If the 0-5 Arizona Wildcats come into Boulder on Saturday and “upset” the 1-4 Colorado Buffaloes, we will have officially entered the realm of something major needs to change ASAP.
From the beginning of CU’s four-game losing streak, Karl Dorrell’s approach has been to evaluate and correct the small details. He has stayed firm with who is calling plays and has yet to give backup QB Drew Carter any snaps since Minnesota. That probably won’t fly much longer with this fanbase if Colorado loses to Arizona, and it already hasn’t flown much since the Arizona State loss.
“Hopefully, the changes we’ve made are going to help us play more efficient and effective football,” Dorrell said. “We addressed a lot of things. Coaches’ roles in terms of what the expectations are, the expectations we set for our players… they’ve owned up that we can be better. So far, so good with that mindset of addressing the issues that are in front of us. We are moving forward with the subtle changes we did make.”
While the Buffs have done their best to stay positive, being beat on your own turf to an Arizona team on a 17-game losing streak would be soul crushing. Arizona’s last win came against the Buffs on Oct. 5, 2019—CU obviously does not want to be Arizona’s medicine once more.
The Wildcats are also entering this game somewhat short handed after losing QB Jordan McCloud to injury. Gunner Cruz, who was Arizona’s starter to begin the year, is expected to make the start.
Both teams are experiencing rough times offensively as Arizona and Colorado rank 10th and 12th, respectively, in yards per game in the Pac-12.
Colorado’s O-line, which contributed to Brendon Lewis being sacked five times against USC, needs to perform better to get this offense going. Second-year freshman Jake Wiley said the Buffs’ O-line benefited from the bye week and is working to keep Lewis safer in the pocket.
“A lot of the stuff we’ve been working on has been a lot of pass (protection) and just being on the same page, really working together and making sure we’re communicating and all that together,” said Wiley, who has been deployed at left tackle.
We’ll find out soon if these improvements are enough to keep Arizona in the Pac-12 South cellar. Kickoff time is at 1:30 p.m. MST.