UA prepares for 'best week of the year'

UA prepares for 'best week of the year'

By Craig Sanders
Arizona Daily Wildcat
November 20, 1996

Karen C. Tully
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Freshman quaterback Keith Smith will get his first taste of Arizona State as a player on Saturday when the Wildcats face ASU at Arizona Stadium.

When Arizona meets Arizona State this Saturday at Arizona Stadium, it may likely be the biggest game in the history of this intense rivalry.
"This is the best week of the year," Arizona head coach Dick Tomey said. "It's just intense, the most intense rivalry I've ever been a part of."
The Wildcats (5-5 overall, 3-4 in the Pacific 10 Conference) have had their share of big upsets against the Sun Devils, including a 31-28 come-from-behind victory last season in Tempe that ruined ASU's chances at a bowl game.
"I think they still remember last season," Tomey said, "but I don't think that means anything for our team this year."
The Wildcats are 11-2-1 against ASU since 1982 with the Wildcats winning the last three games of the series. For veterans and newcomers alike, the week has been dominated by thoughts of Arizona State.
"It's just been crazy," Arizona freshman quarterback Keith Smith said. "There is so much intensity in my body, in my mind, just the whole aspect of the game."

Speaking of Smith, the freshman quarterback says that he may give former Arizona quarterback Dan White a call this week in preparation for ASU. White was a thorn in the Sun Devils' side in his three-year stint with the UA, completing 25 of 38 passes for 289 yards and three touchdowns last season.
"I might give Dan a call if I can get a hold of him," Smith said. "He might be able to give me some advice on why he did so well in these games. I would love to continue that tradition."
Smith has certainly shown that he has the potential for big games. He is hitting on a conference-leading 62.4 percent of his passes this season and his rating of 141.27 is third highest among Pac-10 quarterbacks.
Smith's biggest game of the season was at California when he completed 25 of 35 passes for 418 yards and five touchdowns. He has also thrown 105 consecutive passes without an interception, his last was the final play against Washington, in his second start of the season.
"He's come a long way in a short time," Tomey said.

Arizona still has hopes for a bowl berth if it beats ASU, but the team will need some help.
With a bowl invitation requiring that teams have at least six wins, the Wildcats have a chance to sneak into a bowl if three Pac-10 teams with five wins lose this weekend. Arizona needs Stanford to lose at California, USC to fall to UCLA in Pasadena and Washington to defeat Washington State in Pullman.
If all of those things happened the Wildcats would be almost assured a spot in the Aloha Bowl. And even if the other teams won, the Wildcats could still find themselves in Hawaii because the Aloha Bowl can pick any of the bowl-eligible teams not going to the Rose, Cotton, Holiday or Sun.