We are just hours away from kicking this thing off. Can you stand it?

I don’t know how much success Arizona’s offense will have against Nebraska’s defense. But I do know this: the Husker offense is bad. Fewer-yards-per-game-than-UCLA-and-ASU bad.

So does a team that is solid but not great on both sides of the ball beat a team that is half great and half awful?

Good-Good might not beat Great-Bad but Great-Good would. In other words, the Wildcat defense needs to dominate.

No long passing plays like against ASU. No extended run-dominated drives like against USC. It is the Cat D’s mission to shut down the guys in red from kick to gun.

It’s Defense 101. Stop the run, force 3rd-and-long, pressure the quarterback, make plays on the ball.

Nobody is talking about anybody on the Arizona defense. As of 5 p.m. Pacific on Wed. Dec. 30 that needs to change.

Bear Down.

Is the car gassed up? Did you check the tires? Are you stocked up on beef jerky and Tums? It’s like August all over again because the state of Arizona is heading to San Diego.

Holiday Bowl week is here!

The Las Vegas Bowl trip was an absolute blast and I’m looking forward to more of the same this year. I do hope we make this bowl game thing an annual tradition.

Although, looking at UA history the return bowl trip shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Dating back to the ‘80s every time the Cats broke a bowl draught they made it back to the postseason the following year. Now, going bowling again next year would be a bigger accomplishment as the Wildcats have only played in a bowl three straight years one time (1992-’94).

Arizona’s all-time bowl record is 6-7-1 so a win on Wednesday would even things up. That wouldn’t be bad at all considering the school went 65 years between its first bowl game (1921) and its first bowl victory (1986).

This is the first time we’ve played a school in a bowl game a second time. In our previous 14 bowls we played 14 different teams, from the obscure (Centre and Drake) to the name brand (Auburn, Georgia and Miami), but Nebraska is the first rematch.

The ’09 Cornhuskers are known for three things: defense, defense, and defense. In their last seven games Nebraska has only given up more than one offensive touchdown twice. They kept the other team’s O completely out of the end zone three different times. The Huskers intercepted 14 passes over their final six games.

This is not a game for Nick Foles to try and buy time with his feet. Holding the ball against these guys is a turnover waiting to happen. The game plan has to be read-read-read-throw it away.

I would love for our guys to score two quick TDs and coast but we’re probably going to see a game similar to the last two we played. What we need to not see is a third quarter like the last two. Just one first down in the opening period of the second half against both ASU and USC. What’s the opposite of halftime adjustments?

Sustaining long drives is going to be difficult so the Cats have got to look for a couple opportunities to take a shot deep with Juron Criner. We need to get the ball into #82’s hands as often as possible (remember the huge inside screen against Oregon) but it makes a lot of sense to try and set up a quick score or two with a one-on-one jump ball deep.

Field position is crucial in defensive struggles so Keenyn Crier needs to come up big. Thirteen-yard punts aren’t going to cut it. Along the same lines Alex Zendejas can’t miss any short field goals. Hopefully his kick against the Sun Devils will have him ready in case more 4th-quarter heroics are needed.

The fans won’t like it but I don’t see Mike Stoops doing a lot of gambling in the red zone. Yes, touchdowns are huge in this game, but field goals are semi-huge.

I will say this: One act of well-timed deception could make all the difference. I’m thinking something along the lines of going for it on 4th-and-inches, lining up in the “Hey! We’re running a quarterback sneak!” formation…and then passing. If that happens I will leave my nosebleed seat, storm the press box and lift Sonny Dykes onto my shoulders myself.

So word must have gotten out about our poor record wearing white jerseys and white pants. It’s like someone said, “Uniform stats, shmooniform stats. I see your fear of White-on-White and give you White-on-White-on-White.”

Whatever Arizona wears the program will be trying to finish a season ranked for just the sixth time in the Pac-10 era. A win would also give the Cats a rare year-ending win streak. Since leaving the WAC Arizona has only won three or more to end a season four times, with three-game streaks in 1984 and ’88 (no bowl game either year), a four-game streak to end 1997 and the seven-game run that took us to our first Holiday Bowl in ’98.

That’s a lot at stake for the guys from Tucson. What’s not at stake is a successful season. Mike Stoops has already proven that last year was no fluke and he’s providing solid evidence that he’s building a program with staying power.

Because of that it’s a perfect opportunity for the Wildcats to come out relaxed, confident, and ready to play their very best.

Grab your beef jerky and let’s ride.

The clock winds down. The shot goes up. The buzzer sounds. The ball falls through the net. The crowd goes wild.

It’s the most exciting play in basketball. It’s the shot we all practiced in the driveway as kids.

It just never happens for the Arizona Wildcats.

Nic Wise got off the shot with just a sliver of time left on the clock (maybe. But at worst I believe the replay was inconclusive so the ruling on the field – I mean, court – should stand) setting off the best kind of postgame celebration you can have on the hardwood.

When’s the last time that happened? When was the last time the Cats beat the clock with a game-winning basket?

You can’t count Ivan Radenovic’s shot at Oregon three years ago because there were still six seconds left and Oregon had two more possessions after that.

