TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Anu Solomon threw four touchdown passes to help No. 22 Arizona beat UTSA, 42-32, on Thursday night, but the Wildcats suffered a big blow when All-America linebacker Scooby Wright went out early with a left knee injury.
Arizona struggled defensively, was uneven on offense and had trouble putting away the Roadrunners at home.
Those areas can be fixed, but losing Wright could hurt a lot worse.
Wright, who swept the major defensive player of the year awards last season, went out in the first quarter, tried to return and went back out after one play, but he spent the second half in street clothes, walking with a cane.
Even with Wright out, Arizona's defense struggled.
The Wildcats scored two defensive touchdowns, but gave up 525 total yards to UTSA, which returned just two offensive starters.
The offense was good at times, sputtered others, finished with a pedestrian-for-them 392 total yards. Solomon had 229 yards on 22-of-26 passing and Nick Wilson ran for 97 yards on 22 carries.
"We thought we could have done better in all three aspects of the game, but everyone is happy and it's on to the next one," Solomon said.
Led by Blake Bogenschutz, UTSA picked apart Arizona's defense throughout the night.
A redshirt freshman, Bogenschutz shook off throwing an interception for a touchdown on his first pass to throw for 332 yards and two touchdowns on 25-of-43 passing.
The Roadrunners missed some chances, though, and their two turnovers were immediately turned into points, leading to a third consecutive loss to Arizona.
"We can learn a lot from this game," UTSA defensive end Jason Neill said. "We missed a lot of opportunities, but we can fix those and get better."
The Roadrunners have given Arizona a bit of trouble over the past couple of seasons, including last year's 26-23 setback at the Alamodome.
This year, the Wildcats have most of their skill players back on offense and UTSA returned six starters overall, the fewest in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
No surprise then that the Roadrunners got off to a shaky start.
Bogenschutz had his first pass intercepted by Anthony Lopez and returned for 23 yards for a touchdown.
UTSA's Brett Winnegan then took the ensuing kickoff 102 yards for a touchdown, but that was called back for a block below the waist.
The Roadrunners also had a 17-play drive lead to no points when Daniel Portillo missed a 33-yard field goal and were behind 14-0 after Solomon hit David Richards on a 6-yard touchdown pass.
Yet they kept churning out yards, particularly after Wright went out.
He went down in the first quarter, tried to return the next series, but lasted one play before heading to the bench to wrap ice around his knee.
Bogenschutz set up Portillo for a 19-yard field goal, then threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to David Morgan II.
Even after Solomon ducked and dodged his way through UTSA's defense to set up a 21-yard touchdown pass to Johnny Jackson, the Roadrunners still fought back.
Portillo hit a 33-yard field goal and Bogenschutz followed with a 2-yard touchdown run just before halftime, pulling UTSA to within one at 21-20. UTSA had a 328-202 advantage in total yards in the first half.
"I think the speed was maybe something we hadn't seen, but I had to find a way to bounce back," Bogenschutz said of his first-series interception.
The Wildcats got off to a quick start after intermission, going up 35-20 after Solomon hit Nate Phillips on a 4-yard touchdown pass and Jamar Allah scooped up Aaron Grubb's fumble for a 22-yard touchdown return later in the quarter.
Bogenschutz hit Aron Taylor on a 32-yard touchdown pass, but Solomon found Cayleb Jones for a 4-yard score to push the lead to 42-26.
Jalen Rhodes 16-yard run midway through the final quarter closed out the scoring.
UTSA will open its home slate next Saturday, Sept. 12, when it hosts Kansas State at the Alamodome. Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m.