Wildcats game day breakdown: Brandon Dawkins on winning; Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles finds old form at new position

From starter to backup, Brandon Dawkins wants to help the Wildcats win however he can

It’s widely known that Colorado’s Folsom Field has narrower sidelines than most modern college football venues.

That thought was somewhere in the back of Brandon Dawkins’ mind as he ran toward the left sideline in the first quarter of the Arizona Wildcats’ Oct. 7 game in Boulder.

Two CU defenders, Drew Lewis and Ryan Moeller, hit Dawkins late and sent him somersaulting into the Buffaloes’ bench.

That personal foul changed the fortunes of two quarterbacks and one football program.

Dawkins’ knees were bloodied. He feared for a moment that he had broken something.

“I checked it out and hopped up,” Dawkins said. “I was like, ‘OK, I’m good.’”

But Arizona’s trainers already had come onto the field. Dawkins had to sit for at least one snap.

He hasn’t taken another one since.

Dawkins’ painful exit paved the way for Khalil Tate’s grand entrance. The sophomore went from backup to record-setter, rushing for more yards (327) than any FBS quarterback had in a single game. Tate has won three straight Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week awards entering Saturday’s homecoming game against Washington State.

Now Dawkins — who had started 14 of 17 games since the start of the 2016 season — is the backup. He’s dealing with his new reality the only way he knows how: by preparing daily, doing his job and sharing whatever knowledge he has gained in three-plus seasons at Arizona.

“I want to do anything that helps this team win,” Dawkins said. “Khalil’s been doing an excellent job. I’m just trying to pass on as much knowledge as I can every drive and every practice and make sure we keep this ball rolling.

“I’m not selfish enough to want to be ‘The Guy’ all the time. If it so happens somebody subs in and we’re winning games, I don’t care who’s in there — as long as we’re putting wins in the win column.”

When he went down, Dawkins was two games removed from the best performance of his career: He completed 18 of 21 passes, rushed for 133 yards and accounted for six touchdowns at UTEP on Sept. 15. But consistency eluded Dawkins during his time as Arizona’s starter. He turned the ball over four times in Arizona’s loss to Utah the following week.

Then the collision with the bench happened, and Tate happened, and Dawkins slipped into the background. Coaches have lauded him for his attitude and professionalism since Tate took over. In Rich Rodriguez’s view, the Wildcats have “two starting quarterbacks.”

Dawkins is prepping as if he’s the starter, as he always has. He knows better than anyone that a backup’s big chance is only a play away.

“That never changes,” Dawkins said of his approach. “No matter what group I’m rolling with, I’m just going to keep working and grinding.”

Arizona safety Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles moves to new position, finds his old form

You never know what will happen in football, so coaches try to prepare for every contingency. Arizona safeties coach Jahmile Addae knew junior Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles was sharp enough to learn more than one position. So while Flannigan-Fowles worked in his usual “Bandit” role, Addae taught him free safety as well.

Those lessons came in handy last week. With starter Scottie Young Jr. out because of a knee injury, Flannigan-Fowles shifted to free safety. He had one of his best games of the year against Cal, recording a season-high 10 tackles in the Wildcats’ 45-44 double-overtime victory.

“I thought he was probably more physical in this game than he had been in any other,” Addae said. “There were some times where we asked him to really get down in there and take on pullers and take on gap-fitters.

“He’s got five turnovers, but his physicality had to improve, and I’ve been on him about that. I thought this last game that he actually did a pretty good job there. He looked like his old self from the first three or four games.”

By his own admission, Flannigan-Fowles’ performance ebbed after a strong start. He had four takeaways in the first three games, including three interceptions.

Flannigan-Fowles didn’t make as big of an impact against Colorado and UCLA, although he did recover a fumble against the Bruins. His coaches advised him to “just play” and “fly around.”

“That’s kind of what I did against Cal,” Flannigan-Fowles said. “That’s what I want to continue to do.”

Flannigan-Fowles took on running backs — and blockers who outweigh him by 100 pounds — against the Golden Bears. Sometimes he had to sacrifice himself so his teammates could make a play.

“That’s the job,” Flannigan-Fowles said. “That’s what I signed up for.”

Flannigan-Fowles is a steadying presence among the safeties — the only starter returning at the same position he played last year. Dane Cruikshank moved from cornerback to “Spur” during training camp. Young took over for the injured Isaiah Hayes. Another freshman, Troy Young, has replaced Scottie Young.

