Lightning only delays result; Fifita passes Arizona past Weber State football 48-3
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- Weber State defenders Ishaan Daniels (22) and BJ Carey, left, tackle Arizona receiver Chris Hunter (11) on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz.
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- Weber State quarterback Jackson Gilkey (2) runs the football as Arizona defensive back Dalton Johnson (43) gives chase on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz.
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- Weber State players Montae Pate (20) and Keahnist Thompson (1) attempt to block the field goal attempt of Arizona kicker Michael Salgado-Medina (19) on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz.
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- Weber State offensive linemen Cole Casto (65) and Nelson Arapa (64) are seen between plays in a game against Arizona on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz.
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- Arizona running back Ismail Mahdi, left, fights for yards against Weber State defenders Sione Hala, center, and Trevian Tribble, right, on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz.
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- Weber State quarterback Jackson Gilkey (2) runs the football against Arizona on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz.
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- Weber State’s offense, left, lines up for a fourth-and-1 play against Arizona on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, in Tucson, Ariz.
The University of Arizona missed major rainstorms but systems skirted nearby enough to trigger a lightning delay with Weber State and Arizona warming up on the football field for a game already slated for a late kickoff.
What became a wait of 2 hours and 10 minutes, with kickoff at 10:10 p.m. MDT, didn’t seem to affect quarterback Noah Fifita.
The junior Arizona gunslinger hoped to get his groove back under offensive coordinator Seth Doege this season and Weber State was the ticket to get started. Fifita threw for 274 yards and four touchdowns in the first half and Arizona raced to a 48-3 victory, capped when the clock ran out at 1:20 a.m. MDT.
Weber State (0-2), it seems, can’t be done with FBS competition quickly enough.
“Gotta start faster. I’ve got to prepare my team to answer the bell, start fast, and compete at a higher level in the first half,” WSU head coach Mickey Mental said.
Senior receiver Javin Whatley ran through Weber State’s defense and Fifita roped a liner to the end zone for a 31-yard score on the game’s first possession. The next offensive play for Arizona, the Wildcats used a five-wide formation to force man coverage and Whatley ran right past Ishaan Daniels and hauled in an 85-yard touchdown pass.
Arizona led 14-0 with 8:56 left in the first quarter. That became 24-0 by quarter’s end, with Fifita going 9 of 9 for 196 yards and three touchdowns in the first frame alone.
“I’ve got to look back at the film, but just have better angles, higher angles that force that guy vertical through the pocket,” Mental said about Fifita’s ability to move and distribute the ball. “He’s a special talent, we’ve just got to do a better job of corralling in the pocket.”
The junior finished 17 of 22 for 373 yards and five TDs. His final possession was Arizona’s first time with the ball in the third quarter, leading an 80-yard drive capped with a 27-yard dumpoff screen-and-run to running back Ismail Mahdi to put U of A up 41-0.
Two plays later, Jay’Vion Cole jumped in front of a short Jackson Gilkey throw to Devin Ford, and the Arizona defensive back ran his interception 27 yards for a pick-six and a 48-0 score at the 7:08 mark of the third quarter.
Arizona scored on its first seven possessions and added the defensive touchdown to cap its scoring.
The night was much like last week’s opener at James Madison, though Weber State moved the ball a litttle better this time (U of A outgained WSU 556 to 184). Gilkey’s second career game at QB was full of the same promise, flashes and inconsistency for himself and the offense as a whole facing a superior opponent for the second straight week.
“I thought he played poised. I thought he hung in there, took some hits, delivered the football, added in the run game,” Mental said about Gilkey.
Gilkey’s 16-yard run appeared to have WSU moving on its first time with the ball, but Davion Godley’s third-down conversion at midfield was reversed after review, the spot changed to fourth-and-1 at the midfield stripe. Gilkey successfully plunged 3 yards on a sneak but WSU was flagged for a false start.
So instead, Henry Way punted the ball away and Fifita hit Whatley for the 85-yarder that put the Wildcats on their heels the rest of the way.
Gilkey finished 10 of 24 for 68 yards and two interceptions; the other pick went off the hands of Jayleen Record and up into the air for a Genesis Smith interception in the first quarter.
Gilkey added 40 yards on nine carries. Godley rushed eight times for 37 yards and Zach Hrbacek 11 times for 24 yards.
Trailing 34-0 out of halftime, Weber State’s best possession came after receiving the second-half kickoff. Gilkey hit Marvin Session for 12 yards on a sideline comeback and later tight end Noah Bennee for 20 yards on a double move. Godley ripped a 21-yard rush around the left edge to give WSU in succession what would be its two biggest offensive plays all game.
An Arizona penalty got WSU to the 18-yard line and, after 65 yards in the first half, Weber had 56 on this drive alone. But Arizona broke up two more targets to Bennee and Sloan Calder’s 36-yard field goal missed left by inches, leaving the purple Wildcats without points.
Weber State did end the shutout in the fourth quarter. Bird Butler returned a punt 20 yards and tallied an 11-yard rush before Gilkey took a 12-yard run inside the red zone to end the third quarter.
The drive stalled there but Calder made a 33-yard field goal to account for the final 48-3 tally with 12:44 left.
WSU’s defense saw the debut of junior linebacker Sione Hala but still struggled to slow down the blue-and-red Wildcats much until Fifita was parked on the bench. Its biggest first-half success came in the second quarter, forcing Arizona into a field goal attempt after 14 plays. But defensive tackle Matt Herron was taken off with an injury late in the possession.
Mental said after the game he believed Herron only had a sprained ankle but can’t confirm injury specifics until Monday. WSU also lost two offensive linemen on the trip, including Vae Soifua hurting a foot or ankle during warmups.
The best defensive showing came when Fifita left. Braedyn Locke got the call to relieve Fifita at QB, coincidentally at the same time his brother, Landyn, was forced into action by injury for Sam Houston State, who was playing a late-night island affair at Hawaii.
WSU forced Locke into a three-and-out, leading to Butler’s return on Arizona’s only punt of the night. Locke’s second drive, in the fourth quarter, got to the Weber State 9-yard line but Hala and Keahnist Thompson combined for a sack that resulted in a field goal attempt, which Arizona missed.
Thompson had 1 1/2 sacks on the night and was disruptive on several occasions, drawing Arizona holding flags three times. Linebacker Aizik Mahuka totaled two tackles for loss.
Weber State regroups for its foray to the Central Time Zone next week in its tour of America, visiting McNeese (Lake Charles, Louisiana) in a game that gives each team its first FCS opponent of the season.
“We’ve got to keep plugging along and when we go down to McNeese, start faster. We haven’t really given ourselves a shot in the first two games,” Mental said.
AROUND THE BIG SKY
The game of the night saw No. 3 Montana State fall 30-24 in double overtime against No. 2 South Dakota State.
Northern Colorado nearly had the bigger result, leading Colorado State late before losing 21-17.
Other scores:
Boise State 51, Eastern Washington 14
Utah 63, Cal Poly 9
New Mexico 32, Idaho State 22
Idaho 37, St. Thomas 30
Nevada 20, Sacramento State 17
Northern Arizona 38, Utah Tech 31
North Dakota 50, Portland State 20
Montana 42, Central Washington 17
Washington 70, UC Davis 10
