Tucson, AZ (Sports Network) - The 21st-ranked Arizona Wildcats will cap off their three-game homestand this weekend, as they entertain the Washington State Cougars in Pac-10 play in Tucson.

The Wildcats are coming off their second bye of the season, as they begin a stretch run that will feature games against the likes of California, Oregon and USC. In its last game, Arizona overcame some sloppy play to capture a 27-13 victory UCLA on October 24th. Following the win and bye week, the Wildcats moved to No.21 in the rankings, as people are starting to take a look at this club.

"I think we're earning more and more respect," said head coach Mike Stoops.

It marks the program's first showing in the national polls in nine years, as Arizona quietly moved into sole possession of second place in the Pac-10 at 3-1. Strong play at home has been a key to the team's success, with Arizona sporting a perfect 4-0 mark in Tucson.

As for the Cougars, they have had next to no success this season and are coming off a 40-14 setback against nationally-ranked Notre Dame this past weekend.

It marked the fifth straight loss since WSU picked up its lone win over SMU (30-27, OT) all the way back on September 19th. The Cougars have really struggled away from home as well, losing their last 10 true road games.

In respect to the head-to-head series, Arizona holds a 23-13 advantage over WSU and that includes a 59-28 victory last season in Pullman.

The Cougars, once gain, did little on offense, as Notre Dame limited them to just 206 total yards in a lopsided loss. WSU also committed two turnovers and allowed five sacks, as they continue to struggle in both departments.

"I thought it was a game we could come in and do some things offensively and take a little pressure off our defense," said head coach Paul Wulff. "We had a good week of practice and we didn't execute really good today and I think up front that we didn't block particularly well."

The Cougars lead the nation in sacks allowed, with 40, and that is a big reason for their 22 turnovers. Another reason for the mishaps is WSU is using a true freshman quarterback in Jeff Tuel, who threw for 104 yards, with two touchdowns against two picks against Notre Dame. Tuel will surely take his lumps this season, but he has shown potential by hitting on 59.5 percent of his pass attempts, with six scores and five interceptions.

Tuel doesn't have a the luxury of counting on a ground attack to help him out either, as the Cougars are managing just 76.2 rushing ypg behind a dismal 2.4 yard per carry average.

If possible, WSU is actually worse on defense than offense, as the Cougars are giving up a whopping 511.1 total ypg this season. The defense has been torched on the ground (220.4 ypg) and through the air (290.8 ypg) and has allowed 22 of its 38 scores via the run.

Last weekend, WSU's defense spent over 40 minutes of the field, an incredible amount, and surrendered 592 total yards and five touchdowns. The unit was gashed for 255 yards on the ground, helping Notre Dame rack up 31 first downs.

"We were getting man-handled out there," said defensive end Casey Hamlett. "I don't know how it looked from where you were sitting, but it was a lot of missed opportunities...missed tackles. There was a lot we have to fix."

Xavier Hicks paced the defense with 13 stops in the setback and he leads the Cougars with 57 stops on the year.

Thanks to the emergence of quarterback Nick Foles, Arizona has become more effective of a passing team than it was before he took over the starting role. The sophomore has actually become one of the better quarterbacks in the Pac-10 and he has completed an efficient 72.3 percent of his tosses for 1,399 yards, with 11 touchdowns and five backs. Arizona is now averaging 257.3 ypg through the air thanks to he steady arm of Foles.

Foles, however, had mixed results in the team's last game, as he threw for 247 yards and two scores, but with three picks. He also lost a pair of fumbles, once of which was returned for a touchdown by UCLA, so it was obviously not his best effort.

"Tonight was another very good win," said coach Stoops. "All the turnovers we had tonight were troublesome, but I'm glad that we were able to pull through this so convincingly."

With 209 yards on the ground, Arizona was able to overcome the mishaps against UCLA and Keola Antolin led the way with 77 yards on 16 carries. Antolin (255 yards) is the healthiest of the team's three backs and will likely get the start with Greg Nwoko (190 yards) and Nic Grigsby (535 yards) both being listed as doubtful with shoulder injuries.

Arizona's defense put forth a terrific effort against UCLA, holding the Bruins' offense without a touchdown and limiting them to only 211 total yards. The defense, which is giving up just 314.9 total ypg on the year, surrendered only 65 yards on the ground and kept UCLA to a mere 10 first downs.

One of the biggest positives of last game was the team's ability to force a pair of turnovers, as the Wildcats haven't had great success in this department. The defense has recorded just 12 takeaways on the season and obviously could use a few more big plays from the unit.

Trevin Wade has helped in the turnover department with a team-high four picks to his credit, while Ricky Elmore has stepped up to provide a pass rush, racking up a club-best 5.5 sacks.