Riggleman, Wilson Named Pac-12 Players of the Week

TUCSON, Ariz. – Arizona football’s Drew Riggleman and Nick Wilson were named Pac-12 Players of the Week, it was announced by the conference office on Monday. Riggleman earned Special Teams honors with Wilson earning Offensive accolades.

A freshman running back, Wilson ran past a highly-touted Utah defense in a convincing 42-10 victory in soggy Salt Lake City on Saturday. Against the Pac-12’s third-ranked total defense, Wilson racked up a career-high 218 yards on 20 carries to go with three touchdowns to lead the Wildcats. His touchdown runs came on plays of 17, 75 and 19 yards as he averaged 10.9 yards per carry in the contest.

Wilson single-handedly put away the Utes in 3:22 span in the fourth quarter when he rushed for 114 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries (19.0 ypc). With momentum shifting toward Utah in a 21-10 game and Arizona pinned at its own five-yard line, Wilson carried five-straight times as the Wildcats marched 95 yards in just over two minutes on their first possession of the fourth quarter. Wilson’s 75-yard touchdown capped the pivotal drive, which gave UA some breathing room. Then after a turnover, Wilson punched in a 19-yard score on the first play to put the Wildcats ahead 35-10 with 10:40 remaining in the game.

Riggleman played a key role in a dominating 42-10 victory over Utah last Saturday. Also the holder on place kicks, he punted seven times for an average of 52.0 yards, including three downed inside the 20-yardline and a booming 67-yarder that nearly matched his career-long of 70 yards. Riggleman’s punts helped Arizona benefit from a five-yard advantage in starting field position, something that was crucial at times given the inclement weather. The Utes went three-and-out three times after Riggleman punts, and gained only 183 total yards with no points on the seven drives after Riggleman punted. Riggleman had no trouble handling snaps on place kicks, as Casey Skowron made all seven PATs.

The Wildcats are second in the Pac-12 and No. 20 nationally for net punting (39.91). Riggleman has a 46.5 yard punting average this season, which currently ranks second-best in school history.

Arizona is back in action on Fri., Nov. 28 at 1:30 p.m. MST, hosting Arizona State in the Territorial Cup. For continued coverage of Arizona football, follow the team on Facebook at facebook.com/ArizonaFootball and on Twitter @ArizonaFBall.