The Arizona Wildcats lost to Washington on Saturday in Seattle. Here are some pertinent notes, quotes and statistics from the UA’s defeat:
NOTES
* Arizona has lost consecutive games for the first time this season. Its previous results: win, loss, win, loss, win, loss.
* The Wildcats lost for the sixth straight time against the Huskies in Seattle. This was the closest margin since 2009 (36-33).
* Arizona allowed 49 points for the second straight game and the third time in the past four games. It's the first time the Wildcats have yielded 40-plus points in consecutive games since 2019, when it happened three times in a row (USC, Stanford, Oregon State).
* Michael Penix Jr. set a UW record with 516 passing yards. It was the first time a UA opponent has passed for 500-plus yards since Washington State on Oct. 28, 2017 (602 yards).
* Arizona allowed more than 500 total yards for the second straight week and the third time in four games. The last time the Wildcats yielded more than 500 yards three times in a season was 2019 (Hawaii, Oregon State, Utah).
* The Wildcats surpassed 500 yards for the third time in the past four games. Their record in those contests: 1-2.
* Penix also broke Marques Tuiasosopo's UW single-game total-offense record. Penix had 529 yards of total offense. Tuiasosopo had 509 total yards vs. Stanford in 1999.
* More for Penix: His 36 completions eclipsed Cody Pickett’s UW record of 35, set twice vs. Cal and Washington State in 2002.
* Even more for Penix: He has passed for more than 300 yards in every game this season and has thrown four TD passes four times.
* Arizona and Washington have surpassed their scoring totals from last season. The Wildcats have 221 points in seven games after scoring 206 in 12 games last year. The Huskies have 295 points after scoring 258 in 2021.
* UA quarterback Jayden de Laura passed for 400 yards, his third 400-plus-yard passing game in his past four outings. Saturday marked the first time in de Laura’s career that his team lost when he threw three or more touchdown passes.
* Freshman receiver Tetairoa McMillan notched career highs with seven catches, 132 yards and two touchdowns. It was the first 100-yard game and first multi-TD game of McMillan’s career.
* Freshman linebacker Jacob Manu doubled his previous career mark with 10 total tackles, the second most on the Wildcat defense. He also had a team-high 2.5 tackles for losses.
* Sophomore safety DJ Warnell Jr. also set a career high with a team-leading 11 tackles. Warnell’s stat line also included a pass breakup and a shared TFL.
QUOTES
UA coach Jedd Fisch on his team’s effort: “Our guys competed till the very last second. Guys did not want to come out of the game for any plays whatsoever. You could see guys continuing to fight to get off the sideline back into the game. So I was excited to see that.”
Fisch on the unsuccessful onside kick to start the second half: “We practiced it all week. We felt like we had the exact look we wanted for that kick. We actually had the look. We just had a tough bounce – the bounce went up instead of to the left, which it had been doing all week. We wanted to steal a possession. ... We thought that was a way to get the possession back and give us a chance. If it gave us a chance to make it 21-all, great. And if it didn't, and it ended up in a score (for Washington), which it did, we didn't feel like that was gonna put the game out of reach. We felt like we were able to move the ball on offense. We felt we were gonna score much more than 14 points.”
Fisch on the fourth-down pitch play that was ruled a forward pass: “The ruling on the field was incomplete pass. When they reviewed it, they determined that it was not an incomplete pass – that it was what would be considered a backwards pass, a lateral, which would then be recovered by Jonah (Coleman), and then it would be a first down. It would have been first-and-goal. However, the rule is that if the official calls it incomplete, it's dead. It doesn't matter that they reviewed it and said it was backwards.”
De Laura on the pitch play: “I just gave him a bad pitch. That's all. It was there. I just gave him a bad pitch, hesitated a little. Uncharacteristic for me on that play. But that's on me.”
De Laura on McMillan’s production: “I feel like it’s just expected. From the first practice I've seen him participate in in spring, he made big plays, made catches. Big-time players make big-time plays, and he's one of those guys.”
DE Hunter Echols on what the defense needs to work on before hosting USC on Oct. 29: “We have a lot of things to work on. We’re coached well. We just need to execute as players. I feel like, honestly, this one was on us. It sucks to say it, but we as players need to go out there and make some more plays. I'm gonna talk to my defense. We want to get this one; I want to get this next one. We're gonna be humble, ready to play. Go back and go to work, because that's all it takes really.”
UW coach Kalen DeBoer on defending Arizona’s offense: “There were challenges today with (de Laura buying time. It is just what he does. I know they threw for a lot of yards. I think going into the game they were throwing more than we were in conference play. We knew that we would have our hands full. Guys kept fighting and found a way to get off the field there at the end of the game when it really mattered.”
DeBoer on Penix breaking the school single-game passing record: “It’s not just about what he did statistically. He just keeps putting the pressure on, leading the charge to help us win the football game. We needed all of those points and all of those yards that he gave us. When it matters most at the end of the half, and you get a two-minute drive and find a way with just a few seconds to go ... you trust him.”
Penix on his improvement over the course of the season: "I just continue to have a 1-0 mindset. Just focus on what’s right there in front of me, just stay in the present. I really don’t worry about bad plays. Bad plays are going to happen. We’re playing Division I football. There’s a lot of great teams. So we’ve just gotta make sure that we stay locked on the details. I just try to be the same person all the time no matter what, because everybody’s gonna be looking at the quarterback when things are up or when things are down. So I just gotta stay that level person and be that person my teammates need me to be.”
STATS
* Each team had 31 first downs
* Arizona had 126 rushing yards; Washington had 79
* Washington averaged 8.2 yards per play; Arizona averaged 7.7
* Arizona had 7 penalties for 47 yards; Washington had 4 for 43
* Washington possessed the ball for 31 minutes, 15 seconds; Arizona had it for 28:45
* Washington converted 6 of 10 third downs; Arizona converted 4 of 11
* Washington converted 0 of 2 fourth downs; Arizona converted 1 of 2
* Washington scored touchdowns on 4 of 6 trips into the red zone; Arizona went 2 of 4
* Washington had 4 sacks; Arizona had none
* Washington’s average starting field position was its 30-yard line; Arizona’s was its 26
* UA receiver Jacob Cowing had 7 catches for 94 yards
* UA receiver Dorian Singer had 6 catches for 99 yards and 1 touchdown
* UW receiver Jalen McMillan had 6 catches for 77 yards and 1 TD
* UW’s Jeremiah Martin had 9 tackles and 2 sacks
