The Arizona Wildcats have been relatively fortunate on the injury front this season. But they just suffered their first major blow in that area — one that could have long-term ramifications for the program and the player who’s hurt.
Starting left tackle Jordan Morgan will miss the remainder of the season, UA coach Jedd Fisch announced Monday.
Morgan, one of the top tackles in the Pac-12 and a rising NFL draft prospect, appeared to injure his right knee during the first quarter of Arizona’s game at UCLA on Saturday night. Morgan was running in the open field to block for a screen pass when his leg gave out. Non-contact situations like that often end up being torn ACLs, but Fisch wouldn’t specify what the exact injury was.
Arizona has two regular-season games remaining, starting with a home contest against Washington State on Saturday. If the Wildcats (4-6, 2-5 Pac-12) can sweep their remaining two games, they will qualify for a bowl berth.
Morgan, a fourth-year junior from Marana High School, had put himself in position to enter the draft after this season. He’s the second-highest-graded tackle in the Pac-12, according to Pro Football Focus, and has been charged with only one sack allowed this season.
If healthy, Morgan would be in the mix for Day 2 of the draft, which consists of the second and third rounds. The last UA offensive lineman to be drafted was Eben Britton in 2009.
Now Morgan and his camp must decide whether to enter the draft — knowing that he might not be able to work out for teams — or return to Arizona for a fifth season. Both options carry risks.
Morgan, listed at 6-6, 320 pounds, has provided consistent blind-side protection for Arizona’s vastly improved offense. His PFF grade of 82.0 ranks sixth among all Pac-12 offensive linemen (minimum 183 snaps) and second among tackles.
Morgan’s grade is easily the highest among UA linemen. He will be replaced by Sam Langi, a fifth-year junior in his third season at Arizona. Langi has appeared in nine games this season, including one start. He has played four of the five offensive-line positions, with the exception of center.
Candidates to back up Langi include Joseph Borjon, Jacob Reece and Jonah Savaiinaea. Borjon is a junior-college transfer who has yet to play a snap on offense. Reece, a true freshman, hasn’t appeared in a game yet. Savaiinaea, also a true freshman, has started all 10 contests at right guard.
Washington State (6-4, 3-4) is tied for third in the Pac-12 with 27 sacks. Edge rusher Brennan Jackson was named Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of the Week after recording two sacks and a forced fumble against Arizona State.
JDL vs. WSU
Saturday’s game isn’t just a matchup between Arizona and Washington State. It’s a matchup between Jayden de Laura and his former team.
Arizona starting quarterback spent his first past two seasons at WSU. He started almost every game there and was named the Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year in 2021 as a second-year player.
After he became the Cougars’ full-time coach, Jake Dickert hired Eric Morris as offensive coordinator. Morris brought quarterback Cameron Ward to Pullman from Incarnate Word. That series of events led to de Laura entering the NCAA transfer portal. He ended up at Arizona, where he has passed for 3,128 yards and 24 touchdowns.
“I’ve always been really impressed with what Jayden can do. I appreciate everything that he’s done for us,” Dickert told reporters Monday. “Sometimes change is good for everybody. I think that’s what this situation is about.”
Arizona quarterback Jayden de Laura has been looking forward to this week’s game against Washington State for a long time. “Just watch. ... This game, it’s personal,” he said of playing against his former team.
Asked after the UCLA game about facing WSU, de Laura said: “Just watch. ... This game, it’s personal.”
Dickert said he was “aware” of those comments. He added:
“Our focus is on what we need to do to get better, period. Anything else is a distraction to the mission.
“We’re focused on Arizona. That’ll be the message. We’re excited about this opportunity to get back to .500 in the league and to advance to where we want to go. That’s the whole focus.
“We choose our focus. We choose where we want our thoughts to go. Because where your mind flows, your energy goes.
“We’re gonna be mature competitors. That’s what this is about, nothing else.”
Manu honored
Arizona linebacker Jacob Manu has been named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week.
Manu matched his career high with 10 tackles in the Wildcats’ upset victory UCLA. He also had a pass breakup. PFF credited Manu with four quarterback pressures, tied for second most on the team.
Manu is the second Wildcat to earn the Freshman of the Week award this season. Receiver Tetairoa McMillan, Manu’s teammate at Servite High School in Anaheim, California, has been honored two times.
Manu became a full-time starter on Oct. 15 vs. Washington. He has made five starts in all. He ranks seventh on the team with 43 tackles.
Arizona started seven true freshmen vs. UCLA and played several more.
“That’s what we’re playing with. That’s what we are. We love it. We embrace it,” Fisch said. “When we told you guys we’re going to play with a lot of freshmen, we meant it. When we said we’re going to build our program the way we wanted to build it, we meant it.
“You had guys that were truly affecting the game that were true freshmen. Jacob Manu has taken on not just the role of affecting the game but being a leader of the defense.”
‘Scary times’
Fisch opened his Monday press briefing by acknowledging the shooting deaths of Virginia football players Lavel Davis Jr., Devin Chandler and D’Sean Perry. Fisch also mentioned the homicides that took place at the University of Idaho, which is about seven miles east of the WSU campus.
“Our thoughts here at Arizona Football are with the families and friends and the football community of Charlottesville, Virginia,” Fisch said. “Obviously, it’s a terrible loss. College football is a small, tight-knit group. The fact that we lost three student-athletes that are football players and what occurred there ... our thoughts and prayers are with them at this time. Obviously, just a horrible, tragic situation.
“I know there’s another incident that’s going on at the University of Idaho ... which is extremely close to Washington State. So I can imagine there’s some issues going on up there.
“Scary times and scary stuff.”
Extra points
Saturday’s game vs. Washington State will feature a military flyover during the national anthem. A pair of F-16 Fighting Falcons from the Air Force’s 162 Wing at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base will fly over Arizona Stadium as part of the UA program’s annual Military and Veteran Appreciation Game.
WSU opened as 4.5-point favorites, and the line dropped to four Monday. The Wildcats were 20-point underdogs when they defeated the Bruins last week. “Keep making us the underdog,” Fisch said. “That’s great. No problem there.”
