The Arizona Wildcats conducted their 13th practice of training camp Thursday morning. Here are some notes and takeaways from practice No. 13:
• Starting quarterback Jayden de Laura returned to practice after an unexplained absence Wednesday. De Laura took his usual allotment of reps with the first-team offense.
• Receiver Jacob Cowing, who’s been out since Saturday, briefly appeared at practice. He then spent time running along the sideline and conferring with a trainer.
• Freshman receiver Tetairoa McMillan had one of his best practices of camp, mostly at the expense of fellow freshman Ephesians Prysock. In one-on-ones, McMillan made a Randy Moss-like grab, reaching over Prysock’s back to snag the ball. In 11-on-11, McMillan caught the ball on a comeback route despite Prysock interfering with him and getting flagged for it.
• Aside from getting beaten on a sweet double move by Dorian Singer in one-on-ones, veteran cornerback Christian Roland-Wallace had another strong day. Roland-Wallace forced a fumble during 11-on-11 play and played a deep ball for Singer perfectly, forcing him to the sideline and leaving him no room to maneuver.
• Singer, who’s had a ton of targets while Cowing has been out, concluded the final 11-on-11 period with a 6-yard touchdown on a slant pass from de Laura fired between two defenders.
• The Wildcats practiced in full pads, and one of the drills featured offensive and defensive players going one-on-one just beyond the goal line. The offensive players won most of the reps, but veteran safety Christian Young wouldn’t let tight end Keyan Burnett win his, even knocking the freshman’s helmet off. Burnett later made a tremendous leaping catch over Roland-Wallace in 7-on-7 that was ruled out of bounds.
• Kicker Tyler Loop made both of his field-goal attempts, from 41 and 26 yards.
• Defensive tackle Kyon Barrs, who’s been on a snap count throughout camp, participated in team periods. Freshman DT Jacob Kongaika did as well with a wrap on the hand he hurt Saturday. Barrs and linebacker Jerry Roberts teamed up for a tackle-for-loss on Michael Wiley at the start of 11-on-11. Wiley had a big gain on a cutback run in a later team period.
• Receiver AJ Jones and edge rusher Jeremy Mercier practiced with red, no-contact jerseys.
• Players who did not participate included tailbacks Jalen John and D.J. Williams; defensive tackles Tiaoalii Savea and Dion Wilson Jr.; and cornerbacks Treydan Stukes, Isaiah Rutherford and Isaiah Mays.
• The Wildcats have one more practice, on Friday morning, before the mock game Saturday night at Arizona Stadium. The mock game — scheduled to start at 6:30, weather permitting — is open to the public.
