TUCSON, Ariz. -- Following a bye week, the Arizona Wildcats are primed to return to action Saturday night at Colorado. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m., Tucson time and will be televised by Pac-12 Networks. J.B. Long, Yogi Roth and Jill Savage will have the call. 

Below is a full preview:

Some Game Themes: Rested and re-focused, Arizona embarks on an eight-week stretch of conference play seeking to make a charge in the unsettled Pac-12 South … First up, the trip to Boulder for a Family Weekend matchup against Colorado that pits two of the last three South Division champions against one another … At stake is a much-needed first conference win to open the October slate, one that will be pivotal for each program as it relates to potential bowl prospects down the road … While the Wildcats are coming off their lone bye week of the season, the Buffaloes are crossing the halfway point of 11-straight weeks of gridiron action to open the year … Previous meetings have featured some explosive offensive performances, but the on-paper comparison hints that defense may play a more balanced role this time around. Colorado has been a vastly improved defensive team the last couple seasons, and Arizona has shown noticeable improvement on that side of the ball through the first month of this season, too … Quarterbacks Brandon Dawkins (UA) and Steven Montez (CU) can both run the ball, which puts a premium on containing them in the pocket. Dawkins and UA's stable of running backs rely more heavily on the rushing attack, while Montez and the Buffs go to the air more often … The Buffs' featured back – Phillip Lindsay – is a sturdy playmaker utilized as a pass receiver as well, which helps open up a handful of vertical receiving targets on the outside … An area to keep an eye on will be in the red zone. The Buffaloes have scored only eight touchdowns (in 18 red zone trips) this season, but at the same time their opponents have scored only five touchdowns (in 13 red zone possessions). The Wildcats have scored touchdowns on 13 of their 16 such opportunities and allowed TDs on just seven of 17 tries ... Colorado feels good about its kicking game with James Stefanou converting 10 of his 11 field goal trips. And the Buffs aren't afraid to get tricky – they attempted a fake field goal that was unsuccessful last week against UCLA … Meanwhile, Arizona has been hit or miss on special teams this season with a few big returns and some steady kicking. However, the Cats have a new long snapper and they missed a couple missed field goals against Utah which proved costly in a six-point loss … If the Wildcats are to win on the road for the second time, they'll surely have to protect the football after being done in by five turnovers two weeks ago … Arizona hopes to continue its recent success at Folsom Field, where it has won its previous two trips in 2013 and 2015 … A Wildcat win would set the stage for two of the next three at home for Family Weekend and Homecoming festivities to come … But first things first, to the Rockies we go.

Youth Movement: Arizona is surely one of the youngest teams in the Pac-12, if not the country, entering 2017. The Wildcats' roster includes 61 freshmen (including redshirts) on the 120-man roster. Yes, over half the roster is a freshman eligibility-wise and there are more freshmen than sophomores, juniors and seniors combined. Through four games, Arizona has played 27 freshmen, including 17 true freshmen. That tally of 17 true freshman ranks tied for fourth-most among FBS programs according to research done by Brett Moore of the Illinois Sports Information Department. Furthermore, 83 of the 120 players are freshmen or sophomores, and the roster includes 77 players in their first or second year of the program. Lastly, among all classes of eligibility, there are 48 players in their first year of the program.

Most true freshmen played (17 or more)
20 LSU
19 Illinois
18 Texas A&M
17 Arizona
17 Georgia
17 Miami

Defensive Improvement: With four games in the books, one-third of Arizona's 12-game regular season has been completed. The early returns show significant improvement on the defensive side of the ball where coordinator Marcel Yates is in his second year. His unit fully understands the concepts he began implementing some 18 months ago, and he's seen youth and athleticism infused at most all positions, notably at linebacker and safety. Here's a look at the major defensive categories and the improvement the Wildcats have made thus far with the understanding there's still eight straight weeks of football to go.

