Taylor Swift and football, the unexpected crossover that budded from the pop star’s relationship with future Hall of Fame tight end Travis Kelce.
Apologies to the football fans and non-Swifties that are exhausted with the Swift coverage, but we had to follow the trend considering one of the themes to the Arizona Wildcats’ success this season.
One of Swift’s popular songs, “Feeling 22,” sums the current rendition of the Wildcats. Fourteen players from Arizona’s 2022 recruiting class have logged at least 100 snaps on offense and defense this season — and that doesn’t include the transfer portal additions in wide receiver Jacob Cowing, quarterback Jayden de Laura and running back DJ Williams.
Greg Biggins, national recruiting analyst for 247Sports.com, said, “With Arizona, what we found out is they’re really good at evaluating.”
“I was looking at their 2022 recruiting class just yesterday and there’s like 17 or 18 guys from that class that are already making plays and being impact guys,” Biggins said. “It’s unbelievable.”
We narrowed the list down of impactful list to 15 players. Here’s who they are, along with their Pro Football Focus grade through seven games:
Tight end Keyan Burnett snares a throw with a fingertip catch, running routes with receivers during spring practice.
Keyan Burnett
Position: Tight end
The rundown: Burnett, a former four-star tight end and son of “Desert Swarm” linebacker Chester Burnett, has one catch for 17 yards this season. Burnett is one of four players from Servite High School (Anaheim, California) on Arizona’s roster, along with quarterback Noah Fifita, wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan and linebacker Jacob Manu.
PFF grade: 65.7
Arizona running back Jonah Coleman is tackled by Southern Cal linebacker Mason Cobb during the second half of the Trojans’ triple-overtime win on Oct. 7.
Jonah Coleman
Position: Running back
The rundown: Multi-year starter Michael Wiley has been sidelined with an ankle injury since Arizona’s win over Stanford to begin Pac-12 play, but Coleman has been productive in his elevated role, averaging 5.08 yards after contact per rush, which ranks fifth nationally among running backs with at least 50 snaps, according to PFF. Coleman has a balanced 433 rushing yards and 289 receiving yards along with four touchdowns this year.
PFF grade: 90.7 (highest-graded Wildcat)
USC quarterback Caleb Williams is sacked by Arizona defensive lineman Russell Davis II during the first half on Oct. 7 in Los Angeles.
Russell Davis II
Position: Defensive end
The rundown: Davis has 11 tackles, 3.5 stops for loss and 1.5 sacks (which happened in Arizona’s triple-overtime loss to ninth-ranked USC).
PFF grade: 69
Arizona cornerback Tacario Davis (23) bats away throw intended for Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze (1) in the third quarter last year.
Tacario Davis
Position: Cornerback
The rundown: Davis picked up his first interception as a Wildcat in the 38-point win over Washington State in Pullman. The 6-4, 195-pound Davis leads the Wildcats with seven pass breakups — next closest is Treydan Stukes with three.
PFF grade: 75.6
Noah Fifita
Position: Quarterback
The rundown: In place of the injured de Laura dating back to the fourth quarter of Arizona’s win over Stanford, Fifita completed 90 of 121 passes (74%) for 924 yards, eight touchdowns and two interceptions. In that stretch, Arizona faced three Top-20 teams — two of them on the road. The two-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week has positioned himself as the likely starter for the remainder of the season.
PFF grade: 72.4
Kevin Green Jr. waits on a throw as the receivers work routes with the quarterbacks during the University of Arizona’s spring practice session on March 28, 2023.
Kevin Green Jr.
Position: Wide receiver
The rundown: In 45 offensive snaps, Green, the first Wildcat since running back Gary Brightwell to don No. 0 as a jersey number, has five catches for 47 yards. AJ Jones, another highly-ranked wide receiver in Arizona’s ’22 class, has two catches for 17 yards this season.
PFF grade: 62
Arizona defensive lineman Jacob Kongaika (93) in the first half during an NCAA college football game against Northern Arizona, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023, in Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Jacob Kongaika
Position: Defensive tackle
The rundown: Kongaika has played 137 snaps this season in Arizona’s second defensive line unit that shuttles in the game frequently as part of the bolstered defensive line rotation. The former Mater Dei star has nine tackles and logged his first sack of the season at Washington State.
PFF grade: 66
Arizona running back Rayshon Luke (21) tries to hop over NAU defensive back Shawn Dourseau (0) in the fourth quarter of the Wildcats' season-opening win over the Lumberjacks at Arizona Stadium on Sept. 2, 2023.
Rayshon Luke
Position: Running back
The rundown: Luke passed his season total of rushing yards at Washington State, when the speedster ran for 71 yards and one touchdown on 10 carries. Luke went 40 yards untouched for his first-ever touchdown as a Wildcat in the win over WSU.
