Arizona
Overlooked Players Cardinals Could Target in Trade Market
![Overlooked Players Cardinals Could Target in Trade Market Overlooked Players Cardinals Could Target in Trade Market](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_3490,h_1963,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/all_cardinals/01j5cctvmdpc51bvmfqj.jpg)
Arizona Cardinals fans certainly have reason to worry about the edge position at the moment.
When BJ Ojulari went down, options – albeit not great – were available.
Now with Carl Lawson (who Arizona brought in for a tryout before he eventually signed with Dallas) and Matthew Judon traded to the Falcons, those options are dwindling.
Apart from trading for the very unhappy Hasaan Reddick, or signing Yannick Ngakoue, Arizona and Monti Ossenfort will need to pull a rabbit out of their hat – similar to trading for Josh Dobbs about this time last year.
Here are a few players the Cardinals could trade for to help aid their pass-rush woes:
It would be poetic, ironic…well really heartwarming if Arizona went out and signed BJ Ojulari’s brother to replace him. However – it’s not as far fetched as it may seem. If Azeez is already being set apart to fit a special role after just three seasons with the Giants, he may just… not be a good fit?
One would think the Giants would be willing to listen to offers in Ojulari’s last season of this deal (i.e. a very late Day 3 pick) to get something in return for him. Let’s also not forget – in 2021, Ojulari did have eight sacks, which would have led Arizona last season.
Turner has certainly not lived up to the draft hype he had coming out of Houston in 2021, and going in to the 2024 season, the former first-rounder has just three sacks. The constantly cash-strapped New Orleans Saints would probably take a late-round pick just to get something for him.
Turner’s coming off an injury, which would give Ossenfort pause to be sure – but if he and assistant GM Dave Sears liked him coming out of Houston, why not give him a shot?
Dayo Odeyingbo was perhaps a surprise second-round pick for the Colts in 2021 – but even more surprising was his eight sack season in 2023.
The coaching staff for the Cardinals will have a good look at him thanks to two joint practices on top of their Week 2 preseason game – and given he is going into the last year of his deal – Ossenfort may be able to send a Day 3 pick to the Colts.
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Arizona
UCF opponent previews: Arizona enters Big 12 armed with Noah Fifita, Tetairoa McMillan
![UCF opponent previews: Arizona enters Big 12 armed with Noah Fifita, Tetairoa McMillan UCF opponent previews: Arizona enters Big 12 armed with Noah Fifita, Tetairoa McMillan](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/images/smg/2024/08/04/SMGW/74332487007-USATSI_19162570_1.jpeg?auto=webp&crop=4999,2812,x0,y150&format=pjpg&width=1200)
- Nickname: Wildcats
- Location: Tucson, Ariz.
- Enrollment: 51,134
- Home field: Arizona Stadium (Capacity: 50,782)
- Conference: Big 12
- 2023 record: 10-3, 7-2 Pac-12
- All-time series record vs. UCF: First meeting
Editor’s note: This is the ninth installment in a 12-part series highlighting UCF’s 2024 football opponents.
UCF grounded Doak Walker Award winner Ollie Gordon last year to keep its Space Game record perfect. To do so again, the Citronauts will need to shut down one the nation’s premier passing combinations.
Big 12 newcomer Arizona, which begins the year ranked No. 21 in the US LBM Coaches Poll, visits the Bounce House for the first time on Nov. 2 — right in the heart of a crucial conference stretch for UCF. The Wildcats earned three first-place votes in the league’s preseason media poll, settling for fifth behind Utah, Kansas State, Oklahoma and Kansas.
Last season, Arizona posted double digits in the win column for the first time since 2014, closing with seven straight victories including five against ranked opponents. It punctuated a resurgent campaign with an Alamo Bowl triumph over Oklahoma, which exited the Big 12 officially in July to join the SEC.
For context, the Wildcats began the decade with just one win in their first 17 games.
UCF, meanwhile, is not only undefeated in its seven Space Game showdowns but has done so in dominant fashion. Its all-time margin of victory is 349-147, an average of 28.9 points per game.
Brent Brennan takes over for Jedd Fisch, hires Dino Babers as OC
Fisch completed a gigantic turnaround, a nine-win improvement in the space of two seasons. However, the former Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator bolted for Washington when Kalen DeBoer was named Nick Saban’s successor at Alabama.
Arizona filled its vacancy with Brent Brennan, who spent the previous seven seasons at San Jose State. The Spartans have gone bowling six times since 2000, and three of those instances came during Brennan’s regime.
Brennan, 51, played five seasons at UCLA as a wide receiver and lettered for the Bruins during their 1993 Rose Bowl run. He worked as a Division I assistant for 16 years before taking the head job at San Jose State, where he posted a 34-48 overall record.
Upon taking the job, Brennan promoted Duane Akina to defensive coordinator and hired Dino Babers as the offensive coordinator. Babers, an Arizona assistant from 1995-2000, lasted eight years as the head coach at Syracuse. He compiled a 41-55 record with two bowl trips.
