Arizona football wraps up nonconference play against former Pac-12 opponent Washington State at the Palouse.
Arizona (2-1) vs. Washington State (1-2)
When: Saturday, 4:30 p.m.
Where: Gesa Field at Martin Stadium (Pullman, Washington)
TV: CBS, Paramount+
Radio: 1290-AM, 107.5-FM
Point spread, over/under (via Action Network): Arizona -10, 48.5 points
Arizona Wildcats
2026 Record: 2-1 (0-1 Big 12)
WHEN ARIZONA IS ON OFFENSE (PROJECTED):
People are also reading…
[Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr.]
WR | 12 | Tre Spivey III | 6-4 | 212 | Sr.
WR | 84 | Rodney Gallagher III | 5-10 | 180 | Sr.
LT | 73 | Matthew Lado | 6-6 | 320 | Jr.
LG | 59 | Rhino Tapa’atoutai | 6-5 | 320 | Sr.
C | 58 | Zach Henning | 6-4 | 310 | Sr.
RG | 63 | Alexander Doost | 6-7 | 335 | Sr.
RT | 71 | Tristan Bounds | 6-8 | 320 | 6th
TE | 87 | Tyler Powell | 6-7 | 245 | 5th
WR | 11 | Chris Hunter | 6-1 | 195 | 5th
QB | 1 | Noah Fifita | 5-10 | 190 | 5th
RB | 3 | Kedrick Reescano | 6-0 | 215 | Sr.
Arizona tight end Tyler Powell celebrates after hauling in a touchdown catch on fourth down against Northern Illinois in the third quarter on Sept. 19, 2026.
WHEN ARIZONA IS ON DEFENSE (PROJECTED):
[Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr.]
DL | 3 | Tre Smith | 6-5 | 265 | 6th
DL | 95 | Leroy Palu | 6-3 | 295 | Sr.
DL | 99 | Mays Pese | 6-3 | 290 | So.
LB | 7 | Chase Kennedy | 6-3 | 235 | 5th
LB | 6 | Taye Brown | 6-2 | 230 | Sr.
LB | 48 | Cooper Blomstrom | 6-2 | 245 | Sr.
NB | 15 | Malcolm Hartzog Jr. | 5-8 | 190 | 5th
CB | 8 | Jay’Vion Cole | 5-10 | 190 | 5th
CB | 9 | Tyrese Boss | 5-11 | 185 | Jr.
BS | 23 | Lee Molette III | 6-1 | 195 | 5th
FS | 35 | Quinn Olson | 6-3 | 205 | Jr.
UA 2026 SCHEDULE
September
5 | NORTHERN ARIZONA | W, 35-7
12 | at No. 15 BYU | L, 28-17
19 | NORTHERN ILLINOIS | W, 42-17
26 | at Washington State | 4:30 p.m. | CBS
October
3 | CINCINNATI | 8 p.m. | Fox
10 | at West Virginia
24 | IOWA STATE
31 | at No. 11 Texas Tech
Arizona wide receiver Chris Hunter, right, gets to dance in the end zone after a catch-and-run touchdown against Northern Illinois on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, in Tucson.
November
6 | TCU* | 8:15 p.m. | ESPN
14 | No. 15 UTAH
21 | at Kansas State
28 | ARIZONA STATE
Home games in Bold; *=Friday game
UA 2026 STATS
PASSING
[Name | Comp-Att-INT | Yards | TDs | Long]
Fifita | 77-95-1 | 834 | 7 | 43
Anderson | 6-11-2 | 84 | 0 | 32
RUSHING
[Name | Carries | Yards | TDs | YPC | YPG]
Reescano | 33 | 127 | 2 | 3.8 | 42.3
Fifita | 22 | 66 | 2 | 3 | 22
Craig | 11 | 53 | 0 | 4.8 | 17.7
Roberts | 7 | 50 | 1 | 7.1 | 25
RECEIVING
[Name | Rec. | Yards | TDs | YPC | YPG]
Richardson | 14 | 161 | 0 | 11.5 | 80.5
Spivey | 12 | 149 | 2 | 12.4 | 49.7
Hunter | 7 | 96 | 1 | 13.7 | 32
Phelps | 5 | 96 | 1 | 19.2 | 32
Mizell | 7 | 88 | 1 | 12.6 | 29.3
DEFENSE
[Name | Tackles | Sacks | INTs | FR | FF]
Arizona linebacker Cooper Blomstrom exults after his sack stopped Northern Illinois quarterback Taron Dickens short of the end zone on fourth down in the third quarter of their game on Sept. 19, 2026.
