Three Things Arizona Coach Brent Brennan Said ahead of the Cowboys’ Trip to Tucson

Year 2 of the Brent Brennan era is off to a 3-1 start for the Wildcats, but they return home to host to Cowboys after a rough Saturday in Ames.

Arizona fell to Iowa State 39-14 last week. Oklahoma State and Arizona will play at 2 p.m. (Central) Saturday in Tucson with both teams hoping to get right.

Brennan met with reporters Monday to recap Iowa State and preview his squad’s upcoming game against the Cowboys. Here are three things he said.

1. Wildcats Will Get Cowboys’ ‘Best Shot’

With Arizona playing in Ames last weekend (which is about 1,500 miles from Tucson), much of the media’s questions Monday had to do with that battle with the cyclones.

But Brennan did get into Oklahoma State briefly. Here’s what he said.

“I think their quarterback is a dual-threat guy, and he can be a problem with his arm and his legs,” Brennan said. “They’ve got a really good group of receivers, and they’ve done a good job of putting together guys that are explosive and then also some big-bodied guys. Their running back is a good player. On defense they have a lot of experience, especially in the secondary, guys that have had a ton of snaps. And then their defensive front is big and long.

“The story and all the stuff they’re going through, we’re gonna get their best shot on Saturday and we know that.”

2. Case of the Drops?

After producing a first-round NFL wide receiver last year, the Wildcats have had an early case of the drops this season.

Arizona has dropped 11 passes in its first four games, according to PFF, which is the second-most in the Big 12 trailing only Kansas State (bad year to catch the ball as Wildcats). On top of that, Arizona’s PFF receiving grade of 58.9 for the season is the second worst in the conference, ahead of only OSU.

A former receiver at UCLA, Brennan said he’s been stressing catch and tuck.

“The old-school way … the coach would just yell at you and say, ‘Catch the effing ball,'” Brennan said. “That was the coaching point. That’s like the worst coaching point of all time. For me, just having played the position, I’m more of trying to talk to the player, ‘Where’d you miss it?’ …

“So many of our young people spend so much time watching the NFL, and all those guys do all this crazy stuff with the football. And those guys can do that crazy stuff with the football when they get to the NFL but not when they’re playing for the University of Arizona.”

3. Arizona Coming off First Loss

After a disappointing 4-8 start to the Brent Brennan era of Arizona football, the Wildcats started this year hot, winning their first three games. But they suffered their first L last week.

Arizona was 3-1 last year as well (winning their first two before splitting their next two). So, the next step for the Wildcats would be making sure one loss doesn’t turn into eight.

“I’ve said ad nauseam in here that I’m not looking backwards,” Brennan said. “I’m thinking about this football team, this year and the University of Arizona. And so are the players. That’s where they’re at. This is a much different team — 62 new players. I’m excited to see how we respond to practice (Tuesday). That’s what I want to see. That’s what I want to see.”