We are officially one day away from the season opener between Arizona and San Diego State.

Here are three players to watch for on both teams:

Who: Arizona (0-0) at San Diego State (0-0)

When: 12:30 p.m. MST

Where: Snapdragon Stadium | San Diego, California

TV: CBS

All-time series: Arizona leads 10-6 | Last meeting (9.11.21): SDSU win 38-14

Favorite: SDSU (-6), O/U 47 1/2

Arizona:

QB Jayden de Laura

After not having too much clarity at the quarterback position entering last season, the Wildcats have that and more this year in de Laura, the transfer from Washington State. Last season, de Laura threw for 2,798 yards, 23 touchdowns and nine interceptions with the Cougars. He also added three touchdowns on the ground. de Laura comes to Tucson with the big game experience and being familiar with just about every team Arizona will play in the Pac-12.

LB Kolbe Cage

Entering camp, Jerry Roberts was the only lock at the linebacker position for Arizona. It was a training camp battle for the other starting spot that Cage went on to earn. He played in just one game last year, the Territorial Cup, so he will be a player to watch entering this season as the starter after hardly seeing the field last season. The Wildcats are going to need the linebackers to step up against an Aztecs offense that usually looks to establish the run game and will have a dual-threat quarterback under center this year.

OL Jonah Savaiinaea

While the rest of the offensive line has a good amount of experience, Savaiinaea earned the starting role at right guard as a true freshman. The three-star recruit was able to work with the Wildcats coaching staff this offseason to get in the best shape he could be in. Savaiinaea and the rest of the Arizona offensive line will have their hands full against a tough San Diego State defensive line as well as a number of playmakers in the defensive backfield.

San Diego State:

QB Braxton Burmeister

After two years each at Oregon and Virginia Tech, Burmeister transferred to San Diego State where he will play his final year of college football. Last season when the Wildcats opposed the Aztecs, it was Jordon Brookshire under center for San Diego State, and he wasn't too much of a threat as a runner. It will be a different test against Burmeister, who ran for 521 yards last season. He will be a big test for the Arizona defense to open the season.

S Patrick McMorris

A first-team All-Mountain West safety last season, McMorris hauled in four interceptions as part of an Aztecs defensive unit that caught a conference-high 17 interceptions. The senior will be flying all over the field just about the entire game, so he will be someone de Laura will want to keep an eye on all afternoon. He is part of a very experienced defensive backfield for San Diego State this season.

WR Jesse Matthews

The Aztecs return their leading wide receiver last season in Matthews, who hauled in 57 passes for 642 yards and nine touchdowns. While San Diego State is usually known as a run-heavy offense, they lost their lead rusher from last season in Greg Bell, who ran for almost 1,100 yards and nine touchdowns. With it looking more like a committee approach in the backfield this season for the Aztecs, it is possible San Diego State goes with a more balanced approach this year compared to last season where they ran the ball 571 times compared to just 361 pass attempts. Matthews will be the top pass catcher to keep an eye on for the Aztecs.

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