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Every Tuesday and Thursday through late June, we’re working through all 12 opponents on WVU’s 2026 schedule.

Here’s our First Look at Arizona

Game Vitals

When: Saturday, October 10, 2026

Where: Milan Puskar Stadium, Morgantown, West Virginia

Series Record: WVU leads the series 1-0. The only meeting came in 2024, where the Mountaineers won 31-26 in Tucson.

2025 Record: 9-4 (6-3 Big 12)

Head Coach: Brent Brennan (3rd season)

Preview

Arizona went 9-3 in the regular season last year, and finished with a Holiday Bowl loss to SMU — a significant leap from the 4-8 disaster of a season in 2024 that had fans calling for Brent Brennan’s head. The turnaround was built around Noah Fifita, who set the program’s single-season and career touchdown passing records on his way to becoming the first Arizona quarterback to earn First Team All-Conference honors since 1975. Fifita will be firmly in the Heisman conversation after throwing for 3,228 yards and 29 touchdowns with just six interceptions last year — and he’s more than just a passer. He added 222 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the ground in 2025, giving defenses another dimension to account for. The Wildcats retained their entire coaching staff, with offensive coordinator Seth Doege and defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales both receiving contract extensions alongside Brennan. For Fifita, it means operating in year two of a system for the first time in his college career.

The offense loses its top two receivers from 2025, but the pieces around Fifita are still solid. Tre Spivey is the returning WR1. Chris Hunter provides some veteran depth, while Gio Richardson will work in the slot. Former Mountaineer Rodney Gallagher — who had 64 catches for 605 yards and three touchdowns in three seasons in Morgantown before transferring in January — is in the mix as well. Tight end Cole Rusk, an Illinois transfer, headlined the Wildcats’ portal additions and will be a frequent target for Fifita. The offensive line returns Tristan Bounds at tackle and added Washington transfer Zach Henning at center. Redshirt freshman Louis Akpa impressed the staff enough in the spring to become a factor at tackle.

The backfield is where the questions sit. The Wildcats are going into the season without a proven every-down back. Kedrick Reescano led the team with nine touchdowns last season but only started once, operating primarily as a goal-line and short-yardage option. He was efficient when he got the ball — 4.7 yards per carry and found the end zone in seven of his ten games — but carrying a full featured-back workload is a different ask. Quincy Craig will give Brennan another option.

Defensively, Arizona has to replace four defensive backs that were drafted in the 2026 NFL Draft. Brennan and his staff brought in seven new defensive backs through the portal, all with significant college experience. Safety Gavin Hunter and journeyman corner Jay’Vion Cole, making his fourth stop in college, have taken on leader roles in the room. The new faces include safeties Malcolm Hartzog from Nebraska and Cam Chapa from Northern Colorado, and corner Daylen Austin from Oregon and Tyrese Boss from Wyoming. It’s a rebuilt room with a lot of new pieces, and nobody really knows what they’ll look like until September.

Up front, Tre Smith is back. The sixth-year defensive end only played four games in 2025 due to injury, and has been named to the Lott IMPACT Trophy watchlist, given to the top defensive player of the year. Redshirt junior Dominic Lolesio was the most improved defensive player of the spring. Mays Pese will anchor the interior. The front seven is where this defense can create problems, and if Smith is healthy, it should be the strength of the roster.

Arizona is listed at +1800 to win the Big 12 Championship — sixth in the conference. Most outside projections have them somewhere between eight and nine wins. This is the best quarterback WVU will face all season.

Way Too Early Prediction

Arizona will most likely have the best player on the field. Fifita against a WVU secondary that has its own questions is a real problem. But this is Morgantown in October, and the Wildcats are breaking in a rebuilt secondary of their own. If WVU’s pass rush can make Fifita uncomfortable, this is very much winnable at home. I just don’t know that we’re there yet.

West Virginia 24, Arizona 27
Projected record through Week 6: 4-2 (2-1 Big 12)

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