Arizona Hosts Washington State for Military Appreciation Day

TUCSON, Ariz. — The Arizona Wildcats (4-6, 2-5), fresh off their biggest win in years, return home to Arizona Stadium to host the Washington State Cougars (6-4, 3-4) this Saturday afternoon.

Saturday's game is scheduled to kick at 12:00 p.m. MST with a television broadcast slated for the Pac-12 Networks. Jordan Kent (play-by-play) and Max Browne (analyst) will be on the call.

The Wildcats took down the No. 9 ranked UCLA Bruins at the Rose Bowl last weekend, the program's first AP Top 10 road win since 2014 and the first ranked upset of the head coach Jedd Fisch era. Arizona looks to build off that momentum and earn their first back-to-back wins since the 2019 season.

This weekend's game will serve as the program's annual Military and Veterans Appreciation game, with an array of celebrations and recognitions lined up.

A complete preview of the Wildcats upcoming matchup can be found below.
ARIZONA NOTES & NUMBERS

• The Arizona Wildcats return home to Tucson and host the Washington State Cougars this Saturday for Military & Veterans Appreciation day at Arizona Stadium.
• Saturday's game will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks with Jordan Kent (PxP) and Max Browne (Analyst) on the call.
• The Wildcats are fresh off their first AP Top 25 victory of the head coach Jedd Fisch era, having toppled No. 9 ranked UCLA last weekend at the Rose Bowl. It was also Arizona's first Pac-12 road win under coach Fisch and snapped a 14-game conference road losing streak dating back to 2019.
• The victory over UCLA was Arizona's first AP Top 25 win since beating No. 19 Oregon in 2018, their first road AP Top 10 win since beating No. 10 Utah in 2015, and their first AP Top 10 road win since defeating No. 2 Oregon in 2014.
• Wildcat quarterback Jayden de Laura has thrown for 3,128 yards and 24 touchdowns this season, marks that rank seventh and sixth on the program's single-season leaderboards, respectively.
• Arizona's pass offense currently ranks Top 10 among all FBS programs, checking in at No. 6 with an average of 326.4 yards per game through the air. Quarterback Jayden de Laura also currently ranks sixth nationally with an average of 312.8 yards per game, an impressive jump from his average of 233.0 in 2021.
• Wide receiver Dorian Singer was recently added to the watch list for the Biletnikoff Award. Singer currently sports 54 receptions for 838 yards and five touchdowns. He is second on the team in receptions and yards. This award honors the top receiver in the nation at any position.

29 — TE Tanner McLachlan's hauled in his 29th of the season against UCLA. He surpassed Rob Gronkowski in 2007 for the third-most receptions by a UA tight end in a single season.

3,128 — QB Jayden de Laura finished 22-of-28 for 315 yards and two touchdowns at UCLA. His 3,128 yards and 24 touchdowns this year rank seventh and sixth, respectively, on the program's single-season leaderboards.

74 — WR Jacob Cowing's team-leading 74 catches are tied for seventh most in a single season in program history, while his 964 yards rank 10th.

900+ — Arizona is on pace to have two wide receivers (Cowing, Singer) with 900+ receiving yards, a feat accomplished only twice before in program history (also: 1998, 2002).

42 — WR Jacob Cowing has recorded 42 consecutive games with at least one reception, tied for the longest active streak among all FBS players.
 

VERSUS WASHINGTON STATE: The Arizona Wildcats are 27-18 all-time against the Washington State Cougars. Arizona has lost the last two matchups with Washington State. The Wildcats are 14-9 all-time in Tucson with their last win in the series coming on Oct. 28, 2017, 58-37, over the Cougars. WSU has gone 4-1 in the last five games and the series is tied 5-5 in the last 10 matchups. The Wildcats and Cougars faced off for the first time on Oct. 5, 1963, in Spokane, Washington. Arizona fell 44-18 during last season's matchup with Washington State on the road.

ABOUT LAST WEEK: Arizona took down No. 9 ranked UCLA for the first AP Top 25 win of head coach Jedd Fisch's career last Saturday night at the Rose Bowl.

