Arizona defensive coordinator Duane Akina has seen this movie before, whether it was his first stint at the UA under longtime head coach Dick Tomey, or at Texas or Stanford.
Sure, the Wildcats are 2-1, but not all 2-1 starts are created equal.
As the part of the schedule that has the potential to be a grind starts for Arizona with a Big 12 debut against 10th-ranked Utah in Salt Lake City on the horizon, the Wildcats have yet to play "clean, good football" this season, said head coach Brent Brennan during his news conference on Thursday.
"That sounds simple, but I don't think we've done that in all three phases yet, and that's what we're striving to do," Brennan said.
Since Arizona hasn't looked like the fine-tuned machine that went 10-3 and won the Alamo Bowl last season, with a plethora of players currently on the UA roster, a large contingent of Arizona football fans aren't impressed with the product on the field. Akina views the concerns as a blessing.
Arizona defensive coordinator Duane Akina directs his players during a fall preseason practice at the Dick Tomey Practice Fields.
"This season is much different than a year ago," Akina said. "If you recall a year ago, this football team loses to USC and loses to Washington and people are excited about that. ... I've been at universities where you don't win by enough. The pressure has changed, because the standard has changed through these guys' hard work.
Arizona defensive coordinator Duane Akina celebrates with defensive back Owen Goss after the Wildcats made a fourth-down stand against Northern Arizona in the fourth quarter of their game at Arizona Stadium on Sept. 7.
"That's one of the biggest things, just staying resilient and understanding that you're 2-1. A lot of universities across the country that would love to be 2-1 at this time. ... I wish we could win every single one, but all I know is you have to watch the tape, evaluate coaches' performances, players' performances, be accountable to each other, which I think Coach Brennan does a good job with that and let's go back to work."
Added Akina: "The only way you can solve things like that is if we all understand that we've all been a part of this, when it's good or when it's bad. I think this team has embraced that. We're just excited to get back and have another opportunity this Saturday."
Akina looked ahead to Arizona's battle with Utah, which reminded the UA defensive coordinator "of my old Stanford teams a lot," because of their "solid defense, solid special teams, very efficient offense (and) well-coached team."
Here are some items Akina discussed:
Akina, on Arizona giving up 279 rushing yards to quarterbacks this season: "We've lost containment. That's been an issue. We have to be better. A lot of that has been they weren't getting vertical when they were supposed to and we lost the quarterback on a few situations where we were pressuring. I think (Dampier and Johnson) were really excellent athletes. We do get vertical as a starting point, but we do also zip and zap, so we have some movement in our game."
Arizona defensive back Dalton Johnson breaks up a pass intended for tight end Keyan Burnett as the Wildcats work out at Arizona Stadium during a spring practice session on April 2 in Tucson.
Akina, on returning strong safety Dalton Johnson, who suffered an injury in the Northern Arizona game and missed the Kansas State contest: "Not only Dalton, but we lost (nickel back Treydan) Stukes, too, which are two of our better football players. ... Dalton has a gift of playing in the box. That's not an easy thing to do. When I say box, I'm talking about a safety playing on the interior, where he's got a great feel for the football game. ... Both of those are big playmakers for us. ... It's comforting seeing those two guys out there running around."
What are some keys for Arizona's defense against Utah?
A: "We gotta stop the run. This is a team that will establish the run game and work the clock.
"Through that hard run game, take away the vertical throwing game, so now it's an eye-discipline game. We gotta do a good job with eye control.
"We're just not creating enough takeaways for us. We've had some things we identified that we have to create some momentum for our offense. That's what big plays do. Just go back to that big play against Oklahoma (in the Alamo Bowl).
"We just did a great job of creating plays. We have guys that can do it and we worked hard on the takeaway circuit the last two weeks. We do it every week, but the emphasis of punching the ball out and finishing when you got an opportunity to make a play on the football. ... to generate momentum for this football team."
Arizona’s first year head coach Brent Brennan hugs running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt before the first half of the season opener against New Mexico.
Croskey-Merritt still out for Wildcats
Brennan said "there's not" an update on Arizona senior running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt, who missed the last two games after there was “a concern raised about his eligibility” in the days leading up to the NAU game.
Brennan said earlier in the month, “We’re still trying to find out exactly what went on."
"It was raised by our compliance (office) and we’re going through it," said Brennan.
The Star reached out the UA athletics compliance office and the NCAA, but hasn't received comment.
The concerns for Croskey-Merritt’s eligibility as a college football player first arose in the spring after he committed to Arizona following one season at New Mexico, where he rushed for 1,190 yards and 17 touchdowns. Before his time at New Mexico, Croskey-Merritt played in 31 games over four seasons at Alabama State and rushed for 1,164 yards and 13 touchdowns. Croskey-Merritt’s first collegiate season at Alabama State was in 2019.
Arizona currently doesn’t have any players from its 2019 recruiting class on the roster. In Croskey-Merritt's defense, so many college football players have maximized their college eligibility to six, seven, eight or even nine years like Miami tight end Cam McCormick. Utah starting quarterback Cameron Rising is in his seventh year, albeit he's had redshirt years and an extra year from the pandemic.
So, what's the holdup for Croskey-Merritt? Why has it taken weeks to clear Croskey-Merritt even though he was cleared to play in the season opener for Arizona?
"It's NCAA," Brennan said. "I think you knew the answer to that question before you asked it."
Extra points:
- Akina said he's "hopeful" Stukes, who exited the Kansas State game with an injury, will return on Saturday. If Stukes is unable to play, sophomore Genesis Smith and transfer Owen Goss will likely fill the void. Akina noted Stukes possibly playing cornerback on Saturday. Said Akina: "You have to keep plugging pieces in and out. ... It's just one of those things where you have to stay loose and adjust and see where it's at and work on maybe simplifying things if we get some younger players out there that have to play."
- The ESPN broadcast for the Arizona-Utah game is Dave Flemming (play-by-play), Brock Osweiler (analyst) and Stormy Buonantony (sideline).
