“Lev it on the Field” is back for Game 2 against Weber State. It’s the Star’s unique look at Arizona’s upcoming football matchup and other happenings around the Big 12 through the eyes of UA beat reporter-turned-columnist Michael Lev. Away we go ...
Danny Gonzales might be the only defensive coordinator in the country who begins every media availability with an opening statement.
Michael Lev is a senior writer/columnist for the Arizona Daily Star, Tucson.com and The Wildcaster.
Gonzales set a personal record, at least at Arizona, on Tuesday, filibustering for 20 minutes as he dissected every defensive possession from last week’s opener against Hawaii.
Gonzales carries himself like a head coach. He was one for four years for his hometown New Mexico Lobos. Just 49 years old, Gonzales likely will get another opportunity to run a program.
For now, he’s trying make the UA defense the best it can be the only way he knows how: By demanding that it play to the highest standard.
Coordinator Danny Gonzales has high standards for Arizona’s defense. He didn’t think the Wildcats met them against Hawaii despite limiting the Rainbow Warriors to six points.
Despite Arizona limiting Hawaii to six points, taking the ball away five times and recording five sacks, Gonzales was far from satisfied.
“We allowed them 67 yards rushing,” he said, “We should have never allowed them 67 yards rushing.”
You know the last time the Wildcats allowed 67 or fewer rushing yards in a game? The blowout win over Washington State on Oct. 14, 2023. Last year’s defense allowed 175.3 rushing yards per game and held only two opponents, NAU and Utah, to less than 117 yards.
Gonzales also didn’t like that Arizona gave up 290 total yards — which was less than the Wildcats allowed against any FBS opponent last season. The Rainbow Warriors’ two longest drives — which yielded a field goal and an interception — genuinely irked him. He despises the term “bend but don’t break.”
If you’re a UA fan who’s been longing for a good defense — not average, not above average, but legitimately good — you have to like what you’re hearing from Danny G ... no matter how long those sermons last.
Arizona coach Brent Brennan flashes the Wildcat hand sign to fans as he and the team make their way to Arizona Stadium in the “Wildcat Walk” before their game against Hawaii for the season opener, Aug. 30, 2025.
Take that for data!
Brent Brennan is 1-0 against FCS opponents as Arizona’s head coach, although last year’s 22-10 win over NAU almost felt like a loss. Running backs coach Alonzo Carter even used air quotes this week when recalling how “we 'beat' Northern Arizona.”
It beat the alternative, which Arizona experienced in 2021 — easily the low point of the Jedd Fisch era.
Brennan suffered one defeat against an FCS foe while at San Jose State. SJSU lost to UC Davis 44-38 in 2018, when the Spartans’ rebuild under Brennan was still in its infancy.
Aggies running back Ulonzo Gilliam Jr. rushed for 132 yards and scored three touchdowns in his collegiate debut. He would finish his career as UC Davis’ all-time leading rusher.
Gilliam was the preseason Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year in 2022, but another running back claimed the award at year’s end: Sacramento State’s Cam Skattebo, who’d go on to star at ASU.
Brennan wouldn’t lose another FCS game at SJSU, going 5-1 — including bookend wins over Cal Poly, where he held his first full-time coaching job from 2001-04.
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Going up: Mike drops
In the past week alone, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy has lifted up his shirt at a news conference, appeared in a commercial re-enacting his famed “I’m a man! I’m 40!” speech and stirred up controversy when he talked about how much money upcoming opponent Oregon has spent on its roster. I don’t see the upside in the latter — Dan Lanning has never met a grudge he wouldn’t hold — but here at Lev it on the Field, we crave content. And Michael Ray Gundy remains a content-creating machine. I hope he’s at OSU until he’s old enough to move into the retirement home that hosted his radio show last year.
Colorado coach Deion Sanders directs his players against Georgia Tech in the first half of their game Aug. 29, 2025, in Boulder, Colo.
Going down: Clock management
It took all of one week for Colorado coach Deion Sanders’ stock to fall. CU had enough time — and timeouts — to rally against Georgia Tech last week. What ensued instead was a bungled two-minute drive that ended with an unsuccessful Hail Mary attempt from midfield. CU got the ball with 1:07 to play. By the time it got its first first down, only 18 seconds remained. Coach Prime went home with two timeouts in his pocket — then tried to defend that “strategy” afterward. Face it, Coach: You done messed up. It’s not the first time either.
A question from my X
“After one game (even though competition was not great), did the Cats change your optimism for the season? Specifically with how well they played and can be better with so many people out?” — @FauxJeddFisch
Arizona definitely moved the needle in a positive direction in Week 1. I didn’t think much of the Rainbow Warriors after watching them against Stanford, but still: 40-6 is 40-6.