• It was the Wildcats first AP Top 25 win since beating No. 19 Oregon in 2018, their first road AP Top 10 win since beating No. 10 Utah in 2015, and their first AP Top 10 road win since defeating No. 2 Oregon in 2014. 
• Saturday was the first road Pac-12 win for Arizona head coach Jedd Fisch. »The Wildcats, in what is likely their penultimate regular season game against the Bruins, improved their record against UCLA to 18-27-2 and 5-16-2 in Pasadena/Los Angeles. 
• With a pair of touchdown drives in the first quarter, Arizona jumped out to an early 14-0 lead over the No. 9 Bruins. This marked the first time the Wildcats led an AP Top 25 opponent by two or more scores since going up 16-0 on No. 19 Oregon in 2018. 
• Arizona's 21-14 halftime lead was also their first time leading an AP Top 25 team at the break since going into the locker room up 23-8 on No. 19 Oregon in 2018. »Running back Michael Wiley's first quarter touchdown rush was his team-leading fifth of the season and the 10th of his career. He rushed for three scores in 2020 and two in 2021. 
• Wiley also scored Arizona's second touchdown of the night, a 22-yard reception late in the opening quarter. He became the first Wildcat to score a rushing and receiving touchdown in the same game since Gary Brightwell achieved the feat against Oregon State in 2019. 
• Tight end Tanner McLachlan's third quarter catch, his second of the night, was his 29th of the season. With two catches he surpassed Rob Gronkowski in 2007 for the third most receptions by a tight end in a single season. 
• Quarterback Jayden de Laura finished the night 22-for-28 through the air for 315 yards and two touchdowns. He currently has 3,128 yards and 24 touchdowns on the year, marks that rank seventh and sixth on the program single-season leaderboards, respectively. 
• Tiaoalii Savea's field goal block midway through the third quarter was Arizona's first blocked FG attempt since Sept. 3, 2015 against UTSA. 
• Wide receiver Jacob Cowing's 30-yard reception to end the third quarter put him over 100 yards on the night. His 9-catch, 118-yard performance was his fourth 100yard game of the season and the 17th of his career. 
• Cowing now has 74 receptions for 964 yards on the year, both of which lead the team. His 74 catches are tied for seventh most in a single season in program history, while his 964 yards rank 10th all-time. 
• Kicker Tyler Loop converted both of his field goals against UCLA, one from 35 yards and a second from 23 yards. He maintained his perfect 22-for-22 record on field goal attempts under 40 yards. 
• Freshman linebacker Jacob Manu led the Arizona defense with 10 tackles against the Bruins, matching his career high set at Washington. 
• Arizona's seven tackles for loss were a season-high mark and the most since logging 8 against California last year. Jalen Harris (1.5), Jaxen Turner (1.0), Treydan Stukes (1.0), Hunter Echols (0.5), Ta'ita'i Uiagalelei (1.0), Heremy Mercier (1.0), and Russell Davis II (1.0) all got in on the action. 
• Freshman wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan caught his team-leading eighth touchdown of the season at UCLA. Eight receiving touchdowns are tied for 10th most in a single season in program history.

ARIZONA OFFENSE: The Arizona Wildcats have been outstanding offensively this season. Currently, the Wildcats are No. 6 in the nation in passing offense with an average of 326.4 yards per game. Arizona is 22nd in total offense (462.2) and averages 31.2 points per game, which is 46th in the nation. Arizona is 14th in the nation in first downs gained on offense (252). The Wildcats are 30th in team passing efficiency (149.66), and No. 1 nationally in big play percentage (18.6%), after ranking 124th in the nation in 2021 (10.0%).

• Quarterback Jayden de Laura is 6th in the nation in passing yards (3,128) and 6th in passing yards per game (312.8), 11th total offense (325.7), and 13th nationally in passing touchdowns (24). De Laura is 19th nationally in passing yards per completion (13.48).
• WR Tetairoa McMillan is 18th nationally in receiving touchdowns (8) and WR Jacob Cowing is 28th nationally with seven receiving TDs.

TIGHT END U: Redshirt junior tight end Tanner McLachlan is tied for 11th among tight ends nationally in receiving yards (411), 7th in yards per catch (14.1), and tied 12th in yards per game (41.0) among the nation's tight ends. McLachlan has caught 29 passes, which is tied for 16th nationally at the position. His 29 receptions this year are the third most in a single season in program history, surpassing Mark Keel who caught 27 passes for 343 yards and four touchdowns in 1981 and Rob Gronkowski's 28 receptions for 525 yards and six touchdowns in 2007.

