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Arizona Falls in Big 12 Debut, 39–14 at Iowa State

Arizona's Big 12 opener ended in a sobering 39-14 defeat at No. 14 Iowa State, exposing stark gaps in execution while offering no shortage of harsh lessons. From the opening possession — a missed field goal, turnovers, and stalled drives — the Wildcats were unable to establish momentum. Quarterback Noah Fifita passed for 253 yards and two touchdowns but also threw two interceptions, his first since last November, as Arizona repeatedly failed to convert in critical moments. Iowa State's dominance in short-yardage red zone situations and their opportunistic defense sealed control early and never let go.

In the post-game locker room, head coach Brent Brennan described the matchup as a "harsh measuring stick," lamenting missed chances and a lack of consistency across all three phases of play. "We didn't execute on the level that we need to against a top-12, 14 opponent in their stadium," he said, adding that turnovers and poor field position were game-changing.

Fifita accepted responsibility for the offense's early struggles: "I'll take the blame for that ... when your offense doesn't execute collectively, that's on everybody that's a part of it," he said. Defensive back Treydan Stukes, despite logging his first interception of the season, stressed that the team must learn to finish. "We have to be honest about what happened tonight ... if we're honest about it ... then that'll give us a chance to continue to improve as a football team," he stated. As Arizona turns toward next week's home opener, the message was unambiguous: no excuses, more accountability, and work to be done.

Game stream
https://voodc.com/embed/85818b9aa2879d88847a859a9f909888857b.html

Wearing Red didn't work very well

https://x.com/PHNX_Wildcats/status/1973901788417044590?t=CWxGORF8MW4hw2hnT7lBhg&s=19