The Arizona Wildcats lead by Quarterback Jayden DeLaura proved to be too much for the Miners in the Arizona night throwing for 285 yards and 3 Touchdowns in their Saturday night victory.
The Miner defense led mostly by the tackling of Tyrice Knight were able to hold the high powered Wildcat offense scoreless through the 1st quarter.
Positives for the Miners in the night where small breakthroughs on Special Teams including a blocked field goal, Miner Punter Josh Sloans pinning the Wildcats inside their own 20 several times, and Freshman Kicker Buzz Flabiano nailing his first collegiate field goal a 25 yarder to get that monkey off his back. The Miner defense also was able force a fumble and give the offense an opportunity in Wildcat territory that they were not able to capitalize on.
For the Miner Offense Quarterback Gavin Hardison would finish 15-31 for 228 yards and no Touchdowns. Hardison made better decisions in the pocket, did not throw any of the costly interceptions the Miners had been accustomed to through the 1st 3 games. Harrison’s biggest issue of the night was his receiving corps inability to hang on to catchable balls. Miner receivers dropped at least 6 passes on the night that could have extended drives and put the defense in a more advantageous position to be effective versus the high powered Arizona offense.
Despite the Miner’s offensive woes the score was 14-3 in favor of Arizona. The Miners would receive the 2nd half kickoff, going 3 and out and allowing the Wildcats to break the game open. The Wildcats featured a familiar foe for the Miners in former UTEP Receiver Jacob Cowing who hurt his former team catching 10 passes for 83 yards and a score. The Miners were held out of the end zone until late in the 4th Quarter when Miner second string Quarterback Kevin Hurley would Javoni Gardere for a 25 yard touchdown.
If the Miners can fix penalties and drops they could set themselves up to be more competitive in the next 2/3 of the season. Up next will be UNLV from the Mountain West who are coming off a 40-37 home upset of the SEC’s Vanderbilt.
Story by Chris Gomez