Erin Andrews won't be there to interview coach Mike Stoops, but ESPN will be on hand for the Arizona-Toledo game/Photo by Kirby Lee, US PRESSWIRE

You’re ready for some football. Of course, you are.

For Arizona, the goal is Pasadena, the time is now.

The season starts tonight with a game at Toledo (5 p.m., ESPN) … so let’s get to it.

Arizona player to watch: RB Nic Grigsby
The senior has feasted on non-conference opponents over the years, including rushing 20 times for 135 yards and three touchdowns against Toledo in 2008.

Throw out Grigsby’s four carries against Nebraska last season, when he shouldn’t even have played because of his injured shoulder, and he has played in eight non-conference games in the past three seasons. His numbers: 135 carries for 919 yards and 10 touchdowns.

That’s an average of 6.8 yards per carry and 114.9 yards per game. Half of his career rushing touchdowns have come in those 10 games.

Toledo player to watch: WR Eric Page
The sophomore is the Rockets’ top weapon — fast, shifty and versatile.

“He’s a nightmare. The guy can play,” said Arizona co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach Greg Brown. “He’s not a particularly big guy, but he knows how to play. They are going to get the ball in his hands and see what kind of damage he can do.” Brown knows. When he was on the staff at Colorado last season, Page caught three passes for 138 yards and a touchdown in his second career game.

He’s great in open space (as you can see in the video below) and can impact the game as a returner. The Wildcats’ secondary will especially have to tackle well.

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Nick Foles has completed 9 of 30 passes in UA's white helmet/Photo by US Presswire

The last time we saw the Arizona Wildcats in a real game, it was ugly, and we don’t just mean the 33-0 loss to Nebraska.

In the Holiday Bowl, Arizona, for the first time under coach Mike Stoops, used an all-white uniform combination that TucsonCitizen.com’s Scott Terrell called “The worst idea in the history of college athletics.”

Perhaps the Wildcats would like a second chance.

Arizona has tweaked its uniform design, and the players have been wearing a new white helmet throughout fall camp. These versions notably have a white and blue stripe down the middle, as opposed to the more solid white helmets the Cats wore for the first time under Stoops in the Holiday Bowl.

Stoops never professes much concern over the team’s sartorial splendor, so it’s up to some of the players to decide what to wear. Will it be red pants, blue pants or white pants at Toledo on Friday night? White helmets, blue helmets?

“It’s up to the captains to pick that,” senior running back Nic Grigsby said after Tuesday’s practice in an interview you can see at FoxSportsArizona.com.

“But, I mean, we want to come out and wear our white. Make up for last year. Do it right this time, wear all-white.”

Of course, it’s better to play good than look good, but it can’t hurt to do both against the Rockets on ESPN. Ah, yes, ESPN. That’s another point of redemption after the Holiday Bowl embarrassment on the four-letter network.

“A lot of time has passed since then,” said quarterback Nick Foles.

“Our team has grown together. It will be nice to go out there again on ESPN, on the nation-wide scene, and just go out there and play football. That’s all we have to do. Go out there and have fun and play football and see what happens.”

Arizona senior running back Nic Grigsby is looking for a healthy season after battling a shoulder injury in 2008/Photo by Kirby Lee, US Presswire

Arizona senior running back Nic Grigsby is, naturally, hoping for a big final season. But no matter what he does on the field, he’ll be doing it in front of his mom.

That right there should make it a blessed season.

Grigsby’s mother, Bernice, is moving from Long Beach, Calif., to Tucson. His sister, Destiny, is coming, too, and will enroll at Arizona as a junior. His younger brother, Terris Jones, is a freshman walk-on running back.

“It’s going to be a big-time year with all the family out here for this season,” Nic said. “I’m happy. It’s all about family.”

As far as families go, there isn’t one that seems more together than Team Grigsby. Bernice is a single mom who escaped an abusive relationship — Nic doesn’t know his father, who has been incarcerated for a violent crime for nearly all of Nic’s life.

As I wrote in a 2008 story for the print edition of the Tucson Citizen, Bernice is in the habit of texting her children every morning: Have a blessed day. Stay humble. Stay focused. I love you.

