The Arizona Wildcats were of the worst teams to bet on in college football last season. Will Brent Brennan’s second year in Tucson produce better results?
Arizona opens the 2025 season as a sizable favorite in its Week 1 matchup against Hawaii. The Wildcats are 17.5-point favorites against the Rainbow Warriors, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. Arizona opened as 13.5-point favorites last night, and the line has jumped significantly since.
Arizona is facing a Hawaii team that defeated Stanford 23-20 in Week 0. Hawaii was a 2.5-point favorite vs. the Cardinal, and just barely covered the spread thanks to a walkoff field goal.
Hawaii starting quarterback Micah Alejado injured his left foot in the second half, but remained in the game with a noticeable limp. Alejado’s injury could be one reason bettors are all over Arizona.
The Wildcats will also have an entire week to game plan for Hawaii based off the Rainbow Warriors’ Week 0 tape, while the same can’t be said for Hawaii.
History is on Arizona’s side in home games where the Wildcats favored by at least two touchdowns.
Arizona is 9-1 in such matchups since 2017, with the lone loss coming to NAU in the 2022 season opener. Arizona is 5-4-1 against the spread (ATS) in those games. Additionally, Arizona is 6-0 overall and 4-1 ATS in home games played in the month of August, dating back to 2022.
With that said, betting on Brennan’s Arizona program is a risky proposition. In year one under Brennan, Arizona went 2-10 ATS, which was the worst record in all of FBS. It can only go up from there, right?
