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UA opens first home game against struggling Iowa
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Iowa football head coach Hayden Fry doesn't mince his words. When asked to analyze the Arizona football team, Fry went straight to the point. "Two of the best quarterbacks in the nation," he said. "Great speed at wide receiver positions. Their defense is very unusual and very impressive. Going there with the team we have, we are in trouble." The Hawkeyes (1-1) will find out how much trouble they are in when they face Arizona tomorrow night at 7 p.m. at Arizona Stadium. For the No. 16 Wildcats (2-0) it marks the lone home game in their first five games of the season, something that is not lost on the team. "We're so excited to be home," UA head coach Dick Tomey said. "It seems like forever since we've had a home game." The Wildcats have not played a game at Arizona Stadium since beating New Mexico in the Insight.com Bowl in December. "I can't wait," junior quarterback Keith Smith said. "We want to get a lot of people out here. And our turf is the best in the country. It's so fast I can't make any mistakes on it." Smith and sophomore Ortege Jenkins will again split the playing time tomorrow. Tomey would not say which one will play the first quarter, keeping Iowa off-balance. The Hawkeyes enter the game after losing to Iowa State for the first time in 16 years. The Cyclones beat Iowa 27-9 on the Hawkeyes' home field, ending ISU's 31 game road losing streak as well. "We certainly weren't happy with our performance (last) Saturday. ISU truly played an outstanding game," Fry said. Despite all of that, Tomey refused to rate the Hawkeyes below the first two opponents Arizona has faced. "The last time Iowa lost to Iowa State the next week they beat Arizona," Tomey said, referring to the Hawkeyes' win in 1981. "We know that they are a better team than what we've played so far." Iowa's loss could be traced to a combination of an inability to run the ball and an inability to stop ISU's running game, which racked up 254 yards. Iowa's quarter-backs have been sacked for a combined 105 yards in two games. With junior running back Trung Canidate now fully healthy and coming off a 110 yard performance at Stanford last week, the Arizona ground attack is at full strength. "They are very explosive on offense," Fry said. "Canidate did a super job after his injury. For him to come back like that is a testament to his athletic ability."
But this week it will face the biggest and most talented defensive line yet. "Everybody's over 270. That's bigger than anyone we've been facing," Smith said. Leading the charge for Iowa is All-American Jared DeVries, though he has been slowed by cramps and dehydration in the Hawkeyes' first two games. Jenkins agreed with Smith's assessment of Iowa's line. "They're very physical up front," he said. "If they don't bring anything else they'll be physical all game." Tomey said that the Wildcats are going on the assumption that DeVries will be in uniform tomorrow night. "Every man, woman and child they have will play," Tomey said. One player the Hawkeyes will be happy to have back this weekend is senior defensive back Eric Thigpen, who sat out the ISU game with an injury. "They remind me a little bit of New Mexico," Tomey said. "Real big guys." Iowa redshirt fresh-man quarterback Kyle McCann also has Tomey worried. He passed for 229 yards on 19 of 30 passes against ISU in his first career start. "Their young quarter-back is very impressive," Tomey said. "They just have more skill people than both the teams we've played." Tomey said that Iowa will likely be up for the game after losing to ISU, but the Wildcats should be even more fired up. "No matter what Iowa's motivation is, ours will be greater," he said. Fry said the key for Iowa to compete in the game is for his team to finally become consistent in all areas. "I'm trying to keep my head screwed on straight," he said. "Inconsistency is something that every team goes through. We are just going to have to bite the bullet and play it out," he said. Chris Jackson can be reached via e-mail at Chris.Jackson@wildcat.arizona.edu.
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