[tps_title]The unsurprising wins[/tps_title]
What games will Arizona win and make you say: “That’s no surprise.”
Here they are:
— Oregon State, Oct. 10
— Washington State, Oct. 17
— at Washington, Oct. 31
— Utah, Nov. 14
It’s true that Oregon State has Arizona’s number since 1999 with a 12-2 record against the Wildcats, including six straight wins at Arizona Stadium. But that was mostly against Mike Riley, who is gone to Nebraska. Gary Andersen is also a good coach but this is his first year implementing his system and the Beavers will likely use a freshman quarterback. … Rodriguez’s program is further along than that of Mike Leach’s at Washington State although they were hired a couple of weeks apart four years ago. … Winning in Seattle is always tough but the Huskies defensively only return five starters from the NFL-laden group a year ago. Arizona’s offense, which tallied 27 points against Shaq Thompson and Co. last year, will have the firepower offensively to overcome the Huskies. … Utah has lost three straight games to Arizona, including the 42-10 rout at Salt Lake City last year. The Utes are built around their defense, yet they have allowed the Wildcats an average of 37 points in the three-game losing streak to Rich Rod’s teams.
That gives Arizona eight wins.
The next slide: Where will the other two victories come from?
