PROVO — After Arizona finished with a mediocre 6-6 record last season, coach Mike Stoops set out to fix the weakness in his program.
The Wildcat offense averaged an anemic 16.6 points per game. So, during the offseason, the defensive-minded Stoops hired four new offensive coaches, including a new offensive coordinator, Sonny Dykes, whom Stoops lured away from Texas Tech.
While Arizona's revamped spread offense comes from Lubbock, Texas, it is also similar to the one entrenched in Provo, where the 'Cats open their 2007 season Saturday (3:30 p.m.).
Stoops has said he would like to see Arizona's new offense resemble BYU's — more balanced than the pass-happy Texas Tech version.
"We have a lot of the same characteristics," Stoops said, comparing his team to BYU. "We kind of mirror each other even more so this year than last year. I think our characteristics are similar, but I think philosophically you're going to see two teams that mirror each other in a lot of different ways."
While the 'Cats' new offense may look a lot like the Cougars', there is, of course, an element of surprise.
"There's a lot of different ways we can go with this offense," said Stoops, who is beginning his fourth season at the helm. "BYU, when you watched them through the course of last year, you see a lot of different things they're attempting to do. There's a lot more to that offense as you watch it. What we're going to emphasize, how we're going to attack them, I don't think anybody really knows. I don't think they know what we're going to emphasize through the course of this game. They've watched, I'm sure, the whole season of (Texas) Tech, and these guys understand this system very well, too. They go up against it virtually every day, and the routes mirror each other. But what we emphasize will be the difference."
BYU linebacker Bryan Kehl acknowledges that not knowing what will be emphasized could pose a challenge for the defense.
"Last year we had game film to go off of. This year, it's totally different. We don't know exactly what to expect," he said. "We have a good idea, knowing where the coach came from who brought this new scheme and we've been watching (film of) the team it came from. But, ultimately, we'll find out on Saturday."
Cougar coach Bronco Mendenhall said his defense is familiar with Arizona's offensive approach.
"We are fortunate in that our own offense has a coach (offensive coordinator Robert Anae) that came from Texas Tech, with a similar philosophy," he said. "The benefit, simply, is that we understand the strengths and weaknesses of that system. We are not sure of what we are going to see. We know, as I have heard different things, they are patterning their offense after BYU as much as Texas Tech, so I am not sure which offense we'll see. Maybe a combination of both. The real key will be the execution of our system and then making adjustments as a coaching staff as the game goes on. We're not sure of how their personnel will be used, either. Even though there are returning players from last year, different positions and different systems require different concepts. So, there will be much determined as the game goes on."
At the controls of the Arizona offense is junior quarterback Willie Tuitama, a two-year starter who missed much of five games last season due to concussion-related injuries. In 2006, he completed 118-of-211 passes for 1,335 yards, seven touchdowns and six interceptions.
"I think he's very comfortable (in the new offense)," Stoops said. "I think he likes it, the simplicity of it and the ability to call plays is so much simpler for him. That's a big thing for quarterbacks. We've had a lot of problems just communication-wise so hopefully we won't have those problems Saturday and we can get him at the line and see what he wants to do."
Tuitama has a veteran offensive line in front of him and a bevy of talented receivers, led by Mike Thomas, an honorable mention all-conference pick in 2006. Running backs Chris Jennings (who gained 451 yards a year ago) and Xavier Smith return.
"Any time you start the season with a new system, it's difficult," Stoops said. "But the players have grasped the new system very well. I'm pleased with the transition."
While BYU's offensive scheme is established, the Cougars are breaking in a new quarterback. Sophomore Max Hall will have to deal with Arizona's stellar defensive backfield. Senior cornerback Antoine Cason, a Jim Thorpe Award finalist, returns to anchor an experienced secondary. He and fellow senior corner Wilrey Fontenot are both three-year starters.
Cason, who has 10 career interceptions, considered entering the NFL draft last spring, but opted to return to Tucson. He has been a starter since arriving in 2004 as a true freshman, which was also Stoops' first season at Arizona. Cason was a first-team all-Pac-10 selection last year and last spring he earned all-America honors in track, running the 4x100 meters for the Wildcats.
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