Statistic	2017	2016	Improvement
Scoring Defense	22.3	38.3	16.0
First Downs Allowed	20.0	25.2	5.2
Total Yards Allowed	376.0	469.3	93.3
Total Plays Faced	70.0	76.9	6.9
Yards Per Play	5.4	6.1	0.7
Yards Per Rush	3.6	4.7	1.1
Yards Per Pass	5.4	6.1	0.7
Red Zone TD%	41%	75%	34
3rd Down %	36%	52%	16
Turnovers/Game	2.25	1.17	1.08

Scoring Defense: Using data from CFBStats.com, Arizona is one of the nation's most improved teams in terms of scoring defense (which actually includes all points allowed by a team). The Wildcats are allowing 22.3 points per game this season, which is a 16-point improvement over the average from 12 games last season. The only FBS team to show more improvement thus far is Purdue, which has a 16.5-point decrease in its points allowed per game (from 38.3 to 21.8). The Wildcats are tied with Penn State which also has a 16-point improvement to date (from 25.4 to 9.4). In terms of actual scoring defense, the Wildcats are allowing only 20.0 points per game this season. Nine of the 89 points allowed have directly resulted from Arizona's offense, including a safety in the loss to Houston on Sept. 9 and a pick-six (plus extra point) the last time out against Utah. Here's a look at the five FBS programs with the greatest scoring defense improvement entering October:

Team	2017	2016	Change
Purdue	21.8	38.3	-16.5
Penn State	9.4	25.4	-16.0
Arizona	22.3	38.3	-16.0
Oregon	26.0	41.4	-15.4
Georgia	9.2	24.0	-14.8

Dartin' Dawkins: Redshirt junior quarterback Brandon Dawkins has picked up where he left off last season with his ground production. In the season opener versus NAU, Dawkins rushed for 92 yards on just seven carries. He ripped off a 66-yard touchdown sprint and also scored on a 10-yard run. Dawkins was stymied a bit in the second game versus Houston, being held to just 26 rushing yards on 13 carries, but bounced back against UTEP. The junior notched his fourth career 100-yard rushing game, going for 133 yards on 14 carries. He also tied his career high with three rushing touchdowns. Against Utah in Arizona's Pac-12 opener, Dawkins rushed for 90 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. Dawkins now has 1,464 rushing yards in his career, which is the most by an Arizona quarterback since at least 1958. Dawkins passed Ronald Veal, who rushed for 1,419 career yards and was the leader prior to Dawkins. Dawkins also has 16 career rushing touchdowns. For his career, Dawkins is averaging 7.0 yards per carry, which is the highest YPC ever by an Arizona quarterback with at least 100 carries. Dawkins rushed for 944 yards in 2016, five shy of the school single-season record for a QB held by current offensive analyst B.J. Denker who had 949 in 2013.

School-er Zone: In his first two collegiate games, true freshman linebacker Colin Schooler had a combined four tackles as he introduced himself to Division I football. His last two games have proven he's fully introduced himself and is onto the next stage. Schooler has 11 tackles, two tackles-for-loss, one interception and one forced fumble in his last two games against UTEP and Utah. Against the Miners, Schooler had three tackles, and added a forced fumble, which teammate Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles recovered, and also had an interception he returned 53 yards deep into UTEP territory. Then in his Pac-12 debut against the Utes, Schooler had a career high eight tackles to lead the Wildcats. He also added a pair of tackles-for-loss; the first of his career. Schooler has 15 tackles on the season, tied with seniors Brandon Rutt and Dane Cruikshank for fifth-most on the team. Of the seven Wildcats who have 15 or more tackles on the season, four, including Schooler, are freshmen.       
 
Wilson Climbing the Charts: Senior running back Nick Wilson entered his senior season having already cemented himself as one of Arizona's all-time leading rushers. The senior from Fresno, California is currently eighth all-time at Arizona with 2,595 rushing yards on 459 carries. Against Utah, Wilson had 45 yards on 13 carries and passed David Adams for eighth all-time at Arizona in rushing yards. Wilson passed Clarence Farmer on the all-time list with his 39 yards against UTEP in Week 3. With a 1,000-yard season, Wilson could climb to as high as fourth all-time at Arizona. Wilson has 28 career rushing touchdowns to his credit, which is tied with Nic Grigsby for third all-time in school history. Wilson rushed for a freshman-record 1,375 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2014 and has battled injuries the past two seasons, being held to 189 carries over two years. His ability certainly hasn't dipped, however, as he still has averaged 5.6 yards per carry. For his career, Wilson is averaging 5.7 yards per carry. He's also proven to be a capable pass catcher with 19 catches for 159 yards and a touchdown in his career.
                    
