Arizona Wildcats prepare for Pac-12 South showdown vs UCLA

With a business trip to Pasadena this weekend, the Wildcats are in control of their own destiny for the Pac-12 South. Holding a 6-1 record, the Wildcats find themselves ranked #14 in the nation, one spot ahead of Arizona State. Meanwhile the UCLA Bruins come into the game 6-2, ranked #25 in the country.

UCLA came into the season with College Football Playoff aspirations, but with a disappointing 6-2 start, the Bruins chance at even the Pac-12 South seems to dwindle after each week. UCLA has struggled all season long, with 5 of 6 victories being decided by less than 8 points against not so great teams. Coming off a double OT win against Colorado, it’s almost certain that UCLA is the most underachieving team in the nation this season. To be fair, this has been one of the craziest years of college football.

On the other hand, Arizona has exceeded expectations and still have the potential to win the Pac-12 South through week 9 as Anu Solomon continues to run Rich Rod’s offense to perfection. It also helps having 7 receivers with 16 catches or more on the season, and 8 receivers with over 100 yards. The two-headed monster of Nick Wilson and Terris Jones-Grigsby should hopefully be 100% healthy this go around as well, putting Arizona at full strength. DaVonte Neal continues to impress as he finally seems to be healthy after battling injuries all season long. A punt return for a touchdown and continual slants and screens this past weekend allowed him to really show off speed in the open field.

The defense has been fairly consistent lately, anchored by Scooby Wright, who continues to receive national attention as a sophomore. Last week we saw freshman Cam Denson come up with an interception fairly early in the game, which should give the staff more confidence in his abilities. Having Denson in the secondary rotation should be a huge help in the pass happy league that is the Pac-12. But the defense is going to have to be disciplined going up against a quarterback like Brent Hundley, who is much bigger and stronger than Oregon’s Marcus Mariotta.

But UCLA’s offensive line has been horrendous this year, forcing their Heisman caliber quarterback to constantly scramble. Running back Bryce Perkins has been a workhorse for their offense, averaging close to 7 yards per carry, closing in on 1,000 yards on the season. As far as targets go, UCLA spreads the ball out pretty evenly. Jordan Payton leads the way, almost doubling the next leading target in receiving yards.

UCLA’s defense hasn’t been too hot lately, giving up 34 points or more in their last 3 games and 40 in two of those three. But then there’s Myles Jack. And Arizona fans do not want to be reminded of Myles Jack after last season.

Arizona heads into the game as 4.5 point underdog, but trying to predict who will win seems like a complete toss up. It totally depends on which team shows up for both Arizona and UCLA. But there’s good news for Arizona fans: the Wildcats are 5-1 in their last 6 road games and 4-1 in their last 5 Pac-12 road games. Take that for what it’s worth.