Arizona QB Tate taking Pac-12 by storm

Oct 17, 2017 - 3:03 AM Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate is the newest college football sensation.

The sophomore earned Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors for the second consecutive week, coming off another impressive rushing performance. Tate led the Wildcats to their first win over UCLA since 2011 as he ran for 230 yards and two touchdowns Saturday to pace the offense in his second career start.

He also contributed with 148 passing yards and a touchdown through the air in the 47-30 victory.

This week, the coaching staff removed the "or" separating Tate and redshirt junior Brandon Dawkins atop the weekly depth chart.

"When he's got his opportunity he's made the most of it," Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez said of Tate.

"So, I'm not totally surprised that he's performing really well, but at the same time this is the healthiest he's been in a month. He's actually playing better than even we anticipated he would. ... I love where his mindset is right now and how he's taking charge of his opportunity."

The sophomore continues to rack up stats that have not been seen in quite some time. He rushed for a FBS quarterback record 327 yards against Colorado two weeks ago and on Saturday became the first FBS quarterback to run for at least 200 yards in consecutive games since Navy's Chris McCoy did it in 1997.

He has touchdown runs of 58, 28, 47, 75, 45 and 71 yards in the past two games.

On only 39 carries this season, he has more runs of 30-plus yards (nine) than 118 FBS teams.

Tate played some as a 17-year-old true freshman last season, forced out of redshirt because of injuries to Anu Solomon and Dawkins.

The question that Rodriguez has been getting lately is, "Why wasn't Tate the starter earlier this season?"

"He plays really well and I know everybody is thinking, 'Well where has he been, why hasn't he been starting?' And I completely understand the question," Rodriguez said.

"Frankly, he was a very young guy, still learning, and Brandon Dawkins played better in August camp. He got to start off the season to reflect his performance in preseason. Also, Khalil Tate couldn't throw for about three weeks due to injury."

Tate hurt his shoulder in the second game of the season, missed two games, and then came in early against Colorado when Dawkins was banged up.

And now Tate is totally in charge.

"His decision making has been pretty good," Rodriguez said.

"During the Colorado game, it was phenomenal for a guy who had had little extending playing time. It was good again in this game. Whether he makes the right decision or not, he's been decisive either way. He's not sitting there, freezing up, he's making things happen."