Field pass: Matchups, starters and stats to know for Arizona-Southern Utah

Game info

Who: Southern Utah Thunderbirds (0-2) at Arizona Wildcats (0-2)

Where: Arizona Stadium

When: 8 p.m. Saturday

Watch: Pac-12 Arizona

Listen: 1290-AM, 107.5-FM

Follow: @TheWildcaster on Twitter / TheWildcaster on Facebook

Head to head: Logan Parker vs. Dayven Coleman

19 Logan Parker, TE, Southern Utah

Parker has NFL measurables at 6-4, 251, and he’s off to a strong start with nine catches for 105 yards. Arizona has had trouble covering tight ends, allowing a touchdown to BYU’s Matt Bushman in Week 1 and Houston’s Romello Brooker in Week 2.

9 Dayven Coleman, DB, Arizona

Coleman looked like a vastly improved player last week. After appearing lost at times vs. BYU, the freshman played aggressively versus Houston (six tackles, 1.5 TFLs). Regardless of whether he starts at “Spur,” expect Coleman to play a ton of snaps.

Head to head: Chinedu Ahanonu vs. Khalil Tate

35 Chinedu Ahanonu, MLB, Southern Utah

Ahanonu is the Thunderbirds’ leading tackler, and it isn’t close. He has 20 stops, and his 15 unassisted tackles top the team. Ahanonu had a monster sophomore season in 2014 (152 tackles, 8.5 TFLs) before going on two-year LDS mission.

14 Khalil Tate, QB, Arizona

Can Ahanonu keep up with Tate? The answer depends partly on Tate’s health. He wasn’t able to move well for most of the Houston game because of an ankle injury. If Tate is ready, willing and able to run, Ahanonu could have a long night.

When Southern Utah has the ball...

The Thunderbirds are 0-2, but it’s hard to pin any blame on QB Chris Helbig. The JC transfer has completed 68.6 percent of his passes, has accounted for six touchdowns and has yet to throw an interception. Southern Utah has operated a balanced offense thus far, with 86 passing attempts and 83 rushing attempts. UA coach Kevin Sumlin noted the need for more “negative-yardage plays” after Arizona failed to produce a sack or takeaway in the first two games.

When Arizona has the ball...

Tate’s health obviously is a big issue. Regardless of whether he has full mobility, look for the Wildcats to try to establish the run behind a rejiggered offensive line that welcomes back veteran left tackle Layth Friekh. Southern Utah has surrendered 564 rushing yards at a clip of 6.7 yards per attempt. Arizona has the makings of a three-headed rushing attack with impressive freshman Darrius “Bam” Smith joining J.J. Taylor and Gary Brightwell.

Lev's prediction

The Wildcats obviously need a win after a rough start to the Sumlin era. But not just any old win will do. Arizona needs to re-establish its bona fides with a dominant performance. The Thunderbirds could be exactly what the Cats need. Southern Utah trailed Oregon State 41-7 at halftime last week before the Beavers eased off the gas. Skeptics will scoff at a win over an FCS foe, but the comeback has to start somewhere.

Prediction: Arizona 56, Southern Utah 21

Thunderbirds projected starters

Offense

WR 5 Landen Measom 5-10 180 So.

WR 14 Alex Croyle 6-2 184 Sr.

LT 76 Marquez Tucker 6-4 291 Sr.

LG 56 PJ Nu’usa 5-11 304 Jr.

C 58 Zach Larsen 6-1 305 Jr.

RG 75 Austin Mikkelson 6-5 315 Sr.

RT 78 Josh McMillin 6-3 280 Jr.

TE 19 Logan Parker 6-4 251 Sr.

WR 13 Ty Rutledge 6-2 192 Sr.

QB 8 Chris Helbig 6-4 214 Jr.

RB 23 James Felila 6-0 220 Jr. 

Defense

BULL 92 Lloyd Stephens 6-4 252 Sr.

NT 95 Mark Kruger 6-2 300 So.

DT 90 Oscar Burgueno 6-1 265 So.

RUSH 49 Raymond Fiame 6-3 245 So.

SLB 7 Alex Sims 6-1 205 Jr.

MLB 35 Chinedu Ahanonu 5-11 250 Sr.

WLB 94 Taylor Nelson 6-3 235 Sr.

