1992 Arizona Wildcats football team

American college football season August 2023 February 2026 1992 Arizona Wildcats football Arizona Wildcats logo.svg 125 Pacific-10 Conference Pac-10 6–5–1 4–3–1 Dick Tomey 6th Duane Akina 1st Multiple Larry Mac Duff 6th Double Eagle Flex Arizona Stadium John Hancock Bowl L 15–20 vs. Baylor The 1992 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona in the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) during the 1992 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their sixth season under head coach Dick Tomey, the Wildcats compiled a 6–5–1 record (4–3–1 against Pac-10 opponents), finished in fifth place in the Pac-10, lost to Baylor in the 1992 John Hancock Bowl, and outscored their opponents, 232 to 118. The defense allowed an average of 9.8 points per game, second best in Division I-A. The team played its home games in Arizona Stadium in Tucson, Arizona. The team's statistical leaders included George Malauulu with 1,210 passing yards, Ontiwaun Carter with 739 rushing yards, and Troy Dickey with 395 receiving yards.1992 Arizona Wildcats Stats Sports Reference LLC SR/College Football September 3, 2016 https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/arizona/1992.html Linebacker Sean Harris led the team with 71 tackles.2016 Media Guide, p. 86. Although despite having an average record, Arizona’s season featured a major upset win over top-ranked Washington in early November with a dominant defense, and was known as the program’s biggest victory and the defense’s performance began an era known to fans as the “Desert Swarm”.Win over Washington was best moment of Wildcats' 1992 season; Team's defense had total domination Arizona Daily Wildcat January 13, 1993 Schedule 1992 AP Mountain September 5 7:00 p.m. w y Utah State Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ KTTU 49–3 37,239 https://www.newspapers.com/article/arizona-daily-star-wildcats-roar-past-ut/201998387/ Arizona Daily Star Wildcats roar past Utah State in opener September 6, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com September 12 7:00 p.m. l Washington State Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ Prime 20–23 39,112 https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-spokesman-review-arizona-pays-a-big/201996767/ The Spokesman-Review Arizona pays a big Price September 13, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com September 19 7:00 p.m. t y Oregon State Parker Stadium Corvallis, OR 14–14 25,187 https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-sunday-oregonian-beavers-gamble-com/201998295/ The Sunday Oregonian Beavers' gamble comes up with tie September 20, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com September 26 9:30 a.m. l y y Miami (FL) 1 Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL PPV 7–8 47,049 https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-state-miami-survives-scare-from-ariz/201891451/ The State Miami survives scare from Arizona September 27, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com October 3 7:00 p.m. w UCLA 11 Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ Prime 23–3 50,708 https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-fresno-bee-arizona-upsets-ucla-in-pa/201998142/ The Fresno Bee Arizona upsets UCLA in Pac-10 opener, 23–3 October 4, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com October 17 12:30 p.m. w y Stanford 8 Stanford Stadium Palo Alto, CA ABC 21–6 47,217 https://www.newspapers.com/article/sarasota-herald-tribune-arizona-stuns-st/201995560/ Sarasota Herald-Tribune Arizona stuns Stanford October 18, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com October 24 1:00 p.m. w y 21 California California Memorial Stadium Berkeley, CA Prime 24–17 46,000 https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-francisco-examiner-cal-gives-the/201998029/ The San Francisco Examiner Cal gives the game away to Arizona October 25, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com October 31 7:00 p.m. w y 17 New Mexico State Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ KTTU 30–0 38,463 https://www.newspapers.com/article/arizona-daily-star-cats-plow-through-out/201997901/ Arizona Daily Star Cats plow through outmanned Aggies November 1, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com November 7 1:30 p.m. w y 12 Washington 1 Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ ABC 16–3 58,510 https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-spokesman-review-huskies-buckle-unde/201993799/ The Spokesman-Review Huskies buckle under Desert Swarm November 8, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com November 14 2:30 p.m. l y 9 USC 18 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA Prime 7–14 53,849 https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-florida-times-union-trojans-defeat-w/201997515/ The Florida Times-Union Trojans defeat Wildcats November 15, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com November 21 7:30 p.m. l 16 Arizona State Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ rivalry Prime 6–7 58,095 https://www.newspapers.com/article/arizona-daily-sun-sun-devils-upset-cats/201997738/ Arizona Daily Sun Sun Devils upset Cats November 22, 1992 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com December 31 12:30 p.m. l y y 22 Baylor Sun Bowl El Paso, TX John Hancock Bowl CBS 15–20 41,622 https://www.newspapers.com/article/el-paso-herald-post-upset-in-hancock-bow/201903584/ El Paso Herald-Post Upset in Hancock Bowl January 1, 1993 July 19, 2026 Newspapers.com 1992 Arizona Wildcats Schedule and Results Sports Reference LLC SR/College Football September 3, 2016 https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/arizona/1992-schedule.htmlArizona Football 2016 Media Guide University of Arizona September 3, 2016 108 2016 http://sidearm.sites.s3.amazonaws.com/arizona.sidearmsports.com/documents/2016/8/24/2016_Arizona_FB_Media_Guide.pdf September 21, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160921192006/http://sidearm.sites.s3.amazonaws.com/arizona.sidearmsports.com/documents/2016/8/24/2016_Arizona_FB_Media_Guide.pdf dead Game summaries Oregon State Arizona went to Oregon State to face the Beavers. The defenses of both teams would slow down each other’s offenses on its way to a tie, which evened up the Wildcats’ record at 1–1–1.Cats, Beavers play to 14–14 tie Arizona Daily Star September 20, 1992 Miami (FL) The Wildcats went east to south Florida to take on top-ranked Miami. Arizona’s offense played poorly and their defense shut down the Hurricanes’ powerful offense to stay in the game. In the final minute of the fourth quarter, the Wildcats had a chance to potentially win with a field goal, but narrowly missed and Miami escaped a major upset bid by the Wildcats.UA inches away from huge upset Arizona Daily Star September 27, 1992 UCLA After losing a heartbreaker at Miami, Arizona returned home to host 11th-ranked UCLA. The Wildcats’ defense slowed the Bruins and the offense improved enough to get the win.Wildcats shut down Bruins with defense Tucson Citizen October 4, 1992 Stanford The Wildcats went back on the road and visited Stanford, who was ranked eighth. Again, Arizona’s defense took care of business by shutting down Stanford for another win.Wildcats' defense does it again, shuts down No. 8 Stanford Arizona Daily Wildcat October 19, 1992 New Mexico State Arizona faced New Mexico State for a Halloween matchup.Wildcats host New Mexico State on Halloween for tricks and treats Arizona Daily Wildcat October 29, 1992 This was the first game between the two teams since 1954. The Wildcats would show the Aggies why their defense was one of the best in the nation by holding them scoreless in a shutout victory.Cats plow through outmanned Aggies; Arizona was a terror on Halloween night Arizona Daily Star November 1, 1992New Mexico St. gets shut out in Arizona's haunted house Albuquerque Journal November 1, 1992 Washington On homecoming day, Arizona took on Washington. It was the second top-ranked opponent that the Wildcats faced in the season. Arizona counted on their dominant defense and slowed down the Huskies’ high-powered offense all game long. Late in the fourth quarter, Arizona scored the game’s only touchdown to break it open and pulled off the huge upset which stunned the college football world.Desert Swarm engulfs Washington Arizona Daily Star November 8, 1992Wildcats shut down top-ranked Washington for massive upset The Arizona Republic November 8, 1992 Wildcat fans rushed the field as time expired and tore down the goal posts and set off wild celebrations across Tucson that lasted into the evening.Go Crazy, Tucson: Wildcats shock Washington for huge upset Tucson Citizen November 8, 1992 It was also Arizona’s fifth consecutive win and ended the Huskies’ hopes for a second consecutive national championship. Washington, however, went on to share the Pac-10 title with Stanford and went to the Rose Bowl