As quickly as Rich Rodriguez turned the Arizona Wildcats around, the program went into a funk and RichRod was let go. It was an up and down tenure for the former coach, who won 26 games his first three seasons and posted the team’s first double-digit win campaign in 16 seasons with 10 in 2014. However, three victories in 2016 was the beginning of the end and Rodriguez was jettisoned amid a scandal following the 2017 season. The Wildcats made a good hire in Kevin Sumlin, who opens a new chapter in Arizona football in Week 1 against the BYU Cougars.
This contest in Week 1 will go down Saturday, September 1, 2018 at 10:45 p.m. ET at Arizona Stadium. The game will be televised live on ESPN.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
BYU +11.5
Arizona -11.5
Over/Under 60.5
Odds Analysis
The Wildcats opened as an 11.5-point favorite and they are getting plenty of action. However, there are question marks surrounding the team and BYU is improved. The Cougars need to keep the score down to have a chance and their defense is good enough against a total that opened at 60.5.
Player to Watch
Sumlin steps into a nice situation in the desert and he can operate outside the fish bowl that was Texas AM. He inherits one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the country in Khalil Tate and scoring points shouldn’t be a problem. Tate was more of a threat on the ground last season, leading the Wildcats with 1,411 yards and 12 touchdowns while averaging 9.2 yards per carry.
Looking for a more balanced attack, and to preserve Tate’s health, Sumlin will attempt to repair the Pac-12’s worst passing team from a season ago. Arizona didn’t throw the ball much last season, but Tate was effective when he dropped back. He completed 60 percent of his throws for nearly 1,600 yards with 14 touchdowns. Tate also has plenty of play makers around him to alleviate some of the responsibility.
Coaching Angle
The Mormons in Provo don’t like losing, and after BYU suffered through its worst season since 1970, Kelani Sitake made changes to his staff. We don’t typically say offense and scoring was a problem at the base of the Wasatch Mountains, but it was last season, which was a big reason why the Cougars finished at 4-9.
Not surprisingly the upheaval took place on that side of the football. Sitake tabbed LSU line coach Jeff Grimes to be his play-caller, and five new offensive assistants joined the staff. This will be the first coordinator gig for Grimes, who looks to improve on BYU’s 17.1 points per game average from a season ago.
Matchup to Watch
BYU played well enough defensively last season to win more games than it actually did. The offense produced 17 or fewer points in eight losses, continually frustrating the team’s defenders. It’ll be up to that group to slow down Tate and the thoroughbreds in the Arizona backfield in order to have any chance of pulling off the upset. Games are usually won or lost in the trenches, though the linemen never get enough credit or blame.
Arizona’s offensive line was described as a “work in progress” by OC Noel Mazzone. Three starters from last year are gone and another, tackle Layth Friekh, is suspended. And the status of center Nathan Eldridge is in doubt as he deals with an injury. The Wildcats could be starting a brand new group up front. “We better come together pretty quickly,” Sumlin said of his offensive line. BYU’s Corbin Kaufusi excelled against the pass last year and will be asked to be a run stuffer this week.
Free ATS Pick
Winning eight games in College Station got Sumlin run out of town. If he does that in Tucson he’ll have the keys to the city. There is a good base of talent in the program and Sumlin is a great hire. His offensive schemes will work well with his personnel and scoring should come easy. Stopping the other guys? Well, that was a problem last year and could be again.
Sitake fired BYU legend Ty Detmer from his OC job and the pressure is on the third-year coach. The offense never found a rhythm last year with three QBs and a number of running backs shuffled through the lineup. The return of Tanner Mangum from injury should solidify the offense, but the Cougars are still thin at the skill spots. BYU will keep it close with their stingy defense, but the total is too high for my liking.
College Football Odds: Arizona 30, BYU 21
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