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Taimi Tutogi's hair and feet are flying as he proves to be a multi-dimensional threat in spring/Photo by Brad Allis, WildcatSportsReport.com

Arizona had its Spring Game on Saturday. What did we learn? Well, we learned that a starting backfield of quarterback Nick Foles, fullback Taimi Tutogi and tailback Keola Antolin would lead the nation in hair.

Other than that …

You really don’t want to draw too many conclusions. It’s just a scrimmage.

The defense made some plays — three interceptions, two returned for touchdowns — but Arizona coach Mike Stoops said the offense was at a disadvantage, working off last season’s playbook because the coaches didn’t want to give anyone a look at its new wrinkles.

So, conclusions? Not so many.

Observations? Opinions? Those we can let fly:

New star in town
Sophomore fullback/tailback/H-back/tight end Taimi Tutogi. Call him Gronk-lite.

Tutogi hauled in a deep pass over the middle with one hand, knocked safety Mark Watley to the turf, made another guy miss and kept churning until two defenders brought him down 73 yards away from the line of scrimmage. Former UA tight end Rob Gronkowski would be proud.

Tutogi, at 6-foot-1 and 258 pounds, did what he had to do this spring. He was given an opportunity and he ran with it. Tailbacks Nic Grigsby and Antolin were in and out of practices due to nagging injuries. Third-stringer Greg Nwoko (shoulder surgery) was out all spring. Tutogi and redshirt freshman Daniel Jenkins made extended auditions.

“Taimi is tough,” said co-offensive coordinator Seth Littrell. “Taimi has gotten a lot of confidence this spring that he really needed.”

It’s hard to imagine there will be a lot of carries available for Tutogi from the tailback position this fall — assuming everyone is healthy — but he’ll be on the field a lot because he can do so many things.

“Taimi Tutogi continues to show that he is not only a great fullback, but he gives us another dimension at running back,” Stoops said. “And, believe me, we have no problems playing him at running back, either.”

Juron Criner, superstar
The 6-4 junior receiver had something of a breakout last season — 45 catches for 582 yards and nine touchdowns, including the game-winner against USC that launched the Wildcats to the Holiday Bowl.

For as much improvement as he made between his freshman and sophomore seasons, he might be making the same kind of jump before his junior season.

“The guy is a big-time talent,” said co-offensive coordinator Bill Bedenbaugh. “There are not many guys like him in the country.”

How’s that for a bold statement?

“He really understands the offense now,” Bedenbaugh continued. “He’s confident. To be a great football player, you have to be confident.”

Criner scored twice in the Spring Game, including once when he used his height and leaping ability to reach over cornerback DeWayne Peace for the ball. Later, he scored on a fade pass from Matt Scott to the left corner of the end zone. Arizona is going to go to that all the time if teams choose to play Criner one-on-one.

Said Foles: “I like having him in the red zone.”

What’s going on in the secondary?
Junior Trevin Wade is going to be one of the cornerbacks, a sure-fire preseason all-conference pick. Beyond that, who knows?

Coaches have been mixing and matching personnel. Safeties playing corner. Corners playing safety. Free safeties playing strong safety … you get the idea. At the Spring Game, guys were changing positions from play to play.

“We’re just making sure everybody can change in and out,” said safety Joe Perkins. At least we think he’s a safety.

I just noticed a trend
Tutogi, Criner and Wade were each rated only two out of five stars by one of the major recruiting services. I think Stoops and his staff can identify diamond-in-the-rough talent, and all the fuss in February over recruiting rankings is wasted energy.

It’s scary when Grigsby gets injured
Grigsby carried only once in the Spring Game, but it was nearly spectacular. He flattened safety Robert Golden on a burst up the middle, but then tackled himself by falling to the ground after a 22-yard gain.

Given the nature of the collision, my first thought was that he re-injured the shoulder that cost him most of the Pac-10 season last year. Grigsby walked back to the sideline and tossed his helmet on the turf in frustration.

But he was happy and smiling and signing autographs after the scrimmage. It wasn’t his shoulder. His hamstring was acting up again.

“I was ready to take off, but my hamstring wouldn’t let me,” he said of his 22-yard run. “That was a touchdown.”

He added: “The shoulder is good. I’m out there throwing it.”

Good. The offense needs his playmaking ability in order to reach its full potential.

