April 16, 2011
Arizona's senior quarterbacks combined to complete 31 of 42 passes for 380 yards and four touchdowns in the Wildcats' Spring Game Saturday at Arizona Stadium, foreshadowing the team's expected strength in 2011.
Nick Foles (11-16-133), Matt Scott (11-14-134) and Bryson Beirne (8-9-115) found a total of 13 different receivers in the 60-play, plus kicks, scrimmage before a crowd of 4,500 in the sun-baked stadium.
Quick Video: Mike Stoops
Beirne, the No. 3, connected twice for scoring throws, for 26 yards to Richard Morrison and for 32 yards to redshirt freshman Tyler Slavin. Morrison also caught a 23-yard strike for a touchdown from Foles, while Scott connected with Texas transfer Dan Buckner for a 37-yard score.
Individual totals were modest with Morrison and David Roberts leading the way with four receptions apiece, but Juron Criner, redshirt frosh Garic Wharton, Terrence Miller and Buckner were right behind with three catches each to build some strength in numbers.
Quick Video: Receiver Richard Morrison
The offense accumulate a whopping 27 first downs in the 70-minute workout, with 16 via the pass, eight in the running game and three via penalty. Mistakes were more evident than in previous scrimmages this spring, with seven penalties for 55 yards, four of those by the defense.
Sophomore Daniel Jenkins was the leading rusher, with eight carries for 35 yards. The RB starter, Keola Antolin, had less work and finished with three totes for 10 markers.
One cloudy moment came near the very end when junior-to-be starting linebacker Jake Fishcer went down with an apparent leg injury. His status was unknown.
Mike Stoops' Quotes "I thought we had a pretty good day. We moved the ball, threw the ball well. The strength of this team lies in our offense, in our quarterbacks and in our receivers. Certainly, we feel like we have a great group of skill guys. We have a plethora of receivers and they're really starting to mature and come on. David Douglas and Juron Criner have been great. Dan Buckner is starting to show up more. As good as her is, he needs to get on the same page as Nick (Foles) and they need to understand each other a little bit better."
"We have a ways to go with our communication and our receivers because we play so many. Our ability to run the football needs to improve and that will come with the maturity of our offensive line. If our offensive line can continue to improve like they did this spring, we have the chance to be a very complete offensive football team."
"Defensively, we weren't very good today but we were good all spring. We didn't play well today but I feel good about that group. Our injuries could be significant and that's concerning. That's probably the most disappointing part of our whole spring." "The field goals were very inconsistent and Kyle (Dugandzic) had one nice punt today. I thought our kick offs were good and our field goal kicking needs to improve. The inconsistencies are really bothering us."
"Richard (Morrison) had a nice touchdown that was called back in the bowl game so he's coming along well. He's a playmaker and he's another skill guy for us that can move when he catches the football. He's very elusive and he's a good inside receiver. I think Garic Wharton is really coming along. He's a great return guy with some speed. We keep developing skill guys who can help us."
Statistics
Plays: 60-462, 7.7 avg.
Defensive Drive Stops: 5
Turnovers: 1 (fumble)
Penalties: 7-55 (4-40 defense, 3-15 offense)
Passing: 31-42-0-4, 380
Rushing: 18-82, 4.6
Punting: Dugandzic 1-72
Field Goals: Zendejas 3-4 (50, 32, 32, missed 40)
Passing
Scott: 11-14, 134, TD
Foles: 11-16-133, TD
Beirne: 8-9-115, 2 TD
Garman: 1-3-(2)
Rushing:
Jenkins: 8-35
Foles: 2-20
Antolin: 3-10
Beirne: 1-7
Tutogi: 2-3
Scott: 2-(7)
Receiving
Morrison 4-63, 2 TD
Roberts 4-50
Buckner 3-57, TD
Miller 3-32
Wharton 3-30
Criner 3-26
Slavin 2-30
Jenkins 2-23
Hill 2-20
Dougas 2-11
Antolin 1-9
Tutogi 1-4
Baucus 1-2
Tackles
Flowers-4 +2 PBU, Earls-4+PBU, Tuihalamaka-4+Sack, Tevis=4, Vassallo-3 +Sack,
Brown-3 +TFL, Wade-3, Mobley-3, Fischer-2, Benson-2, Muhammad-2, Golden-1,
Grandon-1, Usman-1, Fuimaono-1, Ward-FR, Pettinato-PBU, Rainey-PBU, Austin-PBU
