Khalil Tate was back for this game after a hamstring problem last week, but he totally destroyed the CU Buffs with his polished passing skills on this fall afternoon.
404 Yards passing and there was no stopping Tate. He made some pretty impressive passes with 3 for TD’s.
Everybody was saying how Tate and AZ had to run more this game, but Sumlin and Mazzone had different plans. Just let Tate pass… And that was pretty much it…
The defense did a pretty decent job making Colorado settle for Field Goals instead of touchdowns. They did just enough to help seal this victory.
One thing is for sure the Colorado Buffaloes will not miss Khalil Tate!!
Going forward the Wildcats have some tough games coming up, but I think this win will definitely build confidence for the next few games.
This was a great victory and it was just what the Wildcats needed to regain some confidence going forward.
The first quarter was a disaster for both teams, but the Arizona defense stepped up and was able to get some key stops and interceptions.
The highlight play of the game was Khalil Tate’s 84-yard run that ended with a touchdown. We didn’t really see much of this last year, but it was good to see a glimpse of the old Tate back.
The rushing by Arizona was definitely a game changer and they were able to put up over 300 yards rushing on offense. In fact, on one drive they rushed every down and were able to completely dominate the Texas Tech defense.
Gary Brightwell had a solid game and put up 85 yards with 2 TD’s. It looked like he got a lot more playing time because J.J. Taylor looked injured.
The solid play on defense was also a factor. They were able to get key stops that helped solidify this win.
One downside was the special teams with a missed extra point and missed field goal. In addition it looks like the punter doesn’t kik the ball very far. This needs to be corrected quickly. Arizona needs all the points it can get this season.
Looking forward, the Wildcats next opponent id UCLA. This is definitely a winnable game for the Wildcats if they can keep this momentum going forward.
This game was supposed to honor the late great legendary coach Dick Tomey, but it instead made us realize that great coaching is just not there these days – especially at Arizona. As a result, AZ loses this game 45-38.
For the Wildcats, this game was just a continuance of the awful season last year. Kevin Sumlin, Noel Mazzone and Marcel Yates got outcoached all game by a mediocre Hawaii team. Let that sink in for minute.
Here are the game highlights:
The lackluster defense made the starting Hawaii QB Cole McDonald look like a Heisman Trophy winner even though he threw four interceptions.
In addition, Cedric Byrd looked like Jerry Rice playing out there – he was catching everything. He had 4 touchdowns.
Rushing 3 players just does not work for this AZ team. They simply are not strong enough to put pressure on the QB with 3 guys. As a result McDonald had plenty of time to find open receivers.
Khalil Tate overall did a decent job and we saw some flashes of his running ability throughout the game, but it just was not enough.
The costly interception in the red zone was a game changer and plays like that crush momentum.
Tate almost had an unbelievable run during the final play of the game, but was tackled one yard short of the endzone. Here is the clip:
Tate Tackled One Yard Short Of Endzone
Another comedic highlight of the game was during a field goal attempt the Wildcats got three penalties in a row. This just shows a real lack of discipline, but this was apparent throughout the whole game.
Overall, this was a horrible start to the Wildcats football season and if they consistently play like this throughout the season there will not be many wins. Expect Arizona Stadium to be nearly empty this year…