Blomstrom | 22 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 1
Brown | 18 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0
Molette | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
Hartzog | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
Olson | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0
Washington State Cougars
2026 record: 1-2 (0-0 Pac-12)
WHEN WSU IS ON OFFENSE (PROJECTED):
[Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr.]
WR | 4 | Darrius Clemons | 6-3 | 217 | R-Sr.
TE | 28 | Jack Pedersen | 6-5 | 238 | R-Sr.
LT | 71 | Ashton Tripp | 6-7 | 307 | R-Jr.
LG | 67 | Jonny Lester | 6-5 | 318 | R-Sr.
C | 75 | Noah Dunham | 6-5 | 292 | R-Jr.
RG | 77 | Nick Bakken | 6-5 | 305 | R-So.
RT | 64 | Jaylin Caldwell | 6-7 | 332 | R-Sr.
WR | 1 | Daniel Blood | 5-11 | 190 | Sr.
WR | 8 | Branden Ganashamoorthy | 6-3 | 199 | R-Jr.
QB | 12 | Caden Pinnick | 6-0 | 192 | R-So.
RB | 9 | Kirby Vorhees | 5-11 | 215 | R-So.
WHEN WSU IS ON DEFENSE (PROJECTED):
[Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Yr.]
DE | 6 | Linus Zink | 6-6 | 264 | R-Sr.
DT | 98 | Jirah Leaupepetele | 6-3 | 349 | R-Jr.
Sep 19, 2026; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars wide receiver Tank Hawkins Jr. (10) and Washington State Cougars quarterback Julian Dugger (2) celebrate a touchdown against the Duquesne Dukes during the second half at Gesa Field at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-Imagn Images
DT | 52 | Kaden Beatty | 6-2 | 287 | R-Jr.
DE | 9 | Matyus McLain | 6-4 | 265 | R-Jr.
LB | 21 | Keith Brown | 6-1 | 244 | R-Sr.
LB | 15 | DJ Warner | 6-4 | 233 | Jr.
NB | 2 | Jamarey Smith | 6-1 | 190 | R-Fr.
CB | 13 | Khamari Terrell | 6-1 | 187 | R-Sr.
SS | 3 | Jaylen Thomas | 6-0 | 190 | R-So.
FS | 1 | Jeremiah Bernard | 6-0 | 196 | Jr.
CB | 22 | Jalil Tucker | 6-0 | 173 | Sr.
WSU 2026 SCHEDULE
September
6 | at No. 17 Washington^ | L, 24-10
12 | at Kansas State | L, 34-7
19 | DUQUESNE | W, 48-7
26 | ARIZONA | 4:30 p.m. | CBS
October
3 | FRESNO STATE* | 6:30 p.m. | USA Network
9 | at Utah State | 6 p.m. | CW
17 | at Oregon State | 3 p.m. | USA Network
24 | BOISE STATE | 3 p.m. | USA Network
31 | at San Diego State | 4 p.m. | CBS Sports
November
14 | COLORADO STATE | 8:30 p.m. | CBS Sports
Sep 19, 2026; Pullman, Washington, USA; Washington State Cougars head coach Kirby Moore walks off the field after a game against the Duquesne Dukes at Gesa Field at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-Imagn Images
21 | at Texas State | 4 p.m. | USA Network
Home games in Bold; *=Friday game; ^=Sunday game
WSU 2026 STATS
PASSING
[Name | Comp-Att-INT | Yards | TDs | Long]
Pinnick | 42-67-3 | 403 | 2 | 32
RUSHING
[Name | Carries | Yards | TDs | YPC | YPG]
Vorhees | 27 | 171 | 2 | 6.3 | 57
Pinnick | 39 | 166 | 2 | 4.3 | 55.3
Woods | 20 | 153 | 0 | 7.7 | 51
Pulalasi | 12 | 34 | 0 | 2.8 | 11.3
RECEIVING
[Name | Rec. | Yards | TDs | YPC | YPG]
Blood | 10 | 104 | 0 | 10.4 | 34.7
Clemons | 10 | 100 | 0 | 10 | 33.3
Ganashamoorthy | 5 | 78 | 1 | 15.6 | 26
Hawkins | 2 | 35 | 0 | 17.5 | 11.7
Woods | 4 | 32 | 0 | 8 | 10.7
DEFENSE
[Name | Tackles | Sacks | INTs | FR | FF]
Brown | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
Hung | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
Warner | 12 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0
Bernard | 11 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0
Thomas | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0
Arizona running back Quincy Craig tries to fight off Northern Illinois linebacker Jashawn Nelson on a run in the third quarter of their game, Sept. 19, 2026, in Tucson.
