Arizona @ Oregon State preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 11, 2017 ) Oregon State 28, Arizona 49

Khalil Tate and the Arizona offense will try to stay on a roll heading into their Pac-12 opener Saturday afternoon at Oregon State. After a slow start to his much heralded junior season, Tate threw for a career-high 349 yards and five touchdowns last week in a 62-31 win against visiting Southern Utah, the only team the Wildcats and Beavers have beaten this season.

Tate wasn't 100 percent heading into last weekend after spraining his left ankle the week before in a loss to Houston, but he seemed comfortable in the pocket against Southern Utah, completing 13-of-20 passes. Tate is also a gifted runner, totaling 1,411 yards on the ground last season, but he hasn't flashed that aspect of his game yet this season, accumulating just 41 rushing yards on 19 carries so far. Oregon State is also looking to start conference play on a high note after going winless in the Pac-12 last season. The Beavers have experienced a blowout loss at No. 4 Ohio State in the season opener, a 48-25 win against Southern Utah and a 37-35 loss last week at Nevada, hitting the goal post on a 33-yard field goal try as time expired.

TV: 4 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network. LINE: Arizona -6.5

ABOUT ARIZONA (1-2): The Wildcats haven't opened conference play with a road win since beating Oregon State in 2009, the same year they came within a win of a Rose Bowl berth. Tate was a handful against the Beavers last season, totaling 206 rushing yards and two touchdowns, and so was Arizona running back J.J. Taylor, who added another 129 yards on the ground. Taylor is also back this season and he's getting more touches thus far, but he's also looking for his first 100-yard rushing effort this season, a mark that seems within reach against Oregon State, which has allowed 679 rushing yards through three games this season.

ABOUT OREGON STATE (1-2): The quarterback rotation between Conor Blount and Jake Luton is getting even tighter heading into the weekend. Luton, a 6-foot-7 senior, was the starting quarterback at Oregon State this time last season before sustaining a season-ending knee injury in the fourth game. He played sparingly behind Blount the first two games this season before getting a chance to throw 35 times against Nevada, completing 23 for 284 yards and a touchdown, while Blount was 12-for-20 against the Wolfpack for 175 yards and a touchdown.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Arizona WR Shawn Poindexter is averaging 23.1 yards per catch and Tony Ellison is averaging 20.1, joining Jerry Jeudy and DeVonta Smith of Alabama as the only teammates averaging more than 20 yards per reception.

2. Tate completed four passes for least 50 yards last week, the most by a Pac-12 quarterback since at least 2007.

3. Oregon State is 5-for-5 on fourth-down conversions this season, the most among the 13 teams that haven't been stopped on fourth down.

PREDICTION: Arizona 48, Oregon State 35