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Arizona-Washington St. Preview

Oct 13, 2010 - 1:50 AM By MATT BEARDMORE STATS Writer

No. 20 Arizona (4-1) at Washington State (1-5), 7:30 p.m. EDT

In the top 10 for the first time in more than a decade, Arizona was upset on its home field last week.

Coach Mike Stoops won't let his team overlook Washington State.

The 17th-ranked Wildcats look to bounce back from their first loss Saturday night at Clarence D. Martin Stadium, where they'll go for their fifth consecutive win over a Cougars team that has lost four straight but challenged a highly ranked team in its last game.

Looking to improve to 5-0 for the first time since 1998, Arizona (4-1, 1-1 Pac-10) allowed season highs of 393 passing yards and 486 total yards in last Saturday's 29-27 loss to Oregon State. It was the most yards given up by the Wildcats since yielding 504 in a 55-45 loss at Oregon on Nov. 15, 2008.

"When you look at the entire game, we just weren't all there," Stoops said after his team also surrendered a season high in points. "I think we did compete well in the secondary but this was the most yards we've given up in a long time.

"Oregon State really beat us in a lot of ways. They wanted to throw the ball and they threw it at will, which is very hard to come back from."

Although Arizona leads the conference in scoring defense (14.6 points per game) and rushing defense (99.6 yards per game) and is second in total defense (281.8) and pass defense (182.2), Stoops is not looking past coach Paul Wulff's Washington State team.

"This is by far and away his best team," Stoops said of the Cougars' third-year coach. "They are narrowing the playing field, tightening the gap with each team."

Hosting then-No. 3 Oregon last Saturday, the Cougars (1-5, 0-3) had a chance to pull within a touchdown late in the third quarter, but sophomore Jeff Tuel was intercepted at the 2-yard line after throwing into triple coverage.

"I got a little greedy, a little excited and wanted to get in the end zone," Tuel said after completing 25 of 40 passes for 245 yards with a TD in the 43-23 loss. "I took a shot I probably shouldn't have. ... That hurt, that hurt big time."

Tuel, though, could give the Wildcats' secondary plenty of problems with deep-play threats Marquess Wilson and Jared Karstetter.

Wilson, a freshman, is 13th in the FBS with 515 receiving yards and Karstetter is averaging 7.7 receptions and 88.3 yards in conference play.

Karstetter had the Cougars' lone touchdown in a 48-7 loss at then-No. 21 Arizona on Nov. 7, scoring on a 64-yard pass from Marshall Lobbestael with 6:23 remaining after Tuel was sacked four times and knocked out of the game in the second quarter with a sprained right knee.

Opening a stretch of three road games in four weeks, the Wildcats' 26th-ranked offense (445.0 yards per game) will look for continued production from junior Nick Foles, who is completing 74.9 percent of his passes - second in the FBS.

Foles was 35 of 46 for a career-best 440 yards and three touchdowns last weekend. He connected with junior wide receiver Juron Criner 12 times for 179 yards and a TD.

Criner, who leads the Pac-10 in receiving yards with 531, could have another big game against a Cougars defense ranked last in the FBS with 517.5 yards allowed per game.

Wildcats senior running back Nic Grigsby has no rushing touchdowns after notching five in the first two weeks, remaining two shy of tying Ronald Veal for second all-time at Arizona with 27. Grigsby missed last season's game against Washington State with a sprained right shoulder.

Washington State, which has dropped 12 straight against ranked opponents, is last in the Pac-10 with 86.8 rushing yards per game.

Arizona leads the all-time series 24-13 and is looking for its first 5-1 start since 2000, when it finished 5-6.