due to their head-to-head win over the Cardinal. It was the Wildcats’ first win over a top-ranked team since 1981, when they stunned USC on the road. The win also erased memories of Arizona’s loss to Miami earlier in the season.Wildcats pull off unthinkable, upset No. 1 Huskies Arizona Daily Wildcat November 9, 1992Upset of Washington eases pain of Cats' loss to Miami Arizona Daily Star November 9, 1992 Days after the game, Arizona moved up the rankings into the top ten.Wildcats jump to top ten after big upset Arizona Daily Wildcat November 10, 1992 USC Fresh off after their big upset over Washington, the Wildcats hoped to continue building their momentum and traveled to USC at the Coliseum and was ranked in the top ten (USC was 18th). Arizona’s defense was again solid, holding the Trojans in check for most of the game. However, the Wildcat offense continued to be mediocre, which led to a low-scoring matchup and would keep USC within distance with the Wildcats ahead 7–6. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Trojans drove into Arizona territory and scored a touchdown and a two-point conversion to take a 14–7 lead. The Wildcats tried to respond, but came up empty and USC held on for the victory and snapped Arizona’s winning streak at five.No. 18 Trojans overcome Arizona's defense, comes through late for huge win Los Angeles Times November 15, 1992 Arizona State In the regular season finale, Arizona hosted Arizona State in the rivalry game. For most of the game, ASU had no answer against the Wildcats’ menacing defense. Arizona mustered only a pair of field goals and was pitching a shutout in the first three quarters and was seemingly in position to earn the rivalry’s first shutout since 1974. However, early in the fourth quarter. Arizona State ran a running play and ran past the Wildcats’ defense for a long touchdown for a 7–6 lead. Arizona threatened late, but missed a field goal that would have regained the lead, and Arizona State held on to upset the Wildcats.ASU gets big TD run, hold off UA The Arizona Republic November 22, 1992Sun Devils swat down the Swarm Arizona Daily Star November 22, 1992 It was the Wildcats’ first home loss to ASU since 1980 and ASU fans referred to the winning touchdown as “The Run”.'The Run' leads Devils to big upset of UA The State Press November 23, 1992 Despite the loss, the Wildcats were still assured of a bowl appearance with a 6–4–1 record. Baylor (John Hancock Bowl) 1992 John Hancock Bowl 1992 Baylor Bears football team Arizona was invited to play in the John Hancock Bowl against Baylor in El Paso. The Wildcats held a 13–7 lead at halftime, led by their great defense, which they been all season. In the second half, the Bears took advantage and took the lead. Arizona’s offense would then do nothing and only scored a safety, but were still in the game. Baylor would stop Arizona on their final drive to win it and the Wildcats ended the season with three straight losses.Cats fall to Baylor in John Hancock Bowl Tucson Citizen January 1, 1993 Awards and honors Dick Tomey, Pac-10 coach of the year Rob Waldrop, DT, Pac-10 Morris Trophy winner (defense), First-team All-Pac-10, Consensus and AP All-American Sean Harris, LB, First-team All-Pac-10 Season notes The dominance by Arizona’s defense throughout the season was known nicknamed the “Desert Swarm”. The Arizona Daily Star, the primary Tucson newspaper, began using the nickname when posting articles on the team’s performance, with the name coming from the fact that Arizona is located in a desert climate and the Wildcats’ defense shutting down opponents’ offenses by “swarming” them around by blitzing them in a dominant fashion.A 'Desert Swarm'? Wildcats' defense has been dominant so far this season Arizona Daily Star October 18, 1992 Arizona finished the season ranked first in scoring defense and second behind Alabama in both total and rushing defense and held opponents to almost negative rushing yards. Tomey entered the season on the hot seat, meaning that he could get fired if Arizona didn’t win more games. However, the season was turned around by the Desert Swarm and Tomey was named the Pac-10 coach of the year for the team’s efforts.Tomey named Pac-10 coach of the year Arizona Daily Star December 3, 1992 The tie at Oregon State was the final tie ever for Arizona, as they have any more of them before the ties were eliminated for overtime periods that began in 1996. It was also Tomey’s fourth tie as Wildcat coach, as his first three occurred in