5 takeaways from Arizona football’s season-opening victory over NAU | Michael Lev

Arizona did not technically shut out Northern Arizona. The final score in the season opener at Casino Del Sol Stadium was 35-7.

But the UA defense — in its first game after sending five defensive backs to the NFL, three of whom returned as honorary captains Saturday night — did not allow a point.

That’s noteworthy, even if it won’t go into the record book.

A late pick-six prevented Arizona from keeping an opponent scoreless for the first time since 2013. One of the defense’s standouts, safety Quinn Olson, wasn’t too upset about it.

“We got the win,” said the third-year safety, who snagged his first interception in his first career start. “That’s all that matters to us.”

Overall, it was an effective, if imperfect, opening performance. The Wildcats did a lot of things well. They also made plenty of mistakes.

Here are my top five takeaways from the warm-up for Arizona’s Week 2 showdown vs. BYU:

1. Next-level Noah

Noah Fifita has put up bigger numbers than he did Saturday night — 22 of 29, 262 yards, two touchdowns.

I’m not sure he’s played a smarter, sounder game.

Fifita showed a new level of awareness that comes from time spent on task: five years in college, two years in the same offensive system.

When he faced pressure, he knew where his escape routes and outlets were. Checkdowns to running backs aren’t glamorous, but they can be effective.

One such example: A 9-yard completion to Quincy Craig on Arizona’s second possession. Fifita fought off a pass rusher, found his former Trinity League rival in the left flat and set up the offense for an easy conversion.

The play that stood out most, though, was Fifita’s 21-yard TD pass to Brandon Phelps in the second quarter.

Fifita scrambled to his left and had room to run. He might have even gained a first down.

But why settle for a first down when you can score a touchdown?

Fifita saw Phelps breaking free in the back of the end zone. Fifita led him perfectly, enabling Phelps to snare the ball just inside the end line.

It was the kind of play you’d expect a veteran quarterback to make. Check that; it was the kind of decision you’d expect a veteran quarterback to make.

“We have incredibly high expectations for Noah — but so does Noah,” UA coach Brent Brennan said. “Nothing that he does surprises us. We expect that high level of consistency for him to continue.”

It’ll be harder for Fifita against BYU, of course. But is there anyone you’d rather have leading that upset effort?

2. Coming in waves

It’s hard to find fault in a defensive effort that resulted in zero points allowed, minus-7 net rushing yards, 193 total yards, 11 tackles for loss and five sacks.

There were some nits to be picked, which we’ll get to in the next section. But you had to like what you saw on that side of the ball — especially from the front six.

Arizona rotated defensive linemen liberally, blitzed frequently and caused all sorts of havoc for NAU’s offensive line and oft-under-duress quarterback Ty Pennington.

Linebackers Taye Brown (11 tackles, 0.5 TFLs, one pass breakup) and Chase Kennedy (career-high 2.5 sacks) had the most eye-popping numbers. But they were hardly the only ones who made plays.

Fellow linebacker Cooper Blomstrom had eight tackles, 1.5 TFLs, one PBU and one forced fumble in his UA debut — exactly the sort of production Arizona was hoping for when it identified Blomstrom as Riley Wilson’s replacement.

Defensive tackle Zac Siulepa was credited with just one pass breakup, but his impact was felt in other ways. He drew a holding penalty and also had a terrific bull rush that ended with Pennington flat on his back.

Siulepa, a massive junior-college transfer, was too heavy to play a regular role last season. He dedicated himself to getting in shape in the offseason and appears to have carved out a role at a spot where his bulk (6-6, 367) is badly needed.

Another JC transfer, Kevin Moorer Jr., has a different body type. He’s more of what’s known as a “3-technique” — a defensive tackle who’s smaller (6-3, 280) and quicker. That’s a nice chess piece for defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales, especially on passing downs. Moorer finished with four tackles, including one TFL.

Even freshman Dash Fifita, Noah’s little brother, got in on the act. Gonzales promised that the younger Fifita would have a role on defense. Sure enough, the undersized freshman used a wicked spin move to log his first career sack.

3. Coverage concerns?

Pennington completed the first eight passes he attempted.

