Big 12 · Brent Brennan, year 3 (15-13) · Arizona Stadium · 50,782 · 40,271 avg in 2026
LastW 42–17 vs Northern Illinois · Sat Sep 19 · Noah Fifita 325 pass yds, 4 TD, 4 rush yds
Nextat Washington State · Sat Sep 26 · 7:30 pm ET · Gesa Field · Arizona by 10 · series 28-19 · Game preview
Updated Tue Sep 22 · through week 3
| Wk | Date | Us | Opp | Line | Opponent | Result | Record | Conf |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 6 | #27 | #152 | -33.5✗ | Northern Arizona | W 35–7 124 | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 2 | Sep 12 | #28 | #9 | +6.5✗ | @BYU | L 17–28 118 | 1-1 | 0-1 |
| 3 | Sep 20 | #25 | #104 | -34.5✗ | Northern Illinois | W 42–17 131 | 2-1 | 0-1 |
| 4 | Sep 26 | #28 | #48 | -10 | @Washington State | |||
| 5 | Oct 3 | #28 | #102 | Cincinnati | ||||
| 6 | Oct 10 | @West Virginia | ||||||
| 8 | Oct 24 | Iowa State | ||||||
| 9 | Oct 31 | @Texas Tech | ||||||
| 10 | Nov 7 | TCU | ||||||
| 11 | Nov 14 | Utah | ||||||
| 12 | Nov 21 | @Kansas State | ||||||
| 13 | Nov 28 | Arizona State |
| Date | Opp | Result | Yds | TO | TOP | EPA/play | Success% | Explosive% | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 20 | Northern Illinois | W 42–17 | 441 | 1 | 30:20 | +0.423 | 52.2% | 145.3% | Season-high EPA/play |
| Sep 12 | @BYU | L 17–28 | 327 | 1 | 33:41 | +0.106 | 41.3% | 115.0% | Season-low EPA/play |
| Sep 6 | Northern Arizona | W 35–7 | 520 | 3 | 32:12 | +0.216 | 60.8% | 93.3% | Best success rate |
| Season average (3 games) | 429 | 1.7 | +0.248 | 51.4% | 117.9% | ||||
Arizona is the desert program that owns one of the great defenses college football ever fielded — the 1990s Desert Swarm — and spent the seasons since trying to feel that feared again, most recently bouncing back from 4-8 to 9-4 in its second Big 12 year.
Wildcat fans say the sport filed Arizona under 'Pac-12 survivor' the day the old league died and never updated the file — they say a 9-4 Big 12 season barely moved the needle, and the desert is…
The season in chapters
What fans said
Real posts from the day of the game, chosen by community score · usernames not shown
What it is like to watch them2025 · 9-4 · last season
✓ measured from 13 games · ranks are among Big 12 teams the same season
Recent form · last 10 games · incl. 2025
Mixed. 7-3 over the last 10, and won the last one.
Isaiah [Mizell] has been so different, how he has attacked these last nine months, his process, his detail, his effort and it’s showing up. And he’s playing better, and that’s really exciting
Next Sep 26
vs Washington State · away
✓ fact on line · ~ our read on style
Market outlook
Sportsbook consensus · best odds across multiple books · 2026-09-22
the open questionis the portal class enough to move the needle?
Brent Brennan's second consecutive top-30 portal class — including Braedyn Locke (QB) — continues Arizona's modern desert-football identity, built on resilience and strategic talent acquisition.
our readdeveloping
Brent Brennan's third season opens with a 9-4 record and a #21 AP finish, but unease lingers as Arizona navigates its Big 12 debut and the shadow of Jedd Fisch's legacy.
our readdeveloping
Chris Hunter is a real deep-ball threat -- a high share of his targets come on throws past the sticks.
our readbackground
Kedrick Reescano: a closer signal screened this season.
our readbackground
Arizona leaped 54 spots in SP+ — the 2024 10-3 record and Jedd Fisch’s legacy anchor a program that hasn’t been this high since its 1998 Holiday Bowl peak, now.
our readbackground
Outcome band · Arizona · 2026
Floor, base and ceiling come from the season-path projection, which plays out conference title games and the CFP — so a ceiling can run past 12 games.
