For the second week in a row, Washington State's offense struggled to generate points leading to another loss. Arizona held the Cougars to 234 total yards while quarterback Cameron Ward was kept without a touchdown pass in the 44-6 defeat.

The Cougars (4-2, 1-2 Pac-12) took an early lead on a 1-yard rush from running back Nakia Watson, but that would be all the scoring for Washington State as Arizona went on to score 44 unanswered points at Martin Stadium.

The Wildcats dominated time of possession, 38:39 to 21:21, thanks to their ground game as the Cougars has issues slowing down Arizona's rushing attack that ultimately finished with 174 yards and five touchdowns.

As was the case a week ago when WSU faced UCLA, Ward never quite looked comfortable in the pocket throughout the game. He had numerous miscues throughout the contest preventing him from getting into any kind of rhythm.

Despite the struggles on offense, Wazzu remained within one score entering the second quarter. That quickly faded on a big run for the Wildcats as Rayshon Luke broke off a 40-yard touchdown to put Arizona (4-3, 2-2) up by double digits.

The visiting team would never relinquish that double-digit lead as it eventually gained 516 yards of offense.

In all, the Cougars finished the game with three turnovers and just 35 yards on the ground.

Washington State will now hit the road to close out October with games against No. 8 Oregon and Arizona State in the coming weeks.

First quarter

10:01, WSU – RB Nakia Watson 1-yard run (2-point conversion - NO GOOD); 6-0 WSU

8:29, Arizona – RB Jonah Coleman 1-yard run (PAT GOOD, Tyler Loop); 7-6 Arizona

5:18, Arizona – K Tyler Loop 37-yard field goal; 10-6 Arizona

Second quarter

14:53, Arizona – RB Rayshon Luke 40-yard run (PAT GOOD, Tyler Loop); 17-6 Arizona

8:07, Arizona – K Tyler Loop 40-yard field goal; 20-6 Arizona

Third quarter

10:49, Arizona – K Tyler Loop 21-yard field goal; 23-6 Arizona

2:57, Arizona – RB Jonah Coleman 1-yard run (PAT GOOD, Tyler Loop); 30-6 Arizona

Fourth quarter

12:37, Arizona — RB D.J. Williams 15-yard run (PAT GOOD, Tyler Loop); 37-6 Arizona

6:52, Arizona – RB Jonah Coleman 23-yard run (PAT GOOK, Tyler Loop); 44-6 Arizona

With the Wildcats up just 4 points, they turned to their second-year running back to break open the game. Washington State sold out on the run by stacking the box daring Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita, who made just his third career start Saturday, to pass the ball. Instead, the WSU defense over pursued on the play allowing Luke to have a wide open path to the end zone with just one safety back to stop him.

That touchdown put the Wildcats in front by 11 points, and it was enough of a hurdle that the Cougars never threatened to make the game any closer. The 40-yard touchdown run by Luke was part of a barrage on the ground for the Wildcats.

In a game when the offense generates just 6 points and gains only 234 total yards, it can be difficult to pick a standout performer. Still, Watson did what he could to keep the Cougars afloat Saturday. His short 1-yard rushing touchdown came on the first drive of the game and looked like it might set the tone for the day.

Washington State has become accustomed to hanging a ton of points on the Wildcats, but in the end that one rushing score would be the extent of the Cougars' scoring on the day.

As much as his running ability can impact games, it was Watson's pass catching that stood out Saturday. He ended up with a team-high 88 yards receiving on 5 catches in the loss to Arizona. Watson had an impressive 75 yards after the catch.

The entire WSU defense struggled to slow down Arizona's offense, especially the ground game, but veteran leader Brennan Jackson was not part of the problem. He shined in his role up front to finish with 8 tackles, 2 solo, go to along with a sack, 2 tackles for loss and a quarterback hurry.

There were a handful of plays from Watson to pick from, but his 1-yard dive into the end zone is the pick. The Washington State running back stumbled a bit out of his break but ultimately found enough room to reach the end zone on the play that capped a 75-yard drive to open the game that took 11 plays and nearly 5 minutes.

For the second week in a row, Washington State's standout quarterback proved to the at the center of the issues Saturday against Arizona. Ward has not looked like himself over the last two weeks with both games resulting in losses. After not throwing an interception in the previous four games, he now has given the ball away three times through the air over the last two weeks.

He was also sacked two times in the game as the offense overall continues to have issues finding any type of rhythm. The defense allowing 174 yards on the ground certainly didn't help matters, but WSU has enough fire power to make up for the points being allowed on the other side of the ball.

That didn't happen Saturday, and now the Cougars will have to regroup before facing Oregon next week.

Passing

Cameron Ward – 22/30, 192 yards, 1 interception

John Mateer – 1/3, 7 yards, 1 interception

Rushing

Dylan Paine – 3 rushes, 23 yards

Jaylen Jenkins – 4 rushes, 8 yards

Cameron Ward – 8 rushes, 4 yards

Nakia Watson – 5 rushes, 0 yards, 1 touchdown

Receiving

Nakia Watson – 5 catches, 88 yards

Kyle Williams – 9 catches, 61 yards

Lincoln Victor – 4 catches, 19 yards

Josh Kelly – 1 catch, 9 yards

Defense

Kyle Thornton – 9 tackles (3 solo)

Brennan Jackson – 8 tackles (2 solo), 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 QB hurry

Devin Richardson – 7 tackles (5 solo)

Sam Lockett III – 6 tackles (3 solo)

Kapena Gushiken – 6 tackles (4 solo)