Wildcats Welcome Bearcats For Big 12 Home Opener
Arizona Athletics
9/28/2026
TUCSON, Ariz. — The Arizona Wildcats (3-1) return home to Casino Del Sol Stadium to host the undefeated Cincinnati Bearcats (4-0) for the second Big 12 game of the season for both teams. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. MST in Tucson.
Saturday's game will be televised on FOX with Jack Kizer and Mark Helfrich on the call. It will also be broadcast live on Wildcats Radio 1290 AM with play-by-play from Brian Jeffries.
This will be the second all-time meeting between the Wildcats and the Bearcats. Arizona won the first every game between the programs last season, 30-24, at Cincinnati.
For more news and notes on Saturday's game, continue below.
Arizona Notes & Numbers
- The Arizona Wildcats carry a two-game win streak into their Big 12 home opener against the Cincinnati Bearcats this Saturday at Casino Del Sol Stadium.
- Saturday’s game will be nationally televised on FOX with Jack Kizer (PxP) and Mark Helfrich (Analyst) on the call.
- The game will also be broadcast live on Wildcats Radio 1290 AM with play-by-play from the Voice of the Wildcats, Brian Jeffries. He is joined on the call by analyst Lamont Lovett and reporter Mackenzie Hamilton.
- The Wildcats and Bearcats have met one time previously, in 2025. Arizona beat No. 22 ranked Cincinnati on the road, 30-24.
- Saturday’s game serves as the program’s annual Family Weekend contest. The Wildcats hold a winning record of 52-38-1 in Family Weekend games but have lost six straight. Arizona’s last Family Weekend win was a24-17 triumph over California in 2018.
- QB Noah Fifita has thrown for 84 touchdowns and 10,314 yards in his collegiate career, marks that rank first and second among active FBS quarterbacks, respectively.
- Arizona’s offense has thrived on third down this season, converting at a 56.0% clip that ranks sixth in the FBS.
- This weekend is also the Wildcats Pacific Islander Heritage game. Arizona’s roster features 20 players and four full-time staff members with Polynesian heritage.
- Freshman WR Caleb Smith is averaging 27.5 per punt return this year; he has all four of the Wildcats punt returns this year, and the team’s 27.5 average is the third-best mark nationally.
QB Noah Fifita has thrown 84 career touchdown passes, the most in program history and the most in the nation among active FBS quarterbacks.
Fifita has also thrown for 10,314 yards in his career at Arizona, the most in program history and the second most in the nation among active FBS quarterbacks.
The Wildcats are averaging 27.5 yards per punt return this season, the third best mark in FBS.
WR Tré Spivey enjoyed a career night in Pullman last weekend, hauling in seven catches for 129 yards and two scores. Seven catches and 129 yards were both career-high marks.
The Wildcats offense has converted third downs at a 56% rate this season, the sixth best mark in FBS.
Arizona’s win on Saturday at Washington State marked the 50th career win for Head Coach Brent Brennan.
SOME GAME THEMES: The Arizona Wildcats will carry a two-game win streak into their Big 12 home opener against the Cincinnati Bearcats this Saturday at Casino Del Sol Stadium...Saturday’s game will be nationally televised on FOX with Jack Kizer (PxP) and Mark Helfrich (Analyst) on the call...The game will also be broadcast live on Wildcats Radio 1290 AM with play-by-play from the Voice of the Wildcats, Brian Jeffries; he is joined on the call by analyst Lamont Lovett and reporter Mackenzie Hamilton...The Wildcats and Bearcats have met one time previously, in 2025. Arizona beat No. 22 ranked Cincinnati on the road, 30-24...Saturday’s game serves as the program’s annual Family Weekend contest; the Wildcats hold a winning record of 52-38-1 in Family Weekend games but have lost six straight...Arizona’s last Family Weekend win was a24-17 triumph over California in 2018...This weekend is also the Wildcats Pacific Islander Heritage game; Arizona’s roster features 20 players and four full-time staff members with Polynesian heritage...Arizona QB Noah Fifita set the program’s career passing touchdowns record in last season’s victory over Cincinnati on a pass to WR Giovanni Richardson.
LAST TIME OUT: The Wildcats mounted their second comeback victory in as many weeks, climbing out of a 14-0 hole to secure a 10-point victory over former Pac-12 foe Washington State on the road. QB Noah Fifita threw for four touchdowns, WR Tré Spivey enjoyed a career night, the Arizona defense tallied a pair of takeaways, and freshman WR Caleb Smith found the end zone on offense for the first time in his career. More highlights from last week’s game include...