Getting off the Field: The Arizona defense has been much better about getting off the field before allowing a first down this year. Through four games, Arizona has posted 20 three-and-outs, averaging five a game. Only 23 teams in the country are averaging five or more three-and-outs a game this season. Arizona's defense has forced a three-and-out on 20 of 55 drives this season, a 36.4 percentage. Last season, in 12 games, Arizona had just 30 three-and-outs the entire season. Arizona has at least three three-and-outs in each of the first four games this season. Over the last six games of last season, Arizona was held below three three-and-outs three times and didn't have any at Washington State. The Cats had nine three-and-outs against UTEP, which was the program's most since also having nine at Nevada in 2015. The unit then backed it up with four more three-and-outs against Utah, including three in the second half.  Game                    Total     
Utah                        4
UTEP                      9
Houston                  3
NAU                        4
Arizona State          3
Oregon State          1
Colorado                 5
Wazzu                     0
Stanford                  2
USC                        3
 
Wow, Wolma: True freshman Bryce Wolma has made quite an impression so far this season for the Wildcats at the tight end position. Wolma has played in all four games, but didn't notch his first reception until Week 2 versus Houston. Against the Cougars, Wolma had five catches for 38 yards, providing an active target for quarterback Brandon Dawkins. He upped his production against UTEP, grabbing six balls for 41 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown catch from Dawkins. Wolma, from Saline, Michigan, had four catches for 29 yards against Utah, including a career-best 18-yard reception. Through four games, Wolma's 15 receptions lead the team, and he's third in yards with 108. Wolma has helped fill the void left by Trevor Wood, who missed two games before returning against Utah. Wolma is averaging 7.2 yards per catch and 27 yards a game. 

Touchdown Tony: In his fourth year in the program, redshirt junior wide receiver Tony Ellison has emerged as a serious threat for quarterback Brandon Dawkins and the Arizona offense. Through four games, Ellison leads Arizona in receiving yards with 182. He has 14 catches, which is second on the team, and two touchdown catches, which is the most on the Cats. Ellison is just one catch behind freshman tight end Bryce Wolma, who leads the team with 15 catches. Ellison, who had just three catches for 32 yards in his first two seasons with the Wildcats, hauled in his second touchdown of the season and his career against Utah. The Granite Bay, California native hauled in a 30-yard touchdown pass from Dawkins in the fourth quarter. Ellison also had a 43-yard touchdown catch in the season opener versus NAU, which is Arizona's longest pass play of the season. Ellison is averaging 13 yards per catch on the season, second to Shun Brown on Arizona.
 
Demetrius the Thief: Through three games this season, junior safety Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles is tied for sixth in the country, averaging 0.8 interceptions per game. He has three on the season in four games. Flannigan-Fowles had two interceptions in the season opener versus NAU and then picked off another pass versus Houston. He entered the season with three career interceptions in 25 games. Twice in his career, Flannigan-Fowles has picked off at least one pass in back-to-back games. Last season, he notched an interception in Week 2 versus Grambling State, and then had another one a week later against Hawai'i. Before he picked off passes in back-to-back games this season, he was the last Wildcat to do it last year. Flannigan-Fowles also already has more interceptions than any individual Wildcat had last season. Against UTEP, Flannigan-Fowles didn't have an interception, but did recover a fumble forced by linebacker Colin Schooler. He then had seven tackles and a pass breakup against Utah. No Arizona player last year had multiple interceptions and a fumble recovery. Additionally, Flannigan-Fowles had two tackles against the Miners and now has 107 stops for his career.