Stay worried about the linebackers
This will remain the biggest potential problem as the team heads into offseason workouts and fall camp.

Mid-year junior college transfers Derek Earls and Paul Vassallo did some good things in spring, but Stoops said the group as a whole is still doing too much thinking and not enough reacting.

That is something that can be cured with time and experience.

“If we can get our linebacker group solidified over the next three months, then definitely I think we can make some improvement,” Stoops said.

More from TucsonCitizen.com:
Wildcat Sports Report: Big plays in Spring Game

Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli rushes for the game-winning touchdown in the second overtime aganist Arizona last season/Photo by Chris Morrison, US Presswire

(Check out more UA football notes, including more comments from co-defensive coordinator Tim Kish and video of coach Mike Stoops, at FoxSportsArizona.com.)

Let’s face it. The last player Arizona wanted to see next season was Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli.

Masoli was unstoppable when it mattered most in last season’s game against the Wildcats in Arizona Stadium, throwing for three touchdowns (including the game-tying score with six seconds left in regulation) and running for three scores (including the game-winner in the second overtime).

Oregon’s 44-41 victory on Nov. 22 ended Arizona’s hopes of the Rose Bowl, while the Ducks would go on to win the Pac-10 and go to Pasadena.

But earlier this month, Oregon coach Chip Kelly suspended Masoli for the 2010 season after the quarterback pleaded guilty to a second-degree burglary charge for stealing two laptops and a guitar from a fraternity house in January.

The reaction of one of the Arizona men charged to stop Masoli?

“You know what, I’m sad,” UA co-defensive coordinator Tim Kish said after Monday’s practice. “I don’t want to see that happen to anybody.”

That didn’t stop the coaches from using Masoli’s bad behavior as a teaching moment for their own team.

“We talked about that as a defense today when we met before we came out on the field,” Kish said.

“That’s part of your responsibilities as a student athlete. You’re under the microscope. I mean, I can’t fathom he needed to be burglarizing somebody else’s property.

“You have to be accountable and respectful to your teammates. If you can’t do that, then you don’t deserve to be out on the field. … All we hope is that we learn from it.”

GRIGSBY BACK
Running back Nic Grigsby, who suffered a hamstring injury in the second spring practice March 6 was able to practice and hit in Monday’s practice.

He said it’s not 100 percent, and he couldn’t commit to being able to play in the spring game April 10 … but he did say his shoulder is feeling good. A separated shoulder cost him almost all of the Pac-10 season last year.

Grigsby is listed at 190 pounds on the spring roster, but he says he’s up to a more-muscular 198.

“I still have the speed,” he said.

He said the weight gain is all extra time in the weight room under strength coach Corey Edmond.

“With Coach Ed, he has us lifting like we’re machines,” Grigsby said.

“When we get hurt, he still says, ‘Put more weight on.’ When we hurt, we lift more. So I advise you not to get hurt.”

The Arizona football decade is a wrap, save for the Holiday Bowl against Nebraska on Dec. 30, but it’s safe to make our picks for the program’s all-decade team.

A tough call came at running back. It would have been easy if junior Nic Grigsby had been healthy all season. As it was, a shoulder injury limited him to 75 carries for 559 yards and five touchdowns, the bulk of which came in the nonconference season.

So it came down to Grigsby’s three-year total of 2,416 rushing yards vs. Clarence Farmer’s 2,530 yards, his 2001 All-Pac-10 season, his attitude problems and his eventual dismissal by interim coach Mike Hankwitz during the 2003 season.

I went with Grigsby.

Also joining the list based on a strong 2009 season is Colin Baxter, who moved to center last season when Blake Kerley was injured and continued to excel this season. I went with Baxter over Keoki Fraser, who was a stalwart on some bad teams from 2001-04, starting 41 games, including his final 34. He was honorable mention all-conference as a senior.

Here is our version of Arizona’s All-Decade team for offense (defense to come later):

Willie Tuitama is congratulated by fans after Arizona's 34-24 victory over second-ranked Oregon in 2007/Tucson Citizen photo

QB — Willie Tuitama (2005-08)
He didn’t turn out to be Arizona’s long-sought NFL talent at the position, but Tuitama played long enough and well enough to rewrite the school record books. His commitment helped spark coach Mike Stoops‘ recruiting, and Tuitama further stoked hopes when he came out of his redshirt halfway through his freshman season. Set back by concussions as a sophomore, Tuitama helped usher in UA’s spread offense in his final two seasons, finishing as the UA career leader in passing yards (9,211), passing touchdowns (67), attempts (1,276) and completions (786).

