2002 Arizona Wildcats football team explained

Mode:	football
Year:	2002
Team:	Arizona Wildcats
Conference:	Pacific-10
Short Conf:	Pac-10
Record:	4–8
Conf Record:	1–7
Head Coach:	John Mackovic
Hc Year:	2nd
Off Coach:	Rick Dykes
Oc Year:	2nd
Def Coach:	Larry Mac Duff
Dc Year:	12th
Stadium:	Arizona Stadium

The 2002 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona during the 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season. They were coached by John Mackovic in his second season with the Wildcats. Arizona ended the season with a record of 4–8 (1–7 against Pac-10 opponents) and finished tied for last place in the Pac-10 standings.

After starting the season 3–1, the Wildcats would continue to struggle in conference play, winning only a single game at California. Late in the season, Mackovic would become embroiled in controversy as a result of mistreatment of players.^[1] The team would not recover and ended the year with another losing record.

Before the season

Arizona completed the 2001 season in Mackovic’s first year with the program with a 5–6 record and a victory over rival Arizona State. The team would rebuild during the offseason and hoped to improve on their record for 2002. With receiver Bobby Wade and linebacker Lance Briggs returning for their final season for one last crack at a bowl game appearance, the Wildcats looked to contend for a winning season and fulfill Mackovic’s promise of reaching the Rose Bowl.^[2]

Game summaries

vs Northern Arizona

See also: 2002 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football team.

Statistics	NAU	ARIZ
First downs	9	25
Total yards	202	510
Rushing yards	28–115	41–103
Passing yards	87	407
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	11–25–1	23–41–0
Time of possession	25:53	34:07

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Arizona	Passing	Clint Womack	11/25, 87 yards, INT
Rushing	Brian Bingham	7 carries, 73 yards
Receiving	Raufeem Jackson	1 reception, 32 yards
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	20/36, 381 yards, 3 TD
Rushing	Mike Bell	13 carries, 59 yards
Receiving	Bobby Wade	8 receptions, 133 yards, 2 TD

The Wildcats began the season by hosting in-state foe Northern Arizona from Flagstaff. It was the first meeting between the two since 1945.^[3] The Wildcats would dominate the Lumberjacks from the start for an easy win.^[4]

vs Utah

See also: 2002 Utah Utes football team.

Statistics	UTAH	ARIZ
First downs	11	23
Total yards	204	459
Rushing yards	22–32	44–43
Passing yards	172	416
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	18–38–0	24–35–1
Time of possession	23:28	36:32

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Utah	Passing	Lance Rice	18/38, 172 yards, 2 TD
Rushing	J.R. Peroulis	9 carries, 18 yards
Receiving	Devin Houston	4 receptions, 62 yards
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	24/35, 416 yards, 2 TD, INT
Rushing	Clarence Farmer	33 carries, 79 yards
Receiving	Bobby Wade	40 receptions, 175 yards, TD

In their next game against Utah, Arizona started off hot with a Wade touchdown catch. The Wildcats would add to their lead with a pair of field goals before halftime. In the second half, Arizona increased their lead after a Briggs forced fumble which turned into another field goal.

By the fourth quarter, the Utes would rally to cut the Arizona lead to a single score. In the final minute, they threatened to possibly win it by entering Wildcat territory. They would be denied a touchdown when a Utah receiver stepped out of bounds after a catch, though replays showed that he may have had a foot in bounds, which became controversial among Utah fans. A few plays later, the Wildcats would stop the Utes short of the goal line on fourth down, and Arizona survived move to 2–0 for the second consecutive season under Mackovic.^{[5] [6]} Arizona’s defense shut down Utah’s rushing offense (which was ranked second at the time), limiting them to only 36 yards.

at No. 22 Wisconsin

See also: 2002 Wisconsin Badgers football team.

