New dad Bondurant a difference-maker in win

Bondurant’s girlfriend of five-plus years, Tiara, gave birth to the couple’s first child at 1:37 a.m. Saturday. Tra’Mayne Bondurant Jr. came in at 8 pounds 12 ounces.

Mom and son are doing just fine.

“It’s been a big day for me,” Bondurant said after Saturday’s 42-10 win over Utah. “I was up all last night, waiting for my son to be born. “Everybody was telling me, ‘Oh you gotta do it for your son.’

“I know my son felt what I did today, because I felt him.”

Bondurant had one of his best games of the season on no sleep. He led the team with 10 tackles and forced a fumble in the first half that lineman Dan Pettinato returned for a touchdown. Bondurant iced the game with a fourth-quarter interception that he returned 39 yards for a touchdown.

“That was definitely for him,” Bondurant said. “From last night on, I was thinking I have to do something big for him. I want my son to always know I’m important and always going to be a good dad.

“I want to prove that whatever I say, I’m going to back it up and today, in God’s plan, it worked out for me.”

Bondurant’s fourth-quarter touchdown was the senior safety’s fifth career touchdown and fourth career pick-six. He returned a fumble 22 yards for a touchdown earlier this season against Colorado.

“I’m so proud of him,” senior safety Jourdon Grandon said. “He’s come a long way. It’s great he had a game like this. He just had his baby last night. I’m so proud of him. That’s my boy. I’m so happy he’s being blessed.”

As they rode to the stadium Saturday, fellow safety Will Parks sat next to Bondurant and shared a moment with him.

“I told him on the bus before the game, ‘We’re about go get this win for you,’” Parks said. “It was definitely good for him. I’m definitely proud of him.

“That’s the type of thing we live for.”

Bondurant FaceTimed with his girlfriend and an older brother, Thomas, on Friday night and was able to see his son shortly after he was born.

“But it’s not the same as being in person,” Bondurant said.

The senior from Vallejo, California, started at outside linebacker for the Wildcats. It was his first start since the UA beat Washington State last month in Pullman. Bondurant has been dealing with a knee injury that has limited him to a situational player.

On Saturday, he was full-go.

“This is a great year for us,” Bondurant said of the Wildcats. “This was a big win for our team. I’m proud of my teammates and everyone in this program.”

Setting the tone

Utah went three-and-out on its first five drives Saturday.

Parks was a big reason why.

The safety had a tackle-for-loss on Utah’s first play from scrimmage. Two plays later, on third-and-one, Parks broke up a pass intended for Kaelin Clay.

On the Utes’ third drive, Parks had a tackle-for-loss on second-and-four for 3 yards. On the third-and-seven, Parks broke up a pass intended for tight end Westlee Tonga and forced another Utah punt.

“I think all the guys, they told me all those plays I made early set the tone for everybody,” Parks said.

“I want to make sure everybody else is making plays, but if I’m the guy who is able to make plays, I’ll do that.”

The Utes didn’t register a first down until the second quarter and had just 17 yards of total offense on nine plays.

Tom Hackett punted three times.

Arizona possessed the ball for 10 minutes 28 seconds. Utah had it for just 4:32.

The defense continued to play well. Arizona forced four turnovers and held Utah to 384 yards of total offense. Utah had just 171 passing yards and converted just 6 of 19 third downs.

“Our defense has a mindset that can’t be broken right now,” Grandon said. “I knew if we played hard and executed our stuff, we had a good chance.”

Extra points

• Arizona improved to 4-1 on the road this season. Arizona is 2-1 against ranked teams away from Tucson, notching wins against Oregon and Utah but losing to UCLA.
• Running back Nick Wilson finished with 218 yards and three touchdowns. The 218 yards is the ninth-best single-game mark in UA history. He also went over 1,000 rushing yards on the season. The freshman has 1,085 despite missing a game with an ankle injury.

The 218 yards set a UA freshman record for yards in a game. Nic Grigsby held the previous mark with 186.Austin Hill finished with three catches for 61 yards. He has a catch in 28 straight games.

• The Wildcats held a 21-3 advantage in points off turnovers. The UA is outscoring opponents 90-15 off turnovers this season.