Arizona vs Oregon State: Players of the Game

The Arizona Wildcats came out of their bye week having to play their fourth straight ranked opponent: the #11 Oregon State Beavers.

It was a thrilling game on Saturday night, and it ended exactly how the team, staff, and fans wanted.

Arizona ended up knocking off the Beavers 27-24 for the first win against a ranked opponent in Tucson since the ‘Cats crushed the #19 Oregon Ducks 44-15 in 2018.

See below for the Wildcats that stood out in this defining win.

Offense

Michael Wiley, RB

• Stat Line: 2 car, 0 yds; 5 rec, 58 yds, 2 TD

Welcome back Michael Wiley. This was a tough decision to be honest, but I think this is the right choice. He couldn’t get it going on the ground, but he returned to form in the passing game. He made some pretty solid plays before really making his impact felt. After Jacob Cowing set up the ‘Cats with excellent field position with a great punt return, Wiley took the pass in stride down the sideline and out-ran everyone and everything, including two tackles. Fast forward to the next drive, where again Cowing set the team up with good field position. After running the ball for most of the drive, Jonah Coleman got the ‘Cats down to the 3-yard line. Next play, Wiley lines up at fullback and runs his route to the right, catching the ball and making to the end zone. Well done during his first action back.

Defense

Tacario Davis, CB

• Stat Line: 4 tackles, 3 PBUs

Look, some people may not like this pick but hear me out. Yes, he dropped three interceptions. And I’ll start with the bad news first, one of those drops resulted in three points for OSU. The good news: the other two drops could not be capitalized by the Beavers, including the botched fake field goal. Now, Davis deserves a ton of credit. The fact that he was in position to drop those interceptions is impressive. He has done nothing but improve as the season has progressed and this may have been one of his best performances, if not the best, this season.

Special Teams

Tyler Loop, K

• Stat Line: 2-for-2, Long of 51-yards (career best)

Tyler Loop really came through on Saturday. After missing a 50-yarder against USC to push Arizona to a win, there were some questions about his leg strength. Well, that should be put to rest as he set a new career best with a 51-yard field goal against Oregon State. He also knocked through a 25-yarder.

Honorable Mention

• Noah Fifita, QB: 25-for-32, 275 yds, 3 TD, I INT; 5 car, -16 yds
• Jacob Cowing, WR: 6 rec, 36 yds; 1 car, 4 yds; 2 PR, 36 yds
• Tetairoa McMillan, WR: 8 rec, 80 yds, 1 TD
• Gunner Maldonado, S: 10 tackles
• Taylor Upshaw, DE: 3 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 sack