Statistics	ARIZ	WIS
First downs	13	21
Total yards	292	425
Rushing yards	30–154	47–260
Passing yards	138	165
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	14–32–2	15–22–0
Time of possession	26:06	33:54

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	13/27, 129 yards, INT
Rushing	Clarence Farmer	20 carries, 136 yards, TD
Receiving	Bobby Wade	7 receptions, 85 yards
Wisconsin	Passing	Brooks Bollinger	13/19, 127 yards, TD
Rushing	Anthony Davis	16 carries, 110 yards, 2 TD
Receiving	Jonathan Orr	7 receptions, 90 yards, TD

Arizona traveled to Wisconsin to play the #22 Badgers in the first ever meeting between the two teams. After a scoreless first quarter, Wisconsin broke it open with 24 points, drawing comparisons to Arizona’s embarrassing loss to Penn State in 1999. The Wildcats would play better in the second half, but the big halftime deficit would be too much for them to overcome and lost for the first time in the season.^[7] Arizona’s dominant offense fell silent against the Badgers and Mackovic lost his first non-conference game as Wildcat coach.

vs North Texas

See also: 2002 North Texas Mean Green football team.

Statistics	UNT	ARIZ
First downs	21	20
Total yards	431	310
Rushing yards	60–282	35–121
Passing yards	431	310
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	12–18–1	16–27–0
Time of possession	31:21	28:39

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
North Texas	Passing	Andrew Smith	12/18, 149 yards, INT
Rushing	Kevin Galbreath	22 carries, 104 yards
Receiving	George Marshall	6 receptions, 82 yards
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	16/27, 189 yards
Rushing	Clarence Farmer	15 carries, 70 yards
Receiving	Bobby Wade	4 receptions, 37 yards

vs No. 8 Oregon

See also: 2002 Oregon Ducks football team.

Statistics	ORE	ARIZ
First downs	21	16
Total yards	432	332
Rushing yards	43–188	27–30
Passing yards	244	302
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	18–27–0	23–41–1
Time of possession	30:40	29:20

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Oregon	Passing	Jason Fife	18/26, 244 yards, 2 TD
Rushing	Onterrio Smith	28 carries, 145 yards, 2 TD
Receiving	Keenan Howry	2 receptions, 49 yards, TD
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	23/41, 302 yards, 2 TD, INT
Rushing	Mike Bell	21 carries, 54 yards
Receiving	Bobby Wade	12 receptions, 151 yards, TD

After a close win over North Texas (which featured Arizona’s blocked field goal return for a touchdown before halftime), the Wildcats hosted Oregon yet again. Arizona looked great early, leading 14-7 after the opening quarter. However, the eighth-ranked Ducks would take control of the game and shut out the Wildcats the rest of the way. Despite the loss, Wade had a career-high 12 receptions, including a touchdown.^[8]

at No. 22 Washington

See also: 2002 Washington Huskies football team.

Statistics	ARIZ	WASH
First downs	26	24
Total yards	467	427
Rushing yards	29–24	38–96
Passing yards	443	345
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	29–41–1	25–35–0
Time of possession	26:57	33:02

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	29/41, 443 yards, 3 TD, INT
Rushing	Mike Bell	19 carries, 54 yards
Receiving	Bobby Wade	10 receptions, 155 yards, 2 TD
Washington	Passing	Cody Pickett	25/35, 345 yards, 3 TD
Rushing	Rich Alexis	23 carries, 56 yards, TD
Receiving	Reggie Williams	8 receptions, 184 yards, 3 TD

The Wildcats visited Washington for the third straight season. Arizona would lead in the fourth quarter, only to see the #22 Huskies come back with a long touchdown catch and run past their secondary and gave the Wildcats another stunning loss for the third year in a row.^[9]

at Stanford

See also: 2002 Stanford Cardinal football team.

Statistics	ARIZ	STAN
First downs	14	24
Total yards	266	372
Rushing yards	23–22	49–175
Passing yards	244	197
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	19–31–3	21–37–1
Time of possession	23:18	36:42

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	19/30, 244 yards, 3 INT
Rushing	Beau Carr	9 carries, 44 yards
Receiving	Bobby Wade	8 receptions, 121 yards
Stanford	Passing	Chris Lewis	14/27, 126 yards, TD
Rushing	Kerry Carter	27 carries, 98 yards
Receiving	Alex Smith	8 receptions, 120 yards, TD

vs No. 9 Washington State

See also: 2002 Washington State Cougars football team.

