Under the Friday night lights at Arizona Stadium, the Arizona Wildcats held their first fully-padded practice of fall training camp. Here are notes and observations from a 91-degree night in Tucson:Â
* Junior-college transfer slot receiver Jeremiah Patterson continues to have a strong training camp. Patterson, who's wearing Jacob Cowing's former jersey number (2), sprawled out for a diving catch in the end zone on a corner route during a one-on-one drill. Despite smothering coverage by Colgate transfer defensive back Owen Goss, Patterson made the grab for a touchdown. Patterson is making a strong case as a potential starter this season.
* Goss had two pass breakups in a one-on-one period, then forced a fumble and had another pass breakup in one of the final team periods. Â
* In the first one-on-drill, cornerback Tacario Davis recorded a pass breakup covering Montana Lemonious-Craig.
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*Â Arizona's first starting offense included quarterback Noah Fifita, running back Rayshon "Speedy" Luke, tight end Keyan Burnett, wide receivers Devin Hyatt, Patterson and Lemonious-Craig, left tackle Rhino Tapa'atoutai, Northwestern transfer left guard Alexander Doost, center Grayson Stovall, San Jose State transfer right guard Ryan Stewart and right tackle Jonah Savaiinaea.
* In the first team period, defensive end Dominic Lolesio, who started at defensive tackle, and Keanu Mailoto combined for a sack.Â
* Redshirt sophomore Sterling Lane II recorded a sack against true freshman left tackle Matthew Lado. The 6-6, 292-pound Lado, a former Glendale Apollo star, has the frame but will be a project player this season.Â
* Arizona kicker Tyler Loop nailed a 57-yard field goal with the wind against his back. Loop made the field goal with ease. Loop made 2 of 4 field goals over 50 yards last season. Former UA kicker and NFL free agent Lucas Havrisik, who holds the record for longest field goal in UA history (57 yards), has mentored Arizona's kickers this training camp.Â
*Â Utah transfer Chase Kennedy earned several snaps with the first-team defense. The 6-3, 220-pound Kennedy lacks ideal size for a Power 4 edge rusher, but has athleticism and speed off the edge to crack Arizona's defensive line rotation. The Wildcats utilized two not-so-heavy defensive ends last season in Isaiah Ward (6-5, 227 pounds) and Russell Davis II (6-3, 217 pounds), who both transferred to Washington. The 6-3, 234-pound Sterling Lane II has stood out in training camp, with several tackles for loss and quarterback pressures.Â
* In the second team period, UC Davis transfer defensive tackle Chubba Ma'ae batted a pass thrown by quarterback Noah Fifita.Â
* Arizona star wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan continued to work on his left leg rehab and participated in individual drills and ran routes. During one-on-one and 7-on-7 periods, McMillan caught passes on the other side of the field. Baker was held out again, but shadowed the other centers during team periods.Â
* Hyatt ran a 15-yard curl route against Davis and created about 4 yards of separation. Hyatt will also likely become a mainstay in the ÃÛÌÒÓ°ÏñAV offense.
* The Wildcats worked on punting again. Former Oregon Duck and Australia native Lachlan Bruce sent multiple kicks to the stands and had poor hang time. Freshman Michael Salgado-Medina and walk-on Jordan Forbes had cleaner kicks with longer hang time.Â
* Syracuse transfer defensive tackle Kevon Darton, who defensive line coach Joe Seumalo recently called "the secret," recorded a tackle for loss in the second-to-last period of practice. Darton, who was nursing an undisclosed injury, was officially cleared on Wednesday, per Seumalo. The sixth-year Darton hasn't been heavily involved in Arizona's first- or second-team defenses, but emerged late on Friday.Â
"We're keeping him undercover. ... That kid can play," said Seumalo. "Whew, that kid can play. Just trying to get him healthy and get him to game day."Â
* Former Canyon del Oro High School standout and walk-on Kayden Luke was inserted into the starting lineup for a team period and ran a fullback wheel route, but the pass sailed over his head out of bounds.Â
Contact Justin Spears, the Star's Arizona football beat reporter, at jspears@tucson.com. On X(Twitter): @JustinESports
Justin Spears
Sports Reporter
Left tackle Rhino Tapa'toutai brings 'energy and attitude' to Arizona's offensive line
