It’s been a hot minute, but I did — way back when — ask you to vote on the best plays in Arizona Wildcats football history. And you did.
This effort was all sparked because we had a new entry. Gunner Maldonado’s 87-yard fumble return that ignited the Wildcats’ 38-24 victory over Oklahoma in the 2023 Alamo Bowl instantly slotted into the top plays ever in Wildcats football.
But where exactly?
And now we know.
I gave y’all to rank in order what I considered the 12 “top/best/most memorable/put them on a video loop” plays in Wildcats history. The first two choices were clear and obvious, and you understood the assignment. Bravo. I don’t necessarily agree with the order of everything that follows, but, hey, that’s why I asked and why we love to debate it.
Anyway, because of their magnificence, importance, uniqueness and good ol’ fun factor, here are your Top 10 plays in Wildcats history:
(Hat tip to Jay Gonzales, a former Arizona Daily Star writer and current co-host of Eye on the Ball on 1450-AM, who many years ago spliced together an Arizona top plays videos on YouTube. Several clips below are time-stamped to begin at that particular play.)
No. 1 — 1986: Chuck Cecil’s 106-yard interception return vs. ASU
Cecil’s INT was the exclamation point against the undefeated and Rose Bowl-bound Sun Devils, and it came in front of a national CBS telecast in the highest-profile Arizona-ASU game to date.
The Wildcats went on to finish 9-3 and rank 11th in the final AP poll.
Final score: Arizona 34, Arizona State 17
No. 2 — 1998: Ortege Jenkins’ Leap by the Lake
Arizona was at the Washington 9-yard line and had called its final timeout. There were 12 seconds left, the Wildcats down four points. Coach Dick Tomey’s message to his quarterback was clear.
“Don’t get sacked,” he told Ortege Jenkins that night in Seattle. “If you run, you better make it.”
He did, in a way no one thought possible. (I’ve written lots about this.)
Final score: Arizona 31, Washington 28
No. 3 — 1982: Max Zendejas’ game-winning FG at Notre Dame
The beginning of a series of legendary Zendejas’ kicks, part of coach Larry Smith’s “Giant Killers” legacy at Arizona, and can you ever really get tired of seeing the Notre Dame players sprawled on the field as the ball goes through the uprights.
Read more about this win over No. 9 Notre Dame and all the game-winning field goals in Wildcats history.
Final score: Arizona 16, Notre Dame 13
No. 4 — 2023: Gunner Maldonado’s 87-yard fumble return in the Alamo Bowl
Oklahoma was ready to deliver a potential knockout punch, leading 24-13 in the final seconds of the third quarter and looking for more. Then, safety Dalton Johnson popped the ball free from receiver Jalil Farooq, and there was Maldonado, snatching it out of the air and picking up key blocks (we see you, Treydan Stukes!) as he raced for a game-turning touchdown that ignited 12 minutes of glory.
Final score: Arizona 38, Oklahoma 24
No. 5 — 1982: Tom Tunnicliffe 92-yard TD pass to Brian Holland vs. ASU
The TD pass came on third-and-8 against a blitz, with Holland streaking out of the backfield in man coverage against linebacker Mark Hicks. Tunnicliffe lofted the pass over Hicks, hitting Holland in stride with a nothing but green grass in front of him. The Wildcats led 7-0, went on to knock No. 6 Arizona State out of the Rose Bowl and started The Streak – the nine-year unbeaten run against the Sun Devils.
Final score: Arizona 28, Arizona State 18
No. 6 — 1986: James DeBow’s goal line tackle vs. ASU’s Channing Williams
This is the play in which ASU got “De-Bowed.”
Arizona was protecting a 21-10 lead, and then ASU took an 18-yard field goal off the board to accept a penalty and keep the drive alive. But the Wildcats defense stiffened again, and then on fourth-and-inches, DeBow met Williams one-on-one, legs churning, mano-a-mano … and the smaller sophomore, a converted running back, stood up Williams before his teammates came to pile on.
Final score: Arizona 34, Arizona State 17
No. 7 — 1990: Darryll Lewis turns away Oregon’s Bill Musgrave at the goal line
Oregon had the game’s final snap, fourth-and-goal from the 1. Musgrave rolled right after a play-action fake, looking for tight end Pete Thomason, shadowed by Lewis in the corner of the end zone. Does Musgrave have a passing window? Or does he dart for the pylon?
Lewis makes a critical decision. He abandons coverage and churns toward Musgrave, who has now tucked the ball under his right arm. They meet inside the 1, bodies twisting … and Lewis redirects Musgrave out of the bounds. Game over.
“It’s absolutely the last play of the game, it’s absolutely do or die … I mean, what a play,” Arizona coach Dick Tomey once told me.
Final score: Arizona 22, Oregon 17
No. 8 — 1993: Chuck Levy’s 68-yard TD run against Miami
If there is one play that symbolizes the Wildcats’ dominance in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Day 1994, it’s this one, as Levy breaks a tackle at the line of scrimmage and runs away from the Hurricanes’ defense, followed by a lengendary duck-walk celebration.
Final score: Arizona 29, Miami 0
No. 9 — 2014: The Hill Mary
We all remember the final play: Anu Solomon rolling right, heaving a “Hail Mary” pass to the back right corner of the end zone … and the ball magically settling into the arms of Austin Hill amid four defenders. That is wild enough on its own, but everything leading up to was pure chaos, too, as the quickly-dubbed “Hill Mary” capped a 36-point fourth quarter for the Wildcats.
Final score: Arizona 49, Cal 45
No. 10 — 1990: Darryll Lewis’ game-winning INT return vs. UCLA
The game was tied at 21 with 1:05 left and UCLA driving at the Arizona 37. That’s when Tommy Maddox tested D-Lew one too many times. Lewis jumped on Maddox’s pass to the sideline and raced 70 yards for the game-winning TD, one of his many highlights in his Jim Thorpe Award-winning season.
Final score: Arizona 28, UCLA 21
Two great Wildcats plays that just missed the cut
No. 11 — 2013: Shaq Richardson/Scooby Wright INT vs. Oregon
The Ducks were ranked No. 5 in the nation, with eyes on the Pac-12 championship game, and beyond, when they ran into a feisty Arizona team on Nov. 23.
The Wildcats set the tone on the first play of the game when Marcus Mariota, who had thrown 343 consecutive passes without being intercepted, had a ball pop off the hands of Bralon Addison. As the ball headed over the sideline, Shaq Richardson made the absurdly athletic and heads-up play to scoop the ball inbounds to Scooby Wright for the INT.
Arizona rolled from there.
Final score: Arizona 42, Oregon 16
No. 12 — 2006: Antoine Cason’s 39-yard INT return vs. Cal
Cal came into Arizona Stadium ranked No. 8 in the country on Nov. 11, and the teams had battled to a 17-17 tie early in the fourth quarter. Cason then made the highlight play of his Thorpe Award-winning season, jumping an out route and picking off a pass from Nate Longshore. Cason raced untouched into the end zone, providing the winning points.
Final score: Arizona 24, Cal 20
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Top photo: Arizona Wildcats safety Gunner Maldonado carries the ball on a 87-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown against the Oklahoma Sooners in the Alamo Bowl (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