Noah Fifita, Tetairoa McMillan stay loyal to Arizona amid coaching change
Top Offensive Returners: OL Josh Baker, QB Noah Fifita, WR Montana Lemonious-Craig, OL Leif Magnuson, WR Tetairoa McMillan, OL Wendell Moe Jr., OL Raymond Pulido, OL Jonah Savaiinaea
Top Defensive Returners: DB Tacario Davis, LB Justin Flowe, DB Dalton Johnson, DB Gunner Maldonado, LB Jacob Manu, DB Genesis Smith, DB Treydan Stukes, DL Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei
Once Fisch departed Tucson, it could well have been open season on the Arizona roster. A fair number of Wildcats followed their coach to the Pacific Northwest (more on that in a bit). But, all things considered, the team’s most important players shockingly stayed put.
That includes the über-talented quarterback/wide receiver pairing of Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan. The duo — high school teammates at Servite in Anaheim, California — announced they had “unfinished business” in Tucson during a media timeout of the Wildcats’ men’s basketball game against UCLA on Jan. 20.
Fifita sported the fifth-best completion percentage in the Football Bowl Subdivision last year (72.4%), throwing for 2,869 yards with 25 touchdowns and six picks. McMillan ranked fifth in the nation with 1,402 receiving yards, scoring on 10 of his 90 receptions.
McMillan checks in at No. 5 on Pro Football Focus’ big board for 2025 NFL draft prospects, and he’s not the lone returning Wildcat gaining first-round traction. Cornerback Tacario Davis (No. 32), at 6-foot-4 and 195 pounds, led the Pac-12 with 15 pass breakups. Offensive lineman Jonah Savaiinaea posted the team’s second-highest blocking grade, per PFF’s metrics, and allowed just two sacks.
All-Pac-12 linebacker Jacob Manu paced the conference with 116 tackles, surpassing double digits on five occasions. He added 9½ tackles for loss, 6½ sacks, 13 quarterback hurries, two pass breakups and an interception. Arizona has five of its top six tacklers back, including starting safeties Dalton Johnson and Gunner Maldonado.
Arizona loses D-linemen, adds talented New Mexico running back
Transfer Portal Additions: DL Jarra Anderson (Memphis), RB Quali Conley (San Jose State), RB Jacory Croskey-Merritt (New Mexico), QB Adam Damante (Northern Arizona), DL Kevon Darton (Syracuse), OL Alexander Doost (Northwestern), DB Demetrius Freeney (Miami), QB Anthony Garcia (San Jose State), DB Owen Goss (Colgate), DB Marquis Groves-Killebrew (Louisville), DL Lance Keneley (Stanford), EDGE Chase Kennedy (Utah), DB Jack Luttrell (Tennessee), DL Chubba Ma’ae (UC Davis), OL Shancco Matautia (Arizona State), WR Reymello Murphy (Old Dominion), TE Sam Olson (San Jose State), RB Kedrick Reescano (Ole Miss), OL Jonah Rodriguez (San Diego State), DB Jordan Shaw (Indiana), EDGE Tre Smith (San Jose State), OL Ryan Stewart (San Jose State), DL Stanley Ta’ufo’ou (USC), OL Michael Wooten (Oregon)
Transfer Portal Losses: LB Ammon Allen (Northern Arizona), OL Joe Borjon (San Diego State), RB Jonah Coleman (Washington), EDGE Russell Davis II (Washington), QB Jayden de Laura, WR Deric English, WR Kevin Green Jr. (Washington), WR Audric Harris (Washington), EDGE Jason Harris (Marshall), LS Kameron Hawkins (Colorado), LB Daniel Heimuli (Georgia State), DL Jacob Rich Kongaika (Arizona State), RB Adam Mohammed (Washington), DB Kanyon Moses (Northern Arizona), DL Bill Norton (Texas), OL Anthony Patt (Old Dominion), EDGE Orin Patu (Bethune-Cookman), DB Ephesians Prysock (Washington), RB Stevie Rocker Jr. (Montana), DB Cruz Rushing (Oregon), DL Tiaoalii Savea (Texas), DB Isaiah Taylor (Miami), DL Isaiah Ward (Washington), DB DJ Warnell (Indiana), RB Jordan Washington (Washington), OL Michael Watkins (Washington), QB Demond Williams Jr. (Washington), DB Charles Yates Jr. (Old Dominion)
While the narrative surrounding the Wildcats’ offseason has, justifiably, focused on the players who stayed, it bears mentioning that they suffered a handful of key departures as well.
Ephesians Prysock partnered with Davis to give Arizona one of the best cornerback tandems in college football last year, but he chose to head to Washington, as did leading rusher Jonah Coleman (871 yards, five TDs) and pass rusher Isaiah Ward (four sacks), among others. The defensive line was gutted between the portal and the draft, with interior linemen Bill Norton and Tiaoalii Savea following former coordinator Johnny Nansen to Texas.
