Opportunity for a fresh start

Football Edition | VOLUME 116, ISSUE 14

Sports editor

5Letter from the Sports Editor

Key positions

16 Three key positions on the team

Quarterbacks

A look at all the Arizona QBs this season

10

Season Preview

6Opportunity for a fresh start

Coaching

17 Get to know the faces on the sidelines

Team photo

Season schedule and full team photo 12

New recruit

8Tetairoa McMillan feature

Mascots

An interview with Wilma 18

Pomline

Q&A with an Arizona pommie 21

A PRODUCTION OF THE DAILY WILDCAT SPORTS DESK

Esports

New addition to UA sports 23

Editor-in-Chief

Kristijan Barnjak editor@dailywildcat.com

Managing Editor

JT Thorpe jtthorpe@dailywildcat.com

Training Coordinator

Ella McCarville mentors@dailywildcat.com

News Editor

Payton Toomey news@dailywildcat.com

Assistant News Editors

Sam Parker Annabel Lecky

Social Media Coordinator

Kate Ewing kateewing@dailywildcat.com

THE DAILY WILDCAT Volume 116 • Issue 14 Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2022

News Reporters

Kiara Adams Tatyana Johnson Cole Fields Olivia Butler Sean Meixner Kate Ewing

Copy Editors

Frances Drye Ash Johnston Kate Ewing

Sports Reporters

Alex Poor Delaney Penn Cole Johnson Jason Dayee Devin Homer Aidan Alperstein ABOUT THE DAILY WILDCAT: The Daily Wildcat is the University of Arizona’s student-run, independent news source. While publishing daily online at DailyWildcat.com, its print edition is distributed on campus and throughout Tucson during fall and spring semesters. The function of the Wildcat is to disseminate news to the community and to encourage an exchange of ideas. The Daily Wildcat was founded in 1899. All copy, photographs and graphics appearing in the newspaper or DailyWildcat.com are the sole property of the Daily Wildcat and may not be reproduced without the specific consent of the editor-in-chief. A single print copy of the Daily Wildcat is free from newsstands. Unauthorized removal of multiple copies will be considered theft and may be prosecuted. Additional print copies of the Daily Wildcat are available from the Arizona Student Media office. The Daily Wildcat is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press and the Arizona Newspapers Association. EDITORIAL POLICY: Daily Wildcat editorials represent the official opinion of the Daily Wildcat opinions board, which is determined at opinions board meetings. Opinion columns, guest commentary, cartoons, online comments and letters to the editors do not represent the opinion of the publication, but that of the author. CORRECTIONS: Corrections or complaints concerning Daily Wildcat content should be directed to the editor-in-chief. For further information on the Daily Wildcat’s approved grievance policy, readers may contact Brett Fera, director of Arizona Student Media, in the Sherman R. Miller 3rd Newsroom at the University Services Building. NEWS TIPS: (520) 621-3193 The Daily Wildcat is always interested in story ideas and tips from readers. If you see something deserving of coverage, contact the newsroom at storyideas@dailywildcat.com or call 621-3193. COVER DESIGN: Nathanial Stenchever | The Daily Wildcat

Opinion Writers

Kelly Marry Noor Haghighi

Photographers and Multimedia Reporters

Caitlin Claypool Carly Markovich Noor Haghighi Kate Ewing Marrison Bilagody Megan Ewing Ben Tisdale Gracie Kayko Antonia Muskat Jackie Cabrera

Arts & Life Reporters

AJ Stash Castillo

Cartoonists

Jamelle Texeria Keryn Aponte Galadriel Gross Nettie Gastelum Jasmine Ma Mary Ann Vagnerova

Designers

JT Thorpe Hannah Martuscello Payton Toomey Kate Ewing Kristijan Barnjak John Konrad

UATV 3 General Manager

Leah Britton gm@UATV.arizona.edu

Comics Editor John Konrad johnk@dailywildcat.com KAMP Student Radio General Manager Annika Reimers Sports Editor gm@KAMP.arizona.edu Ryan Wohl sports@dailywildcat.com

