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1 Washington State’s offense needs to have near-perfect timing this afternoon. The line has to give quarterback Jeff Tuel the time to set up and find receivers. The timing among Tuel and Jared Karstetter, Marquess Wilson and the rest also needs to be split-second. The Wildcats’ two senior ends, Ricky Elmore and Brooks Reed, are exceptionally quick, getting upfield in a hurry to flush the quarterback. That allows freshman Justin Washington and senior Lolomana Mikaele to clog the middle and collect sacks. The UA secondary, part of the Pac-10’s second-best pass defense, is quick to the ball, so the lanes close in a hurry.

2 Pass defense has a lot in common with a good scotch. The more they age, the smoother they are. And WSU’s is going to be awful young this weekend. With safety Chima Nwachukwu (hamstring) out for sure and linebacker Alex Hoffman-Ellis questionable (hip), as many as six of the back seven could be underclassmen. That doesn’t bode well against UA quarterback Nick Foles, 6-foot-4 wideout Juron Criner and the rest of a Wildcats passing attack that leads the Pac-10 and is fifth nationally at 328.6 yards per game. With Foles completing 74.9 percent of his throws, discipline is crucial in the secondary, a talent usually fine-tuned over time.

3 Arizona has won the last four games against the Cougars by an average score of 45.5-18. In those four victories, they have averaged 244 yards on the ground. When Washington State throws a nickel or dime scheme at the Wildcats, expect Nic Grigsby, Keola Antolin or Greg Nwoko, all averaging better than 5 yards per carry, to get the ball. Running behind an offensive line that averages 317 pounds per man, Grigsby and Antolin, both explosive, seem to disappear behind their linemen before breaking into the secondary. Nwoko, at 6-foot-2, 220 pounds, gets the call in short yardage and averages 6.3 yards per carry.

4 The Wildcats lost their first game last week, 29-27 to Oregon State, during which place-kicker Alex Zendejas missed a 37-yard field-goal attempt and an extra point. That hurt. Punter Keenyan Crier has averaged almost 40 yards per kick, but UA’s coverage has been lacking. The Wildcats’ net punting average is 33.1 yards, worst in the Pac-10 and 103rd in the nation. That also hurts. The Cougars have an opportunity to gain field position consistently if they can force Arizona to punt. That won’t be easy. UA converts almost 50 percent of the time on third down and WSU’s defense has stopped less than half of its opponents’ third-down attempts.