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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.

Robert Casey, WSU Athletics

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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.

Robert Casey, WSU Athletics

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In some ways, the 2025 season begins now for Weber State football.

The 0-2 record is real, of course, but with an understanding that a program like WSU, rebuilding after 2024’s downturn, may not put up the same kinds of challenges against FBS teams that, say, squads in 2022 or 2019 were able to do.

Indeed, losses of 45-10 at James Madison and 48-3 at Arizona have the Wildcats feeling the lumps they have taken, but WSU now hopes to glean the instruction needed to succeed in 10 games against FCS opponents.

“You’ve always got to keep a realistic approach. James Madison … they are the Sun Belt preseason No. 1 pick, and Arizona did a really good job, they’re a really good team and I think they’ll win some games, and they’re Power 4,” WSU head coach Mickey Mental said.

“What you can’t do,” he continued, “is fall behind as early as we did in both games. That’s obviously alarming. Understanding that hey, we’ve got to stop and get out of drives in the first half on defense, and continue drives in the first half on offense.

“That’s where you say we can play cleaner, we can use better technique, we can take plays when they’re given.”

Junior linebacker Mayson Hitchens said playing up makes some things clear.

“When you play those bigger opponents, you can’t get away with the same things you can against FCS opponents. You get exposed in areas you’re weak, so finding those weak spots and improving on them is going to help us,” Hitchens said.

“First week, we go in and give up 300 yards rushing, and then the emphasis is stopping the run against Arizona. We stop the run and give up 400 yards passing. We need to do a better job at playing complementary football on the defensive side, so you find the holes in the defense and what’s going wrong with the scheme, with players, and you fix it.”

Hitchens said the focus this week is on energy and physicality. He noted how the 2-hour lightning delay at Arizona deflated a team ready to play but that the team should be “mature enough as adults” to be better mentally.

“We’ve got to do a better job each week of being more physical than the offense,” he said.

The Wildcats now travel all the way to Lake Charles, Louisiana, on a return trip to McNeese after the Cowboys won in Ogden last year. Opportunity for Hitchens and crew to be “more physical” gets a slight boost with defensive tackle Matt Herron in practice and gearing up to play after spraining his ankle late in the Arizona loss.

Offensive lineman Vae Soifua, however — injured during warmups at Arizona — is out for several weeks with a lower-leg pull.

Weber State came out of halftime at JMU with much more physicality, competing with the Dukes for two quarters, before getting flattened for nearly all of the game at Arizona. Now, the team that ends each practice with a chant of “Big Sky champs” gets to see if it’s at all up to snuff in its own subdivision.

“All our goals are still intact. We knew going into the season, those are two tough games to start with. I’d like to play better, I’d like to play cleaner, but now we face FCS opponents and we’ve got a big one at McNeese, who obviously came in here and got us last year,” Mental said. “So we’re pretty motivated to go down there and play well, put our best foot forward.”