Arizona’s cornerback depth is thin after losing Tony Wallace

The Wildcats are reportedly adding UNLV transfer Tim Hough, though

The Arizona Wildcats 2018 roster has been released and sophomore cornerback Tony Wallace was not listed and has left the program. It has been rumored that academics are the cause.

Wallace, a former three-star recruit, was forced to sit out his sophomore and junior year of high school because of grades, dipping below the 2.0 GPA minimum requirement. This in turn hurt his offer list, as grades are a major part of recruiting, and it gave him little film to show coaches.

Former safeties coach Jahmile Addae recruited Wallace out of Desert Pines High School in Las Vegas, as well his Freshman All-American linebacker Tony Fields II and redshirt freshman offensive tackle Edgar Burrola. Together, the three led the Desert Pines Jaguars to their first state championship in school history.

Wallace was eventually offered by Arizona, and committed soon after. Not too long after his commitment, Oregon, Nebraska and USC entered his recruitment, but the UA staff was able to hold him in until National Signing Day.

The 6-foot, 180-pound corner had the speed, athleticism and strength to be a shutdown corner for Arizona. He played sparingly last season but was likely to compete for a co-starter role, pushing Lorenzo Burns and Jace Whittaker, two of the best corners in the Pac-12.

This is a big loss for Arizona, coming just a week after losing three-star signee Jhevon Hill, who seemed to have academic issues himself, and is now attending Arizona Western.

Arizona is very thin on corners now, with just Malik Hausman, Sammy Morrison, McKenzie Barnes and Antonio Parks joining Burns and Whittaker.

Hausman suffered a torn ACL prior to his senior year of high school. Parks suffered the same pains as Hausman. Morrison has been riddled with injuries after a promising start to his career. Barnes, a 6-foot-1 true freshmanm has a chance to compete immediately.

Malcolm Holland, a walk-on, played quite a bit under Donte’ Williams, and will be in the rotation as well.

However, Arizona might be getting some help in 2018, as UNLV graduate transfer Tom Hough is reportedly transferring to Arizona, not Oregon.

Some short-term CB help appears to be on the way for Arizona. Hearing UNLV grad transfer Tim Hough will play for the Wildcats, not Oregon, as reported in spring. Not listed on the roster yet. Would give UA some veteran insurance at CB position.

— Michael Lev (@MichaelJLev) July 31, 2018

Hough was a two-star recruit coming out of Desert Pines High School, oddly enough. He was ranked outside the top 3000 as a wide receiver and signed with UNLV, his only reported offer.

He played in 29 games in three seasons at UNLV, posting four interceptions as a true freshman. He started three games last season and recorded 19 tackles and three pass breaks. He’ll serve as much needed depth for Arizona as a one-year rental.

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