Arizona @ Toledo preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 6, 2008 ) Toledo 16, Arizona 41

Before Mike Stoops guided Arizona to consecutive 8-5 seasons, the Wildcats struggled to show consistency.

One week Arizona would lose to New Mexico at home, the next it would knock off a ranked team – a feat the Wildcats accomplished four times in Stoops’ first four years.

Those included wins over No. 7 UCLA in 2005 and No. 2 Oregon in 2007, which kept the fan base from giving up on the younger brother of Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops.

But overall the early returns were 17 wins in 46 games. Upsets only buy so much time. Then things started to improve.

In 2008 Arizona managed its first overall and winning conference record for the first time since 1998, then took it up a notch last season by tying for second in the Pac-10.

All of which means there are good vibes coming out of Tuscon as the Wildcats head to the Glass Bowl to open the season.

Quarterback Nick Foles, running back Nic Grigsby, defensive end Ricky Elmore and cornerback Trevin Wade (5 INTs last year) form the foundation of this darkhorse team in the wide-open Pac-10. Arizona finished just outside the preseason top 25 in the coaches’ poll, despite the lingering memory of the embarrassing 33-0 loss to Nebraska in the 2009 Holiday Bowl.

The Rockets, meanwhile, are coming off an up and down 5-7 season in head coach Tim Beckman’s debut.

Toledo did enough offensively, averaging nearly 30 points. The Rockets should be potent again behind sophomore quarterback Austin Dantin, a first-time starter blessed with a veteran line and a ton of weapons.

Wideout Eric Page hauled in 82 catches last year, and junior running back Morgan Williams is poised for a breakout. He ran for a school-record 330 yards as a freshman against Miami (Ohio) in a fill-in role, and has moved up to No. 1 with the departure of Dejuane Collins.

But the defense remains a huge question mark after allowing 37 points and 407 yards per game last season.

Arizona leads the alltime series 2-0, having walloped the Rockets 41-16 two years ago. The Wildcats should stay perfect in the series, but this time the homestanding Rockets have the talent to keep it respectable.