David Sanders / Arizona Daily Star 2006

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Mike Stoops arrived at this season's fall camp sporting a new pair of horn-rimmed glasses and an eye for detail.

He almost immediately began talking about perception.

The way Stoops sees it, his team should be praised for winning three of its final four games last season on the way to a 6-6 finish. The Wildcats should receive credit for staying competitive despite finishing 115th nationally in total offense.

Stoops thinks he should at least be acknowledged for making off-season changes aimed at fixing the team's offensive woes.

"Perception is something that has hurt our program," Stoops said. "The way people perceived what happened at the end of last season hurt us.

"We go 7-5 last year, and it's (seen as) one of the great turnarounds. You're a king."

Like it or not, perception has become Stoops' new reality.

Sure, his 2006 team won three of its final four games, but it also stumbled in the regular-season finale against Arizona State. The UA posted its best record since the 2000 season but failed to make a bowl game for the eighth straight year.

Depending on whom you believe, the UA football team is either on the rise — or struggling in its nearly decade-long fight with mediocrity.

On that topic, Stoops' glasses are decidedly rose-colored.

The coach believes the 2007 Wildcats have enough talent and depth to compete for their first bowl bid since 1998. Stoops' expectations are higher than ever, even if others are only cautiously optimistic. Arizona was picked to finish seventh by Pac-10 media.

In a span of eight months, Arizona has become Air Zona.

UA fans are hopeful that new offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes can get the UA back to respectability with his spread passing offense.

The 2006 Wildcats averaged just over 252 yards per game, a figure that was the fourth-worst in America.

The UA's new offense, a blend of Dykes' old Air Raid offense at Texas Tech and the more traditional offense used at BYU, will use passing to set up a nontraditional running game that could use shovel-passes and screens to move the ball upfield.

The Air Zona offense is built on mismatches — the Wildcats will spread out as many as five wide receivers on each play.

"The key, for now, is getting everybody comfortable in the offense," Dykes said.

"When guys know what they're doing, it enables them to play faster. The quarterbacks in this offense need to make quick decisions, the receivers need to run good routes, and the backs need to make good blocks and make smart choices."

Arizona will look to junior wideout Mike Thomas, the Pac-10's co-freshman of the year two years ago, to lead the receiving corps. Senior Anthony Johnson (26 catches, 312 yards, three TDs in 2006) will move to the newly created small tight end position.

Regardless of what offense they are running, the Wildcats are still very much built in their head coach's image.

The Wildcats' 2007 defense is expected to be as hard-nosed and deep as any in the Stoops era. Arizona's defensive unit is built from the backfield forward. Antoine Cason, the Wildcats' "boundary" cornerback, has been named a preseason All-American and a candidate for the Lott and Bednarik awards.

The Wildcats' linebackers return intact from the 2006 season. Senior Spencer Larsen anchors a group that includes senior Dane Krogstad and junior Ronnie Palmer. The trio combined for 236 tackles, four interceptions and five forced fumbles last season.

"Spencer brings an intensity to the team," Cason said. "He is a great leader. I feel Spencer Larsen is one of the most underrated linebackers in the league."

On the defensive line, senior defensive end Louis Holmes returns for his senior season after leading the Wildcats with three sacks. Lionel Dotson, Yaniv Barnett and Johnathan Turner are all expected to start in the 4-3 system.

Arizona's defensive needs are slim, one reason Stoops has set the bar high.

"Our attitude," he said, "matches our experience."