The 2009 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS college football season. The Wildcats, led by sixth-year head coach Mike Stoops, played their home games at Arizona Stadium. Arizona hosted Central Michigan of the Mid-American Conference to begin the season on September 5, 2009 (with a 19–6 win), and ended the regular season with a 21–17 win over perennial conference power, then-ranked #20 Southern California on December 5, 2009; this was the first victory over USC by the Wildcats in the Mike Stoops era.