Solomon, Arizona Wildcats too much for struggling Colorado: By the Numbers

Here’s something you don’t see every day: a quarterback throwing for four touchdowns while barely surpassing 200 yards through the air.

Well, that’s how it worked out for University of Arizona quarterback Anu Solomon on Saturday night. Aided by a defense that forced four turnovers, the freshman signal caller often worked with a short field against Colorado, connecting with his teammates for four touchdowns and a modest 211 yards passing.

The struggling Buffaloes came into Arizona Stadium in Tucson and actually put up a fight for most of the game, but their offense stalled in the second half, and the Wildcats broke open the game in the fourth quarter, as Solomon hooked up with sophomore Samajie Grant for a pair of touchdowns.

The Wildcats topped Colorado by a final of 38-20, improving to 7-2 overall and 4-2 in conference. The Buffaloes fell to 2-8 overall and have yet to win a game against a Pac-12 opponent this season.

Here’s a look at Saturday’s contest by the numbers:

0:11

The visiting team stunned Arizona by jumping out to a 7-0 lead just 11 seconds into the game, as quarterback Sefo Liufau hooked up with Shay Fields for a 75-yard score. It was the quickest anyone has scored on the Wildcats this season.

0-7

Colorado dropped to 0-7 in conference, the only Pac-12 team to be winless in conference play. The team is also just one of a handful of Division I-A programs to not have a conference win yet.

4

Grant had one touchdown in his freshman season and one TD this year leading up to Saturday’s game. He doubled his collegiate career total with two receiving touchdowns just about four minutes apart from each other in the fourth quarter — one from 27 yards out and the other for 20 yards. He finished with a team highs of 83 yards and six receptions.

10

David Richards made a nice grab for a one-yard touchdown just before halftime, his first score of the season. With the catch, the junior wideout became the 10th Wildcat to record a receiving touchdown this season. Richards finished with three catches for 20 yards.

28

Now this is efficiency: The Wilcats turned the Buffaloes’ four turnovers into 28 points, including a 22-yard fumble return by safety Tra’Mayne Bondurant late in the first quarter, Arizona’s first score of the game. The home team, meanwhile, did not turn over the ball once.

30:03

Despite the disparity on the scoreboard, the Buffaloes actually had a longer time of possession — 30:03 to Arizona’s 29:35.

103

Other than giving up the ball several times, Colorado killed itself with penalties: 10 for 103 yards. However, the Wildcats weren’t significantly better, as they accumulated eight penalties, which lost them 75 yards.

111

Colorado put up a solid 353 total yards in the game, but the team only gained 111 in the second half as Arizona’s defense tightened its grip. UA, meanwhile, was just one yard shy of 500 on the night.

115

Solomon may have not had too many passing yards, but the freshman topped 100 yards on the ground for the first time in his collegiate career, gaining 115 yards on 12 carries, a stellar average of 9.6 yards per attempt. The Wildcats as a team rushed for an impressive 299 yards on 45 attempts (a 6.6 average), although none of their touchdowns came on the ground.

153

Running back Nick Wilson had an outstanding game for the Wildcats, compiling 153 yards on the ground on 21 carries — a 7.3 yards-per-attempt average — most of which came in the second half. It was the freshman’s first time over 100 yards rushing since Week 3 against Nevada, and his fourth time overall topping the mark. Wilson also added one catch for 18 yards Saturday.