RB — Mike Bell (2002-05)
Fourth on UA’s career rushing list with 3,163 yards, trailing Art Luppino, Trung Canidate and Ontiwuan Carter (the latter two would be your all-1990s running backs). Bell never had a 1,000-yard season, but he had three 900-yard yards and he kept grinding away through some difficult seasons. He was second-team All-Pac-10 in 2003.

RB — Nic Grigsby (2007-09)
He rushed for 1,196 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2008, helping Arizona breaks his bowl drought. Grigsby was on pace to break the UA career rushing record before suffering a shoulder injury early in the 2009 Pac-10 opener against Oregon State. He played sparingly after that but managed to contribute a 57-yard fourth-quarter touchdown run that is arguably UA’s play of the year.

WR — Mike Thomas (2005-08)
Money Mike finished with 259 receptions — getting his final catch as Arizona was killing the clock against BYU in the Las Vegas Bowl — breaking the Pac-10 career mark of 258 held by Arizona State’s Derek Hagan. Thomas had 3,231 receiving yards and 23 receiving touchdowns in his Arizona career, but more than that, he was an all-purpose threat, earning first-team all-league honors as a receiver and punt returner in 2008. He had two punt returns for touchdowns in 2008.

WR — Bobby Wade (1999-2002)
Wade held the UA career record for receptions with 230 until Mike Thomas broke it late in the 2008 season. Wade still has the school mark for receiving yards (3,351), and his senior season was the receiving benchmark for the decade — 93 catches for 1,389 yards and eight touchdowns.

Rob Gronkowski runs free against Stanford in 2007/Tucson Citizen photo

TE — Rob Gronkowski (2007-2008)
Even with a mere two seasons, he is one of Arizona’s legendary players in the Pac-10 era. With his size, strength, speed and hands, he would have been a strong candidate for All-America honors as a junior in 2009, if a back injury hadn’t wiped out his entire season. He had 75 catches for 1,197 yards and 16 touchdown receptions in two seasons.

C — Colin Baxter (2007-09)
It’s been a good decade at the position for Arizona, which had senior Bruce Wiggins in the middle in 2000. Baxter was honorable mention All-Pac-10 in 2008 and earned second-team honors this season.

OL — Eben Britton (2006-08)
The most accomplished UA lineman of the decade, Britton played right tackle for two seasons before switching to the left side as a junior. He earned first-team all-league honors in 2008 before jumping early to the NFL, where he was a second-round pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars.

OL — Peter Graniello (2004-07)
A four-year starter who anchored the line from the left tackle spot for three seasons, including playing through a shoulder injury in 2006. Was honorable mention All-Pac-10 in 2005 and 2007.

OL — Makoa Freitas (1998-2002)
Freitas started 32 games — most of which came at left tackle — this decade, starting with his redshirt sophomore season. Second-team all-conference as a senior, Freitas was a sixth-round NFL draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts in 2003, appearing in 28 games over the next two seasons.

OL — Kili Lefotu (2002-05)
Started 37 games and was able to play any spot along the line, and it was that versatility that attracted the Washington Redskins, who selected Lefotu in the seventh round of the 2006 draft.

PK — Nick Folk (2003-06)
Folk, by virtue of the good work he has done with the Dallas Cowboys, has the bigger name, but this spot could easily have gone to Jason Bondzio, who hit 83.3 percent of his field goals (35 of 42) in 2007 and 2007 with a long of 49. Folk wasn’t as accurate (30 of 47, 63.8 percent) but had more range, more routinely drilled kickoffs into the end zone and, as an added bonus, was the All-Pac-10 punter in 2006 when he averaged 44.0 yards.

Arizona starting running back Nic Grigsby, who has been battling a shoulder injury for most of the Pac-10 season, is out for this week’s game at Arizona State, coach Mike Stoops said during his weekly Monday news conference.