TRUE FRESHMAN: True Freshman wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan is second among Arizona true freshman wide outs with 627 receiving yards. McMillan trails Nate Phillips who recorded 696 receiving yards during the 2013 season. He is second in receiving yards per game (62.7) and leads the nation in touchdown receptions (8) among true freshman.

CLIMBING UP THE ARIZONA RECORD BOOKS: With two games left to play, quarterback Jayden de Laura is 7th in single season passing yards (3,128) in Arizona football history. Nick Foles is sixth with 3,191 passing yards in 2010. Jason Johnson is fifth with 3,327 passing yards in 2002. Matt Scott is fourth with 3,620 passing yards in 2012. Willie Tuitama threw for the third-most yards (3,683) in 2007. Anu Solomon recorded the second-most passing yards (3,793) in 2014, and Nick Foles passed for the most yards since 1996 (4,334) in 2011.

ARIZONA'S PLAYMAKERS: Junior wide receiver Jacob Cowing is two TD grabs away from moving into the top-10 in single-season touchdown receptions. Cowing is currently tied for 17th for a single season in program history. With three catches for 34 yards and a touchdown in the first quarter against Colorado, Cowing eclipsed the 3,000-yard mark for his collegiate career while catching his seventh touchdown of the season. He sits with 3,559-career receiving yards after catching nine passes for 118 yards at UCLA (11/12). It marked the fourth time this season that he surpassed 100 yards receiving but the first time since Oct. 1 against Colorado (180 yards – career high). He has not caught a touchdown pass since Oct. 1 after starting the season with seven TD grabs in five games. Cowing surpassed the Arizona wideout with the most career receiving yards Bobby Wade (3,351) from 1999-2002.

JUST GETTING STARTED: Sophomore quarterback Jayden de Laura is tied for third in the Pac-12 with 24 passing touchdowns. He is second in the Pac-12 in passing yards per game (312.8) trailing Michael Penix Jr. (364.0) of Washington. De Laura threw for 300-plus yards for the fifth time this season with 315 yards on 22-of-28 pass attempts. His 78% completion percentage in the 34-28 win at UCLA was the highest of the season.

• 4th in total offense with 3,263 passing yards and 135 rushing yards. De Laura averages 326.3 yards of total offense per game and 312.8 passing yards per game, which are second in the conference. 
• With 380 yards passing against USC, de Laura eclipsed the 350-yard mark throwing the ball for the fourth time this season. 
• Since 1996, the most 350-plus yard passing performances in a single season belongs to Nick Foles, who had nine in 2011. De Laura tied his career-best seven-game touchdown streak with four touchdown passes at Washington on Oct. 15. 
• De Laura threw for the third-most yards in a game this season (400) at Washington. He threw for a career-high 484 yards and six touchdowns against Colorado. 484 passing yards marked the most allowed by Colorado in school history. De Laura's 484 yards marked the fifth most passing yards by a QB in Arizona history. This performance comes on the heels of throwing for 401 yards at Cal to become the 19th quarterback in Arizona history to turn in a 400-yard passing performance.
• The six touchdown passes tie a school record set by Tom Tunnicliffe against Pacific on Oct. 23, 1982. De Laura led the Wildcats to a 43-20 win over Colorado and became the first Arizona QB with 400-plus passing yards in consecutive games since Matt Scott in 2012.  
• De Laura led a comeback 31-28 win after trailing by four entering the fourth quarter, 28-24, against North Dakota State. De Laura connected with Cowing on a 22-yard touchdown pass with 4:53 left in the fourth quarter to earn the win. De Laura threw for 229 yards and one touchdown and rushed for career-highs with 10 carries and 58 yards and a rushing touchdown against the Bison to help the Wildcats improve to 2-1.  
• De Laura had a breakout first game with Arizona, throwing for 299 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Wildcats to a 38-20 win at San Diego State. De Laura's four touchdown passes are the most by an Arizona QB in their Wildcat debut since Anu Solomon threw four against UNLV in 2014. He completed 29-of-35 passes and connected with Jacob Cowing three times for touchdowns, as well as Tetairoa McMillan once for a TD.
• Up for a challenge? De Laura's full name is: Jayden pukonakona ha'awi mai na makua ha 'ele mai ka hiapo e wili 'ia me ke aloha de Laura.

