Evaluating the Arizona Wildcats' football performance in the loss to Colorado

Homecoming weekend brought the Colorado Buffaloes to town. With a large number of alumni returning to Tucson, the Wildcats were looking to get back on track this week.

However, it was clear early on that Colorado was well prepared for this game. A 34:7 win for the Buffaloes extended Arizona's losing streak to three.

Here are our grades for offense, defense, special teams and coaching:

Offense: D-

The first drive of the game was as bad a start as you could imagine. Pressure is applied back to back Noah Fifita forced an early punt.

The next drive was the complete opposite as a rough passer penalty kept the drive alive. Arizona continued marching down the field with a 24-yard scramble by Fifita. A flip pass to Chris Hunter Place the wildcats on the board.

After that, the crime disappeared again. The next four drives resulted in two punts, a missed field goal and a fumble by Fifita.

The second half was a similar story as the offense went scoreless in the second half.

The inability to give Fifita time to throw resulted in seven sacks, and the line would also lose Rhino Tapa'atoutai to an unknown injury.

“We have to play better on offense and we have to give our quarterback and our playmakers the ability to move the football effectively,” Brennan said of the problems on offense.

Fifita also threw an interception late in the fourth quarter, making it another multi-turnover game for the redshirt sophomore quarterback. Backup quarterback Cole Tannenbaum would also fumble the ball in the fourth quarter.

“We have a standard that we don't live up to, and then when you lose, of course it gets worse,” Fifita said of the frustrations on offense.

Quali Conley finished as the leading rusher with 42 yards on 11 carries. Tetairoa McMillan Finished as the lead receiver with 38 yards on five catches.

Defense: D+

Due to the injuries in defense there wasn't much help at the start of the game. During pregame warmups, defensive lineman Isaiah Johnson would go down with an unknown injury.

The defense allowed Colorado to score on the first drive, and the next three drives also produced touchdowns for Colorado.

The injury bug would continue to affect the defense. Junior linebacker and team captain Jacob Manu would also miss the second quarter with a lower leg injury.

However, they didn't give up fighting and repeatedly forced ball losses.

Miscommunication for Colorado forced a quick snap and Owen Goss recovered. Jack Luttrell would end up taking off Shedeur Sanders on the next trip. Luttrell would beat Sanders again in the fourth quarter.

“He's been in the building a lot the last two weeks, you know, getting extra film and just spending more time with the coaches.” Dalton Johnson said of Luttrell's performance. “To me it just shows that he really wants it.”

Tacario Davis would end up not playing in the second half, but the defense held Colorado to just two field goals in the second half.

Tre Smith had the only sack for the Wildcats. Johnson would become the leading tackler with 11 tackles.

Colorado would finish with 398 total yards while going 9 for 18 on third down.

Special Teams: D-

It was a questionable start to the game for special teams, as the first kickoff was an onside kick that was recovered by Colorado. The opportunity to get the kick back was there, but redshirt freshman Jackson Holman was unable to attack the ball.

“I really think we can play this better. I think when Jackson looked at it, I think it was there to have,” Brennan said on the onside kick early in the game. “If he had just fallen on it and it looked like he was waiting for it, and it's one of those things where you can't wait.”

Senior kicker Tyler Loop would miss his only field goal attempt from 52 yards.

Freshman punter Michael Salgado Medina would punt seven times, with three of them landing inside the 20.

Coach: F

This was a team that came out with little to no energy and it showed in the performance. It could possibly be due to injuries, but coming home in front of a big crowd and putting on a performance like today wasn't ideal.

“I want to thank all the alumni and all the fans, we had a great atmosphere today,” Brennan said. “I'm sorry we didn't play better. We didn’t give them enough to cheer about.”

The defense is doing its best in return and the injuries are piling up. They have now lost all three defensive captains.

“The warmup was crazy, I mean everyone does that, you line up and make some running plays,” Brennan said. “I'm not sure how they got tangled up, so that was unfortunate. Then I saw it happen with Jacob, like it just looked weird. It just looked like he was just grabbed after we made the play in the third period.”

Expectations were high heading into this season, and after a three-game losing streak, it's time for the Wildcats to check their gut instincts.

“I think the biggest thing is I just need to coach this team better, and that’s where we’re at right now,” Brennan said.

Next up for Arizona is a must-win home game against the West Virginia Mountaineers.

“The only way forward is together, and the only way forward is to work together,” Brennan said.