The grades are in for the Arizona Wildcatsβ 62-24 victory over NAU in the season opener Saturday night at Arizona Stadium:
QUARTERBACKS
Grade: C-plus
Comment: Starter Brandon Dawkins ran the ball extremely well, leading the team with 92 rushing yards and two touchdowns (including a 66-yarder). His passing was just OK. Dawkins went 7 of 13 for 89 yards. He didnβt turn the ball over but didnβt hit anything downfield either. Khalil Tate rushed for 62 yards in relief, but Rich Rodriguez wasnβt happy with his decision-making as a runner. Freshman Rhett Rodriguez led a scoring drive and scored his first career TD.
RUNNING BACKS
Grade: A
Comment: Rich Rodriguez has praised Arizonaβs RB depth, and it was on full display vs. the Lumberjacks. Five running backs ran for at least 30 yards. Nick Wilson (8-87-1) looked healthy and spry. Nathan Tilford (4-79) offered a glimpse of his potential with a 65-yard run. Zach Green (5-57-1) picked up where he left off in the Territorial Cup. Branden Leon (5-30-1) scored his first career TD. Oddly, J.J. Taylor (9-44) had the lowest average (4.9) of the bunch.
RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
Grade: B
Comment: Similar to the Arizona State game, this group didnβt have a ton of opportunities. Redshirt junior Tony Ellison made the most of his and had the best game of his career, catching five passes for 79 yards, including a 43-yard touchdown. Cedric Peterson had one grab for 5 yards but couldnβt come down with another catchable ball. Tyrell Johson showed off his speed on a 55-yard end-around for a touchdown. The tight ends contributed to Arizonaβs 506-yard rushing attack.
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
Grade: A-minus
Comment: Itβs hard to find fault when none of the quarterbacks get sacked and the team eclipses 500 rushing yards while averaging more than 10 yards per attempt. But as Rodriguez noted, the running game struggled to get going early. Three of the Wildcatsβ first six possessions ended in three-and-outs. Hence the βminus.β
DEFENSIVE FRONT
Grade: C
Comment: Arizona sacked NAU quarterback Case Cookus twice. Freshman DE Kylan Wilbornβs hit on Cookus jarred the ball loose, and DT Finton Connolly recovered it. DE Justin Belknap also had a sack, benefiting from interior pressure that forced Cookus to vacate the pocket. But the front didnβt have any other tackles for losses, and NAU accumulated 562 yards, including 185 on the ground (which includes a 41-yard loss on a botched field goal).
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Grade: C-minus
Comment: The grade is only this high because safety Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles had two interceptions. Otherwise, the secondary struggled. Cornerback Jace Whittaker got beaten for a 45-yard reception on the first play from scrimmage. Fellow corners Lorenzo Burns and Sammy Morrison also had difficulty dealing with the deep ball. NAU finished with 377 passing yards (although no touchdowns through the air).
SPECIAL TEAMS
Grade: A
Comment: Could a 2016 weakness become a 2017 strength? Itβs only one game, but the early returns (no pun intended) are favorable. Shun Brownβs 66-yard punt-return TD illustrated his open-field shiftiness and excellent blocking once he cut to the right. Freshman Lucas Havrisikβs kickoffs β 9 of 10 touchbacks β were a revelation. The only downer: Josh Pollack missed a PAT. He finished 7 of 8.
COACHING
Grade: B
Comment: The Wildcats generally took care of business against an opponent they were supposed to beat and probably limited their game plan to make things harder on future opponents. Rodriguez and his staff stuck to their promise of rotating players at running back and all across the defense. Rodriguezβs play-calling in the second quarter β the end-around to Johnson, followed by a fake end-around that resulted in an easy TD run for Dawkins β was particularly sharp.
