Running Game:
Rushing the ball has been the strength of the Wildcat offense thus far this season. It’s not secret that running back Nic Grigsby will be getting the ball a lot via a variety of formations (they like to mix it up with the I-formation and spread formations not unlike Penn State). He’s currently the second leading rusher in the nation, trailing only Purdue’s Bolden, averaging 162.5 yards per game and 8.6 yards per carry (he had a 94 yard run against Northern Arizona that kind of pads those stats though, still impressive though). He is a quick, shifty little back at 5’10” 190 lbs, and has the ability to break the long one. He had fumble problems a year ago (4 fumbles in the first half of the season), but seems to have righted that ship. His backup, Keola Antolin, is no slouch either. He has 97 yards and 19 carries and a touchdown.
Another big part of the Arizona running game is with quarterback Matt Scott. He has averaged over 8 yards on his 16 carries thus far. He’ll have his name called on a few designed runs, and he’s not afraid to tuck it and take off if he can’t find anyone open.
The offensive line is a big reason why Arizona has been able to run the ball so effectively (obviously). The two tackles are seniors and the center, Colin Baxter, is a third year starter. The unit is big as well, averaging over 320 pounds.
Passing Game:
The passing numbers for QBs Scott and Nick Foles don’t look bad (completing 67% of their passes, averaging about 7 yards per attempt, and have a 2:2 TD:Int ration), however, neither has been particularly impressive. Scott has taken most of the snaps thus far and most of his stats come from short passes (only 4 passes have been for more than 20 yards).
The wide receivers have been okay for the Wildcats this year. They have some returning talent from last year, most notably in Terrell Turner. For his career he has 105 catches for 1,263 yards and 6 touchdowns. Delashaun Dean has been bugged by a hamstring injury thus far and has seen limited action, but he also bring a lot of experience to the table.
Arizona also like to utilize its tight ends and its TE/HB hybrids in the pass game as well, but will be without superstar Rob Gronkowski. His older, and less talented brother Chris has caught a couple passes as the TE/HB and A.J. Simmons has done okay filling in.
Overall Thoughts:
- Iowa’s stats against the run have been less than impressive this year, but they should be able to focus more on the run this week. The linebackers won’t need to be used as much in coverage and can key on the talented running backs
- With a running QB (Scott) much like Arnaud and Grace, my thought is that containment will be the name of the game again. Probably not too many sacks, but not many QB rushing yards either.
- Arizona has struggled to put the ball in the endzone the first 2 games. The loss of Gronkowski has really hurt, as last year they were able to just toss the ball up once they got past the 20, and he would do the rest.