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247Sports · Jason Scheer

5d ago
Game Preview: Arizona looks for win at Washington State
Summary
Game breakdown: Arizona heads to Washington State on Saturday to take on the Cougars as the Wildcats look to move to 3-1 on the season.
Arizona heads to Washington State on Saturday to take on the Cougars as the Wildcats look to move to 3-1 on the season. Defensively, Arizona is going to focus on containing Washington State quarterback Cade Pinnick. Although his passing numbers aren't impressive this season, Pinnick is an above average athlete that can hurt teams with his legs. "Caden Pinnick is a really good quarterback," Arizona defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales said. "He's athletic. He's done some really good things in the first three weeks. He was a freshman All-American at Davis. He's a really dang good player and they're big up front, so we've got a great challenge ahead." Washington State has three players that have rushed for over 150 yards and Arizona head coach Brent Brennan expects the Cougars to give them different looks in the run game. "I think they're all a little bit different," Brennan said. "They do a good job mixing up the personnel packages, which is something that I think is really challenging. Just making sure that you're matching personnel when they're bringing in heavier sets or big tight ends or going back to 11 personnel. I think that's going to be something that our defense is going to have to be on point with. "I think that obviously Kirby's a smart coach and so he's going to be really creative with what they do offensively, with what his background is and where he's been and the people he's been around and what he's grown up in. We're expecting to be really challenged that way. With different running backs, they also have a really good tight end that they'll move around. They have good receivers. They've got a playmaker in Daniel Blood that they're going to move all over the place." Arizona and Washington State have faced off 47 times previously, with games dating back to 1963 and the Wildcats holding a commanding 28-19 lead in the all-time series. The Wildcats won the most recent matchup, 44- 6, toppling the No. 19 ranked Cougars in Pullman. It was QB Noah Fifita's first win as the Arizona starting quarterback. "It brings back memories going back to Pullman," Fifita said. "I remember the feeling in that locker room afterward was super special, just being able to get that first win under my belt. That's what started it all off.Looking forward to getting back to Pullman and trying to do the same job." Predictions Jason Scheer (3-0): Before the season, this game scared me because I think the road trip to Pullman is a different one and generally the Cougars have a tough team. Having watched two Washington State games this season, I'm backing off that a bit. Special teams changed the game against Duquesne and it never should have been close while the Cougars looked terrible against Kansas State. I just don't think that Washington State will be able to get enough of an offense going in this one and the Cougars aren't built at all to come from behind. Arizona 27, Washington State 13 Shelby Scheer (2-1): This is an important game for Arizona because the schedule is about to become a lot more difficult after this weekend. Washington State isn't a very good team right now and a large part of it is quarterback play. When looking at possible upsets, I always go back to the quarterback and Noah Fifita is way better than Cade Pinnick will probably ever be. Expect Arizona to key on the run and force Pinnick to throw the ball as the Wildcats finally force a turnover or two. Arizona 38, Washington State 14

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Teams: Arizona

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