Arizona signed a top-26 transfer-portal class — 30 additions headlined by Braedyn Locke (QB) from Wisconsin and Michael Dansby (CB) from San José State. It is second consecutive top-30 portal class. Portal pickups don't redshirt. The coverage sees this as a targeted, ready-to-contribute class built for snap competition, not depth-chart filler. The coverage reads this as a credible, targeted haul.
The 'portal class fills the gaps' believers -- upgrades at real positions of need.
The 'portal is a gamble' counter -- departure losses and the 'plug-and-play doesn't work' read.
Nothing in our corpus yet — this door stays open for when there is.
Only 6 of 892 board posts mention it — below our floor to call a community stance. Shown as texture, not a verdict.
The boards ≠ the fanbase: a vocal, self-selected slice.
The optimistic read: momentum, and the 'this is real' takes.
The analytical counter: rankings, results, and 'the hype is ahead of the tape' takes.
Nothing in our corpus yet — this door stays open for when there is.
This event was in 75 of 892 board posts (8%) over the last 60 days — engaged but not consumed. Fan text shown verbatim, attributed to the community not the individual poster.
The boards ≠ the fanbase: a vocal, self-selected slice.
Fan mood index · most recent r/cfb data
More in this tab
Arizona is the Big 12 newcomer whose 1998 12-1 Holiday Bowl + 2024 10-3 + Jedd Fisch + Brent Brennan transition define what modern desert-football looks like.
The program ledger
since 2025NCAA denies Godfrey eligibility waiver
Brennan already burned two waiver wins getting Harris and Mahdi cleared — Godfrey's denial is the NCAA collecting on the third ask, and Arizona's DL depth problem just got harder to paper over.
Arizona players sue NCAA
Wildcats with four draft departures and a #42 class trying to rebuild — suing the NCAA mid-rebuild is either a distraction or the boldest bet Brent Brennan's program makes all year.
Unofficial depth chart released
Four draft departures and a #42 class behind them — Brennan's unofficial depth chart is the first real look at whether the DL pressure problem has an answer yet.
EDGE Victory Johnson transfer commits from Cal Poly
Brent Brennan keeps importing the West Coast FCS evaluation — Johnson's tape is starter-grade.
Harris, Mahdi cleared to play
Clearance timing matters — Brennan's roster is already absorbing four draft departures, and getting Harris and Mahdi on the field at No. 15 BYU isn't depth management, it's damage control for a Big 12 opener that sets the tone.
CB Whitehead commits to Arizona
Brennan's plugging the secondary piece by piece — four starters drafted out of Tucson means the CB room still had real miles to cover before fall camp closes.
Top 3 commits
Recruiting Footprint · 2026
CA leads the 2026 class with 5 commits. National footprint reaching 9 states.
Where they recruit · 2023-2026
96 signees across 14 states, 2023-2026. CA leads the pull.
Miles from home · 2026 roster
The median Arizona player grew up 621 miles from campus.
Half this roster came from closer than that; half came from farther.
Straight-line distance from each player's listed hometown to Arizona Stadium. Hometowns are placed at city-centroid precision, not street address — fine at this scale, but a player's true door-to-door number can differ by a few miles. 105 of 110 listed players have a geocoded hometown. Source: CFBD roster hometowns.
Top community posts · last 12 months · r/cfb
Among the stronger offseasons on record for this program
82nd percentile among FBS programs
2 of 68 AP voters have them ranked, AP ballot, week 3 (2026) — from #22, Koki Riley (The (Baton Rouge) Advocate), to #25, Eric Hansen (The South Bend Tribune). 66 voters left them off the ballot entirely.
Individual AP Top 25 ballots, AP ballot, week 3, 2026 — 68 voters tracked.
Losing the penalty battle: 15 penalties committed vs. 15 drawn on opponents, a 29-yard deficit.
135 penalty yards committed vs. 106 drawn on opponents, 2026 season total.
Outcome band · Arizona · 2026
Recruiting Footprint · 2026