let's get healthy and clear headed

[ASUHATER!]

And hope the team doesn't let down against Oregon. Nothing says decades of Arizona football like a big win followed by bitter disappointment.

[AZCatGirl]

Bye next week. We can enjoy this longer than usual.

[azcat49]

Great week for a bye. Really thought Cal was very well prepared tonight. Hope we can use the bye week in a similar way

[Sage&Silver]

Our pass rush and Oregon's O-line will be a slap-fight for the ages.

[scumdevils86]

God I just feel like we have no fucking chance on a Thursday night in Eugene but who knows anymore

[azcat49]

After tonight, how can you doubt

[waysouthcat]

There would have to be some powerful juju and planetary alignment for us to pull out a win in Eugene. Freshman QB on the road, poor defense. This has curbstomping written all over it.

[illcat]

There would have to be some powerful juju and planetary alignment for us to pull out a win in Eugene. Freshman QB on the road, poor defense. This has curbstomping written all over it.

Jesus; why bother to even make the trip then? What a group of Debbie Downers.

[dmjcat]

There would have to be some powerful juju and planetary alignment for us to pull out a win in Eugene. Freshman QB on the road, poor defense. This has curbstomping written all over it.

Jesus; why bother to even make the trip then? What a group of Debbie Downers.

Disagree......they are being realists, not Debbie Downers.

Last nights heroics aside we have one more game this year in which we will be clearly favored (CO at home), maybe 2 (wsu on the road). We will likely be underdogs in all of the rest.

[ASUHATER!]

We should be favored against uw. They have not been that impressive and still haven't played anyone.

[azcat49]

DMJ, I think you are off on that. I think the USC game will open with us -3. I think we will be favored bu double digits against CU. I think we will be favored by 4 against UDUB and it would not surprise me we are a favorite against ASSU.

Don't get me Wrong, I hate our defensive scheme. Bag it tomorrow and I am golden but we can still outscore people and we will.

Cal played with great resolve and purpose. They had an extra week which I think served them well. The rest of the year will be difficult, but as Furd has found out as well as Oregon, this conference is deep and competitive and if you are notcready, you will get beat

[Salty]

Arizona should beat WSU, UW, and CU.

50/50 against USC, Utah, and asu.

Unlikely vs UCLA.

5% against Oregon.

8 wins are well within reach.

[Good For You]

I don't expect a win @ Oregon and yes, our defense does suck, but in Richrod's first year we 'held' them to 35 with a defense that was much worse than this and last year they got 16. The 35 (I subtracted the 2 pick sixes) was in spite of zero support from the offense. The 16 was a bit of an apparition due to turnovers, key 4th down stops, dropped balls, Mariotta being hurt, and Oregon cockiness.

Anu being a freshman and being inconsistent is the scary part but I have no doubt we will have plenty of opportunities offensively and for whatever reason, this defensive scheme does all right against Oregon. Can Anu and the gang put up 40? If so, we've got a shot.

[illcat]

There would have to be some powerful juju and planetary alignment for us to pull out a win in Eugene. Freshman QB on the road, poor defense. This has curbstomping written all over it.

Jesus; why bother to even make the trip then? What a group of Debbie Downers.

Disagree......they are being realists, not Debbie Downers.

Last nights heroics aside we have one more game this year in which we will be clearly favored (CO at home), maybe 2 (wsu on the road). We will likely be underdogs in all of the rest.

I guess I'm just a silly optimist when i say I just don't believe it's going to be the epic beat down that some of you think. Oh and by the way being favored or not being favored in a game does not win it or lose it. Both teams still have to play it.

[cats101]

I just don't see it.

The defense is terrible and it's Autzen. I think the offense will be the reason this isn't an absolute blowout.

Of course I would love to be wrong.

[waysouthcat]

There would have to be some powerful juju and planetary alignment for us to pull out a win in Eugene. Freshman QB on the road, poor defense. This has curbstomping written all over it.

Jesus; why bother to even make the trip then? What a group of Debbie Downers.

We make the trip because maybe we will have some good juju and the planets align! I just don't have a high expectation of beating Oregon this year.

[UofAlum05]

The best player on the field in the Oregon/Arizona game besides Mariotta will be Cayleb Jones.

