A Big 12 Conference matchup will also serve as a reunion when Arizona visits West Virginia on Saturday in Morgantown, W.Va.
Mountaineers coach Rich Rodriguez, in the second year of his second stint at the school, coached Arizona from 2012-17. This marks the first time Arizona has faced one of its former head coaches since 1992.
West Virginia (3-2, 0-2 Big 12) has dropped two in a row, most recently a 45-42 shootout at Iowa State despite 376 yards of total offense and four total touchdowns from quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr.
Hawkins is second in the FBS with 18 total touchdowns, one behind Oregon State’s Braden Atkinson.
Hawkins and Cam Cook (652 yards, five TDs) are part of a two-headed rushing attack that ranks third nationally with 294 yards per game.
Arizona (4-1, 1-1) is 11th in FBS against the run, allowing 79 rushing yards per game. In last week’s 34-7 home win over Cincinnati, a team which came in averaging 270 yards per game, the Wildcats held the Bearcats to just 74 on the ground.
The Wildcats have won three straight but find themselves needing to go deep into their wide receiver corps after all three starters were injured last game. Leading receiver Tre Spivey, who has 22 catches for 314 yards and four TDs, has already been ruled out for the season with a foot injury.
“I think this is a great opportunity for a few of (the younger receivers) to step up and really find a way to contribute positively,” Arizona coach Brent Brennan said.
Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita, the school’s career passing leader, will be making his 40th consecutive start. He has thrown for 1,415 yards and 13 TDs this season and faces a West Virginia defense that is near the bottom of the Big 12 in almost every category.
“I didn’t see anything, like even defensively, that we can’t fix,” Rodriguez said. “We just have to have the urgency to fix those things right away.”
The Mountaineers won the first meeting between the new conference foes, 31-26 in 2024, when they visited Tucson.
–Field Level Media