Statistics	WSU	ARIZ
First downs	24	14
Total yards	424	207
Rushing yards	46–149	21– -17
Passing yards	275	224
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	20–35–0	22–46–2
Time of possession	32:53	27:07

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Washington State	Passing	Jason Gesser	20/35, 275 yards, TD
Rushing	Jermaine Green	29 carries, 119 yards, TD
Receiving	Troy Bienemann	3 receptions, 66 yards
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	22/46, 224 yards, TD, 2 INT
Rushing	Mike Bell	7 carries, 25 yards
Receiving	Andrae Thurman	7 receptions, 89 yards

Arizona returned home and played against ninth-ranked Washington State, who ironically, was the team that the Wildcats beat for their last Pac-10 home win in 2000 (when they still had Dick Tomey as coach before hiring Mackovic). The defense, led by Briggs, would keep the Wildcats in it, but the offense sputtered, mostly due to being blitzed by the Cougars. Arizona would make crucial mistakes in the final quarter after having chances to come back, and would lead to another loss.^[10]

at Oregon State

See also: 2002 Oregon State Beavers football team.

Statistics	ARIZ	OSU
First downs	12	20
Total yards	93	457
Rushing yards	25– -23	48–193
Passing yards	116	264
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	15–33–0	14–31–0
Time of possession	28:15	31:45

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	14/28, 105 yards
Rushing	Beau Carr	11 carries, 36 yards
Receiving	Andrae Thurman	5 receptions, 45 yards
Oregon State	Passing	Derek Anderson	12/28, 239 yards, TD
Rushing	Steven Jackson	27 carries, 134 yards, 2 TD
Receiving	James Newson	6 receptions, 121 yards, TD

vs UCLA

See also: 2002 UCLA Bruins football team.

Statistics	UCLA	ARIZ
First downs	21	9
Total yards	443	249
Rushing yards	51–242	28–12
Passing yards	201	237
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	13–20–0	13–27–0
Time of possession	33:34	26:26

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
UCLA	Passing	Drew Olson	7/12, 111 yards, TD
Rushing	Tyler Ebell	22 carries, 124 yards, 2 TD
Receiving	Tab Perry	3 receptions, 89 yards
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	11/23, 133 yards
Rushing	Gainus Scott	8 carries, 32 yards
Receiving	Andrae Thurman	5 receptions, 118 yards, TD

On homecoming day, the Wildcats hosted UCLA. Arizona’s offense continued to struggle, and only scored on a long catch and run for a touchdown that would prevent a shutout. The defense was hurt by penalties and poor tackling, leading to the Bruins scoring over 30 points. The Wildcats would go on to drop their sixth consecutive loss of the year.^[11]

Mackovic controversy

Controversy erupted days after the loss, when Mackovic told one of his players that his poor blocking during the game made him a “disgrace to his family”, which hurt his feelings, as well as his teammates.^[12] Led by Briggs, the players reported the incident to both the Arizona president and athletic director, and discussed about a series of abuses by Mackovic, including one where Mackovic made a meltdown to the team after the loss to Wisconsin earlier in the season.^[13] The news made headlines around the Arizona campus as well as Tucson. In a press conference, Mackovic issued an apology to the program and the community and promised to treat respect to the team. Despite fans calling for his firing for both his behavior and the team’s losses, Mackovic would remain the coach through the end of the season.^[14]

at California

See also: 2002 California Golden Bears football team.

Statistics	ARIZ	CAL
First downs	23	20
Total yards	487	356
Rushing yards	32– -5	27–58
Passing yards	492	298
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	31–45–1	22–45–2
Time of possession	32:39	30:33

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	31/45, 492 yards, 4 TD, INT
Rushing	Gilbert Harris	27 carries, 165 yards
Receiving	Bobby Wade	11 receptions, 222 yards, TD
California	Passing	Kyle Boller	22/45, 298 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing	Joe Igber	19 carries, 90 yards, TD
Receiving	Tom Swoboda	7 receptions, 83 yards, TD

After moving on from the Mackovic fiasco, Arizona visited California, looking to break their losing streak. The Wildcats would dominate on offense, throwing for nearly 500 yards. Wade had over 200 yards receiving and tight end Justin Levasseur, who was the player that Mackovic mistreated which started the controversy, caught a touchdown pass to give Arizona the lead for good. The Wildcats’ defense would play poor, but their offensive performance was just enough for them to get past the Golden Bears to end their slump for their first Pac-10 win in a high-scoring match.^[15] It was the second consecutive year that Mackovic won his first conference game at California.

vs Arizona State

See also: 2002 Arizona State Sun Devils football team.