Notable Postgame Notes vs. WSU
- Head Coach Brent Brennan earned his 50th career win as the Wildcats improved to 3-1 this season with a 34-24 win over former Pac-12 foe Washington State.
- Arizona’s defense shut out Washington State in the third quarter. This is the fourth quarter this season that the Wildcats have held an opponent scoreless.
- QB Noah Fifita moved back into first place among active FBS quarterbacks in career passing touchdowns with 84.
- WR Tré Spivey scored twice and has now scored a touchdown in 4 of his last 5 games, dating back to the Holiday Bowl last season.
- DL Tre Smith blocked a field goal in the second quarter, the first blocked field goal for the Arizona defense since Ephesians Prysock did it in 2023 against UCLA.
THE JET NAMED FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK: Wide receiver Caleb Smith was named the Big 12 Freshman of the Week for the first time following Arizona's road victory at Washington State. Smith, nicknamed "Jet," recorded 122 all-purpose yards and hauled in his first career touchdown catch in Arizona's 34-24 road victory over Washington State. In addition to finishing second on the team with 86 receiving yards, Smith posted a 36-yard punt return as a follow-up to his 69-yard punt return touchdown from the week prior.
POLY PIPELINE: Arizona's success has long been tied to the program’s ability to recruit the Pacific Islands. This emphasis on Polynesian culture began with legendary Arizona head coach Dick Tomey and has endured through the decades. The Wildcats Polynesian influences are still healthy and readily identifiable in 2026 — Arizona’s roster this season features 20 players and four full-time staff members with Polynesian heritage.
NOAH'S ARC: Fifth year quarterback Noah Fifita, one of just five senior/redshirt senior quarterbacks in FBS who spent their entire career at the same school, returned under center to lead the Wildcats offense one final time in 2026. Since taking over the starting quarterback role in 2023, Fifita has cemented his legacy as one of the greatest passers in program history. The California native is the program’s all-time leader in career passing yards and passing touchdowns — with only four games in the books, he stands to potentially widen the gap in both categories significantly. Fifita broke the Wildcats career passing touchdowns record with a 15-yard strike to Gio Richardson at Cincinnati on Nov. 15, 2025 and broke the program’s career passing yards record on a seven-yard throw to Isaiah Mizell on Sept. 19, 2026 vs. Northern Illinois. He has posted a record of 23-15 as the Wildcats starting quarterback and has logged 38 consecutive starts under center dating back to 2023.
CODE RED: Arizona’s offense has made 14 trips into the red zone across the first four games of the season and has converted those opportunities into 11 touchdowns and two field goals. The Wildcats have converted red zone trips into touchdowns at a 78.6% clip, which currently stands as the 18th best mark in the FBS and the 14th best mark in the Power Four. This marks a drastic improvement over the Wildcats fortunes in the red zone last season, when they converted 31-of-57 (54.4%) of red zone trips into touchdowns.
THIRD AND WON: The Wildcats offense has excelled on third down this season, converting at a 56.0% clip that ranks sixth among all 138 FBS programs. Five of the top 10 teams in the FBS in third down conversion percentage this year are Big 12 Conference members: Houston (1st, 71.1%), Kansas State (2nd, 65.0%), BYU (3rd, 61.3%), Arizona (6th, 56.0%), and Utah (9th, 54.2%). Last season, the Wildcats converted just 41.0% of their third downs.
GOOSE EGGS: Since taking over as the Wildcats defensive coordinator in 2025, Danny Gonzales has authored an incredible defensive turnaround that includes six halves and 26 quarters of shutout defense over 17 games. Across those 16 games, 26-of-68 quarters (including two OT periods) have featured a zero in the opponents side of the box score — that amounts to nearly 40% of quarters being scoreless for the Wildcats opponents. To close out the 2025 season, the Arizona defense worked second half shutouts in three consecutive games against Baylor, Arizona State, and SMU in the Trust & Will Holiday Bowl.
THROWING DARTS: Quarterback Noah Fifita's pinpoint accuracy has continued to blossom throughout his career, to the point which he currently ranks fifth among all FBS quarterbacks with an 75.6% completion percentage. After his 31-for-34 (91.2%) performance in week three against Northern Illinois and his 24-for-26 (92.3%) effort at Houston last season, Fifita now owns the program’s single-game completion percentage records for games with a minimum of 20 and 30 pass completions.