Brennan brought reinforcements along from San Jose State, filling a big hole on the edge with All-Mountain West defensive end Tre Smith (66 tackles, 9½ TFLs, 6½ sacks). Quali Conley rushed for 842 yards and nine touchdowns, and tight end Sam Olson set career highs with 310 receiving yards and three TDs.
Arizona added a 1,000-yard rusher from the MWC in New Mexico’s Jacory Croskey-Merritt, who scored 17 touchdowns and outgained Damien Martinez, Quinshon Judkins and Jonathon Brooks on the ground. Chubba Ma’ae, Kevon Darton and Jarra Anderson will each seek to make an impact in the middle of the Wildcat defense.
Could any freshmen make an impact for Arizona?
Top Incoming Freshmen: LB Stacy Bey (Fontana, Calif.), LB Jabari Mann (San Mateo, Calif.), EDGE Eduwa Okundaye (Katy, Texas), WR Brandon Phelps (Gilbert, Ariz.), TE Dylan Tapley (Scottsdale, Ariz.)
The effects of Fisch’s exit might most be felt on the recruiting front, at least in terms of the Wildcats’ 2024 haul.
Four signees hit the transfer portal and followed their coach to Washington, including Arizona’s top two consensus recruits — quarterback Demond Williams Jr. (Chandler, Ariz.) and running back Jordan Washington (Long Beach, Calif.). Williams will be groomed behind Mississippi State transfer Will Rogers as the Huskies’ QB of the future.
In-state tight end Dylan Tapley is the highest-rated player remaining in Arizona’s freshman class. He caught 41 passes for 604 yards and nine touchdowns for Scottsdale’s Desert Mountain.
Transfers lifted Arizona to 48th in 247Sports’ overall team recruiting rankings, but it finished 84th in terms of its high school signees (15th of the Big 12’s 16 programs).
Arizona
Arizona teacher arrested for allegedly giving marijuana to student
![Arizona teacher arrested for allegedly giving marijuana to student Arizona teacher arrested for allegedly giving marijuana to student](https://ktar.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/pexels-kindelmedia-7785052-scaled-e1723768379860.jpg)
PHOENIX – A teacher at Cottonwood Verde Tech School was arrested on Wednesday for supplying marijuana and tobacco to a minor, according to authorities.
Cottonwood Police officers arrested 50-year-old Damian Andre for allegedly giving marijuana vaping fluid to one of his 15-year-old students.
Andre is alleged to have had the fluid delivered to the school, where he then gave it to the student.
An investigation began after the student’s parent reported the teacher’s actions to the authorities.
The Cottonwood Verde Tech School administrators cooperated fully with the investigation, the Cottonwood Police Department said.
Arizona
New Intel Emerges on Who Arizona’s Backup Quarterback Might Be
![New Intel Emerges on Who Arizona’s Backup Quarterback Might Be New Intel Emerges on Who Arizona’s Backup Quarterback Might Be](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_5309,h_2986,x_0,y_331/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/inside_the_wildcats/01j5bkdx93h7ear0wm89.jpg)
As the Arizona Wildcats continue to go through preseason camp, they have had some injury issues they will need to sort out by the time they start conference action after their first two games of the year.
The good news is their superstar wide receiver is back on the field practicing, although they are slowly working him back into full contact drills while his leg continues to heal
Unfortunately, the offensive line keeps getting banged up, forcing the coaching staff to utilize multiple players across different positions to try and see which group will give them the best chance of winning.
Brent Brennan taking over this program has also given everyone a new opportunity to prove to the coaching staff that they can have a role during the upcoming season.
This has resulted in some exciting position battles where some new names are emerging as potential impact players on both sides of the ball.
However, until the backup quarterback is officially named, that will garner most of the attention.
For a while, it seemed like it would be a three-horse race between previous walk-on Cole Tannenbaum, former four-star recruit Brayden Dorman, and San Jose State transfer Anthony Garcia, but the pair of Tannenbaum and Dorman have emerged as the two who are battling it out for the distinguished role.
Dorman seemed to be the likely winner early on, deciding to return to Arizona after entering the transfer portal and bringing his recruiting pedigree with him, but as the Wildcats start getting ready to establish their depth chart, it’s been Tannenbaum who is running with the second unit.
“Cole Tannenbaum took the reps as the second quarterback and if that happens again on Thursday, it feels safe to say that he has locked up the job or at least has a leg up on the competition,” reported Jason Scheer of 247Sports coming out of practice on Tuesday.
Ideally, neither of the backups will see the field if the game isn’t a blowout.
Arizona’s star Noah Fifita looks poised for another breakout, earning himself a place on multiple national watchlists coming off winning the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year award.
Still, it’s always best to have someone who can be effective when filling in during the worst-case scenarios, so it will be interesting to see who Brennan and his staff ultimately decide to name as their No. 2 guy.
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