Statistics	ASU	ARIZ
First downs	27	20
Total yards	461	331
Rushing yards	49–166	25–62
Passing yards	295	269
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	25–35–2	17–31–3
Time of possession	36:00	24:00

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Arizona State	Passing	Andrew Walter	25/35, 295 yards, 2 INT
Rushing	Mike Williams	40 carries, 162 yards, 4 TD
Receiving	Mike Pinkard	6 receptions, 80 yards
Arizona	Passing	Jason Johnson	17/31, 269 yards, TD, 3 INT
Rushing	Mike Bell	12 carries, 70 yards
Receiving	Bobby Wade	6 receptions, 109 yards

Mackovic looked to earn his second straight “Duel in the Desert” win as the Wildcats went back to Tucson to face Arizona State in the rivalry game. Arizona donned blue pants for the game, which was the first time that they wore them at home in their history (they had worn white pants for all home games before then).^[16]

In a game that was filled with turnovers and penalties, the Wildcats led 13-10 at the half, but would make the more crucial mistakes that would cost them, as ASU would capitalize in the second half and would outscore Arizona to end the Wildcats’ season with a 4-8 record.^[17] Both Wade and Briggs finished their Wildcat careers with a 1–3 record against the Sun Devils and no bowl appearances. Several mistakes thwarted scoring chances for Arizona and near the end of the game, the Wildcats’ student section chanted for Mackovic to be fired and the Wildcats’ futile season was finally over.^[18]

Awards and honors

• Bobby Wade, WR, First-team All-Pac-10
• Lance Briggs, LB, First-team All-Pac-10
• Ray Wells, LB, First-team All-Pac-10
• Makoa Freitas, OL, Second-team All-Pac-10

Season notes

• Arizona played twelve games in a season for the first time since 1999.
• Arizona opened the year against Northern Arizona and the two would play often frequently since then (NAU would play ASU a few times). The Wildcats would dominate NAU in most of their future matchups until NAU would finally win in 2021.
• The Wildcats would not beat Utah again until 2012, when Utah and Arizona became conference foes.
• This was the first and only time that Arizona and North Texas would meet (the Wildcats defeated the Mean Green in a game that featured Arizona scoring on a blocked kick, which remains the most recent time that they would return a blocked field goal for a score).
• This was the third consecutive year that Arizona had a near-miss of defeating Washington after the Huskies scoring late to win.
• The Wildcats did not score a touchdown in their losses to Stanford and Oregon State (both on the road). The former would be Stanford’s only conference win of the season and the latter being an identical final score from the previous season (38-3).
• The game against California (which aired on FSN) was not broadcast live in the Tucson market, supposedly due to the controversy involving Mackovic. Arizona fans would eventually view the game, as FSN aired it on a tape delay later that day as well as the following day.^[19]
• The win over Cal would be the only good thing for the team following the Mackovic controversy, as Arizona officials believed that the Wildcats would not win a big game as long as Mackovic was coach due to his troubles.
• In the loss to Arizona State, fans who were furious over Mackovic and the inability to win big games, chanted “Fire Mackovic” and “We have basketball” as time expired at the end of the game, referring the fact that they were relived that the season was over and wanted the Wildcats to get a new coach to bring honesty, and looked to basketball as that program was continuing to be dominant.^[20]
• With Arizona continuously losing in Pac-10 play and the fallout of Mackovic late in the season, it broke the promise of him leading the team to the Rose Bowl as coach when he was hired before the 2001 season.^[21]
• As Wade would graduate after the season, this was officially the last year of Arizona’s “Desert Storm” era (a phrase that referenced the Wildcats’ dominant offense that began in their big 1998 season and was a pun on their dominant “Desert Swarm” defense under Tomey in the early 1990s).^[22]
• Wade made Arizona history this season, as he caught 93 passes, which broke the Arizona record for most receptions for a receiver in a single season. Wade passed Dennis Northcutt’s record of 88 from 1999 and the 93 receptions in 2002 is still an Arizona record to this day. Also, Wade is second to Northcutt in terms of single-season receiving yards with 1,389 this season (Northcutt had 1,422 in 1999) and holds the record for career receiving yards with 3,351, surpassing Northcutt’s record of 3,252. Wade is behind Northcutt with 23 touchdowns (Northcutt had 24) and held the Arizona record of career receptions with 230 until Mike Thomas broke it in 2008 with 259.^[23]
• Arizona’s 1–7 conference record would end up being one of the worst records in their history. They would also tie that record in the following year.^[24]

