Another game Arizona could have won.<\/p>\n
Another gut-wrenching defeat.<\/p>\n
The Wildcats\u2019 31-28 loss at Houston on Saturday wasn\u2019t exactly the same as the previous week\u2019s double-overtime setback against BYU, but it featured many of the same notes.<\/p>\n
When the game was on the line, the UA defense couldn\u2019t stop the run and couldn\u2019t push the Cougars back.<\/p>\n
The offense had opportunities to go up multiple scores but couldn\u2019t take advantage of them.<\/p>\n
The end result: Arizona heads into a bye with a 4-3 record, a two-game losing streak and more questions than answers about where this season is headed.<\/p>\n
Here are my top five takeaways from the heartbreaker in H-Town:<\/p>\n
1. Cougars copying Cougars<\/p>\n
\n People are also reading\u2026\n <\/p>\n
Houston basically replicated BYU\u2019s game plan. It sent its burly running back\u00a0\u2014 6-foot, 206-pound Dean Connors \u2014 up the middle repeatedly. If Connors wasn\u2019t the ball-carrier, 6-3, 210-pound quarterback Conner Weigman was.<\/p>\n
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Houston running back DJ Butler, second from left, and tight end Kaleb Thomas, center, celebrate after quarterback Conner Weigman’s 10-yard touchdown run during the first half against Arizona, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Houston.<\/p>\n
Jason Fochtman, Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n
Connors and Weigman combined for 198 yards on 34 attempts. BYU\u2019s LJ Martin and Bear Bachmeier had 251 yards on 47 attempts last week.<\/p>\n
The last drive of the game, which ended with Houston\u2019s walk-off field goal, featured 13 plays. All but one was a rush by Connors or Weigman. Everyone in the building knew what was coming, and the Wildcats still couldn\u2019t stop it.<\/p>\n
Fans were clamoring for Danny Gonzales to make an adjustment. He primarily stayed with the three-down front that\u2019s been the base look for the defense \u2014 especially since defensive end Tre Smith was lost for the season to injury<\/a>.<\/p>\n No argument here. Something needed to change \u2014 and needs to change moving forward, or the Buffaloes, Jayhawks, Bearcats, Bears and Sun Devils will copy the Cougars, too.<\/p>\n Arizona doesn\u2019t have a stable of 300-plus-pound defensive tackles who can clog up running lanes. They\u2019re about the hardest commodity to find in recruiting and\/or the transfer portal.<\/p>\n Gonzales has tried to compensate for that with a funky-looking defense that has succeeded in confusing opposing quarterbacks. It has failed against the last two opponents\u2019 power rushing attacks.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also helpful to understand how the defense works. Gonzales explained during the week that in his defense, the safeties play the role of pseudo-linebackers. Genesis Smith and Dalton Johnson are just as important to run defense as Taye Brown and Max Harris.<\/p>\n Gonzales learned the scheme when he was at New Mexico. The Lobos\u2019 \u201cfree safety\u201d back then was Brian Urlacher, a unicorn athlete who\u2019d go on to become a Hall of Fame linebacker for the Chicago Bears.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a lot to ask of even Smith and Johnson \u2014 easily among Arizona\u2019s best defenders \u2014 to play like Urlacher.<\/p>\n 2. Critical calls<\/p>\n I\u2019m not usually one to blame the officials for a loss, but some confounding calls that went Houston\u2019s way played a critical role in the outcome.<\/p>\n Houston kicker Ethan Sanchez celebrates with fans after hitting a 41-yard, game-winning field goal as time expired to give the Cougars a 31-28 win over Arizona, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Houston.<\/p>\n Jason Fochtman, Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n The first occurred\u00a0early in the third quarter, and it was pivotal.<\/p>\n The Cougars scored a touchdown with 10 seconds left in the first half to seize a 21-14 lead. They got the ball to start the second. The \u201cmiddle eight\u201d was theirs for the taking \u2014 unless the Wildcats could get a stop.<\/p>\n On third-and-8, Weigman threw a pass to the left sideline to Harvey Broussard. Broussard made a bobbling catch for an 11-yard gain.<\/p>\n Oh, but that bobble. The play was reviewed. I\u2019ve watched it multiple times. Broussard bobbled it twice \u2014 first as he was going down to a knee inbounds and then as he fell out of bounds. He didn\u2019t have firm possession until after the second bobble, when he was in the white painted area.