With nonconference play in the rearview mirror, Arizona turns its full attention to the Big 12 schedule and battling for a spot in the conference championship. The Wildcats (3-1, 0-1) have an uphill battle after losing their opener at BYU in Week 2 and will try to avoid their first 0-2 league start since 2021.
Visiting Cincinnati (4-0, 1-0) is off to its best start since that same year, when it won its first 13 games and reached the College Football Playoff. The Bearcats are making their first trip
to Tucson.
How will the Wildcats do in front of a Family Weekend crowd? Our staff makes its predictions.
Kim Doss — Arizona wins 31-28
Not only does Cincinnati run the ball well, but the Bearcats also take care of the ball very well. They have yet to throw an interception this year and have two lost fumbles. In comparison, the Wildcats have now thrown three picks and have the same two lost fumbles. The visitors are averaging over 40 points per game against a schedule that lacks a highly regarded team like BYU but is otherwise fairly comparable to Arizona’s slate. Both teams rank in the 40s in scoring defense, allowing around 20 points per game. The big difference is that the Wildcats have already been on the road twice, while the Bearcats are playing their first game away from Cincinnati. If UC continues with its tendencies, it should be a closer game than the odds predict, but having to come across the country to play its first true road game should tilt this one in Arizona’s favor.
Ezra Amacher — Arizona wins 34-30
Big 12 play starts in earnest on Saturday night with a matchup that should feature a good amount of offense. Cincinnati has scored more than 30 points in each of its first four games, and I expect the Bearcats to challenge a Wildcats front seven that has shown some holes. Cincinnati is third in the country with 16 rushing touchdowns, so the Arizona defense will have to be sharp on their side of the field to precent the Bearcats’ running back duo Gi’Bran Payne and Cole Tabb of from breaking free too many times. Ultimately, I think this game hinges on the ability of the Arizona offense to convert in the red zone and gain enough separation from a pesky Cincinnati team.
Adam Green — Arizona wins 27-20
This is such an interesting game for Arizona. The Wildcats are probably more talented, they’re at home and the start time is very, very late. All of that is helpful for the home team, who I believe will win the game.
However, it’s not likely to be pretty or particularly explosive if Cincinnati can do what it does best, which is run the ball. Longer drives and fewer possessions could keep this one tight most of the way. However if Arizona can get an early lead (in this economy?!) and force the Bearcats to pass or even internally quit given the travel and start time then yeah, it could get sideways in all of the best ways.
Juan Serrano — Arizona wins 35-27
The matchup to watch this week is the Cincinnati rushing attack against the run defense of Arizona. The Bearcats have shown an ability to run the ball well and this is where they will try to establish themselves. Arizona’s rush defense is improved so far this season, outside of BYU but that came down more to a battle of physicality. As long as the Wildcats can keep Cincinnati’s runs to a minimum, they will be in a position to win the game.
We know that Noah Fifita and the offense can pass the ball all the live long day. Tre Spivey, Caleb Smith, and others have stepped up in the absence of Giovanni Richardson. Where the game can become wide open for Arizona is if the fourth quarter run game that showed up in Pullman travels to Casino Del Sol Stadium. The offense can become almost unstoppable. Ismail Mahdi, Quincy Craig, and Kedrick Reescano need to return to the three-headed monster that showed up at the end of last season for the Wildcats offense to be complete. Brent Brennan is 0-2 in “Family Weekend” games, but I think that changes on Saturday and Arizona moves to .500 in Big 12 play.
Brandon Combs — Arizona wins 31-21
This is a game should be somewhat simple for Arizona. Yes, Cincinnati is coming in undefeated, but they haven’t had to play in the desert late at night. Not to mention, their offense isn’t exactly high-powered nor balanced. They had a great rushing attack, but their passing game is not great. Arizona has done relatively well stopping the run this season, so if they can make the Bearcats one dimensional it’ll be an easier task to degrade any chances of success.
Offensively, Arizona has to avoid starting slow. Cincinnati is not a team that is built to come from behind, but if they jump out early like Wazzu did last week, their offense can eat up the clock if they need to. The offense has to start fast and maintain that pace while avoiding some of the issues we’ve seen so far this year. In the end, I believe Arizona will win this game and get to an even conference record.
Brian Pedersen — Arizona wins 34-27
Cincinnati is off to its best start in five years, but like Arizona it has needed to bounce back from big early deficits, so there will be urgency from both teams to start fast and avoid past mistakes. The Bearcats have a tremendous run game, something the Wildcats have been good at slowing down this season, and if they can continue that trend they’ll have the advantage.
With an 11 p.m. local time start, Cincinnati will be dealing with body clock issues that should work in the UA’s favor. As long as Arizona doesn’t cough up the ball and finds just a little offensive balance it should improve to 4-1 for the first time since 2018.
2026 Season record
(straight up/against the spread)
Kim Doss (4-0/3-1)
Ezra Amacher (4-0/3-1)
Adam Green (4-0/2-2)
Brandon Combs (4-0/1-3)
Juan Serrano (3-1/0-4)
Brian Pedersen (3-1/2-2)
