1973 Arizona Wildcats football team

Last updated

1973 Arizona Wildcats football
WAC co-champion
Conference Western Athletic Conference
Record8–3 (6–1 WAC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinator John Mackovic (1st season)
Defensive coordinator Larry Smith (1st season)
Captains
  • Ransom Terrell
  • James O'Connor
  • Mark Neal
Home stadium Arizona Stadium
Seasons
  1972
1974  
1973 Western Athletic Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 9 Arizona State + 6 1 011 1 0
Arizona + 6 1 08 3 0
Utah 4 2 07 5 0
BYU 3 4 05 6 0
New Mexico 3 4 04 7 0
Wyoming 3 4 04 7 0
Colorado State 2 4 05 6 0
UTEP 0 7 00 11 0
  • + Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1973 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona during the 1973 NCAA Division I football season. Led by Jim Young in his first year, the Wildcats shared the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championship with rival Arizona State, with ASU winning the head-to-head matchup to clinch the conference’s bowl bid and Arizona was left out of the postseason as a result.

Contents

Young was brought in by Arizona to replace Bob Weber, who was fired after the 1972 season. The Wildcats believed that Young would rebuild the team and to return them to their winning ways. [1]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 8at Colorado State W 31–017,217 [2]
September 15at Wyoming W 21–719,718 [3]
September 22 Indiana *W 26–1038,643 [4]
October 6at Iowa *W 23–2040,365 [5]
October 13 New Mexico
  • Arizona Stadium
  • Tucson, AZ (rivalry)
W 22–1439,582 [6]
October 20 Texas Tech *No. 19
  • Arizona Stadium
  • Tucson, AZ
L 17–3140,172 [7]
October 27 Utah
  • Arizona Stadium
  • Tucson, AZ
ABCW 42–2134,219 [8]
November 3at UTEP W 35–186,940 [9]
November 10at BYU W 24–1019,597 [10]
November 17 Air Force *No. 19
  • Arizona Stadium
  • Tucson, AZ
L 26–2739,733 [11]
November 24at No. 13 Arizona State L 19–5551,383 [12]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[13] [14]

Roster

1973 Arizona Wildcats football team roster
PlayersCoaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
WR 18Theo BellSo
WR 23 Keith Hartwig So
Defense
Pos.#NameClass
DE 57Wally BrumfieldSr
DT 77 Mike Dawson So
LB 61Obra Erby Fr
Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
P 32 Mitch Hoopes So
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches

    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • Injury icon 2.svg Injured
    • Redshirt.svg Redshirt

Staff

Statistics

Passing

PlayerCompAttYardsTDINT
Bruce Hill1042161,52999

Rushing

PlayerAttYardsTD
Jim Upchurch2101,18410

Receiving

PlayerRecYardsTD
Theo Bell477907

[13]

[16] ==Awards==

All-WAC (1st Team)

All-WAC (Second Team)

WAC Rookie of the Year: Bruce Hill

WAC Coach of the Year: Jim Young [13]

Season notes

References

  1. "New UA football coach Young plans to return winning formula back to Tucson". Tucson Daily Citizen . January 2, 1973.
  2. "Arizona's ball control stymies Colorado State". The Billings Gazette. September 9, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  3. "Quarterback Hill leads Arizona". Fort Collins Coloradoan. September 16, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Arizona Hill too much for I.U. machine, 26–10". The Indianapolis Star. September 23, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Iowa loses again". Chicago Tribune. October 7, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  6. "Lobos lose to Arizona". The Santa Fe New Mexican. October 14, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  7. "Texas Tech gets win over No. 19". The Odessa American. October 21, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Arizona charges to 42–21 victory over Redskins". The Ogden Standard-Examiner. October 28, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  9. "Jim Upchurch powers UA's 35–18 win". The Arizona Republic. November 4, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Wildcats rake Cougars". The El Paso Times. November 11, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  11. "Air Force thwarts Arizona upset bid". News-Pilot. November 18, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  12. "Arizona State takes WAC crown, 55–19". Albuquerque Journal. November 25, 1973. Retrieved October 8, 2024 via Newspapers.com.
  13. 1 2 3 2009 Arizona football media guide
  14. "1973 NCAA Football Statistics (Arizona)". National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  15. 2010 Arizona press kit
  16. AP Denver ALL WAC Football Team 1973 \
  17. "UA fans thank Young for season turnaround". Arizona Daily Star . November 29, 1973.