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1974 Arizona Wildcats football
1974 Arizona Wildcats football
Conference	Western Athletic Conference
Record	9–2 (6–1 WAC)
Head coach	Jim Young (2nd season);
Home stadium	Arizona Stadium
	Seasons ← 1973 1975 →

1974 Western Athletic Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
BYU $	6	–	0	–	1	7	–	4	–	1
Arizona	6	–	1	–	0	9	–	2	–	0
Arizona State	4	–	3	–	0	7	–	5	–	0
New Mexico	3	–	4	–	0	4	–	6	–	1
UTEP	3	–	4	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Colorado State	2	–	3	–	1	4	–	6	–	1
Utah	1	–	5	–	0	1	–	10	–	0
Wyoming	1	–	6	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion

The 1974 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) during the 1974 NCAA Division I football season. In their second season under head coach Jim Young, the Wildcats compiled a 9–2 record (6–1 against WAC opponents), finished in second place in the WAC, and outscored their opponents, 263 to 174.^[1]^[2] The team played its home games in Arizona Stadium in Tucson, Arizona.

Despite a 9–2 record, the Wildcats were not invited to a bowl game due to not winning the WAC (BYU defeated Arizona in their head-to-head matchup to win the WAC) and at the time, under WAC rules, only the conference winner would earn a bowl bid, in which case, the Fiesta Bowl.

The team's statistical leaders included Bruce Hill with 1,814 passing yards, Jim Upchurch with 1,004 rushing yards, and Theopolis Bell with 700 receiving yards.^[3] Linebacker Mark Jacobs led the team with a school record 200 total tackles.^[4]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 14	San Diego State*	No. 17	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	W 17–10	38,914	^[5]
September 21	at Indiana*	No. 17	Memorial Stadium Bloomington, IN	W 35–20	35,683	^[6]
September 28	at New Mexico	No. 15	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM (rivalry)	W 15–10	24,404	^[7]
October 5	UTEP	No. 12	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	W 42–13	38,051	^[8]
October 12	at Utah	No. 12	Robert Rice Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	W 41–8	24,082	^[9]
October 19	at No. 17 Texas Tech*	No. 9	Jones Stadium Lubbock, TX	L 8–17	40,231	^[10]
October 26	BYU	No. 16	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	L 13–37	34,116	^[11]
November 9	Colorado State		Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	W 34–21	33,116	^[12]
November 16	at Air Force*		Falcon Stadium Colorado Springs, CO	W 27–24	34,802	^[13]
November 23	Wyoming		Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	W 21–14	34,467	^[14]
November 30	Arizona State		Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ (rivalry)	W 10–0	40,872	^[15]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Game summaries

Texas Tech

In a matchup of two top-20 teams, Arizona fell on the wrong end of it against Texas Tech, and lost in a low-scoring game for their first defeat of the season and ended their chances for an undefeated record.^[16]

BYU

After losing on the road at Texas Tech, the Wildcats returned home and faced BYU in a big test in the WAC. The Cougars would outplay the Wildcats to give Arizona their second straight loss and take control of the WAC.^[17] The loss ultimately prevented Arizona from winning the WAC, as BYU went on to clinch both the conference title and Fiesta Bowl berth.

Arizona State

In the regular season finale, Arizona battled Arizona State in the annual rivalry matchup. The Wildcats were looking to break a nine-game losing streak against the Sun Devils, with their last win occurring in 1964. Both teams held each other scoreless through the first three quarters before Arizona broke through in the fourth for a 10–0 shutout victory, and finally ended their decade-long streak of misery to ASU.^[18]^[19]^[20] To date, this remains the most recent shutout in the rivalry series and the only home win over the Sun Devils in the 1970s for the Wildcats. Also, it turned out to be Young's first and only win against ASU as Arizona's coach, as he would lose to them for the rest of his tenure. The victory led to the Wildcats winning nine games in a season for the first time in school history.^[21]

Roster

1974 Arizona Wildcats football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`23`	Keith Hartwig	So
WR	`86`	Scott Piper	Jr
OT	`76`	Brian Murray	Jr
OT	`70`	Allyn Haynes	Sr
G	`66`	Jay Bledsoe	Sr
OC	`53`	Bob Windisch	Jr
G	`71`	Greg Hodgeson	So
G	`68`	Paul Schmidt	Jr
FL	`18`	T Bell	Jr
QB	`1`	Bruce Hill	Jr
RB	`2`	Willie Hamilton	Sr
RB	`3`	Jim Upchurch	Sr
RB	`6`	Tex Randolph	Jr
TE	`85`	Tom Camptell	Sr
TE	`88`	Dan Howard	Jr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DT	`77`	Mike Dawson	Jr
NG	`56`	Glenn Gresham	Sr
DT	`78`	Grant Swanson	Jr
LB	`41`	Mark Jacobs	So
LB	`46`	Obra Erby	So
NG	`93`	Jon Abbott	Fr
DE	`87`	Rex Naumetz	Sr
DE	`83`	Willis Barrett	So
CB	`17`	Vince Phason	Sr
CB	`28`	Rousell Williams	Sr
FS	`10`	Mike Battles	Sr
FS	`40`	Dennis Anderson	Jr
SS	`34`	Joe Colace	So
SS	`31`	Greg Preston	So

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DE	`32`	Mitch Hoopes	Sr

Head coach

Jim Young

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

References

^ "1974 Arizona Wildcats Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
^ "Arizona Football 2016 Media Guide" (PDF). University of Arizona. 2016. p. 107. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
^ "1974 Arizona Wildcats Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
^ 2016 Media Guide, p. 86.
^ "Aztecs fall to Arizona". Daily Times-Advocate. September 15, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Arizona guns down spunky I.U., 35–20". The Indianapolis Star. September 22, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "No. 18 Arizona edges New Mexico". The Wichita Beacon. September 29, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UTEP coach now believes in Wildcats". Tucson Daily Citizen. October 7, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "5–0 Arizona rips Utah, 41–8". The Sunday Oregonian. October 13, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Texas Tech jars Arizona by 17–8". The Victoria Advocate. October 20, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Sheide shreds Wildcats 37–13". The Daily Sentinel. October 27, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Cats thump Rams, 34–21". Casper Star-Tribune. November 10, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Air Force loses to Arizona, 27–24". San Antonio Express-News. November 17, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Pokes drop 21–14 decision". The Billings Gazette. November 24, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Jacobs leads 'Cats victory over ASU". The El Paso Times. December 1, 1974. Retrieved October 9, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Arizona suffers first loss of season at Texas Tech". Arizona Daily Star. October 20, 1974.
^ "BYU takes care of Arizona, moves into first place in the WAC". The Salt Lake Tribune. October 27, 1974.
^ "10 years of frustration ends for Cats". Arizona Daily Star. December 1, 1974.
^ "Nine years...Cats get a kick out of ASU win". Tucson Daily Citizen. December 2, 1974.
^ "Wildcats shut out ASU in defensive battle to finally end rivalry losing streak". Arizona Daily Wildcat. December 2, 1974.
^ "Is UA football on the rise under Young?". The Arizona Republic. December 4, 1974.