What’s more, backup running back Keola Antolin, who offers some of the big-play potential that Grigsby has, is questionable because of a shoulder injury that forced him out early in the second quarter of last Saturday’s game against Oregon. Antolin, however, was asked Monday about that, and he said, “I didn’t know that until right now.”

Antolin still has to be further examined before a decision is made.

Arizona likely will be down to third-stringer Greg Nwoko and fourth-stringer Nick Booth.

“It has hurt us,” offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes said, talking about dealing with chronic injuries to Grigsby and Antolin through the Pac-10 schedule. “We’ve not had as many big plays as we’re used to having around here.”

Also, slot receiver David Douglas is out for this week because of a thigh injury, Stoops said.

Arizona is a 31-point favorite this week against Washington State. How rare is that? Well, the last time UA was favored by that much, the year was … uh, 2008.

Grigsby

I did some research on this last season before UA played Washington on Oct. 8. The Wildcats ended up being 24-point favorites. At the time, that matched the biggest point spread in Arizona’s favor since at least 1990; finding anything beyond that was going to require time in the archives/library that I didn’t/don’t really have.

But when UA played at Washington State last season, on Nov. 8, the spread was 41 points.

Safe to say, that is the largest point spread for Arizona in the Pac-10 era. This week’s game likely is No. 2.

In any case, it’s pretty rare stuff that coach Mike Stoops is having none of.

Stoops said Washington State “is more than capable of coming in here and winning. Does anyone expect that? Probably not. But it happens every week.

“Anyone can beat anybody on any given day. That’s been proven. I feel foolish even talking about it. … I think our kids understand that. Hopefully, we’re smart enough to understand that.”

Stoops was asked, in so many words, at his regular Monday press conference if the quality of this week’s opponent would factor into a decision to rest running backs Nic Grigsby and Greg Nwoko.

That’s not a question that a coach is going to answer completely honestly — why, yes, Washington State is so lame that we’re going to use only our second-stringers — but it’s a reasonable point.

There really is no need to hurry Grigsby and Nwoko back onto the field against the Cougs. Those guys need the extra time off to heal shoulder sprains.

As it is, Stoops said both running backs are “very questionable,” for Saturday’s homecoming game, which begins at 1:30 p.m.

The time-off debate is different for defensive end Brooks Reed, whose ankle injury has kept him off the field for almost all of the past four games. His inactivity means it’s a good idea to get him re-acclimated to the speed of the game before a season-defining four-game stretch to end the season.

“Getting Brooks back this week will definitely improve our defensive position and our ability to rush off the edge,” Stoops said. “That is something that he consistently gives you every time he steps on the field.”

At running back against Washington State, Stoops can use heavy doses of Keola Antolin and Nick Booth. Or the Cats could throw abut 50 screen passes. Those are basically runs, anyway.

True freshman H-back Taimi Tutogi, who is a solidly built 250 pounds, played running back in high school and could be used in short yardage situations, Stoops said.

Preparing for a code red emergency, Arizona will have true freshman Daniel Jenkins ready to rip off his 2009 redshirt. But, if all goes well, he stays on the sideline with Grigsby and Nwoko.

Consider WSU’s defensive stats:

• 119th out of 120 teams in total defense (511.13 yards per game).
• 114th in rushing defense (220.38 yards per game).
• 114th in scoring defense (37.38 points per game).

So, the theme of the week for the Wildcats is not overlooking 1-7 Washington State, not getting heads that grow too big for their helmets with everyone congratulating them for being ranked for the first time in nine years.

Stoops joked that one of the benefits of being ranked — Arizona is No. 21 in the AP poll and No. 18 in the BCS standings — is seeing the team name scroll across the ESPN ticker during other college football games.

“I think you have to take pride in it to stay there,” Stoops said of the rankings.

“But we don’t want to be a one-shot wonder. We have played some awfully good football the last two years. You want to build a consistent Top 20, Top 25 program, and this is something you can take pride in.”

Arizona running backs Nic Grigsby and Greg Nwoko won’t practice this week while rehabbing shoulder sprains suffered last Saturday against UCLA, coach Mike Stoops said this afternoon. He didn’t make any prediction whether they would be available when UA resumes play after its bye week, at home against Washington State on Nov. 7.

“Nic and Greg will be week to week,” said Stoops, adding that he didn’t know which one would be back first. “”We’ll know more as they progress throughout the week. Keola is back healthy, and that was a big bonus for us, offensively.”