TRIPLE HUNDO: Since 1996, eight different Arizona quarterbacks have posted multiple 300-plus yard passing performances. With his 325-yard effort in week three against Northern Illinois, Noah Fifita now boasts 10 such performances, which is tied for second most in that span. Leading the way is Nick Foles, with a seemingly insurmountable tally of 18 300-yard games.
HOUSE CALL: In week three against Northern Illinois, freshman wide receiver Caleb Smith returned a punt 69 yards for a touchdown, making him the first Wildcat to score a punt return touchdown in nine years. Since 2008, the Wildcats have combined for eight punt return touchdowns, only two of which have been longer than Smith’s.
GOING NOWHERE FAST: Since 1996, Arizona defenses have limited an opposing offense to negative rush yards just four times. Northern Arizona’s -7 rushing yards on Saturday were the least allowed by the Wildcats defense since holding No. 22 USC to –20 rush yards in 1999. Across 122 seasons of Arizona Football history, the least rushing yards ever allowed in a game were –33 at Stanford in 1992 (28 attempts).
CHART TOPPERS: Arizona has seven players that rank among the Top 10 graded returning players in the Big 12 Conference, per PFF. The group is led by safety Cam Chapa, who was rated as the No. 1 returning safety in the Big 12. Cornerback Jay’Vion Cole (2nd), tight end Cole Rusk (2nd), and quarterback Noah Fifita (3rd) also checked in among the top three at their positions.
Arizona Players in the PFF's Big 12 Top 10
- OL Tristan Bounds
- Big 12 Rank: 9th
- 2025 Grade: 72.3
- LB Taye Brown
- Big 12 Rank: 7th
- 2025 grade: 75.9
- S Cam Chapa
- Big 12 Rank: 1st
- 2025 grade: 91.4
- CB Jay'Vion Cole
- Big 12 Rank: 2nd
- 2025 grade: 86.3
- QB Noah Fifita
- Big 12 Rank: 3rd
- 2025 grade: 85.1
- RB Kedrick Reescano
- Big 12 Rank: 10th
- 2025 grade: 76.1
- TE Cole Rusk
- Big 12 Rank: 2nd
- 2025 grade: 79.2
CONSISTENCY IS KEY: The Wildcats are banking on consistency of leadership delivering results for the team in 2026. Following a nine-win campaign last year, Arizona retained their head coach, offensive and defensive coordinators, and starting quarterback — they are one of only 12 FBS programs in the nation that can claim that. With that level of consistency of leadership, the Wildcats are among the top 8% in the FBS.
CASINO DEL SOL STADIUM: Last November, the University of Arizona and Casino Del Sol, an enterprise of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, announced a landmark 20-year naming rights agreement for Arizona Stadium valued at more than $60 million, the largest such agreement in Big 12 Conference history. Under the partnership, the venue will be known as Casino Del Sol Stadium. The naming partnership includes new exterior and interior branding, field logos, and digital platforms, along with expanded integration into national television broadcasts. The collaboration prioritizes the roles the U of A – as Arizona's flagship, land-grant university – and the Pascua Yaqui Tribe have in benefiting students, families, and communities across Southern Arizona. Through new programs and co-created initiatives, the partnership will deepen academic, cultural, and economic links between the university and the tribe.
WILDCATS IN THE NFL: The Arizona Wildcats are once again well represented in the NFL, with 14 players currently sprinkled throughout league rosters. Among the many highlights achieved by Wildcats in the NFL are the tremendous exploits of Tetairoa McMillan, one of the most accomplished wide receivers in program history and a first round draft selection of the Carolina Panthers in 2025. McMillan burst onto the scene as a rookie last year, pulling in 70 receptions for 1,014 yards and seven touchdowns en route to being named AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, PFWA Offensive Rookie of the Year, and PFWA Rookie of the Year. In the 2026 NFL Draft, the Wildcats had four defensive backs selected, tying the NFL record for number of DBs drafted from a single program in a draft.
Current Wildcats on NFL Rosters (as of 8/31/26)
- Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, LB, Buffalo Bills
- Jonah Savaiinaea, OL, Miami Dolphins
- Tyler Loop, K, Baltimore Ravens
- Genesis Smith, S, Los Angeles Chargers
- Dalton Johnson, S, Las Vegas Raiders
- Treydan Stukes, S, Las Vegas Raiders
- Jacory Croskey-Merritt, RB, Washington Commanders
- Jordan Morgan, OL, Green Bay Packers
- Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Carolina Panthers
- Ayden Garnes, CB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Deshawn McKnight, DL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Nick Folk, K, Atlanta Falcons
- Jacob Cowing, WR, San Francisco 49ers
- Roy Lopez, DL, Detroit Lions