Now Flannigan-Fowles is on the move. The responsibilities at free safety and Bandit overlap to a degree, but the roles differ in many ways. Flannigan-Fowles has to cover more ground at free safety. If that’s what the defense needs, so be it.

“I’m just trying to help the team,” Flannigan-Fowles said. “If I need to move to free or back to Bandit, that’s what I’m willing to do.”

Jarrius Wallace the latest UA safety to step up

Isaiah Hayes was a true freshman when he wrestled away the starting free safety job away from Jarvis McCall a few games into the 2016 season.

Hayes showed flashes of talent, and then injured his shoulder before this season and was lost for the year.

Freshman Scottie Young took his place, and through the first few weeks, was one of Arizona’s best performers.

A couple weeks ago, Young injured his knee. He’s out indefinitely.

So that led to some safety shuffling — UA safeties coach Jahmile Addae moved junior Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles over to free safety from “bandit” and started freshman Troy Young in his place.

Then, early in Arizona’s game at California, Young was ejected for targeting.

That brought Arizona down to Jarrius Wallace, a redshirt freshman from Louisiana with limited experience in game action outside of special teams.

“Right now we’re pretty deep in the depth chart,” Addae said. “Losing Scottie, losing Isaiah, losing Troy the second play of the game. I thought the young guy, Jarrius, came in and did well for himself… he wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t seamless, but he stepped up to the plate for us at a time when we needed him.”

Young will return this week, but Wallace has likely earned more playing time. Wallace finished with nine tackles, two pass breakups and an important late-game interception against the Golden Bears. The pick, in the end zone, was the first of his young career.

“I had fun. It was an experience for me,” Wallace said. “I was kinda nervous at first but exciting once I finally got the grip of everything.”

Wallace spent all of last season and the early parts of 2017 on the sideline, taking what coaches call “mental reps.”

The result?

“To be honest, I was ready,” Wallace said. “I was ready to go out there and make a play and I was just thinking in my mind, just make a play. Just do what you are coached to do, do what’s right. We work on this in practice all the time and coached right so I felt like I was ready for it.”

It had been a couple years since Wallace’s last interception, the last coming back at John Ehret High School in Marrero, Louisianaa That one, he said it came in a state playoff game.

It still didn’t hold a candle to his first-career collegiate pick.

“It was exciting one too, I came from the other side of the field. It was nothing like this one, this one means much more to me,” Wallace said. “That was most exciting and the best thing I’ve felt from playing football, especially in college, because this is the next level.”

Arizona lineman Gerhard de Beer has 'shotgun' leg, but won't likely punt

Gerhard de Beer has been begging to punt in a game.

And yes, the 6-foot-7-inch, 320-pound offensive tackle has the leg to do it.

UA coach Rich Rodriguez says de Beer’s punts sound like “a shotgun” going off. Word of Arizona’s lineman-turned-wannbe punter went viral last week, with SI.com and others profiling the South African.

“My friend sent me this Sports Illustrated article… somebody even told me it was on ‘SportsCenter,’” de Beer said. “I said why? It’s not that big of a deal! I can kick a ball, what’s so big about that?”

De Beer’s size — he told the Star this week that he tells people “I’m in shape, because round is also a shape” — is probably what made the story so shareable.

But de Beer is serious. He spent some time practicing this week, and pinned one punt inside the 5-yard line.

“It was always just something to play with, and (Rodriguez) promised me …” De Beer said. “He said, ‘all right, one day.’ So he gave it to me, and I just boomed the crap out of it. Ever since then, I’ve been kicking more often.”

De beer wouldn’t be the first non-punter to boot the ball in a UA game. Arizona has run a number of quick-kicks this year, where the quarterback lines up in the shotgun, rolls to his left or right and boots the ball. De Beer calls it an “offensive punt.”

De Beer won’t likely ever punt in a game, and that’s mostly because he’s too important to Arizona’s offensive line. The senior has split time with Cody Creason at right tackle, and, Rodriguez said, had his best game of the season last week against California.

“I played a lot better, but there’s always things to work on,” de Beer said. “I’m not fully healthy, but it’s bearable. It’s my senior season so I said I’m either going to play with pain or I won’t be able to play at all.”

De Beer said he feels like he’s improved “immensely” in pass protection and, “if I’m looking at my film last year compared to now, I’m a completely different player.”

“I’ve made strides both in run and in pass and that’s all I’m really looking for,” he said.