[UALoco]

Oregon will have all the pressure with a birth to the CFP on the line. We are not supposed to win. If we can get out on top they might start making some mistakes we can capitalize on.

[ANGCatFan]

The title of this thread is "Let's get healthy and clear headed", so I am going to focus on that topic. We have the luxury of our first bye week of the season and a chance to get healthy for the middle of the schedule and try and improve what is working and fix what is not. Oregon should be on our mind, but the focus should be on getting healthy and improving as a team before game prep for Oregon starts this weekend.

For me, the injury I am most worried about is Jeff Worthy. My heart sank when he limped off at the end of the game. Hopefully it is not a significant injury and he will be back quickly. It will be much more difficult to fix our defensive problems if Worthy is sidelined. I suspect we will have Grant and Wilson back after the bye week and the offense should all of its pieces available.

My apologies to the op ASUHater, but instead of using clear headed to focus on our chances against the Ducks, I want to use to to do some "clear headed" self-reflection. What do we know about this team after 4 games and what do you think we need to focus on to maximize our wins for the rest of the season.

We have the luxury now of being 4-0. Yes, the last 3 games were closer than most fans and Vegas expected, but they are still victories. If nothing else, our players have learned what happens when we have errors in execution or lapses in effort and how well we need to play to win. Close games can be great teachers and I am hoping we will see a jump in over all team performance because of not only surviving, but winning some hard fought games.

I am a kool aid pushing optimist, but I expect that biggest change after the bye week will be seeing a more consistent performance from Anu. The redshirt Freshman has the most room for improvement because of the highs and lows of his game. Imagine what Anu's stats would be if he could correct some of his throws to open receivers? I am no QB guru, but Coach Rod and Rod Smith are and I think they will be able to correct Anu's mechanical and emotional errors and help him improve his consistency and also to trust his hot read when the defense brings numbers.

I also expect to see the offense open up over the next several games. We have really only used a limited number of offensive sets and this week will give us a chance to practice more of the playbook and add some new problems for Oregon and USC to handle.

I am less optimistic about the defense especially if Worthy is out with an injury. The only bright spot for me on defense is Scooby Wright -- the kid is playing like an all-American. Bondurant's return is going to help and provides another defensive playmaker, but he won't be able mask all our problems.

We have problems in the defensive backfield, with our pass rush, keeping containment, and realizing that other teams know how to throw to a tight end. Coach Casteel and his staff have a lot to fix in a little time. We don't need to be great, but we do need to find a way to keep opponents from scoring on every possession.

I am sure there will be some position battles this week (Cam Denson I'm rooting for you), but we need a lot more help than a few new bodies. I am really at the point where I am hoping we can just become OK and then find some way to win shootouts with the leagues top teams.

[catgrad97]

Defensive backfield needs to be trusted to tighten up. We didn't lose THAT much with Shaq Richardson, did we?

The pursuit of the ends and LBs has been disappointing so far. That can be changed. The surprisingly (at least to me) shallow depth cannot, at least not until after a (hopefully) bigger bowl win in December.

Solomon's Hail Mary should be a harbinger of great things to come and not the freshman peak Mustafa Shakur's last-second shot to beat USC in the Pac-10 tournament was. For that to be the case, though, the line has GOT to shoot the gaps and be physical--make a difference!

[azgreg]

[azcat49]

Heard they do expect Wilson to be ready to go and that RR wil split carries between him and Grigsby. Have not heard anything on Worthy but Sani played along with Zellers after Worthy went down

[azgreg]

Heard they do expect Wilson to be ready to go and that RR wil split carries between him and Grigsby. Have not heard anything on Worthy but Sani played along with Zellers after Worthy went down

[UAEebs86]

[ANGCatFan]

Great news! I was worried it would be worse.

[Sage&Silver]

Ermish broke his arm.

Season ending injury last year happened in CAL game too. If he comes back, at least we miss them next season.

[Puerco]

Isn't Ermisch a senior? Poor kid.

[catgrad97]

Football teams suffer a LOT of injuries over a season.

[Sage&Silver]

Isn't Ermisch a senior? Poor kid.

Yes he is. Wherever I read that from indicated a medical red-shirt isn't out of the question.

[azgreg]

[azgreg]

[azgreg]