Arizona spent Saturday night looking every bit like the team in charge at Casino Del Sol Stadium.
The Wildcats rolled past Cincinnati 34-7 on Oct. 3 in front of the Family Weekend crowd, improving to 4-1 overall and 1-1 in Big 12 play. Cincinnati, also 4-1 and 1-1 in the league, never found much room to operate as Arizona controlled the game from the opening snap and finished with a 522-227 edge in total yards.
The biggest swing came in the trenches. Cincinnati arrived averaging 270 rushing yards per game through its first four contests, but Arizona slammed that door.
Brent Brennan made it clear afterward that the Bearcats were not getting the ground game they wanted: “We said no, we’re not going to let you do that,” Brennan said of the Bearcats’ rushing attack. Cincinnati managed only 74 rushing yards on 28 carries, a 2.6-yard average.
Arizona was just as punishing on offense. The Wildcats piled up 238 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground, highlighted by a 58-yard burst from Antwan Roberts Jr.
Noah Fifita kept the passing game steady as well, finishing 25-of-37 for 238 yards with two touchdown throws and one rushing score. He did throw an early interception, but settled in and did not give Cincinnati much after that.
Arizona’s first drive set the tone. The Wildcats marched 75 yards in 10 plays, ending with Kedrick Reescano’s 10-yard touchdown run.
That opening series also came with a price, as leading receiver Gio Richardson left after the drive and did not return. Chris Hunter was later ruled out in the first quarter, and Tre Spivey exited just before halftime, leaving Arizona without three starting receivers.
Even with the injuries stacking up, the defense kept the Bearcats from cashing in on two of their best chances. After Fifita’s interception gave Cincinnati the ball at the Arizona 32, the Wildcats forced a stop and watched a 53-yard field-goal try clang off the right upright. Then, in the second quarter with Arizona already ahead 7-0, the defense came through again on fourth-and-goal from the 2.
That stand helped set up a long closing march before halftime. Arizona put together a 16-play, 92-yard drive and finished it with Michael Salgado-Medina’s 23-yard field goal on the final play of the half to take a 10-0 lead. Cincinnati was limited to 106 yards in the first half.
The game opened up after the break. Roberts ripped off his 58-yard run, then fumbled at the Cincinnati 12, but Arizona kept the ball after a Bearcats linebacker illegally batted it through the back of the end zone. A few plays later, Fifita finished the drive himself with an 8-yard draw to stretch the lead to 17-0.
Arizona kept leaning on its depth at receiver, with Isaiah Mizell, Brandon Phelps and RJ Mosley starting the second half. That group paid off when Fifita hit Phelps for a 24-yard touchdown late in the third quarter to make it 24-0.
The Wildcats stayed in control in the fourth quarter as well. Salgado-Medina added a 35-yard field goal, then Fifita guided a 13-play, 71-yard drive that took more than six minutes and ended with a 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tyler Powell for a 34-0 advantage.
Arizona’s defense carried the shutout through three quarters, its first against an FBS opponent since 2009. Cincinnati finally got on the board with a 2-yard run two minutes from the end, but by then the result had long been settled.
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Arizona walked out of Casino Del Sol Stadium with the kind of conference win that can travel well, and it came on the back of a ground game that finally looked like a real calling card. In a 34-7 rout of Cincinnati in Week 5, the Wildcats piled up a season-high 238 rushing yards and kept the Bearcats from ever settling in, with Kedrick Reescano punching in a 10-yard score and Antwan Roberts and Quincy Craig helping set the tone.
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Arizona Suddenly Has Another Gio Richardson Concern
Arizona got Gio Richardson back after a two-game absence because of a leg injury, and his return was supposed to give the passing game another steady option. Instead, the receiver was forced out again early against Cincinnati, leaving after two catches for 26 yards and not coming back.
The Wildcats have had other pass-catchers and contributors step up while Richardson has been sidelined, so the offense has shown it can keep moving. Even so, any setback for a player who just rejoined the lineup is a concern, and an update from coach Brennan after the game should offer a better read on where Richardson stands now. [Read more 🡒]