PFF grade: 79.1
Arizona’s Taylor Upshaw (11) gets a pat on the head from linebacker Jacob Manu (5) after coming up big against NAU in last year’s season opener.
Jacob Manu
Position: Linebacker
The rundown: Manu is third in the Pac-12 with 58 tackles and leads the Wildcats in that department by a significant margin; Arizona’s second-leading tackler is safety Dalton Johnson (38). Manu could become the first Arizona linebacker to make one of the All-Pac-12 teams since Scooby Wright in 2014.
PFF grade: 68.7
Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan (4) scores a two-point conversion past Southern California cornerback Ceyair Wright (22) during the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Tetairoa McMillan
Position: Wide receiver
The rundown: “T-Mac” leads Arizona with 592 receiving yards, which ranks sixth in the Pac-12, and is averaging 14.8 yards per catch. The 13 touchdowns combined between McMillan and Cowing ranks first among receiving tandems in the Pac-12. McMillan has also become arguably Arizona’s top playmaker in crunch time, with a critical second-half touchdown at Mississippi State and a 2-point conversion in the fourth quarter at USC.
PFF grade: 73.2
Arizona offensive lineman Wendell Moe (72), quarterback Noah Fifita (11) and offensive lineman Jordan Morgan (77) helped the Wildcats to a dominant win over ranked Washington State on Oct. 14, 2023, in Pullman, Washington.
Wendell Moe
Position: Left guard
The rundown: Moe, who started three games last season, is one of the most improved Wildcats this season. Moe has a 85.8 pass-blocking grade from PFF. He was recently named to the midseason Freshman All-American team by Football Writer’s Association of America.
PFF grade: 70.5
Arizona cornerback Ephesians Prysock lines up for a play during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Washington State, Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023, in Pullman, Wash. (AP Photo/Young Kwak)
Ephesians Prysock
Position: Cornerback
The rundown: Prysock also snagged his first interception against Washington State. According to PFF, Prysock hasn’t surrendered a touchdown in pass coverage this season. He’s allowed 18 catches on 30 targets.
PFF grade: 59.7
Arizona offensive lineman Jonah Savaiinaea was one of the Wildcats’ most production linemen, statistically speaking, in 2023.
Jonah Savaiinaea
Position: Offensive line
The rundown: In 826 pass-blocking snaps, Savaiinaea has only allowed two sacks, per PFF. Savaiinaea has allowed Arizona’s quarterbacks to get hit once this season and has a 85.1 pass-blocking grade on PFF. He’s had 94 and 91.8 pass-blocking grades this season at right tackle and right guard.
PFF grade: 74.4
Arizona defensive lineman Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei (46) swats away a field goal attempt by Northern Arizona place kicker Marcus Lye that the Wildcats recovered and returned for a touchdown in the third quarter of their win over the Lumberjacks at Arizona Stadium on Sept. 2.
Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei
Position: Defensive line
The rundown: Uiagalelei has the second-most snaps (162) among Arizona’s reserve defensive linemen and is one of the Wildcats’ most versatile defensive linemen as an interior player and edge rusher. Uiagalelei has 13 tackles, a sack and a blocked field goal in the season-opening win over Northern Arizona.
PFF grade: 74.1
Arizona defensive lineman Isaiah Ward (90) in the first half during an NCAA college football game against Northern Arizona, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023, in Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Isaiah Ward
Position: Defensive end
The rundown: Arguably the most surprising development in Arizona’s offseason was the rise of Ward, who went from scout-team player to a mainstay in the UA defense. His 225-pound frame is undersized by normal Power 5 standards, but his length at 6-5 and speed off the edge has been effective. Ward has 13 tackles, three stops for loss and a forced fumble. He’s tied with Manu for a team-high quarterback hurries (12), per PFF.
PFF grade: 67
Extra points
Arizona enters its upcoming home matchup with No. 11 Oregon State on Saturday as five-point underdogs, according to Action Sports Network on Sunday. Fan Duel has OSU as a 5.5-point favorite, while Caesar’s Sportsbook put the Beavers as a four-point favorite to beat the Wildcats in Tucson. Through seven games, Arizona is 6-1 against the spread this season, which is among the best in college football this season. The Wildcats are 3-0 against the spread at home this season.
Both teams are coming off bye weeks — and wins. Oregon State (6-1) has won three straight games, which includes victories over Utah and UCLA. The Wildcats (4-3) recently beat No. 19 Washington State 44-6 in Pullman.
Arizona head coach Jedd Fisch talked about the Wildcats' quarterback situation, along with other interesting topics as the UA enters a bye with a 4-3 record. Video by Justin Spears / Arizona Daily Star
