5 questions with Arizona expert
To learn more about the Beavers' upcoming opponent, BeaversEdge.com chatted with GOAZCATS.com reporter Matt Moreno, who covers the Arizona Wildcats. Check out the Q&A below!
Oregon State Beavers Football: Wednesday Report
Column: Oregon State hits the transfer jackpot
Smith goes in-depth on 2-QB system; how has Gebbia looked in practice?
1. Just how much different is this Arizona team than last year with the new coaching staff?
From a day-to-day standpoint, there are a lot of things that are different from how much access there is to the team to simply the personality of the team. It has definitely felt like a 180 in many ways. Where Rich Rodriguez was all about intensity, Kevin Sumlin has been about staying on an even keel and not getting too high or too low about things. He’s a players’ coach and that has certainly been apparent so far about nine months into his tenure at Arizona.
On the field and on game days, things are a lot different even though the message all throughout the spring is that not much would change outside of some terminology being different and maybe a few minor tweaks. The offense has been much more pass heavy than it has been in recent years, plus the team has not been as dedicated to the quarterback running the ball as the previous staff was.
It’s a change and you can definitely see the new coaching staff starting to make its own imprint on the product on the field. This staff only had room to recruit one scholarship player in the 2018 class, freshman quarterback Kevin Doyle, so as much change as there has been, this is all still being done with a roster built by Rodriguez.
2. Since Khalil Tate is such a national headline, people seem to talk about him all of the time. But you cover him from the ground. Do you think his skill set is being utilized correctly?
I don’t think his skill set it being utilized correctly, but it has become clear that is not the sole focus this coaching staff or Tate himself has for this season. I’ve covered Tate a long time going back to his high school days and although he has always had a reputation as a runner, he has thought of himself as a quarterback. He hasn’t like being called a dual-threat quarterback or a running quarterback. He simply wants to be a quarterback and he has aspirations of doing it at the next level as well.
That is why he welcomed the change to a new offensive system led by offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone that was going to call for putting the ball in the air more. Tate threw for five touchdowns in the final game of the 2017 season in a loss to Purdue showing he at least had it in him to be more of a presence in the pocket. It was a necessary change at that time because what casual observers of the team forget is that opponents figured out how to slow down Tate as a runner at the end of last year. As good as he was in October is as average as he was as a runner in November. Teams like Oregon, USC and even Arizona State found a template for slowing him down and that was to keep him in the pocket and force him to pass the ball.
One thing Tate had a tendency to do last season when he did put the ball in the air was either go for all or nothing. It put him in tough spots and led to a few interceptions that could have been avoided. He has a strong arm and there are times when he trusts that a little too much. Last week against Southern Utah is when we have seen him look his best and most efficient as a passer. He wasn’t taking as many chances and he was better making all the throws he needed to make not just the ones going down the field.
As much as fans think his lack of running is the coaching staff holding Tate back, it is also on Tate wanting to prove something about his game. There have been opportunities to run this year that he has simply not taken. There is a greater plan Tate has for himself and the coaching staff has for its quarterback and it has come with some growing pains. Remember, Tate was the one who tweeted out that he didn’t want to run the triple option when Arizona was close to hiring Navy’s head coach Ken Niumatalolo before it decided on Sumlin.
I, personally, would be surprised if he returns to running the ball like he did in October last season because I ultimately don’t think that’s what Tate wants to view himself as it has been interesting to watch so far this season.
The coaching staff has planned on turning him loose the last couple weeks but an ankle injury early in the game against Houston two weeks ago changed those plans. We’ll get to see for sure if that plan is true this week as he should be all but healed up from that injury.
3. Other than Tate, who are the offensive weapons to keep an eye on?
Because Arizona has taken to the air so much this season one group that we get to talk about more is the receiver unit that was mostly used as blockers a year ago. Shawn Poindexter is a senior receiver who was going to play college volleyball at one point in his career. It has taken him some time to get into a groove on the football field again but he has been the team’s top wideout this year and he is a favorite target of Tate. Poindexter is Arizona’s deep threat and although he only caught one pass against Southern Utah, it went for 75 yards and a touchdown.
Shun Brown is another receiver to keep an eye on as he is someone Sumlin singled out after the first loss of the season as a player who needed to have more touches. The senior slot receiver has been targeted a ton in the last two weeks and after battling through some drops against Houston he bounced back with five catches for 97 yards and two touchdowns last week.
The other receiver who has been a standout this season is another veteran, Tony Ellison. Sumlin admitted this week he didn’t think much of the senior watching him in practice, but given his opportunity he has become an important part of the receiver group this year once again. Ellison is second on the team with 247 receiving yards and tied for the team lead with two receiving touchdowns.
4. This Arizona team seems to struggle defensively. What are your thoughts on that unit?
It’s interesting because Arizona’s defense was thought to be the better side of the ball throughout camp and throughout the spring. However, you never know what you have until you play someone else and Arizona found that out in a hurry. Despite it being the third year in defensive coordinator Marcel Yates’ system the same problems continue to come up game in and game out.
Yates was one of two holdovers from the previous coaching staff and he mentioned before the season that he held himself to a high standard considering he has had ample time to get the pieces in place that he wants as part of his defense. The issues Arizona has faced defensively have been surprising but maybe they shouldn’t have been considering we have seen them before.
Where the Wildcats have been hurt most is with a reoccurring problem that goes back a few years. Third downs have given the team all kinds of issues. As Sumlin said this week, it doesn’t matter if it’s a third-and-short situation or third and long, the Wildcats simply have not been effective at getting off the field. That has cost Arizona this season and in the loss to BYU to open the season it is probably what ultimately cost the Wildcats that game.
Despite all the offensive struggles before last week, it was and is the defense that should be more concerning to Arizona right now. A rash of injuries have not helped with the Wildcats losing their starting defensive tackle PJ Johnson two weeks ago and now their starting defensive end Justin Belknap before last week’s game. Throw into that starting cornerback Jace Whittaker and last year’s starting free safety Scottie Young Jr. playing about one drive all season long because of injuries and there has been some adversity this group has had to work through. Even then, the defense simply has not made that jump we all thought it would this year and has been the most concerning part about the team up to this point.
5. What is your score prediction and why?
I know I don’t sound like someone who will pick Arizona and with just one win against an FCS opponent to its name there isn’t a ton to go off of. However, I think the win over Southern Utah did a lot for this team. Tate seemed to get things figured out a bit more last week and he looked much more like the passer he is trying to consistently become. Arizona’s run defense is not fantastic and I think that’s where the Wildcats will have issues if this does turn into a loss for the Wildcats, but I think Arizona gets it figured out enough to pull off the 38-35 win Saturday.