After the season

As Arizona finished with yet another losing season, Mackovic was retained for the 2003 season, despite fans calling for him to be fired. However, Mac Duff was fired as defensive coordinator due to the team’s poor defensive performance, which ended his Arizona career for good.^[25] The Wildcats struggled on defense in Mac Duff’s second stint with the program, as opposed to his first when they were dominant under him and Tomey.^[26]

Many players considered leaving the team or transferring to other schools during the offseason as a result of Mackovic’s behavior.^[27] It would affect recruiting and fan interest, leading to a worst 2003 season, where Mackovic would finally be fired as coach.^[28]

Notes and References

1. News: Mackovic under fire for mistreatment of players. Arizona Daily Star. November 12, 2002.
2. News: Cats hope to have football success this fall. Arizona Daily Star. July 20, 2002.
3. News: UA football to play NAU to start ‘02 season. Tucson Citizen. August 28, 2002.
4. News: Cats pass first test, dominate NAU in season opener. Arizona Daily Star. September 1, 2002.
5. News: Wildcats edge Utes, survive late Utah threat. Tucson Citizen. September 15, 2002.
6. News: Utah falls short to Arizona after late controversial finish. The Salt Lake Tribune. September 15, 2002.
7. News: Badgers maul Wildcats, 31-10. Arizona Daily Wildcat. September 23, 2002.
8. News: Ducks thump Cats; Oregon’s big 2nd half dooms UA. Arizona Daily Star. October 6, 2002.
9. News: Huskies do it again: Late 4th quarter rally tops Arizona. The Seattle Times. October 13, 2002.
10. News: Cats miss opportunities, come up short against No. 9 Cougars. Arizona Daily Star. October 27, 2002.
11. News: Bruins pound Wildcats; UA loses 6th in a row. Tucson Citizen. November 10, 2002.
12. News: Players hurt by Mackovic’s remarks. Arizona Daily Star. November 12, 2002.
13. News: UA football players meet with president about coach’s behavior. The Arizona Republic. November 13, 2002.
14. News: Mackovic apologizes for misbehavior at team. Arizona Daily Star. November 14, 2002.
15. News: Cats roar to life; Offense comes up big to snap losing skid. Arizona Daily Star. November 17, 2002.
16. News: Wildcats to go all-blue for game against ASU. Arizona Daily Wildcat. November 27, 2002.
17. News: Sun Devils trample rival Wildcats. The Arizona Republic. November 30, 2002.
18. News: Wildcats’ 2002 football season was full of futility and controversy. Arizona Daily Star. December 1, 2002.
19. News: UA-Cal game to air on tape delay, won’t be aired live in Tucson in wake of Mackovic scandal. Arizona Daily Wildcat. November 15, 2002.
20. News: UA fans move on from football, focus on basketball. Arizona Daily Wildcat. December 2, 2002.
21. News: Arizona will never be Rose Bowl contenders under Mackovic. Tucson Citizen. December 3, 2002.
22. News: Wildcat football’s big offensive era now history. Arizona Daily Star. December 5, 2002.
23. News: Wade ends Arizona career as wide receiver with two broken records. Arizona Daily Star. December 5, 2002.
24. News: Arizona football was terrible in Pac-10 play in ‘02. Arizona Daily Wildcat. December 6, 2002.
25. News: Mac Duff dismissed as UA defensive coordinator. Tucson Citizen. December 9, 2002.
26. News: Cats fire Mac Duff; Defense was unable to be ‘Swarm’-like in second stint. Arizona Daily Star. December 9, 2002.
27. News: Wildcat football will be different in ‘03. Arizona Daily Star. February 18, 2003.
28. News: Fired: Mackovic dismissed as Arizona football coach. Tucson Citizen. September 29, 2003.