And yes, the Wildcats were missing a lot of dudes in that game: Rhino Tapa’atoutai, Kris Hutson, Chris Hunter (for all but six snaps), Treydan Stukes, Riley Wilson, Marquis Groves-Killebrew, Jarra Anderson. Those are all projected starters or rotation players. Arizona might actually have real depth this year.
I also think quarterback Noah Fifita is capable of playing a lot better. He’s still adjusting to a new scheme and to playing without Tetairoa McMillan for the first time since middle school.
Look for Fifita to be much sharper this week against Weber State — Arizona’s last warmup until the 2025 season truly begins.
Baylor quarterback Sawyer Robertson throws a pass against Auburn during the first half of their game Aug. 29, 2025, in Waco, Texas.
A UCF player models the Knights’ all-black uniforms ahead of their Sept. 6, 2025, game against North Carolina A&T.
Threads
We’re big fans of the website UNISWAG. But even the greatest hitters strike out sometimes. UNISWAG gave Baylor its Uniform of the Week award last week. Couldn’t disagree more. The Bears have phenomenal school colors: green and gold. Their black-and-gold kits vs. Auburn looked like some sort of Colorado/Notre Dame/Tennessee mashup gone wrong. Shiny gold helmets? Lettering that looked more orange than gold? Didn’t work for us at all. If you want to see what a proper black-and-gold ensemble looks like, check out UCF’s uniforms this week. Bold, sleek and clean from head to toe. And that sword stripe atop the helmet? Perfection.
What he said ...
“Now that we play in a lot smaller towns, we stay further away from stadiums on road games. We stay about an hour and 20, hour and 15 minutes away from the stadium this week because that's the nearest hotel that's not a casino.” — ASU coach Kenny Dillingham on the Sun Devils’ accommodations for Saturday’s game at Mississippi State
What he meant ...
“I thought ‘it just means more’ in the SEC. Apparently, it doesn’t mean enough to build a decent hotel within an hour of Starkville. You know how many hotels are within 15 minutes of Sun Devil, er, Mountain America Stadium? Like a gazillion. You haven’t lived until you’ve had the free breakfast at the TownePlace Suites at Arizona Mills Mall.”
The other side
“I’ve got to process things a little bit quicker. I can be a little more accurate with the ball. Overall, my decision-making wasn’t too bad, but there’s a few plays I wanted back. Just getting used to the game speed, processing and accuracy is the biggest thing I need to work on.” — Weber State QB Jackson Gilkey on his first career start (via the Standard-Examiner)
Baylor coach Dave Aranda, left, shakes hands with Auburn coach Hugh Freeze following their game Aug. 29, 2025, in Waco, Texas.
Pick to click (aka #fadelev)
Better uniforms, better results? Baylor is going white/white/green for its Southwest Conference throwback matchup at SMU — a suddenly critical game for the underdog Bears (plus-2.5) after their Week 1 loss to Auburn. I’m still bullish on Baylor, whom I had in my preseason AP Top 25. I’m still a little skeptical of the Mustangs. Containing SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings will be the key. Baylor can’t let him run wild like Jackson Arnold did last week. Dave Aranda will make the necessary adjustments. If not, he’ll be right there with Gundy atop the Big 12 hot-seat list. (season record: 1-0)
One last thing
Brennan made a bunch of changes this year. One hasn’t gotten much pub, but it’s no less important than the others.
Brennan altered the in-season practice schedule. Notably, when they have a home game on a Saturday, the Wildcats are practicing at night on Thursdays instead of in the morning.
The main impetus was to get the players accustomed to being inside Arizona Stadium under the lights. But the change has a secondary benefit.
As Brennan explained in a coaches’ meeting on the debut episode of “XII Uncovered,” the new in-season documentary series on truTV and HBO MAX, “We’re trying to make Wednesday a time where coaches can get out of here at a reasonable hour, date night, be a husband and a dad for a change.”
Work-life balance? In this economy?
“There are so many instances of coaches just burying themselves in this profession — physically, mentally, emotionally,” Brennan said this week. “If we are going to ask our players to be well-rested, able to focus, able to execute at a high level — and we know that sleep is a major component of that — why would we not ask our coaches to do the same thing?”
Brennan recalled times as an assistant coach where he slept in his office. I’ve always thought that sort of behavior was overkill — that coaches only do it because their competitors are as well. Or they think they are.
Brennan is trying to bring some normalcy to a profession that is anything but. It’s an admirable goal.
