Now at an even 2-2 in conference play, WVU’s eighth opponent are the Arizona Wildcats.
As Mountaineer fans grow increasingly heated at the team’s recent shortcomings against ranked Iowa State and Kansas State, Arizona’s are not feeling much better. Formerly the No. 20 team in the nation, the Wildcats are now 3-4 overall and 1-3 in conference games.
The Wildcats shocked the Big 12 in Week 5 with a win against Utah, who was then projected to represent the conference in the College Football Playoff. In the past three weeks, though, things have gone downhill, with losses to Texas Tech, BYU, and Colorado. Meanwhile, Utah’s trajectory has only gone down, too, as they now share Arizona’s 1-3 conference record.
With the recent struggles actively killing Arizona’s momentum, the Wildcats are just as desperate as WVU for a win this weekend. Head coach Brent Brennan recognized this to open the week, emphasizing the importance of resetting at home.
“Every week in this conference, if you don’t show up ready to play, someone’s going to get after you,” Brennan said.
“We’re going to fight our butts off not to not be a team that lets our frustration or disappointment of last weekend impact this week.”
Against Colorado, the Wildcats struggled offensively, scoring just once in the first quarter to lose 34-7. Sophomore quarterback Noah Fifita took a step back in his pass attempts, throwing just 26 attempts as opposed to his average of 38.5 throws per game beforehand.
Fifita threw 16 completions in those attempts for 138 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Replacing Fifita’s usual high production was an underwhelming run game of 107 total rushing yards.
Senior running back Quali Conley has the ability to break that streak against West Virginia, having run for 90 yards three times this season. His 40-yard efforts in the last two games make the likelihood of his success up in the air for the time being.
Defensively, Arizona allows the fourth most points in the Big 12, just behind WVU, with 27.6 points allowed per game.
The Mountaineers will travel to Tucson for a 7 p.m. ET kickoff on Saturday. The game will be available to watch live on FS1.
Photo by Tyler Tate, Associated Press
