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PHOTOS BY KELLY PRESNELL / ARIZONA DAILY STAR Arizona senior lineman Phillip Garcia and junior quarterback Nick Foles commiserate as the clock winds down in the UA's loss in the Alamo Bowl.
SAN ANTONIO - Arizona lost its fifth straight game Wednesday
night and, in the process, gained something far worse than any
defeat: a reputation.
For the second consecutive year, the UA was outmatched by a Big
12 Conference team in a bowl game that could have vaulted the
Wildcats to the next level. And for the second straight year, it
wasn't close.
Oklahoma State scored two touchdowns in the first 6 minutes 14
seconds and never looked back, stomping the UA 36-10 in an Alamo
Bowl that - oddly - seemed worse than the 26-point margin. Arizona
(7-6) outgained OSU by 58 yards but was never really in the
game.
Coach Mike Stoops said Wednesday the loss will force him to
"re-evaluate all aspects of our program."
"Obviously, we're not there yet. There's still a lot of room for
improvement in a lot of different areas - coaching philosophy,
personnel. That's the most important part," he said.
"It's disappointing we didn't play better in back-to-back bowl
games, but we lost to two very, very good football teams," he said.
"There are no excuses. We know we're better than we've played here
of late. For whatever reason, we didn't play very strong."
Just like last year's Holiday Bowl loss to Nebraska, Arizona's
struggles began in the beginning.
The defense stopped OSU on its first drive, but Bug Wright -
making his return from a two-game suspension - muffed the ensuing
punt, and the Cowboys recovered on the UA's 26. Five plays later,
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Jeremy Smith gave OSU a 7-0 lead with a 6-yard run.
Arizona moved into OSU territory on its next drive, but turned
the ball about when wideout Juron Criner dropped a perfectly-thrown
ball from Nick Foles on fourth-and-five.
Oklahoma State (11-2) struck again, and quickly - Brandon Weeden
found Justin Blackmon for a 71-yard touchdown on OSU's next play,
making it 14-0. Blackmon, who caught nine passes for 117 yards and
two scores, was named the game's offensive MVP.
Foles connected with Criner for Arizona's only touchdown, but
both struggled against an Oklahoma State defense that was -
depending on which team you were rooting for - either aggressive or
reckless.
A helmet-to-helmet hit by safety Markelle Martin knocked UA
running back Keola Antolin out of the game in the first half.
Antolin's backup, Nicolas Grigsby, was jolted out of bounds as he
attempted to catch a pass on Arizona's first drive of the second
half. Referees ruled that the pass was uncatchable, and picked up
their flags.
Martin,
Cheap Office Home And Business 2010, who returned a Foles interception for a touchdown in the
first half, was named the game's defensive MVP. He said the
penalties were incidental.
"When you're trying to be a physical defense, those kind of
combat penalties basically just happen," Martin said. "You just
have to brush it off and just play."
Foles completed 32 of 50 passes for 280 yards and a score, but
was intercepted three times. Criner finished with nine catches for
just 47 yards.
UA receiver David Douglas won the sportsmanship award, given to
the losing team's best player. He was stellar on a night when
others struggled, catching six passes for a team-high 91 yards.
"I didn't play near as well as I wanted to and the outcome
wasn't what we wanted,
Buy Windows 7 Home Premium," Foles said. "Like Coach said, the mistakes
were too much to overcome. That's on me, and that's on everyone on
the team."
Foles was right. Every time the Wildcats made plays,
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doomed them.
The Wildcats' quarterback was intercepted at the OSU 2 while
trying to hit a covered receiver in the end zone, and wideout
Travis Cobb was called for offensive pass interference as he made a
leaping catch inside the Cowboys' 5.
Foles found Richard Morrison for a 54-yard score with 4 minutes
remaining in the blowout, but the play was called back because of a
Conan Amituanai hold.
Wednesday's game marked an ugly end to what was as soon as a promising
season. Arizona was ranked No. 9 nationally after starting the
season 4-0,
Office Standard, but tumbled as its schedule got harder. USC and
Stanford outmuscled the Wildcats, and Oregon obliterated them with
the "Blur" offense. Arizona State won the Territorial Cup when Alex
Zendejas was unable to convert on a PAT at the end of regulation
and in the second overtime. The Wildcats will play next season in
the expanded Pac-12 Conference, which figures to be even
tougher.
On Wednesday, there were no explanations- just another awful
start and a growing notoriety.
"We'll try to do a better job next year," Stoops said.
Arizona moved into OSU territory on its next drive
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