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TUCSON, Ariz. — Jedd Fisch had the toughest sales job in college football, trying to convince recruits and assistant coaches to join what was at the time one of the nation’s worst programs.
Arizona went from a one-win first season under Fisch to five last year. The upward trend has continued this year. The Wildcats are already bowl eligible for the first time in six years and were No. 23 in this week's AP Top 25, their first ranking since hitting No. 23 in 2017. Fisch's hiring in 2020 raised a few eyebrows, even in Tucson. A longtime assistant coach, his only head coaching experience was a two-game stint as UCLA's interim coach after Jim Mora Jr. was fired in 2017.
That first recruiting class became the foundation for the Wildcats' rebuild, providing talent and depth that had been missing the previous few seasons. Jacob Cowing has become one of the Pac-12's best receivers after transferring from UTEP. Coleman has been Arizona's go-to running back as Wiley has struggled with an ankle injury.
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