It is officially game week with Arizona now just days away from its season opener. Head coach Jedd Fisch met with the media Monday to look ahead to the week of work for his team as it gets ready for a matchup with BYU this Saturday in Las Vegas. The Wildcats have yet to release their depth chart for the first game, but Fisch did provide a bit more insight into his team a week out of camp.

Here's a rundown of some notable topics the first-year UA head coach addressed while meeting with reporters Monday afternoon.

Like most teams during camp Arizona had to deal with a few of its players being banged up at different points throughout the last several weeks. Many of the injuries hit the Wildcats' defensive line, but throughout camp Fisch remained adamant that his squad would return to mostly full health by the time the season opener arrived. According to Fisch that remains on track as he is expecting nearly all the previously injured players to return to practice this week when the team hits the field Tuesday afternoon.

Receiver Jamarye Joiner will still need a couple weeks before he is ready to return after offseason foot surgery, but Fisch remains confident that most of his team will be available to practice leading up the game against BYU.

At this point the plan is to bring 80 players on the trip out to Las Vegas.

That is particularly good news for UA's players up front on defense considering there are a lot of options to play along the defensive line and at the linebackers spots when everyone is healthy. Those two position groups had unfinished battles last week, but Fisch says the staff has settled on a group that should see most of the time this weekend.

"In terms of the defensive line it seems as if everybody's back at this point," Fisch said. "So feel good about Jalen [Harris] and Mo [Diallo] and Tre [Trevon Mason] and JB [Brown] and Kyon [Barrs] and Paris [Shand] all being available I believe. And then plus, plus, plus other guys give you opportunities to get certain reps in there as well. Tank [Dion Wilson Jr.] is another one.

"Then our linebacker corps you got Tre [Treshaun Hayward], you got [Anthony] Pandy, Jerry [Roberts], Kenny [Hebert] and then Rashie [Hodge]. So, you got those five guys, and Malik [Reed], that'll be rotating in different packages based on what we're trying to get done defensively. I would assume we'll see all six of those backers and all seven or eight of the defensive linemen playing."

It has been just under a week since Fisch announced his plans to use two quarterbacks in the opener against BYU. At this point that remains in place, but Fisch did acknowledge Monday that there has been some separation between Gunner Cruz and Will Plummer since the UA head coach made his announcement. Cruz is still in line to get the start Saturday night, but Plummer will be available for the team to use at any point. Fisch was asked about a hypothetical scenario in which Cruz leads two touchdown drives right out of the gate Saturday and what it would mean for Plummer.

Fisch referred to that scenario as "champagne problem" and said he's "not bound to put another person in if we have two touchdown drives in a row."

He then pointed to the previous success at Arizona back in 1998 when the Wildcats featured a two-quarterback system with Ortege Jenkins and Keith Smith en route to a one-loss season. Though he is not locked in on having both quarterbacks take the field in each game this season, Fisch does believe it is capable of leading to good fortune on the field.

"As we continue to evaluate that we'll make decisions on how much separation is actually occurring," he said about the current competition. "Right now we plan on playing them both. How much? We're not sure yet. We'll see what that looks like. We'll see how the game goes.

"There's certainly an opportunity for a little platoon system, but right now they've embraced it, they're working hard at it. They're working hard at getting better. I think there's been success here in the past of a two-quarterback system. From what I understand I think in 1998 there was a two-quarterback system and they went 12-1. So, we'll see what that looks like. Not saying it's gonna look like that, but I do know that it has happened here before."

Earlier in the day Monday the program announced that redshirt juniors Harris and Stanley Berryhill III will change jersey numbers after winning the competition to wear No. 1 on their uniforms this season. Just who has been involved in the battle has been kept close to the vest by Fisch, but for what he wants the number to represent for his team Harris and Berryhill certainly fit the profile. Both players have strong connections to the program in their own way, and both players have arguably been the best players this offseason on their respective sides of the ball.

Harris and Berryhill both were named team captains last Friday and that is when they each learned they would be switching numbers this season. For Fisch the competition, which featured nine players, was more than simply awarding the players that performed best this offseason.

He wants it to mean more and felt he had two worthy candidates when it came time to make a decision. In addition to not missing any practices, not being late to any meetings and handling their work inside the classroom there were other factors that played into both players ultimately being the ones to earn the jersey number.

"They were certainly two guys that made sure everybody worked extremely hard," Fisch said. "They really are everything that a Wildcat should be. They're people that give back to the community, they're people that love being Arizona Wildcats. They're both Arizona natives. They're both people that dreamt of playing here, and they both are accomplishing that.

"They'll both start, and I'm proud of both of those guys. They wanted to be in the derby, and they've done a great job winning the jerseys."

The NCAA allows teams to have two of the same jersey numbers if those players are on opposite sides of the ball, so it allowed Fisch to reward both Harris and Berryhill. Harris previously wore No. 49 as an ode to his father, Sean, who played for the Wildcats and wore that number during the Desert Swarm era.

His younger brother Jason is not expected to change his jersey to continue that tradition as Fisch said Monday the plan is for the younger Harris brother to remain in his No. 6 this season.

When Fisch was hired back in December he knew the day would ultimately come when he would get an opportunity to lead his own team out on the field for the first time. The first-time head coach will get that chance this Saturday, but before he can reach that point there is plenty of work to do in the coming days.

Still, Fisch is excited about his opportunity and said Monday that he has been in contact with some of his closest friends and mentors in coaching getting some guidance ahead of his first game as a head coach. Vic Fangio and Josh McDaniels are two coaches he spoke with Monday morning, and Fisch anticipates he will have more conversations with other coaches this week ahead of Saturday's game.

Though there is certainly plenty of anticipation for Fisch he understands his new role comes with increased responsibilities. Fisch said Monday that he's gone from "the guy that makes suggestions to the guy that makes decisions" alluding to his new increased responsibilities after being an assistant for his entire career.

"Not only are you responsible for managing the game, but also responsible for being the offensive play caller," Fisch said. "Making sure that the game plan is what we want it to be, making sure that the quarterbacks are ready to go, installing every offensive play this week to make sure we're all on the same page on how we want it to look. Game management is a huge part of it.

"Excited about really this privilege of being a head coach. We got great coaches that I can rely heavily on ... so I know that the team's gonna be in a great spot. They're gonna know what to do, but we still have to go out and execute it. That's the key right now, and obviously as the head coach you're responsible for what the team looks like."

Arizona's matchup with BYU is set for 7:30 p.m. MST at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas this Saturday night.

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