Arizona Wildcats add Wyoming defensive end Braden Siders

Former Wyoming defensive end and sixth-year senior Braden Siders announced on Wednesday that he’s transferring to the Arizona Wildcats.

The 6-3, 252-pound edge rusher and Thornton, Colorado native signed with Wyoming during the pandemic-influenced season in 2020, but didn’t appear in any games for the Cowboys until the 2022 season.

In the last three seasons at Wyoming, Siders recorded 92 tackles and 14.5 sacks. As a redshirt freshman in 2022, Siders led the Cowboys with 13.5 tackles for loss.

Siders has already played two games at Arizona Stadium for the Arizona Bowl, which was previously sponsored by Barstool Sports before Snoop Dogg took over. In a walk-off 16-15 win over Toledo in 2023, Siders had two tackles for Wyoming. In the ’22 Arizona Bowl, an overtime loss to Ohio, Siders had six tackles and two sacks.

After signing mostly interior defensive linemen for 2025, the Wildcats were in need of edge rushers, especially after the loss of Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei, who transferred to Washington, and senior Lance Keneley.

Arizona returns starters Tre Smith and Chase Kennedy, along with Dominic Lolesio and Sterling Lane II. The Wildcats also return redshirt freshman Julian Savaiinaea (younger brother of former UA star offensive tackle Jonah Savaiinaea) and former Memphis transfer Jarra Anderson, who suffered a season-ending leg injury at the start of the 2024 season.

In the transfer portal, Arizona has added four defensive linemen: Siders, Montana edge rusher Riley Wilson, Northwestern State defensive end Chancellor Owens and UT Martin defensive tackle Deshawn McKnight. Between transfers and high school and junior college players, the Wildcats have eight scholarship newcomers on the defensive line.

Wildcats add Portland State RB

Arizona added a third running back in the transfer portal on Thursday after Portland State transfer Quincy Craig committed to the Wildcats.

Craig transferred to Arizona after three seasons at Portland State and has two years of eligibility remaining.

The 5-10, 195-pound Craig, a former running back and returner at nationally-ranked Mater Dei High School (California), signed with PSU, an FCS program, as a three-star prospect despite offers from Arizona State and Utah State.

In three seasons at Mater Dei, Craig had 2,100 all-purpose yards — 464 rushing, 759 receiving and 877 as a returner.

In 21 games over three years at Portland State, Craig tallied 1,233 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns, while hauling in 55 catches for 530 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.

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After Arizona lost Rayshon Luke and Brandon Johnson, who both entered the transfer portal, and Quali Conley to graduation, the Wildcats added Mike Mitchell (Utah) and Ismail Mahdi (Texas State), who was one of the top running backs and returners in the last two seasons for the Bobcats, to bolster a running back group that’s led by redshirt freshman Kedrick Reescano, who had 78 carries for 359 yards and a touchdown in his first season in Tucson after transferring from Ole Miss.

In two seasons at Texas State, Mahdi had 406 rush attempts for 2,322 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also had 31 kick returns for 760 yards and a touchdown. The 5-9, 180-pound Mahdi led FBS in all-purpose yards (2,169) in 2023 and was a two-time All-Sun Belt First-Team member in the last two seasons.

As a redshirt freshman last season, the 6-foot, 216-pound Mitchell had 47 carries for 158 yards and a touchdown for Utah.

The Wildcats are also planning to sign three-star 2025 Houston-area running back Wesley Yarbrough, who had 458 rushes for 2,767 yards and 32 touchdowns in three seasons at Crosby High School. The Wildcats currently have five scholarship running backs for the 2025 season.

Overall, Arizona has 23 players in the transfer portal for 2025; seven of them, including Craig, hail from FCS programs.

Groves-Killebrew transfers to Nebraska

Former Arizona Wildcats cornerback Marquis Groves-Killebrew is set to play for his fourth school in as many seasons.

Groves-Killebrew transferred to Nebraska after one season in Tucson, he announced on Thursday.

Groves-Killebrew started six games for the Wildcats this past season and was in line to start in Arizona’s secondary this season. He split starts with second-year cornerback Emmanuel Karnley, who transferred to Miami. Karnley was suspended for the season finale against Arizona State after he was ejected in Arizona’s previous game for spitting on a TCU player.

In 2022, the 6-0, 185-pound Groves-Killebrew signed with Texas A&M as a four-star recruit after starring at Atlanta-area North Cobb High School in Kennesaw, Georgia. Groves-Killebrew played in the 2022 All-American Bowl, which also featured former UA star wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan and former running back Rayshon Luke, who was the game’s MVP after scoring two touchdowns.

Groves-Killebrew appeared in three games at Texas A&M before transferring to Louisville, where he spent the first roughly dozen years of his life before moving to Atlanta. Groves-Killebrew “was homesick and wanted to go home,” he said in August, so he transferred to Louisville for one season, before trekking to Tucson for his redshirt sophomore season at the UA.

Groves-Killebrew had 26 tackles, four pass deflections and one stop for loss for the Wildcats in 2024.

With Groves-Killebrew, Karnley and Tacario Davis (Washington), who transferred to Washington, gone, the only returning cornerback with starting experience is nickel back Treydan Stukes. Arizona added three cornerbacks in the transfer portal: Michael Dansby (San Jose State), Jay’Vion Cole (Texas) and Ayden Garnes (West Virginia).

The Wildcats currently have seven scholarship newcomers at cornerback for 2025.