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The ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™ staff packed their bags, rolled up their sleeves and went to work on the recruiting trail. They hit a total of 28 games across Airzona, California, Colorado, Texas and Hawaii.

Coach Jedd Fisch attended four on his own. He and quarterbacks coach Jimmie Dougherty took in Friday’s Chandler Basha-Chandler Hamilton game with hopes of seeing a number of UA targets, including four-star Basha quarterback Demond Williams, three-star Hamilton safety and 2023 commit Genesis Smith and wide receiver Tre Spivey.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ has 18 commits for its upcoming recruiting cycle, and 13 of them are defensive recruits. The list includes five defensive linemen and seven defensive backs. A year after bolstering the offensive side of the ball with a historic recruiting class, the ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™ efforts are “a little bit different,â€� Fisch said.

Not only has ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ struggled on defense, ranking 11th in the Pac-12 in total defense, but the ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ could lose nearly half of their defensive starters heading into next season.

“The reception has been great, but I think the messaging, the way it looks for us, is pretty simple: last year, we were trying to figure out exactly what we were going to be. This year, we’re pretty confident that we’re going to become a really good offensive football team,� Fisch said. “If you’re out there as a recruit on offense, you want to be a part of a team that’s explosive, that scores a lot and throws the ball a lot with a sophomore quarterback, unlike the programs we’re facing that have senior quarterbacks.

“If you’re a defensive player, you have an opportunity to come in here and start right away. We have a lot of veterans on the defensive side, so you have the same opportunity to make the same impact as our offensive guys made this past offseason.�

Fisch wants his program to take a another step forward, and said the 2023 class is “going to be a huge part� of it.

“The young freshmen we have are going to get better, as we see every week,� Fisch said. “And then the guys coming in to join that group — we’re probably bringing in 16 or 17 guys mid-year in January again. If we can do that, which we will be able to do that, there will be a lot of new (players) — again — but that’s OK.�

Greg Biggins, a national recruiting analyst for , joined Spears and Ali on ESPN Tucson to provide his insight on UA football recruiting during the bye week. Here’s part of the conversation:

As a Southern California resident, you’ve watched most of ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™s impactful freshmen for several years. What do you make of how the ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™ freshmen are performing?

A: “From what I’ve seen so far, the guys who we’d hope would step up — (Tetairoa McMillan) T-Mac, (Jonah) Savaiinaea. I’m still kicking myself for not ranking Savaiinaea higher. The running backs look pretty good. I think it’s a great building block. … The 2023 class looks strong as well, but the 2022 class has been a nice foundation and building block and put together back-to-back great classes.�

What jumps out to you when you analyze ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥â€™s 2023 recruiting class?

A: “I would say balance. It’s always smart to have a quarterback every single year, and (four-star quarterback) Brayden Dorman has had an excellent season so far. You don’t want to have a class of 10 guys and eight of them are receivers. You want to have your quarterback, running back, three or four O-linemen every year, three or four D-linemen every year, a couple linebackers and versatile defensive backs that could sway between cornerback and safety.

“You see that in this class. You see a blend of offense and defense. … I’ve had a chance to see (cornerback) Carter Stoutmire from Texas, I like him a lot. I’ve had a chance to see (two-way player) Gavin Hunter from Mililani, (Hawaii) and I like him a lot. (Mililani High School) has played a couple mainland teams over here, and he stood out in both games. Big, physical, long, rangy kid who plays with an attitude. He plays with an edge. … It’s balanced and there’s guys who can come in and make a difference. It’s a solid, all-around class on both sides of the ball.�

Even if ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ has a losing season, how important is it for the program to show significant progress to stack more impressive recruiting classes?

A: “You want to be entertaining, even if you lose, especially if you’re recruiting Southern California. … You want to get those wins obviously, you can only sell hope for one year, and then you want to see some improvement and say, ‘If I go there, will we be competitive in my second or third year?’ I think they are showing that and they’re playing a very entertaining brand of football. They put up a lot of points and they have elite wide receivers. … If you put out that entertaining brand, I think they’re going to be successful recruiting, because it’s a style kids want to play in.�

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ is likely to lose three offensive linemen after this season in left tackle Jordan Morgan, guard Josh Donovan and right tackle Paiton Fears. The ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ have two offensive line commits for 2023, Los Angeles-area tackles Rhino Tapaatoutai and Elijha Payne. Can ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ manage having two freshmen tackles?

A: “I honestly can’t tell if either of them are like Jonah Savaiinaea, where you look at them and say he’s a starter from Day 1. … (Payne) is an interesting kid, because he has a tackle frame and tackle body — and Rhino as well. Rhino, I think, is further along because he’s a little bit better athletically, but both those kids could be in the rotation, but I don’t know if they’re Day 1 starters. I think that’s the beauty of the (NCAA transfer) portal. Right now if you’re ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥, you can sell a starting spot.

“If you’re a portal kid, that’s your biggest goal, is to go find a place and start right away. Those guys want to win, but more so playing for a championship, they want to find a place, start and get to the league as quickly as they can. … If I’m ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥, I’m continuing to recruit offensive linemen, but I’m going heavy portal.â€