GAME-CHANGER: The Arizona Wildcats earned a 34-28 victory over No. 9 UCLA with RB Michael Wiley (2 TDs; 1 rush, 1 rec.) and QB Jayden de Laura (2 TD passes) leading the way. Wiley became the first Wildcat to score a rushing and receiving touchdown in the same game since Gary Brightwell achieved the feat against Oregon State in 2019. Wiley had a career-best 143 scrimmage yards. Arizona took down Colorado 43-20 with two receivers recording over 100 yards receiving (Cowing 180 yards, Singer 163) for the second straight week following the 133-yard effort by Cowing and 103-yard performance by Singer at Cal on Sept. 24. Singer is 27th program history with 1,047 receiving yards. He has surpassed the 1,000-yard threshold in 13 games. Arizona has now notched two games with a pair of 100-yard receivers in a single season for the first time since 2014 (Cayleb Jones 186 & Austin Hill 127 vs. California; Austin Hill 110 & Samaje Grant 101 vs. UNLV). The Wildcats 673 yards of total offense in its 43-20 win over Colorado set a school record for most yards of offense in conference play as a member of the Pac-10/12 Conference.

LONGEST STREAK IN THE NATION: Junior wide receiver Jacob Cowing extended his streak of consecutive games with a catch to 42, which is the longest such streak in the nation.

• Through ten games, Cowing is 9th in the nation with 964 receiving yards. He is tied for 28th nationally in touchdown receptions (7). 
• Cowing recorded a career-high 180 receiving yards against Colorado, and he has caught a touchdown in five of nine games played this season. He has not caught a touchdown pass in the last four games. 
• Cowing made seven receptions for 133 yards at Cal, marking the second-most receiving yards in a single game this season. He has surpassed last year's top scoring threat through the air, running back Michael Wiley, who tallied four receiving TDs in 11 games played. 
• He is three touchdown catches shy of breaking into the Arizona all-time top-10 and five off the single-season record of 11 touchdown catches held by six players. 
• Cowing caught a touchdown with 4:53 remaining in the fourth quarter to put the Wildcats in front of North Dakota State 31-28, marking his third straight game with a reception (5 rec., 55 yards) and the first Wildcat player with touchdown catches in three straight games since Michael Wiley caught a touchdown in each of the final three games of the 2021 season. 
• Cowing had a breakout game during his debut with Arizona. He made eight catches for 152 yards and three touchdowns to help the Wildcats to a season-opening 38-20 win at San Diego State.

PROGRAM BUILDING: The Wildcats enter the second season of the Jedd Fisch era with a reenergized roster in tow. Coach Fisch and staff pulled in the No.21/No. 22 recruiting class nationally (per Rivals and 247 Sports) with key additions at multiple positions. That recruiting class ranked first (per Rivals) and third (per 247 Sports) in the Pac-12 behind Oregon and Stanford. Fisch reeled in 23 commits with five four-stars and 18 three-stars. Arizona landed the highest-ranked recruit in program history, wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan out of Servite High School. A four-star prospect that was ranked No. 5 at his position. McMillan was joined by teammates Keyan Burnett (TE), a four-star tight end, and Noah Fifita (QB) a three-star QB, out of Servite High School. The success in recruiting marked one of the top classes in program history. In all, the Arizona Wildcats have 50 new members of the roster entering the 2022 season. It is the second-most in the Pac-12 (ASU, 51). The Wildcats played 17 freshmen on Oct. 29 against USC. It marked the most played this season and included six starting true freshmen.

WILDCATS IN THE NFL: The Wildcats are once again well represented in the National Football League this year with nine former letterwinners active across the league. One of Arizona's most prestigious alumnus, tight end Rob Gronkowski, retired following the 2021 season after winning the fourth Super Bowl of his career. Gronk was a five-time Pro Bowl selection, a four-time First Team All-Pro selection, and was selected to the NFL's 2010s All-Decade Team and NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. Over 11 seasons with New England and Tampa Bay, Gronkowski recorded 9,286 yards (5th all time) and 92 touchdowns (3rd all time). Quarterback Nick Foles is in his 11th NFL season after rewriting the Wildcats record books during his time in Tucson. The most recent Wildcats to make the transition to the NFL are running back Gary Brightwell (New York Giants), and defensive end Roy Lopez (Houston Texans). For a complete list of former Wildcats in the NFL, see the comprehensive chart below.
 
Current Wildcats on NFL Rosters