Game six, the mid-point of the season is already here. It’s gone by very quickly, but it’s reality. Tech is on a trip to Tucson, Arizona for a tough matchup. Let’s jump into what I’m expecting from the Wildcats on Saturday night.
The TMac Show
Hard to call the offense anything other than the TMac show. Tetairoa McMillan gets the ball more than anyone in the offense and its justified. He is the best offensive weapon Tech has faced thus far, and probably is the best one you’ll see until the Colorado game.
McMillan is a 6-foot-5 freak athlete that has a background in volleyball, which is apparent due to his very good ability at the catch point. He is a good mover as well, pretty much the complete package, and is a massive test for Tech this Saturday.
McMillan has a great chemistry with Noah Fifita, the quarterback who stands at 5-11 and is dynamic within the pocket. Fifita is not a major threat to run but is an elite scrambler at the college level.
Outside of those two, the ball will get into Quali Conley’s hands in the run game, who has taken a nice step up after Jacory Croskey-Merritt was ruled out due to NCAA questions. Dynamic runner but no better than what Tech has already seen.
The rest of the receivers are mixed bag, with the next best being Montana Lemonious-Craig, who is a vertical threat, but not a dynamic playmaker by any stretch. This offense really feels like it is TMac or bust, and that’s scary but also possibly good. We will all find out together.
Trenches
I’m a massive fan of the right tackle, Jonah Savanaiiea, who is without a doubt the best offensive lineman on this line. He is an NFL body with refined technique in pass protection, easy to project him to the next level.
The rest of the line is a mixed bag for me, Arizona’s interior is dealing with some injuries and went down to the third string right guard last week, with the best being the left guard Wendell Moe, a solid pass protector with a good frame.
My personal opinion of LT Rhino Tapa'atouati is that he is too slow to win outside of his frame while having some limitations with his length and arm size. I am personally not a fan, but he’s a polarizing topic in the scouting community.
On the D-line, my favorite is #3 Tre Smith, an NFL body who is having a nice start to the season after following his coach from San Jose State to Tucson. He has a pretty good get off and has very lengthy arms, allowing him to win with long arms and power rushes against tackles.
Defensive tackle #92 Chubba Ma'ae is a large body up the middle who plays pretty strong, but obviously isn’t like what we saw last weekend with Corleone.
Defense
The two best defenders are in the secondary, one much better than the other, in cornerback Tacario Davis and nickel Treydan Slukes.
Davis is going to be a high draft pick, an elite mover with a rare body type. It’s not every day that you see a 6-3 corner who can move, plays with physicality and is a menace to opposing receivers at the catch point.
The nickel, Slukes, is an interesting player. A strong run defender and a pretty good athlete who is pretty active when defending screens. Physical player, and one that should be on the radar.
Arizona plays plenty of middle field closed defense from their 4-2-5 structure, lots of cover-1 and cover-3 with around a ~35% blitz rate, with not a whole lot of variances on down & distance.
Barnett Howard & Williams PLLC is a law firm founded by three Red Raiders and based in Fort Worth. BHW attorneys handle personal injury, family law, criminal defense, and Title 9 cases all across the state. We hope you never need us, but we are in your corner when you do.
The TMac Show
Hard to call the offense anything other than the TMac show. Tetairoa McMillan gets the ball more than anyone in the offense and its justified. He is the best offensive weapon Tech has faced thus far, and probably is the best one you’ll see until the Colorado game.
McMillan is a 6-foot-5 freak athlete that has a background in volleyball, which is apparent due to his very good ability at the catch point. He is a good mover as well, pretty much the complete package, and is a massive test for Tech this Saturday.
McMillan has a great chemistry with Noah Fifita, the quarterback who stands at 5-11 and is dynamic within the pocket. Fifita is not a major threat to run but is an elite scrambler at the college level.
Outside of those two, the ball will get into Quali Conley’s hands in the run game, who has taken a nice step up after Jacory Croskey-Merritt was ruled out due to NCAA questions. Dynamic runner but no better than what Tech has already seen.
The rest of the receivers are mixed bag, with the next best being Montana Lemonious-Craig, who is a vertical threat, but not a dynamic playmaker by any stretch. This offense really feels like it is TMac or bust, and that’s scary but also possibly good. We will all find out together.
Trenches
I’m a massive fan of the right tackle, Jonah Savanaiiea, who is without a doubt the best offensive lineman on this line. He is an NFL body with refined technique in pass protection, easy to project him to the next level.
The rest of the line is a mixed bag for me, Arizona’s interior is dealing with some injuries and went down to the third string right guard last week, with the best being the left guard Wendell Moe, a solid pass protector with a good frame.
My personal opinion of LT Rhino Tapa'atouati is that he is too slow to win outside of his frame while having some limitations with his length and arm size. I am personally not a fan, but he’s a polarizing topic in the scouting community.
On the D-line, my favorite is #3 Tre Smith, an NFL body who is having a nice start to the season after following his coach from San Jose State to Tucson. He has a pretty good get off and has very lengthy arms, allowing him to win with long arms and power rushes against tackles.
Defensive tackle #92 Chubba Ma'ae is a large body up the middle who plays pretty strong, but obviously isn’t like what we saw last weekend with Corleone.
Defense
The two best defenders are in the secondary, one much better than the other, in cornerback Tacario Davis and nickel Treydan Slukes.
Davis is going to be a high draft pick, an elite mover with a rare body type. It’s not every day that you see a 6-3 corner who can move, plays with physicality and is a menace to opposing receivers at the catch point.
The nickel, Slukes, is an interesting player. A strong run defender and a pretty good athlete who is pretty active when defending screens. Physical player, and one that should be on the radar.
Arizona plays plenty of middle field closed defense from their 4-2-5 structure, lots of cover-1 and cover-3 with around a ~35% blitz rate, with not a whole lot of variances on down & distance.
Barnett Howard & Williams PLLC is a law firm founded by three Red Raiders and based in Fort Worth. BHW attorneys handle personal injury, family law, criminal defense, and Title 9 cases all across the state. We hope you never need us, but we are in your corner when you do.
