Arizona is heading into Week 5 with a little momentum and a few lingering questions.
The Wildcats come off a 34-24 road win at Washington State, a result that wasn’t always clean but did enough to keep their non-conference slate unbeaten. Next up is Cincinnati, which arrives at 4-0 overall and 1-0 in conference play after knocking off Kansas State 31-26 at home in Week 4.
Brent Brennan spent part of the week digging into why Arizona’s starts have been so uneven. His answer was blunt: the early mistakes have been self-inflicted.
“First play the game you give up a sack, and then drop a 35-yard pass, and so to me there's like some mistakes there. It's kind of that simple, right?
Like we're a rhythm offense, and we need to get into that kind of momentum. I think for our defense, there's always going to be a little bit of a learning curve for our defensive staff because we are different.
There's no opponent film that they can watch and say, oh, that's what they're going to do against this, because no one plays what we play.”
Brennan also addressed the progress of key offensive pieces, including Mahdi, saying the timing of that improvement matters as the season moves along.
“There's been a lot of conversation about it...there was a little bit of a time for him just getting kind of comfortable. I'm excited that I feel like the process is accelerating, and we're starting to see better versions of [Mahdi]. I think the timing of that is good with where we are in season right now.”
He was just as upbeat about Jet, but made clear the story is still being written.
“Let's see what he does at the end of the season. Let's see what that thing looks like as time goes.
Like that's the hardest part for freshmen, the season's longer, the practices are longer, everything's more intense, the reps are way more intense. I'm so excited for Jet.
He's worked super hard. He's a very mature young man.
It's important to him right away. He had the respect of the team because of how hard he worked.
When he got here, he was just like that. The plays he made in critical situations were just tremendous.”
Brennan also pointed to confidence as the biggest difference for another contributor, saying the player is operating faster and with more certainty now.
“I think he's just playing with confidence. I think he knows what to do.
I think there's always some of that when a new player that hasn't played the game yet for you, and I think that is showing up for him. He's playing with confidence and he's playing fast, and that's showing up to a lot of positive plays for him.”
In Other News...
Arizona Offense Faces Its Biggest Identity Test Yet Against Cincinnati
Arizona is about to get a good read on itself in a Big 12 matchup that feels like a style clash as much as a conference game. The Wildcats have leaned on Noah Fifita and the passing game, with the quarterback leading the team in both passing yards and touchdowns, while Cincinnati brings a different kind of pressure with a run-first approach led by Gi'Bran Payne and Cole Tabb. Both teams are coming off wins, so this one arrives with some momentum on both sides and a chance for Arizona to keep its offensive rhythm intact against a defense built to test it.
Cincinnati also has enough balance to make life interesting, with JC French IV showing efficient play through the air even as the ground game drives the identity of the offense. For Arizona, the bigger question is how well its attack holds up if the game is forced into a different kind of tempo, one where possessions matter and every series has to answer the challenge of Cincinnati's physical approach. The Wildcats have been comfortable playing one way so far, but this matchup is the kind that can expose whether that comfort is really a strength or just a starting point. [Read more 🡒]