CB 1 Jalen Russell 5-11 181 So.

SS 2 Elijah Holt 6-1 194 Sr.

FS 33 AJ Stanley 6-1 195 Fr.

CB 36 Taelin Webb 5-11 196 Sr.

Wildcats projected starters

Offense

WR 18 Cedric Peterson 5-11 193 Jr.

SLOT 6 Shun Brown 5-10 188 Sr.

LT 78 Donovan Laie 6-4 318 Fr.

LG 70 Tshiyombu Lukusa 6-5 308 So.

C 50 Josh McCauley 6-3 292 So.

RG 54 Bryson Cain 6-4306So.

RT 76 Cody Creason 6-4 294 Jr.

TE 81 Bryce Wolma 6-3 252 So.

WR 19 Shawn Poindexter 6-5 218 Sr.

RB 21 J.J. Taylor 5-6 184 So.

QB 14 Khalil Tate 6-2 215 Jr.

Defense

DE JB Brown/Jalen Cochran

NT 99 Dereck Boles 6-2 306 Sr.

DT 52 PJ Johnson6-4 335 Jr.

STUD 14 Kylan Wilborn 6-2 248 So.

MLB 7 Colin Schooler 6-0 236 So.

WLB 1 Tony Fields II 6-1 230 So.

SPUR 19 Scottie Young Jr. 5-11 195 So.

BANDIT 6 D. Flannigan-Fowles 6-2 209 Sr.

BC 2 Lorenzo Burns 5-10 181 So.

FC 17 Jace Whittaker 5-11 189 Sr.

FS 21 Isaiah Hayes 6-0 191 So.

Arizona statistics

Passing

Tate 41-79-2 Cmp-Att-Int, 538 Yds, 1 TD, 46 Lg

Rushing

Taylor 2 games, 36 Car., 139 Yds, 1 TD, 3.0 Avg

Brightwell 2 games, 22 Car., 69 Yds, 0 TD, 3.1 Avg 

Smith 1 game, 11 Car., 51 Yds, 1 TD, 4.6 Avg

Tate 2 games, 15 Car., 22 Yds, 2 TD, 1.5 Avg

Receiving

Poindexter 2 games, 11 Rec., 202 Yds, 0 TD, 18.3 Avg

Ellison 2 games, 8 Rec., 130 Yds, 1 TD, 16.2 Avg

Brown 2 games, 10 Rec., 84 Yds, 0 TD, 8.4 Avg

Berryhill 2 games, 2 Rec., 47 Yds, 0 TD, 23.5 Avg

Defense

Schooler 25 Tk, 0 Sk, 0 Int, 0 FR

Fields II 21 Tk, 0 Sk, 0 Int, 0 FR

Hayes 17 Tk, 0 Sk, 0 Int, 0 FR

Bell 9 Tk, 0 Sk, 0 Int, 0 FR

Southern Utah Statistics

Passing

Helbig 59-86-0 Cmp-Att-Int, 656 Yds, 4 TD, 43 Lg

Rushing

Felila 2 games, 28 Car., 134 Yds, 1 TD, 4.8 Avg

Green 2 games, 20 Car., 88 Yds, 0 TD, 4.4 Avg

Helbig 2 games, 22 Car., 68 Yds, 2 TD, 3.1 Avg

Beasley 1 game, 9 Car., 67 Yds, 0 TD, 7.4 Avg

Rutledge 2 games, 1 Car., 8 Yds, 0 TD, 8.0 Avg

Dillard 2 games, 1 Car., 3 Yds, 0 TD, 3.0 Avg

Receiving 

Rutledge 2 games, 12 Rec., 211 Yds, 1 TD, 17.6 Avg

Parker 2 games, 9 Rec., 105 Yds, 1 TD, 11.7 Avg

Measom 2 games, 8 Rec., 74 Yds, 0 TD, 9.2 Avg

Hill 2 games, 6 Rec., 64 Yds, 0 TD, 10.7 Avg

Defense

Ahanonu 20 Tk, 0 Sk, 0 Int, 0 FR

Stanley 11 Tk, 0 Sk, 0 INT, 0 FR

Webb 11 Tk, 0 Sk, 0 INT, 0 FR

Russell 10 Tk, 0 Sk, 0 INT, 1 FR