No matter the result, last weekend’s game at Iowa State was going to lead to a recalibration of expectations for this year’s Arizona Wildcats.
And so the loss has, albeit to varying degrees.
On the one hand you have some who believe it was a sign that the Wildcats are not a team with staying power, that their fast start to the season was more a byproduct of a soft schedule than any substantial roster improvements.
On the other hand there are folks who saw the loss, one they expected to see, and are confident
that Arizona is still a pretty good team but just happened to lose to what might be the best team in the conference on the road.
Both scenarios can be true at once, at least to a point.
Arizona’s 39-14 defeat was certainly disappointing because it was hoped — even if not totally expected — that the Cats would at least be competitive. The truth is they never really threatened Iowa State, although aspects of the box score would seem to show that the road team did put up a bit of a fight.
Of course Arizona’s miscues, such as a missed field goal, two interceptions, questionable return decisions and some missed tackles were more than enough to give one of the best teams in the nation an additional edge it really didn’t need, and the final score reflected that along with the talent disparity between the rosters.
So while the Wildcats were hardly perfect in their 3-0 start, the quality of opponents allowed for them to win games in spite of their mistakes. At the same time, the remaining schedule shows just two teams currently ranked in the top 25, and they are No. 23 BYU and No. 25 Arizona State.
Arizona was never going to go undefeated and the idea that they were going to challenge for a Big 12 title was a bit outlandish, and the loss to Iowa State showed why. However, it was clear even in that game that the Wildcats are improved over last season both in terms of talent and coaching, and with the opponents left will have a legitimate chance to win games the rest of the way.
According to SharpCollegeFootball’s Beta Rank Arizona is currently the 57th-best team in the country, while ESPN’s FPI places the school 52nd.
The numbers can and will change as more games are played, but the overall point is Arizona’s 4-game body of work points to a decent, but not great team.
That’s fine with us, right?
Readjusted expectations aside, most all of us would have gladly taken a 3-1 start and been plenty satisfied with a season that ends in a bowl game. Yes it was fun to dream about the Wildcats being this year’s Sun Devils and making a run to Arlington and the CFP and the reality check in Ames wasn’t ideal, but it does not mean the team and program cannot still take a massive step forward.
That’s really what this season is all about, showing that while 2023 may have been a bit of an aberration the same can be said about 2024.
The Wildcats have a great opportunity to show that this weekend against a wounded Oklahoma State team that comes to Tucson as one of the country’s worst. While last weekend represented a measuring stick game for Arizona, this weekend could provide a get-right opportunity.
It’s also a chance to have a real letdown, the kind of which can set the season upon a different and disappointing course. Coming into the game around a 21-point favorite, you figure the players are aware of the fact they are supposed to win the game rather easily.
They need to know they can also lose.
“To me it still comes back to us really living the Red Line,” head coach
said about his players handling the narrative of being a heavy favorite that is supposed to win comfortably. “Are we playing with 100/100 effort, are we executing at an incredibly high level? Are we accountable for how we play, how we prepare, how we recover, all these things leading up to game time so that we can keep building momentum every single day.
“There’s always all that stuff swirling out there, it really doesn’t matter what week it is, there’s always all that stuff out there. So for our players, can we really focus on our process and really be locked in to what we have to get done right now, and then the next morning and the next morning and stay locked into that space. I think that gives us a better chance to play the kind of football we want to play.”
A sign of Arizona’s growth both in roster quality and mentality would be to see the Wildcats assert themselves from the jump, with an efficient and at times explosive offense complemented by a defense that flies around and makes big plays. Be it better talent, more motivation, better uniforms, something to do with whatever Red Line is, the home crowd or anything else, it is important that the Wildcats put last week behind them and show that they are still the team that had everyone excited a couple weeks ago, the one that will have a chance every time it steps on the field.