<\/p>\n FS1 announcers Eric Collins and Lewis Tillman were certain the play would be overturned \u2014 and incredulous, like the rest of us, when it wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Instead of a three-and-out to get the ball back and halt Houston\u2019s momentum, the Cougars ran 14 more plays on a 17-play touchdown drive that chewed up more than nine minutes of clock time. They emerged with a 28-14 lead \u2014 and limited the number of possessions Arizona would get for the rest of the game.<\/p>\n The last possession featured a clear illegal motion infraction against Houston. It occurred on the third-to-last play of the game. Connors was moving forward as the ball was being snapped to Weigman.<\/p>\n After huddling, the crew decided to pick up the flag. FOX officiating analyst Mike Pereira was so confused he didn\u2019t even know what to say.<\/p>\n Would 5 yards have made a difference? Maybe?<\/p>\n Houston was driving into a stiff wind. Ethan Sanchez had come up short on a 48-yard field goal attempt going in that direction earlier in the fourth quarter. If the illegal motion had been enforced, Houston would have faced second-and-14 from the UA 31. Instead, it was third-and-7 from the 24.<\/p>\n Sanchez made the 41-yard game-winner with ease. He would have had more to think about, at the very least, if it was closer to a 50-yarder.<\/p>\n UA supporters will be thinking about those controversial calls for the next two weeks.<\/p>\n 3. Read and react<\/p>\n Houston defensive lineman Eddie Walls III (90) pressures Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita (1) during the second half Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Houston.<\/p>\n Jason Fochtman, Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n Noah Fifita played a phenomenal game. He became just the ninth quarterback in FBS in the past 30 years to complete at least 90% of his passes with a minimum of\u00a025 attempts in a road game.<\/p>\n Fifita was decisive and accurate. He escaped pressure and made plays outside the pocket. He didn\u2019t come close to turning the ball over.<\/p>\n Unless you treat a fourth-down stop as a turnover, which is how the UA coaching staff views those plays.<\/p>\n Fifita made one notable mistake Saturday, and it was costly. He made an incorrect read on a fourth-down run play.<\/p>\n The play occurred in the final minutes of the second quarter. Arizona faced fourth-and-1 at the Houston 31. The score was tied, 14-14.<\/p>\n The Wildcats hurried to the line to try to catch the Cougars off guard. They ran what looked like a basic zone-read play where Fifita is supposed to read the edge defender. If he crashes toward the running back, Fifita keeps the ball and runs to the outside. If not, he hands the ball off.<\/p>\n Well, Houston\u2019s\u00a0Wrook Brown crashed. Fifita handed the ball off anyway. Kedrick Reescano got stuffed for no gain. Houston took over and drove for a touchdown to take a 21-14 lead into the break.<\/p>\n As the play was unfolding, FS1\u2019s Tillman said, \u201cBad read.\u201d Soon after, he questioned whether it was a predetermined play or if Fifita had the option to keep the ball. If he had, Fifita had plenty of space to gain the first down \u2014 and maybe even score.<\/p>\n One mistake shouldn\u2019t override an otherwise magnificent performance. But such is the life of a starting quarterback in big-time college football. Everything you do will be scrutinized.<\/p>\n Fifita would have been much happier walking out of TDECU Stadium with four interceptions and a win than two incomplete passes and a loss.<\/p>\n 4. Culture comeback<\/p>\n For the second week in a row, Arizona overcame a 14-point deficit. This time it happened in the second half on the road.<\/p>\n It was a testament to the culture Brent Brennan, his staff and his players have cultivated since last season.<\/p>\n Arizona running back Kedrick Reescano, right, takes a handoff from quarterback Noah Fifita and runs for a 2-yard touchdown during the second half against Houston, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025, in Houston.<\/p>\n Jason Fochtman, Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n If last year\u2019s\u00a0team had fallen into that hole, it wouldn\u2019t have crawled its way out. The margin would have grown. We saw it happen time and again.<\/p>\n When Fifita and the offense finally got the ball back with 5:56 left in the third quarter, they played with a palpable sense of urgency. They were aggressive and efficient.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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