Keola Antolin, coming back from an ankle injury, played just the second half against UCLA, but rushed 16 times for 77 yards. He is strong enough to handle a significant workload, with a bit of a break from Nick Booth, if Grigsby and Nwoko can’t go against Washington State.

Stoops said the coaching staff will look at freshman running back Daniel Jenkins as an option, if UA gets any thinner at running back. Jenkins is one of two freshman running backs who are trying to redshirt. Wide receiver Bug Wright is another possibility.

Stoops said starting defensive end Brooks Reed, who has missed almost all of the Pac-10 season because of an ankle injury, will continue his rehab this week in an effort to be close to 100 percent for the Cougars game.

“We need to get Brooks back,” Stoops said. “He’s such a huge part of our defense. That is a huge part missing for us — his consistent pressure off the edge.”

UA-UCLA game blog

Arizona coach Mike Stoops said after Saturday’s 27-13 victory over UCLA that starting running back Nic Grigsby and third-string back Greg Nwoko each suffered sprains of the AC shoulder joint during the game.

For Grigsby, it’s an aggravation of an injury he has been playing with for a few weeks. He left the game in the first half. Nwoko left the game late in the third quarter and had his left arm in a sling as he left the field.

“How severe, to what degree, I will know more next week,” Stoops said.

Second-string back Keola Antolin, who didn’t practice late in the week and didn’t play in the first half as he was trying to rest an ankle injury, came in during the second half. He rushed 16 times for 77 yards and made what offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes called the play of the game.

Antolin gained 11 yards on a draw on third-and-10 from the UCLA 36 in the third quarter. Arizona scored on a 25-yard catch-and-run by Juron Criner one play later for a 20-6 lead.

“He still has been bothered by that ankle, but that’s the best he has looked in a while,” Stoops said. “It was good. we needed him. We needed to run the football.”

Fourth-stringer Nick Booth added a 6-yard touchdown run with 34 seconds left in the third quarter for the game’s final points.

Dykes joked that maybe some of UA’s receivers can help at running back; UA did have good luck running several fly sweeps to its wideouts (a combined nine carries for 95 yards). But running back depth could really be an issue for the next game — vs. Washington State on Nov. 7 — and beyond.

Who is behind Booth on the depth chart?

“Open tryouts for running backs,” Dykes joked.

You have to go down to Kylan Butler and Daniel Jenkins, both of whom are true freshmen who are redshirting.

“Hopefully, we won’t get to that point,” Dykes said. “We’ll probably get those guys some reps this week and see who we feel is a little bit further along, and go from there.”

Elsewhere, quarterback Nick Foles was suffering from the flu, which helps explain his mixed night. He threw three interceptions — two on deflected passes — and made a bad handoff exchange with Nwoko for a lost fumble on the first play of the second half. In general, he just wasn’t quite as sharp.

He threw a lateral that linebacker Akeem Ayers broke up and safety Tony Dye scooped up for a touchdown on a fumble return. Dykes said Foles had the option to call a run or a pass on that play, and should have called a run based on the defense.

“We kind of made a bad decision,” Dykes said. “The thing is, we’ve run a thousand of those this year and he’s made the (right) decision probably 98 percent of the time.”

Dykes said Foles seemed to wear down as the game went on, although Foles’ other numbers don’t look bad — 22 of 34 for 247 yards and two touchdowns.

“Probably didn’t play as well as he has been up to this point, but at some point, he was going to have to come back to earth,” Dykes said. “Tonight, he did. It was humbling. The good thing is he was tough enough to overcome it and make enough plays for us to have a chance to win. The defense, obviously, played fantastic.”

Speaking of that defense, it was without starting defensive end Brooks Reed again. Reed has missed almost all of the past four games because of an ankle injury. D’Aundre Reed, who has been playing with a broken hand, started the game in Brooks Reed’s spot, but aggravted the injury and came out in favor of Apai Tuihalamaka.

Stoops said the goal is to get Brooks Reed healthy during the bye week and especially have him ready to go for a rugged finish to the season — at Cal, vs. Oregon, at ASU, at USC.

“We’re trying to get Brooks back to full strength,” Stoops said. “The back end of our schedule, there is a lot there.”