Here are three things to watch in the Arizona Wildcats’ game vs. USC at Arizona Stadium (Saturday, 7:30 p.m., ESPN2), plus a score prediction and some pertinent preview links:
1. ONGOING TATE DEBATE
Will this be the week? It seems like we’re asking the same question every Saturday. Everyone continues to wonder whether the Khalil Tate of 2017 suddenly will reappear. Consider: Tate carried the ball more times against USC last year (26) than he has in four games this year (23). That he has just 31 net rushing yards – after running for 1,411 last season – is one of the most befuddling statistics in all of college football. If you’re an Arizona fan, you obviously want to see the ’17 version of Tate show up. But it’s tricky: You also don’t want him to play “hero ball.” He wanted to beat the Trojans so badly last year that he forced a pass that was intercepted after USC took a late 42-35 lead. Tate was so emotionally invested – and so spent – that he cried on the field after the game. That sort of want-to hasn’t been evident in Tate’s running decisions so far this season. Maybe it’s the ankle. Maybe it’s something else. Maybe it’ll come out against the school that’s in his backyard and features a handful of his former high school teammates.
2. RUN IT BACK
USC hasn’t run the ball well or frequently, but there’s a strong suspicion that will change tonight. Although Arizona shut down Oregon State’s run game last week, that’s been the exception. Each of the Wildcats’ first three opponents rushed for at least 183 yards. The UA defense might be the biggest reason Ronald Jones II landed in the second round of this year’s NFL draft. In three games against the Wildcats, Jones rushed for 448 yards and five touchdowns. USC’s average output in those games looks like an accounting error: 293.3 yards. This year’s Trojans are averaging just 110.2 net rushing yards per game, an astonishingly low total that ranked 10th in the Pac-12 entering this weekend. It’s not as if USC lacks talent in the backfield. Stephen Carr, Aca’Cedric Ware and Vavae Malepeai are averaging 5.5 yards per attempt. It’s just that none has more than 33 attempts through four games. If they’re smart, USC’s coaches will resist the temptation to have JT Daniels chuck the ball all over Arizona Stadium, even though the Trojans have an advantage on the perimeter. The Wildcats, meanwhile, should invite that, no matter the Trojans’ tendencies till now.
3. TRICK OR TWEET
Arizona pulled off a fake field goal last week. Do the Wildcats have more tricks in store for USC? Do they need to do something like that to win? Don’t be surprised if Arizona attempts something a little out of the ordinary in a matchup that favors USC on paper (at least in terms of recruiting rankings and recent head-to-head results). It doesn’t have to come on special teams, although winning that aspect of the game would go a long way. Something strange is bound to happen in Arizona’s first true foray into #Pac12AfterDark territory this season. (The UA’s first two home games also were at night, but neither was against a conference opponent.) It might come in the form of a turnover, or several. I wrote earlier this week about the Wildcats’ dearth of takeaways. They have just one so far. The Trojans have just two. Those numbers aren’t sustainable. In the past two meetings, Arizona has turned the ball over seven times to USC’s one. It’s safe to say the Wildcats won’t win if they’re in the red again.
FINAL SCORE: USC 34, Arizona 27
PREVIEW LINKS:
