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WSU at Arizona: Two-minute drill

Keys for Washington State against Arizona on Saturday:

1

Hold tight on fourth down. This should be a high-scoring game and if either team punts or turns the ball over on downs it risks never being able to catch up on the scoreboard. Both teams are also among the top-30 in the country in going for it on fourth down, so don’t expect to see much of the punters in this one. The Cougars hold the advantage here – only Purdue has attempted more fourth down conversions and the experienced WSU team converts 52 percent of the time, while the Wildcats are only successful on 38 percent of their fourth-down attempts. The Cougars are also No. 22 in fourth-down defense, while the Wildcats are No. 108 nationally.

2

Gaps, leverage, check down and rally. That’s the mantra for the WSU defense and it will be especially important that they take care of those keys, in that order, to defend against one of the country’s best rushing attacks. Running back Nick Wilson and backup quarterback Jerrard Randall can score from anywhere on the field if the Cougars don’t maintain their gaps, control leverage, check down to the ball carrier and rally to the football.

3

No special teams errors. The coverage units have been better the last couple weeks, but a 100-yard touchdown return by Oregon State showed that breakdowns can still happen. The Wildcats offense is capable of scoring plenty of points on its own, the Cougars can’t afford to gift them any extras.

4

Don’t overrate Cayleb Jones. Jones draws most of the attention and rightfully so, the receiver is a surefire NFL draft choice and the Cougars defensive backs have let it be known they’re excited to play him. But Jones isn’t a black hole on the Arizona offense, one whose gravitational pull draws all the targets and touchdowns to him. Far from it. Nate Phillips, David Richards and Johnny Jackson have combined for eight touchdown catches to Jones’ one and while Jones leads the team with 364 receiving yards, the other three receivers are all within 70 yards of him.