First Look: Arizona

Time: 8:30 p.m. ET

Date: Wednesday, Dec. 27

Location: Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, Calif.

TV: FOX

More: Game more than a reward | Bowl notebook

The Wildcats average nearly 42 points per game, the sixth-highest mark in the country, and they do so behind behind an option offense that produces. Arizona is averaging a robust, to say the least, 324.4 yards per game; not only is that tops is the Pac-12 — and third nationally — but it is so by 56 yards over second-place Oregon. And Arizona averages 494.5 yards per game, No. 12 nationally.

Quarterback Khalil Tate, who took over as the starter in October, makes the offense hum. The sophomore is the first QB in Pac-12 history to rush for more than 1,000 yards, and he passed that milestone and then some. Tate has 1,353 yards rushing this season, averaging better than 10 yards per carry, to go along with 1,289 passing yards. He hits on 61-percent of his passes, a good rate for an option quarterback, but he does have weakness, throwing eight interceptions in 153 attempts, about one in only 19 throws.

Three others — JJ Taylor, Nick Wilson and Brandon Dawkins (the former starting QB) — have at least 459 yards rushing. Another, Zach Green, a 5-10, 229-pounder, has 11 touchdowns in only 65 rushing attempts.

In the preseason, Arizona was picked to finish last in the Pac-12 South, perhaps understandable given that the Wildcats had won only three games in 2016.

Then, Arizona had lost eight straight before a season-ending win over rival Arizona State.

This season started slowly, with a 2-2 record that included single-possession losses to Houston and No. 23 Utah, both at home.

But October brought the Wildcats Tate, who they inserted as the starting QB for Game 5, and the offense took off. He was named Pac-12 player-of-the-week for four straight weeks, leading the Wildcats to a 4-0 record and gaining more rushing yards in a month than any FBS player in the last decade.

Since Tate took the starting role, the Wildcats are 5-3, although they have won only one of their last four since the hot October start.

The 'cats offense is great.

Its defenses gives up points and yards in bunches.

Arizona ranks 10th in both scoring defense and yardage allowed, at 34.1 points and 464.2 yards, respectively.

In the last two games, loses to Oregon and Arizona State, Arizona gave up a 978 total yards, including 580 on the ground. The Ducks alone gained 588 yards in a 48-28 win, including 353 (and a seven-yard average) on the ground.

The defense does turn teams over, with 24 gained turnovers this season, including 18 interceptions that ranks tied for fifth-most in the country. Redshirt freshman Lorenzo Burns has five picks.

Arizona is young defensively, with five freshmen among its starting 11 on the pre-Arizona State depth chart. Two of the rookies are linebackers, but they've been productive, with Tony Fields II (91 tackles) and Colin Schooler (88 tackles) leading all Pac-12 freshmen in tackles.

"I know they have a tremendously talented athletic quarterback that's been able to run for a lot of yards and is very dynamic and probably is a similar version to (Louisville's) Lamar Jackson but maybe younger. The little bit I've seen, he's maybe a little bit of a stronger runner, so that's going to create a lot of problems for us.

"We're going to have to find a way to contain him and not allow him to single-handedly beat us. To have a chance to coach against Coach (Rich) Rodriguez, he's an outstanding coach and he's played in a lot of Bowl games himself. I think it will be a great matchup and we'll have to, for us, find a way to keep it close and get in the second half with an opportunity to win."

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