Getting to six wins in college football matters differently to each program. For the ones with a legitimate chance to play for a national title it’s just one stop on the road to the playoffs.
But for most
FBS schools, hitting the 6-win mark has much more significance. It means bowl eligibility has been secured, and with more than 40 postseason contests it all but guarantees an extra game to play.
That’s where Arizona (5-3, 2-3 Big 12) finds itself with four games remaining in the 2025 season. One more victory and it will be playing in a bowl for the second time in three years after going without one the previous five, a stretch that included a school-record 20-game losing streak.
Getting back to a bowl game won’t completely erase the disappointment of 2024, which saw the Wildcats go from 10 wins the year before to 4-8 in Brent Brennan’s first season. But it does signify a sign of improvement, something the program had to show this fall.
According to Brennan, though, the ‘B’ word has not been discussed this week in preparation for Saturday’s Homcoming game against Kansas (5-4, 3-3).
“Where we choose to live is in a one-week window, and that’s really what it is for us every single week,” he said Thursday.
At San Jose State, Brennan’s teams qualified for bowl games in three of seven seasons and were a win shy two other times. Each time his Spartan squads became bowl-eligible on the first try.
Over the previous 30 seasons, Arizona has secured that sixth win on the first try on seven of 19 opportunities, including the last two times it went bowling 2023 and 2017. In between was the 2018 season when the Wildcats were 5-5 with two games left only to lose by 41 at Washington State and then blow a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Arizona’s last three bowl eligibility-clinching wins have come at Arizona Stadium, with the last two also coming on Homecoming.
Here’s what to watch for when the Wildcats and Jayhawks meet on Saturday afternoon:
Record watch
Noah Fifita threw his first touchdown pass during garbage time of a 2022 loss at Utah, not surprisingly finding best friend Tetairoa McMillan for a 2-yard score with 57 seconds left. T-Mac went on to catch 12 more TDs from Fifita in 2023-24.
Following another 4-TD performance at Colorado, the third of this season and sixth of his career, the redshirt junior sits at 65 TD passes. That’s two behind the school record set by Willie Tuitama from 2005-08 and matched by Nick Foles from 2009-11.
After an uneven start, Fifita is putting together a tremendous season. His completion percentage is up to 65.4 percent, with only four interceptions on 254 attempts (he had 12 in 430 throws last season).
“I think Noah is really getting more comfortable with what we’re doing,” Brennan said. “When you think about it, there’s a lot of new pieces in there. The more they play together, the more they feel the speed of the game. But you’re only as good as your last week. I’m excited about where we’re at. I think it can be better. I think there’s more there. And I’m excited to see us put our foot on the gas pedal and keep going.”
Over the last four games, Arizona’s offense is averaging 37 points and 414.9 yards (6.03 per play).
A potential shootout
The Wildcats may need to score in the 30s or beyond to beat a Kansas team that has no shortage of offensive weapons. That starts with senior quarterback Jalon Daniels, who like Fifita has put up great passing numbers with only three picks against 20 TDs but who also run for more than 1,200 yards with 21 scores in his career.
“He really is a dynamic player in both his ability to make every throw and his ability to run it effectively,” Brennan said of Daniels, who is in his sixth season and will be making his 43rd start for the Jayhawks.
Mobile quarterbacks have been a mixed bag for Arizona to deal with. It was able to contain Hawaii’s Micah Alejado (who was hobbled by an ankle injury) and Kansas State’s Avery Johnson during nonconference play but Big 12 passers Bear Bachmeier of BYU and Connor Weigman of Houston tore the Wildcat defense apart in consecutive weeks. Colorado’s QBs weren’t particularly effective running the ball, but Kansas coach Lance Leipold figures to include the QB run in his attack while also going with convention runs.
The Jayhawks have a pair of seniors in Leshon Williams and Daniel Hinshaw Jr. who have combined for 724 yards and 10 TDs.
Kansas’ defense, on the other hand, has struggled stopping the run and the pass. Three opponents have run for 200-plus and the 29 pass plays of 20 or more yards are tied for fourth-most in the Big 12.
Not surprisingly, the over/under for Saturday (57.5, per FanDuel Sportsbook) is the highest of the season.
Fans in the stands
Brennan said more than 1,000 athletic alumni have signed up for a tailgate ahead of the 1:30 p.m. MT kickoff, part of the Homecoming activities surrounding the game. Ex-Wildcat standout Antoine Cason is the honorary captain and other former players are likely to get recognized during the afternoon.
Will that translate into a good crowd? Who knows with this fan base.
Early in the season it was the late kickoffs that served as a top excuse not to come to Arizona Stadium, but Saturday will be the third straight home game starting at 5 p.m. or earlier. The first of those, against Oklahoma State, started at noon with temperatures in the 90s and then the big clash with BYU was impacted by the remnants of a hurricane.
The high on Saturday is forecast to be 84, with sunny and clear skies. Kansas is also going for bowl eligibility. And Arizona is coming off a 35-point win at Colorado.
The BYU game, on Family Weekend, had an announced crowd of 47,960 but like all ones previous this season was much smaller in terms of actual people in attendance. The only place where the stands were packed was the student section.
“The students showing up, I do believe the students control the energy of the stadium,” Brennan said. “I really do. Their excitement, their enthusiasm, like the fun that they have leading up to the game, and then translated into kind of the impact they can have on the game is so important for us here.”
