The last time Arizona and ASU met, kicker Alex Zendejas slammed his helmet into the Arizona Stadium grass and stormed off the field.
Frustrated and disappointed, Zendejas got into a verbal altercation with a fan and was restrained and escorted into the locker room.
As the story goes, he’d had two extra points blocked and the Wildcats were upset at home, making up the low-point of the kicker’s four-year career.
“That was one game. If a lot of people want to judge me for that one game so be it,” Zendejas said. “You learn from it. I’ve gone through it. I’m still here. I haven’t quit on myself. I haven’t quit on my team.”
While Zendejas is still working away, he lost his starting gig after interim head coach Tim Kish handed the keys to John Bonano following the Oregon State loss.
Zendejas missed four extra points this season, wrapping up what proved to be a disappointing career at Arizona. Bonano, on the other hand, has made six of his seven field goal attempts and drilled all 14 of his extra points, making Zendejas seem like a distant memory.
But any time ASU comes up in conversation, the pain of last year’s botched extra points returned. And Zendejas most likely won’t have a chance at redemption this time around.
People forget, however, that Zendejas drilled a game-winning field goal in 2009 to lift Arizona over ASU in Tempe.
“That was awesome for all the same reasons it wasn’t so awesome last year,” Zendejas said. “Family was there, being from Arizona, going to high school in Arizona, growing up here. It was just a great feeling.”
While the game-winning field goal was a highlight, it proved to be one saving grace of an otherwise rocky career at Arizona. Zendejas will always be remembered for the missed extra points against the Sun Devils. But as his career wraps up and he disappears into the sunset, Zendejas is thankful for his time as a Wildcat.
“I’ve learned so much. I’ve grown as a person. I’ve grown as a player,” he said. “I’ve experienced highs, I’ve experienced lows and I’ve learned from them and taken from them.”
