Asked to describe the winless start to the first half of the Arizona Wildcatsβ season, Jedd Fisch turned to basketball.
βWeβre playing with great effort β¦ but just like Kobe Bryant (said), βYou can go out there and try to outwork everybody, but unless your shots go in, in the end it doesnβt matter,ββ Fisch said earlier this week. βAt this point in time, we need our shots to fall. Thatβs why Kobe was so special; his shots went in.β
In other words, great effort doesnβt always translate to wins. The Wildcats have lost 18 consecutive games, but are βin great mental spiritsβ heading into Friday nightβs matchup against Washington at Arizona Stadium, Fisch said.
The team has six games left to get back in the wins column.
βTheyβre very confident in the second half of the season,β Fisch said. βWe talked to our team about it being halftime, and that none of us have been a part of a game in our lives that at halftime, you donβt say the score is 0-0.
βThe way we look at it is we just finished the first half of the season and it is now time to go play the second half of the season.β
Hereβs how the Wildcats have fared over the first half of the season, as rated by the Starβs Michael Lev, Justin Spears and Alec White:
Quarterbacks
Levβs grade: D
Spearsβ grade: D
Whiteβs grade: D-
Comment: The Wildcats have played all three of their scholarship quarterbacks so far this season, and each one has thrown an interception that was returned for a touchdown. Gunner Cruz, a big-bodied Washington State transfer, threw his pick-six in the Wildcatsβ 34-0 loss to Colorado this past weekend. Second-year freshman Will Plummer threw a pick-six in the Wildcatsβ historic loss to Northern Arizona, while South Florida transfer Jordan McCloud tossed his during the UAβs road loss at Oregon. McCloud boosted Arizonaβs offense when he started against the Ducks and UCLA, and had the Wildcats within a possession in the fourth quarter in both games, but five interceptions on the road and a season-ending leg injury prevented Arizona from capitalizing. Cruz suffered a season-ending thumb injury against Colorado, which leaves Plummer as the only available scholarship quarterback, with walk-ons Luke Ashworth and Brayden Zermeno as reserves. Quarterback play is essential for any successful program; at Arizona, itβs at the root of this teamβs problems.
Running backs
Levβs grade: B
Spearsβ grade: B
Whiteβs grade: B
Comment: This was a position dripping with potential and depth ever since the start of spring ball, albeit Arizona lost Gary Brightwell to the NFL draft. Returning standout Michael Wiley was named to the preseason Doak Walker Award watch list, but has posted just 185 rushing yards; his only touchdown of the year so far came on a trick play against UCLA. Although heβs questionable to play this week due to injury, Northwestern transfer Drake Anderson leads the Wildcats in rushing with 239 yards. The latest positive development from Arizonaβs running back room is Oregon native and freshman Jalen John, who posted a career-high 71 yards against Colorado. Tucsonan Stevie Rocker has also entered the rotation and is the final piece of Scottie Grahamβs rushing quartet. As the Wildcats continue to deal with quarterback problems, this group could be the only hope Arizona has to win a game this season.
Wide receivers/tight ends
Levβs grade: C+
Spearsβ grade: B-
Whiteβs grade: B
Comment: The good news: Arizona tight end Bryce Wolma has the most receptions (six) in a season since his freshman year in 2017, so Fischβs promise to incorporate tight ends more has come to fruition. The bad news? Despite having a passing offense thatβs in the top half of the Pac-12, the Wildcats rank 10th in passing touchdowns. UA captain Stanley Berryhill III is Arizonaβs top pass-catcher with 48 receptions; the next guy in line, BJ Casteel, has 21, with Wiley (16), Tayvian Cunningham (14) and Anderson (14) just behind.
First-year coach Jedd Fisch is staying positive, even as the program remains mired in an 18-game losing streak thatβs the longest in the country.
Offensive line
Levβs grade: C-
Spearsβ grade: D
Whiteβs grade: F
Comment: Arizona returned all five of its starters from a year ago in left tackle Jordan Morgan, left guard Donovan Laie, center Josh McCauley, right guard Josh Donovan and right tackle Paiton Fears with center-guard hybrid Josh Baker as the βsixth starter,β but attrition and growing pains have shown through six games.
Defensive line/linebackers
Levβs grade: C+
Spearsβ grade: C
Whiteβs grade: C
Comment: Don Brown β also known as βDr. Blitzβ β has turned the Wildcats loose on defense. βWillβ linebacker Anthony Pandy leads the team with 44 tackles, while βMikeβ linebacker Treshaun Hayward has 34. Hayward missed the Colorado game and will be out this week for personal reasons, but fellow transfer Jerry Roberts is expected to fill the void. Up front, Mo Diallo, Kyon Barrs, Jalen Harris and Trevon Mason have shown they are Arizonaβs core in the trenches, but the Wildcats are 11th in the conference in sacks. Arizonaβs front seven has considerably improved from last season, but thereβs still plenty of room to improve.
BYU wide receiver Neil Pauβu stiff-arms Arizona cornerback Isaiah Rutherford on his way to the end zone during the teamsβ season opener. Rutherford, a Notre Dame transfer, has impressed alongside fellow corner Christian Roland-Wallace.
Defensive backs
Levβs grade: B-
Spearsβ grade: B-
Whiteβs grade: B
Comment: Four of Arizonaβs top 10 tacklers play in the backfield. Christian Young is operating as Arizonaβs βViper,β which is a safety-linebacker hybrid in Brownβs defense, and βCYβ is third on the team in tackles and leads the Wildcats in pass breakups (four). Christian Roland-Wallace and Notre Dame transfer Isaiah Rutherford have also given the Wildcats a nice 1-2 punch at cornerback.
Special teams
Levβs grade: D+
Spearsβ grade: C-
Whiteβs grade: D
Comment: Lucas Havrisik is the Wildcatsβ long-distance kicker, with Tyler Loop as the 30-yards-and-in guy. Special teams ignited Arizona in the season-opening loss to BYU, when punter Kyle Ostendorp pinned the Cougars on the 1-yard line, which was followed up with a safety, a kickoff return by Cunningham into BYU territory and an offensive touchdown to give the UA a spark. Ostendorp leads the Pac-12 with 48.8 yards per punt. On the flip side, Arizona has given up two blocked punts for touchdowns this season. Woof.
Coaching
Levβs grade: D
Spearsβ grade: D+
Whiteβs grade: C-
Comment: While Fisch has changed the morale of the team and is arguably recruiting better than his two predecessors, he still hasnβt won a game. The Wildcats lost to a Div. I FCS school in NAU and got shut out (by Colorado) for the first time since 2012. Fisch has the benefit of the doubt given itβs just Year 1, but he and the Wildcatsβ coaching staff have their work cut out for them.
