PACIFIC 10 FOOTBALL / DAN HAFNER : Arizona Expecting Test From Stanford

It has been said that if you give Bill Walsh two weeks to prepare for a team, he will probably come up with a way to win.

That’s why opposing coaches are not happy about giving Stanford’s Hall of Fame coach an extra week to prepare.

Although it has not been a good season for the young, inexperienced Cardinal (2-3), the team has considerable talent. After drawing a bye last weekend, Stanford gets a chance to knock Arizona out of the unbeaten ranks Saturday at Tucson.

A year ago with a veteran team, the Cardinal couldn’t solve the potent Wildcat defense, failed to score a touchdown and had its five-game winning streak stopped, 21-6.

The Wildcats dominated thoroughly, knocked quarterback Steve Stenstrom out after Stanford had made two first-half field goals and had eight sacks. Stanford had minus 33 yards rushing.

Arizona, 5-0 and leading the Pacific 10 Conference race, also had last weekend off and welcomed the extra time for several reasons.

“It’s always good to get a week off in the middle of the season to rest the bruises and other hurts,” Coach Dick Tomey said. “But more important, it gave us a chance to come down from an emotional high. We played a tremendous game against USC (Oct. 2), by far our best. I think we are back to earth.

“Our guys love to play football and a week off brings back the edge. They are anxious to get back into action. They are looking forward to playing Stanford.”

Arizona is the only Pac-10 team that has never played in the Rose Bowl game. Tomey, though, said that it is too soon to even think about that.

“This is such a tough conference that anyone can beat anyone else,” he said. “We have six games left and every team we play is capable of beating us. There aren’t any easy games.”

The Wildcats were unimpressive in their first three games. Tomey was not satisfied with the attitude of his players or the play of inexperienced sophomore quarterback Dan White. But the Wildcats and White improved in a rout of Oregon State and reached a peak in another one-sided triumph over USC.

“We know that White is still learning and won’t always have games as good as the SC game,” Tomey said. “But it was a big game for his confidence. He had a good game against the Beavers and was outstanding against USC.”

In the USC game, White, ranking ninth in the Pac-10 in passing efficiency, completed 14 of 21 passes for 228 yards and three touchdowns. He scored another.

The Wildcats may have impressed their coach, Oregon State and USC, but not the voters in the Associated Press poll. They are ranked 11th, behind two teams that have already lost.

“We know that Bill Walsh, with two weeks to prepare, will have something new to spring on us,” Tomey said. “We won’t. We’ll be doing the same things we’ve been doing.”

Stanford has played Notre Dame, Washington and Colorado this season, but Walsh rates the Arizona defense easily the best it has faced.

“This is the toughest challenge for our offense,” Walsh said. “We have spent every waking moment the last two weeks trying to devise a way to move the ball. We think we have, but what we don’t know is whether we can stand up physically.

“Make no mistake. Arizona is a great team. The Wildcats would make a fine Rose Bowl representative. For that matter, they might do well in the Super Bowl.”

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The toughest job facing any coach in the conference may belong to Keith Gilbertson of California. He has to get the Bears ready to play against a strong Washington State team at Pullman.

The Bears, up against a team that bounced back for two solid victories after a one-sided defeat by USC, figure to be emotionally drained. Two weeks ago, they fought back from a 30-0 deficit in the first half and beat Oregon, 42-41. Then last week, it was the other way around. Washington scored twice in the last 2:06 to wipe out a 13-point deficit.

“It’s a good time to be playing them here,” Cougar Coach Mike Price said of Cal. “It’s not a perfect situation for them. They had two really emotional games at home and now they have to go on the road.

“I like the way we’ve rallied since the USC game. Last week, Deron Pointer and Mike Pattinson had really big games.”

Pointer, a flanker, caught 10 passes for 255 yards, scoring three times on plays covering 53, 50 and 24 yards. Pointer’s day helped Pattinson become the third Cougar to pass for more than 400 yards--407 on 24 for 39 with no interceptions. Pattinson moves into fast company, joining Drew Bledsoe and Mark Rypien.

The Bears had a scare when Dave Barr suffered a shoulder injury in the third quarter against Washington. The Pac-10 passing leader--he is fifth in the nation--couldn’t throw long. A shoulder separation was feared, but it turned out to be only a bruise and he will play against the Cougars.

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At the start of the season, the Oregon-Arizona State game loomed as one of the important games in the run for the Rose Bowl. With both having lost their first two conference games, though, their meeting Saturday will be a battle for survival.

“Two weeks ago, both the Sun Devils and us were feasting at the Rose Bowl table,” Oregon Coach Rich Brooks said. “Now, we’re reduced to dogs fighting for the scraps.”

Pacific 10 Notes

California cornerback Artis Houston, whose soldier brother, Cornell, was killed last week in Somalia, played with a heavy heart against Washington. He played quite well, however. Artis had seven tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery. . . . Stanford’s Steve Stenstrom, if he can survive his lack of protection, is on a pace to break former Cardinal John Elway’s Pac-10 record of 3,242 yards passing. He’s averaging 307.4. Danny O’Neil of Oregon is averaging 301.8.

Statistics show it is tougher to run in the Pac-10 than in any other conference. Arizona leads the nation in rushing defense, giving up six yards a game, Washington State is second and Washington fourth. Tell that to Oregon State, which is rushing for 313 yards a game and ranks No. 2 in the nation, and UCLA, which has rushed for 846 yards in its last three games.