you could get a feel for who’s going to play this year and who isn’t.
The scout-team players – those most likely to redshirt – stood on the west sideline and wore all-white uniforms. The rest of the squad manned the east sideline and wore red game jerseys.
Based on who was wearing what and other factors, here’s a look at which UA freshmen are going to play this season, which ones will redshirt and which ones are straddling the fence. (Note: The list does not include walk-ons, with the exception of Donavan Tate.)
WILL PLAY IN 2017 (13)
- RB Nathan Tilford
- WR-RB Gary Brightwell
- WR Brian Casteel
- TE Bryce Wolma
- DT Kurtis Brown
- DE Kylan Wilborn
- DE Jalen Harris
- LB Colin Schooler
- LB Tony Fields II
- CB Tony Wallace
- S Scottie Young Jr.
- S Troy Young
- K Lucas Havrisik
WILL REDSHIRT IN 2017 (10)
- QB K’Hari Lane
- WR Drew Dixon
- TE Bryce Gilbert
- OT Edgar Burrola
- DE My-King Johnson
- DE Jose Ramirez
- LB JB Brown
- CB Malik Hausman
- S Rhedi Short
- S Xavier Bell
TO BE DETERMINED (3)
- QB Rhett Rodriguez
- QB Donavan Tate
- LB Anthony Pandy
Comment: Rodriguez, Tate and Pandy were on the red team Friday; Rodriguez and Tate played extensively. Ideally, neither will be required to play in a real game this season. As of now, though, they’re neck and neck for the No. 3 QB job, so it’s impossible to separate them. It’s hard to see a path to playing time for Pandy, unless it’s on special teams, but his presence on that sideline suggests the coaches like him.
