Arizona’s Brent Brennan Has Strong Words About Kansas State’s Avery Johnson

Arizona’s Week 3 loss against Kansas State was about as ugly as it could get, losing 31-7.

Arizona was outplayed on both sides of the football, a major concern as they head into Big 12 play at the end of the month against a top-12 Utah squad.

In the past two games, the offense has struggled like never before. Scoring 29 combined points is an issue, and one that needs to be fixed fast.

When also factoring in the defense has given up 70 combined points in two of the first three games, there’s reason to worry about this program.

Leading up to the contest against Kansas State, while Arizona hadn’t necessarily play well, they were in a fine position.

Regarding the committee making decisions for at-large bids in the College Football Playoff, winning games is all that matters in college football, and they had done that up until this game.

If Arizona loses another one and doesn’t win the Big 12 Championship Game, their chances of making the CFP seem low.

But what happened on Friday night? Why did Arizona get dismantled on both sides of the football?

It was a mixture of below-average offensive and defensive play, flags, and overall, not being the same caliber team as Kansas State.

Quarterback Avery Johnson severely outplayed Noah Fifita, which isn’t something that can often be said. Despite the struggles, Fifita is still one of the better quarterbacks in the country.

One rough showing doesn’t change that.

Johnson killed Arizona on the ground with 110 rushing yards on 17 carries. Arizona’s defense also allowed 86 yards on 17 carries from DJ Giddens.

In the air, Kansas State’s quarterback didn’t dominate the game. He threw for two touchdowns but was just 14-of-23 for 156 yards.

Head coach Brent Brennan addressed the worrisome play, highlighting what made Johnson so difficult to defend.

“Well, I don’t think we’re the first team to have an issue with an athletic quarterback, but this guy is something different,” said Brennan, according to Doug Haller of The Athletic. “He’s unique, and in those moments where we’re trying to keep him in the pocket, his ability to get outside of one person and create a big play was obviously damaging to what we were trying to get done.”

While Johnson is one of the better quarterbacks in the Big 12, and perhaps the best one Arizona will play in 2024, Kansas State gave opposing teams the recipe for success against the Wildcats.

There are a few holes on the defensive end that need to be fixed, otherwise, Arizona might have a year that wasn’t expected when entering the campaign.