Arizona is again on the road this week and will face Stanford after a tough 41-14 loss to USC last week in Los Angeles. The Wildcats (4-3, 2-2 Pac-12 Conference) have lost two games after coming off a four-game winning streak.
Quarterback Khalil Tate was taken out during the third quarter in the game against USC and replaced by freshman Grant Gunnell after getting sacked six times against the Trojans. Gunnell passed for 196 yards to account for Arizona’s only two touchdowns of the game.
Head coach Kevin Sumlin said in his weekly press conference Monday that in order to progress he needs a response from his team knowing where they are, where they want to be and how they are going to get there.
Several of Arizona's offensive linemen and running backs have suffered from injuries this season. Running backs Gary Brightwell and Bam Smith plus offensive lineman Cody Creason did not compete against the Trojans last week as they work through various injuries.
Sumlin said that Stanford has stayed consistent throughout the years, so he has a pretty good idea of what his team will step into this weekend when it takes the field at Stanford Stadium.
“You've got two teams coming off two frustrating losses," he said. "... So it’s gonna be the team who gets off the mat quickest this week."
Defensive end JB Brown said that defensive coordinator Marcel Yates’ message to the defense this week has been to play better in the second half. Although Arizona has shown an ability to be to be a dominant defense in the second half in many games this season, especially in the fourth quarter, the group gave up 38 points against Washington and 24 points against USC in the second half of both games that eventually ended with two losses for the Wildcats.
“All four quarters will be preached as a team and as a defense," Brown said. "We want to come out strong and finish strong and we believe when we do that and play our best football we can win football games like that."
Starting center Josh McCauley said that being able to adjust quickly is important when players get injured and coaches have to shuffle other players around.
“Start early, establish a run, get points on the board early rather than wait all game,” McCauley said about how the Wildcats will secure a victory over Stanford Saturday afternoon.
UA has not won a game at Stanford Stadium since 2006 and has not beaten the Cardinal since 2009 when the Wildcats knocked off an Andrew Luck-led Stanford team 43-38 at Arizona Stadium. Since then there have been five consecutive losses against Stanford with the most recent one coming back in 2016 when the two teams last met.
Kickoff for Saturday's game at The Farm is set for 12:30 p.m. MST. The game will be broadcast on Pac-12 Network.
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