Head to Head
24 Quincy Craig vs. 21 Keith Brown
Arizona head coach Brent Brennan said the Wildcats are “aggressively attacking” to improve the run game this week — a rushing attack that ranks last in the Big 12 in carries and yards. Craig leads Arizona's running backs in receiving with six catches for 46 yards and averaged 7 yards after contact against NIU last week, according to Pro Football Focus.
Brown has been a journeyman in college football since signing with Oregon's 2021 recruiting class as a four-star prospect from Lebanon, Oregon. Brown played two seasons at Oregon and started in the Ducks' win over North Carolina in the Holiday Bowl. Brown transferred to Louisville for one season in 2023 before transferring to Washington State in 2024. He leads WSU in tackles.
Arizona wide receiver Caleb Smith (20) cruises into the end zone as the Pride of Arizona celebrates his punt return for a touchdown late in the second quarter against Northern Illinois, Tucson, Ariz., September 19, 2026.
20 Caleb Smith vs. 3 Jaylen Thomas
A tank and a jet will be on the field in Pullman. One of Washington State's returners and role players at receiver is Tank Hawkins, while Smith — nicknamed “Jet” — is Arizona's starting punt returner. Hawkins had a punt return for a touchdown last week, as did Smith, the first Wildcat to accomplish that feat since Shun Brown in 2017. Smith leads the Big 12 in average yards per punt return (24.7).
Thomas is a Los Gatos, California native and was high school teammates with UA walk-on Scotty Brennan, who's the son of Arizona head coach Brent Brennan. Thomas signed to play for Brennan at San Jose State in 2024, but Brennan left for Arizona. Thomas played two seasons at SJSU before transferring to WSU. Thomas has two interceptions and a punt return for a touchdown this season.
The matchup
When Arizona has the ball …
After a stagnant performance in the second half against BYU in Provo, the Wildcats found their groove in the passing game last week, when quarterback Noah Fifita threw four touchdown passes to four different pass catchers. Now that Arizona is playing against a WSU defense that ranks 119th in rushing defense, the UA offense could have one of its top rushing performances.
When Washington State has the ball …
Washington State has the 15th-worst offense in college football and heavily relies on the run game. WSU has 101 rushes and 67 pass attempts this season — a stark contrast to Arizona's 92 rushes and 106 pass attempts. The Cougars have three players in the Pac-12's top 10 rushing leaders this season. WSU has the seventh-worst third-down offense at the FBS level.
College Football 27 prediction: Arizona 35, Washington State 9
Arizona jumped on Washington State early with a 53-yard touchdown from Fifita to Rodney Gallagher III, who's filling in at slot receiver for the injured Giovanni Richardson, and an interception by linebacker Taye Brown on the ensuing drive, which set up a passing touchdown from Fifita to Chris Hunter.
Fifita was 18 of 25 passing for 299 yards and five touchdowns. Gallagher had six catches for 140 yards in Arizona's dominant win in Pullman. Wide receiver Tre Spivey and running back Kedrick Reescano also had touchdown receptions.
Contact Justin Spears, the Star's Arizona football beat reporter, at jspears@tucson.com. On X(Twitter): @JustinESports
Justin Spears
Sports Reporter
Cats Stats: Is Arizona unable to run the ball? Unwilling? Or just taking what’s there?
