Other articles by Ryan Finley:

Cats clearly know what's at stake as clock ticks down Victory by Ducks ruffles bowl slots Results elsewhere will help clarify Arizona Wildcats' bowl destination Players ditch pigskin to cozy up alongside turkey, cheesecake Mom says OK, giving linebacker from Texas blessing to attend UA Being a good sport, UA's Bondzio plays the game, eats it up Arizona Wildcats Football: Texas linebacker verbally commits to UA Cats would land raise if Pac-10 earns 2 BCS bids OSU's 20-minute drill a painful end for CatsCats bit at the end

Construction
Komatsu Equipment Co
Mechanic General
CORT
Warehouse Supervisor Education
Assessment Technology, Inc
Social Studies Content Writer Health Care
Rio Salado College
PA's/Online Instructors General
CORT
WAREHOUSE/DRIVER

The UA football team will head to Los Angeles this weekend to take on 10th-ranked USC.

But the way UA coach Mike Stoops sees it, the Wildcats have six more USC-caliber games left on their schedule.

Stoops believes his team should treat its remaining opponents as if they are ranked in the Top 25. In order to salvage a season fast slipping away, the Wildcats must — to quote USC's fight song — "Fight On."

"We're just not good enough to make mistakes and not play with great effort, regardless of who we play," Stoops said. "We would like to think we're somebody, but we've got to go out and earn it."

Clearly, the UA must play near-perfect football if it hopes to rally in the second half of the season. Arizona (2-4 overall, 1-2 Pac-10) has watched as its once-hopeful season has been marred by mental lapses and on-field inconsistency.

Arizona has been outscored 73-33 in the first quarter this season. The Wildcats have outscored opponents in every other period.

"If we could play three quarters, we'd be undefeated," Stoops said. "It's easy to play when you're down 28-3, but you've got to compete from the get-go.

"You're somewhat fragile and, when things don't go well early, we're not where we can overcome them yet."

Stoops said endurance, and not an overhaul, will get the Wildcats back in the win column. Stoops is not planning any major personnel changes, although he conceded that Nate Ness and Brandon Tatum will challenge Michael Klyce for the starting free safety spot.

The key, he said, is to find the right mix and stick with it.

"We'll stay with what we're doing," he said. "It's consistency — it's like there's no in-between with us. We're either good, or we're not that good. We're closing the gaps, but it takes time."

Lost in Arizona's defensive struggles has been the play of defensive end Jason Parker. The senior leads Arizona's defense with 4 1/2 tackles for loss and is first among Arizona's defensive ends with 25 tackles. His three sacks are second on the team.

The senior has improbably squeezed Louis Holmes out of playing time.

"I've got to keep doing what I'm doing on the field," Parker said. "I'm really happy. I'm really comfortable with where I'm at."

Parker came to Tucson with former Wildcat Marcus Smith, his cousin and teammate at San Diego's Mission Bay High School. Parker has worked his way up from the scout team to a starting role. He had an interception in last weekend's loss to Oregon State.

"Jason's done a great job developing as a player in this league," Stoops said. "I'm really proud of what he's done since he got here."

Gerell Robinson has become a hot property, a day after going back on his verbal commitment to the UA.

"He's a national, top-50 type recruit that can be an impact player at quarterback, safety, wide receiver, wherever," said Jeremy Crabtree, a national football analyst for the Rivals.com recruiting service. "Losing him has to sting."

Robinson, a 6-foot-4-inch, 210-pound senior from Chandler Hamilton High School, announced late Sunday that he was reopening his recruitment to include other schools. He will take official visits to Georgia Tech and Oregon in the coming weeks.

Crabtree said he does not believe Arizona is completely out of the picture. Tim Kish, the UA's linebackers coach and top recruiter, has been in contact with Robinson since the beginning of his recruitment. Robinson said Sunday that he plans on visiting Tucson in the next few weeks.

"You don't want to lose your top recruit in-state or have a decommitment with the team struggling on the field," Crabtree said. "But he still has Arizona high on his list. It's disappointing, but is it over for them? Not by any stretch."

● Holmes and wide receiver Terrell Turner both practiced Monday and are expected to be healthy when the Wildcats arrive at the Los Angeles Coliseum this weekend.

Holmes played just a few dozen snaps last weekend because of a nagging ankle injury.

Turner missed the game altogether because of a hamstring injury suffered in practice last week. Stoops said Turner was close to playing at Oregon State, "but the weather was cold, and we didn't want to do that."

● Southern California coach Pete Carroll said Monday he is still undecided on who will start at quarterback this weekend. Starter John David Booty broke a finger in the Trojans' loss to Stanford over the weekend. Backup Mark Sanchez would take over if Booty is unavailable to play.

"We won't know until we get through the week," Carroll said.