Analysis: Wildcats need to get better against the run
by John Moredich on Sep. 15, 2008, under Sports
New Mexico's Jermaine McQueen (right) backs up Arizona cornerback Marquis Hundley during Saturday's game.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico exposed Arizona’s weakness in stopping the run, but the UA defense could regain its confidence by default.
The Wildcats will travel Saturday to face a UCLA team with the nation’s worst rushing offense. The Bruins are averaging 0.8 yards per carry after a 59-0 loss to BYU.
New Mexico averaged 4.7 yards a carry in a surprising 36-28 win over UA. The Lobos’ smash-mouth approach Saturday torched Arizona for 221 rushing yards – 158 by Rodney Ferguson. In doing so, they kept the Cats from starting 3-0 for the first time since 2001.
“We should have been able to defend the run better,” UA coach Mike Stoops said. “We committed a lot of guys to the run on a lot of those plays.”
Bring on the Bruins, whose starting tailback Kahlil Bell is injured and whose offensive line is banged up.
UCLA has gained 38 yards on the ground in two games, led by Raymond Carter’s 21 yards on 17 carries. The Bruins ran for only nine yards on 16 carries at BYU in their worst loss since a 76-0 defeat to USC in 1929.
Arizona’s spread offense scored so many points in wins over Idaho (70-0) and Toledo (41-16) that opponents were forced to throw.
That masked UA’s defensive liability against the run, which New Mexico exploited to beat the Wildcats for a second straight year.
“New Mexico played as if this was their Super Bowl, and their backs were against the wall,” UA linebacker Ronnie Palmer said. “They knew it was all or nothing.”
Arizona played as if it had nothing to fear against a Lobos offense that was averaging just 12.5 points per game.
That was a big mistake.
“It’s a setback,” Arizona defensive coordinator Mark Stoops said. “Any loss hurts. We by no means thought we had arrived.
“We know we have to play our butts off to win. We have to show more maturity and play better on the road.”
First, the Wildcats might want to admit they are not the most physical team around – at least not when they don’t play with a sense of desperation and with an edge.
“We have 10 years of desperation. I don’t want to hear about desperation,” Mike Stoops said afterward. “Who is more desperate than us? That is what I told our players.
“I am pretty desperate,” added Stoops, who is 19-30 in his fifth year at Arizona.
Five turnovers – four by UA quarterback Willie Tuitama – didn’t help the Wildcats’ cause against New Mexico.
“There is nobody more physical than us. I honestly believe that,” UA defensive end Ricky Elmore said. “The offensive and defensive lines are a bunch of pretty nasty guys.
“There were just a bunch of mental errors and missed plays and things we need to correct. We lost. They didn’t beat us. We beat ourselves.”
But the Lobos were more physical, which resulted in a lot of broken tackles by Ferguson. He added to his two touchdown runs with a 25-yard scoring pass to quarterback Donovan Porterie on a trick play.
The Wildcats hadn’t allowed a rushing TD in four games.
“We have some tackling issues,” Palmer admitted.
And UA has issues in stopping screen passes.
When New Mexico wasn’t running the ball up the gut – Porterie threw only three times in the second quarter – it went for quick throws.
The Wildcats have been slow to react and unable to establish much of a pass rush, although Elmore did have two sacks.
As for Saturday’s televised game at the Rose Bowl (noon, ABC), the Bruins may steal the game plans of the Wildcats’ first three foes and go with a dink-and-dump offensive approach.
UCLA quarterback Kevin Craft likely won’t try to throw deep. That hasn’t been an option yet for an Arizona secondary that is limiting big plays.
The Bruins are expected to be without their starting center. Micah Reed suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee at BYU and is doubtful, coach Rick Neuheisel said Sunday night. Sophomore Jake Dean, who made his debut Saturday, will start at center.
The injury further decimates a thin line that includes tackle Micah Kia (who has been playing with a broken left hand), guards Darius Savage and Sonny Tevaga (two games of experience each) and tackle Nick Ekbatani (who previously played sparingly in 2006).
“The Pac-10 is all that matters,” Elmore said. “We are going to a bowl game. We are going to be fighting. Nobody is going to remember this game once we are at UCLA.”
But beware.
The Wildcats will face other Pac-10 teams with bruising backs such as New Mexico’s Ferguson.
Arizona will need to solve its run defense woes, even if it beats the Bruins.
Arizona's Brooks Reed (42) and Ronnie Palmer (33) close in on New Mexico's Ian Clark (30) during a punt return on Saturday.
New Mexico tailback Paul Baker (right) slips by Arizona's Nate Ness.
———
STINGY NO MORE
How UA’s run defense has fared:
Foe Car Yds Avg. TDS
Idaho 25 48 1.9 0
Toledo 24 74 3.0 0
New Mexico 47 221 4.7 2
———
TURNOVERS HURT
New Mexico scored 19 points off Arizona’s five turnovers:
Drive start Spot Result
Interception A11 Field goal
Fumble A23 Field goal
Fumble A10 Touchdown
Fumble A22 Field goal
Interception N39 Field goal