Third-and-long? No problem, at least initially, for a player Brennan deemed a future “NFL quarterback.”

Throw in some missed tackles in space by the players tasked with replacing last season’s stellar secondary, and it was all a bit concerning.

But let’s give credit where it’s due. Pennington made some incredible throws, often while under pressure, to receivers who were well covered. Sometimes the other guys just make plays.

As the game progressed, the coverage got better. Pennington and backup Donivan Dixon combined to finish 19 of 31. That means they were 11 of 23 after the 8-for-8 start.

The tackling got better, too. It wasn’t surprising that it was lackluster at the start. The Wildcats do tackling drills every single day, but they didn’t do any “live” tackling — taking human ball-carriers to the ground — during training camp. It’s a tradeoff intended to keep players healthy.

“Part of it is just getting settled into the game,” Olson said. “First time in a while actually live-tackling someone.”

Pro Football Focus’ initial charting had Arizona with 10 missed tackles. That isn’t an inordinately high number.

For the most part, Arizona limited NAU’s yards after catch. YAC accounted for 39% of the Lumberjacks’ passing yards (78 of 200). The Wildcats, meanwhile, gained 57% of their passing yards via YAC (179 of 314).

One of NAU’s longest “pass” plays came on a hook-and-lateral in the second quarter — a 4-yard pass that turned into a 33-yard gain. It was a perfectly timed and executed trick play that Arizona couldn’t have prepared for.

Finally, as colleague Justin Spears noted, Arizona’s elite secondary a year ago wasn’t always elite. It had its struggles. But it got better. Give these guys some time.

4. Growing pains

The fourth quarter provided a great “teach tape” that Arizona’s coaches can show to young players.

Tons of guys played college football for the first time. They made a bunch of cool plays — and, as you’d expect, a bunch of youthful mistakes.

No one embodied that more than second-year quarterback Sawyer Anderson, who played the final three drives.

Anderson’s UA playing career couldn’t have started much worse. He was sacked on his first play, then threw an ill-advised screen pass that NAU’s Noble Young-Blackgoat intercepted and returned for a touchdown.

Brennan and offensive coordinator Seth Doege could have elected to reinsert Noah Fifita at that point, but they stuck with Anderson. The kid’s gotta learn at some point, right?

On his next possession, Anderson led the offense into the red zone, showing off a strong arm and high-end athleticism. The drive ended with an Antwan Roberts fumble.

Anderson and the offense marched 51 yards on the final drive and might have scored if time hadn’t run out. That drive featured a diving catch by talented freshman receiver R.J. Mosley and several hard runs by second-year tailback Wesley Yarbrough.

“Those are incredibly valuable reps because they're live reps, they're real reps, they're against an opponent,” Brennan said. “That part of it is very valuable for them (in) understanding what this is and what it takes.”

Another sophomore, receiver Giovanni Richardson, lost a fumble in the first quarter. Undaunted, he finished with eight receptions for 96 yards. Both were game- and career-high marks.

5. Beat BYU?

Did anything you saw Saturday night inspire confidence that Arizona can go to Provo and beat BYU in Week 2?

I’m not there quite yet.

Yes, the Wildcats were mostly efficient and were the more physical team. They ended up with more than 200 rushing yards.

But BYU is a whole different level of size, strength and toughness.

My biggest concern is pass protection. Fifita was pressured only a handful of times by NAU. The last time he played in Provo, he took a beating.

Can the Wildcats slow down the Cougars’ power rushing attack? The way the front rotated and played downhill vs. NAU was encouraging.

But again, BYU isn’t NAU. The Cougars will hit the Wildcats with a pair of battering rams.

Tailback LJ Martin and quarterback Bear Bachmeier are big, physical runners. They have almost identical dimensions. Martin is listed at 6-2, 225; Bachmeier at 6-2, 230.

BYU rushed for 310 yards in a 63-7 victory over Utah Tech — which is several notches below Arizona. The Cougars haven’t been tested either.

It’s a critical game on so many levels — the type of game that could launch a Heisman campaign or a CFP run.

Much will be revealed — about both teams.