Kirk Walters’ free throw to beat Washington in ’05-’06 doesn’t count either because there were still 5.1 seconds left and, well, because it was a free throw.

Salim Stoudamire came close three times in 2005 but he always left a little time on the clock.

Stoudamire’s deep three against UCLA came with two-and-a-half seconds left (the Cats were even called for a technical foul for rushing the court too soon).

The shot to beat ASU (the travel-no-call play) came with four-tenths left.

Even after Salim’s shot against Oklahoma State in the Sweet 16 the Cowboys still had a chance for their own buzzer-beater.

For the last pure shot/buzzer/net/wild Arizona win you have to go all the way back to…do you remember?…

Mustafa Shakur’s three-pointer to beat USC in the opening round of the 2004 Pac-10 tournament. Six long seasons ago.

So forget who this week’s shot was against or where they’re from. (Turns out it’s Nashville. Who knew? And, according to their website, Lipscomb is “located within one day’s drive of 75 percent of the nation’s population!” Who knew, part two?)

No, this isn’t a year to nitpick the level of competition or the significance of a win. When a Wildcat makes a shot to beat the buzzer and pull out a win, the crowd should just go wild.

The next chance for wildness is tonight (Wednesday) at 8:30 Arizona time against North Carolina State. If you’re looking for an extra reason to tune in Miles Simon is calling the game for Fox Sports Net. Will he sound like a guy returning to the place where he won the national championship, or like a guy returning the place where he got fired?

I leave you with a group project. Post your memories of true Arizona buzzer-beaters at McKale Center. It may take a while.

Hopefully we don’t have to wait too long for the next one.

Do we need the Holiday Bowl?

Does your opinion of the 2009 Arizona football season depend on the result in San Diego? To answer that you need to look back at your feelings before the season. How we react to things in life is directly tied to our expectations going in. What was your personal Line Of Agonizing Disappointment, the win total required for you as an individual fan to feel satisfied?

From where I sit the votes have been read and the decision is final.

The 2009 Wildcats are a success.

We all know about the Pac-10 media picking Arizona to finish 8th in the league standings but it wasn’t just them. The consensus was a step back for Arizona, and you couldn’t blame them. Take a look at this list of departed players again:

Willie Tuitama
Mike Thomas
Eben Britton
Ronnie Palmer
Marquis Hundley
Nate Ness
Adrian McCovy
James Tretheway
Joe Longacre
Jason Bondzio

Throw in GRONK! not playing a single snap and that is a ton of star power lost from last year’s team.

Now factor in the strength-of-schedule numbers and there’s no debate: #57 last year compared to #5 this year.

The bottom line is there’s no possible way to argue that last year’s regular season was better than this one. So what looked like a rebuilding year with a tougher schedule turns into a better record and at least the same overall record. This should not be understated.

Some people will point to giving up the lead in the 4th quarter against Oregon in a game that ultimately cost the Cats the Rose Bowl and say this team blew it. But there’s a big difference between missing an opportunity and failing. Yes, Arizona had a real opportunity to win that elusive Pac-10 championship. We’ll always look back on the close losses this year and wonder what might have been. But the fact that this year’s team – with all the circumstances heading into the year – was good enough to have that opportunity makes this season anything but a failure.

While I wasn’t predicting a return to the Mackovic years I was prepared to be happy with anything above “not stink.” In August a wise (and great-looking) man said:

But what if this year’s team doesn’t stink? What if Team Stoops replaces the most prolific passer in school history, the leading pass-catcher in conference history, both offensive tackles, and still posts a winning record? What if he matches or – heaven help us – actually improves on last year’s 8-5? The fans’ confidence would be reinforced, the media would have to admit that Mike Stoops might just know what he’s doing, and all limits would be removed as to how high this thing can go.

You know what? We’re there. Mike Stoops has already matched last year’s win total (and bettered last year’s season). He’s preparing for a chance to post a new career-high. As a result there is no ceiling in sight.

You can no longer know for certain that Mike Stoops has peaked. Last year it was an easy case for the doubters to make. Senior quarterback, experienced offensive line, favorable schedule = the best we’re going to get.

But it wasn’t. And win or lose on Dec. 30 we’re going to spend the offseason wallowing in optimism.

Do we want to win the Holiday Bowl? Of course. We want the Cats to win every single game possible. There is a significant difference between 8-5 with a loss to end the year, and 9-4 riding a three-game winning streak. Beating Ndamukong Suh and Nebraska would allow this team to finish in the top 25 this year and put Arizona in the discussion with Oregon and USC next year. Add in the always-beneficial recruiting momentum and there is a ton to play for in a week and a half.

My point isn’t to try and paint the Holiday Bowl as irrelevant. I just don’t want people to overreact to a potential loss to a ranked team with one of the very best defenses in the nation.

Even if the unthinkable happens and we get blown-out by the Huskers, or even if the unfathomable occurs and a pass bounces off a seagull or something, this has still been a very good year. And it is very important that it was very good.

Arizona Football is free to dream again.

Here are my thoughts on all the Arizona games this weekend:

Enjoy your Holiday (Bowl) preparations! See you again Monday!