Arts & Life Editor

Taylor Quinn arts@dailywildcat.com

Assistant Arts & Life Editor

Sohi Kang

Opinions Editor

Sophie Applin opinion@dailywildcat.com

Photo Editor

Nathanial Stenchever photo@dailywildcat.com Copy Chief Hannah Martuscello copy@dailywildcat.com Assistant Copy Chief Tereza Rascon DAILYWILDCAT.COM DAILYWILDCAT.COM CONNECT WITH US THIS SCHOOL YEAR Subscribe now to the Wildcat’s recurrent newsletters. Get your UA news, right in your inbox. (Scan to sign up!) Follow the Daily Wildcat on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook to stay in the know! Daily Wildcat events to be on the lookout for: Our newsroom open house and a free professional headshot day for UA students and more! Dates and details to come! @DailyWildcat CONNECT WITH US THIS SCHOOL YEAR Subscribe now to the Wildcat’s recurrent newsletters. Get your UA news, right in your inbox. (Scan to sign up!) Follow the Daily Wildcat on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook to stay in the know! Daily Wildcat events to be on the lookout for: Our newsroom open house and a free professional headshot day for UA students and more! Dates and details to come! @DailyWildcat

DW SPORTS EDITOR Excited for a new football season and the year ahead

BY RYAN WOHL

@Ryan__Wohl

Dear reader,

Iam Ryan Wohl, the Sports Editor here at the Daily Wildcat. This is my third year working at the Wildcat and second year as an editor. I am excited for this upcoming sports year as it should be action-packed.

Classes have started which means one of the biggest sports on campus is quickly returning: FOOTBALL! The Wildcats will start their 2022 season at San Diego State University on Sept. 3 — but don’t worry, because they will return back home very shortly after that.

Jedd Fisch will have his second home opener as Arizona’s head football coach on Sept. 10 at Arizona Stadium against Mississippi State University from the SEC powerhouse.

This year’s football team has everything a fan could want to see: a good quarterback room, elite wide receiver potential and a top25 recruiting class in the country waiting to make their college debuts.

But it doesn’t just stop with football, the Arizona soccer team is already off to a hot 2-0-1 start and the volleyball team is undefeated at 3-0.

One of the best events of the year is quickly returning with the Arizona men’s basketball team’s Red-Blue game. That is happening on Sept. 30 in McKale Center. Both the women’s and men’s basketball teams should be very good again after the women went to the second round and the men made it to the Sweet Sixteen during March Madness.

Make sure to check out each story in this print edition to get caught up with all things Arizona football and more.

Thanks for reading, Bear Down!

NATHANIAL STENCHEVER | THE DAILY WILDCAT

THE ZONAZOO ENTRANCE AT Arizona Stadium fills up with fans excited to watch a friendly scrimmage between the Arizona football team on Saturday, Aug. 20. This is where the University of Arizona’s student section sits during football games.

Season predictions: The current buzz on Arizona football

BY RYAN WOHL

@Ryan__Wohl

Last year, just about every pre-season and media poll predicted the Arizona football team would finish last in the Pac-12 and that was true, but this season could be different.

Now, the over-under for wins and losses for the Wildcats is set at 3.5 wins according to Fanduel Sportsbook.

This is a big improvement already for a team that only had one victory a year ago, is starting a new quarterback and has a ton of freshmen players.

CBS Sports had seven of their media members rank each team in the Pac-12. For the University of Arizona, there were five 11th place votes, one last place vote and one ninth place vote.

Arizona also was ranked No. 91 in best teams on CBS Sport’s top 100 team poll.

Sports Illustrated ranked the Wildcats last in the Conference of Champions. ESPN’s Football Power Index ranks Arizona as the No. 91 best team in the country while having a 8.9% chance to win six games.

The Wildcats are 6-point underdogs against San Diego State University for their first game of the 2022 season.

They are also set at +50,000 odds to win the Pac12 Championship, according to Fanduel Sportsbook.

Arizona’s schedule to start the 2022 season is not the most difficult, having three home games at Arizona Stadium.

The two road games during that stretch are their home opener at SDSU and in Berkeley, California to face off with the University of California, Berkeley during the fourth week of college football.

Weeks six through nine are extremely tough for the Wildcats because they play the University of Oregon, the University of Washington, USC and the University of Utah before heading to the Rose Bowl to play Chip Kelly and UCLA.

Since the Wildcats only won one game a season ago, it will not be too difficult for them to put together a better year starting with the Aztecs.