Notes and takeaways from the Arizona Wildcats鈥 media availability after practice Wednesday as the team continued bye-week workouts:
* UA coach Rich Rodriguez said he's 鈥渘ot too optimistic鈥 about sophomore safety Isaiah Hayes being able to play this season. Hayes, who became a starter as a freshman last year, has been out since August because of a shoulder injury. 鈥淚鈥檓 not sure how long it鈥檒l be,鈥 Rodriguez said, 鈥渂ut right now it doesn鈥檛 look like he鈥檒l be playing anytime soon.鈥
*聽With Hayes out, freshman Scottie Young Jr. has performed well at free safety, drawing praise from coaches and teammates since the start of training camp. "He鈥檚 jumped into the starting role like he鈥檚 been here for years,鈥 Rodriguez said.
*聽Although he has gotten off to good start, Young made sure to offer this reminder: "It's still a learning process every week, every day."
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*聽I asked Rodriguez if sophomore QB Khalil Tate鈥檚 playing style makes him difficult to evaluate in practice. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think his style of play has anything to do with it,鈥 Rodriguez said. 鈥淓ither you run the offense or you don鈥檛.鈥
*聽Rodriguez added this about the now-healthy Tate: "He鈥檚 got to keep getting reps. He鈥檚 still learning. He鈥檚 such a young guy - 18 years old. But he鈥檒l be OK."
*聽Freshman defensive tackle Kurtis Brown said senior Parker Zellers has helped him immensely while being out because of an ankle injury. Brown hasn鈥檛 started but basically has taken Zellers鈥 spot in the rotation. Zellers probably will return for the Colorado game next week.
*聽Defensive coordinator Marcel Yates moved from the booth to the field in Week 2. It seems to be working for the Wildcats. I鈥檒l have more on why he did it and why it鈥檚 working later today.
*聽Why has the UA defense been better in general? Yates said the players understand his system and game plans better and that the coaching staff is doing a good job of communicating plans and expectations to the players.
*聽Is it too early to say the Arizona defense has turned a corner? "I think we have to some degree,鈥 Rodriguez said, 鈥渂ut not to the point where I think we could be at."
*聽Despite big improvement this year, Rodriguez and Yates agreed that the defense can get even better on third down, especially third-and-long situations (see Utah game).
*聽Plans for Arizona鈥檚 new indoor football/multisport facility , which meets . Rodriguez is among many who are "hopeful" the plans will be approved and the project will move forward
*聽Rodriguez said the new facility would help in recruiting. It would send a message about Arizona's commitment to football, as the Lowell-Stevens Football Facility did when Rodriguez was just getting started.
*聽Rodriguez said he has gotten "great support" from the administration, including new UA president Robert C. Robbins, whom Rodriguez said could even be an asset in recruiting.