his first season in 1987. The Wildcats debuted blue pants for road games this season that began with the Oregon State game. The team used the uniforms as a road opposite of their home uniforms (blue jerseys and white pants).Arizona football to debut blue pants for road games this season Tucson Citizen July 3, 1992 Arizona wore the blue pants in four of the five road games, and only wore white pants against California due to the Golden Bears wearing blue uniforms at home. The blue pants would often be worn frequently during road games for the remainder of the Desert Swarm era. The games against Oregon State and Miami were some of the few Arizona road games in the 1990s that were not nationally televised. The former was only aired locally in Oregon and the latter was broadcast regionally in Florida. Wildcat fans had to watch the Miami by ordering it on pay-per-view due to Miami being top-ranked.UA-Miami game to be available via pay-per-view for Arizona viewers Arizona Daily Star September 25, 1992 Arizona’s season featured a tough schedule, but the “Desert Swarm” defense kept them in games and the Wildcats upset ranked teams as a result. The Wildcats shut out New Mexico State for the second consecutive time, with the previous meeting in 1954 also being an Arizona shutout victory. The win over Washington remains the Wildcats’ most recent victory over a top-ranked team. Many Arizona officials believed that it would be too difficult to accomplish the feat because of the ranking and making it unlikely that the Wildcats would ever defeat another top-ranked opponent again in the near future.Don't except Wildcat football to beat another No. 1 team like Washington anytime soon due to difficulty Arizona Daily Wildcat November 10, 1992 Fans have often rated the win as the biggest in Arizona football history, surpassing the Wildcats’ 1981 victory over USC (which was Arizona’s other win over a number one-ranked team).1992 upset over Washington rated the greatest win in Wildcat football history Arizona Daily Star August 13, 2017 This would be the last time that Tomey defeated Washington at home, although he beat the Huskies one final time in 1998. The Wildcats would not beat Washington in Tucson again until 2003. In addition to defeating Washington, had Arizona won at Miami earlier in the year, they would have accomplished a rare feat by beating two top-ranked teams in the same season. The loss to USC was the last time that Tomey faced predecessor Larry Smith. When the Wildcats played the Trojans in 1987, the game was known as the “Smith Bowl”, due to Smith coaching at both schools.Arizona, USC playing in 'Smith Bowl' since 1987; Ex-UA coach has upper hand against Tomey Arizona Daily Star November 12, 1992 Smith defeated Tomey in four of the six meetings against each other and was fired at the end of the season due to a late collapse, ending the “Smith Bowl” between the two teams.USC dismisses ex-UA coach Smith after six seasons Arizona Daily Star December 31, 1992 The game against Arizona State is the last time in the rivalry that both teams scored fewer than ten points. This was the last season where Arizona Stadium’s scoreboard had the older “A” on top of it. A new scoreboard was built prior to the start of the next season. The John Hancock Bowl (now Sun Bowl) was the first and only meeting between Arizona and Baylor. It was also the last time to date that the Wildcats played a football game on CBS, unless they play in a future Sun Bowl. Fans have often blamed the Wildcats’ three-game losing streak at the end of the season on poor offensive playing and not scoring enough points. They also believed that the team had a “hangover effect” as a result of their upset victory over Washington, which may have led to them losing both their rivalry game and bowl. Had they defeated both USC and Arizona State, the Wildcats would have likely gotten invited to the Rose Bowl.How did Wildcat football lose at the end of the '92 season? Arizona Daily Wildcat January 12, 1993 After the season Arizona and the “Desert Swarm” would begin a run of dominance and set the stage for a 1993 season that saw them win ten games.Wildcats 'Desert Swarm' will be dominant in 1993 season Tucson Citizen April 25, 1993 It also would lead to the Wildcats being Rose Bowl contenders for the early-to-mid part of the decade.Can Arizona football contend for a Rose Bowl? Arizona Daily Wildcat August 25, 1993 References Arizona Category:Arizona Wildcats football seasons Arizona Wildcats football