The Arizona Wildcats expect to accomplish big things this season, and quarterback Noah Fifita will be a big part of that.
The signal-caller, who was originally a three-star recruit, is considered in 2024 to be one of the best quarterbacks in the nation with strong darkhorse potential. That comes down to what he brings to the table as a player with his agility, accuracy and anticipation.
Fifita believes his experience, ability to perform high-stress situations and a supporting cast that he never fails to dote on all give him a chance to do well.
“I’ve been blessed to play this position for a while, so I have a lot of experience kind of in the game and pressure situations,” Fifita said to RG. “I’ve had a lot of good players, a lot of good coaches around me, so just kind of doing my job and letting them make their plays.”
And the talent around Fifita runs deep, in his eyes.
“Offensively, we’ve obviously got the key guys. Tet McMillan, Jonah Coleman, Malachi Riley who can be really special this year along with the tight end room,” Fifita said before the season. “We’re locked in. We’re excited to compete. We expect to win. I wouldn’t say that was the case in year’s past, and we expect some big things, some things the rest of the world wouldn’t expect us to accomplish.”
One of the biggest storylines for Fifita and the Wildcats is being a part of conference realignment. The team is not in Pac-12 country anymore, playing against higher-level competition in the Big 12, where the stakes are much higher.
Fifita moves through the schedule expecting to see some trickier things on defense that will ultimately make him a better quarterback, though they do present some additional challenges.
“It starts with looking at the secondary, trying to identify coverage and disguises,” Fifita said of his pre-snap responsibilities. “I think one thing that changes in a new conference, we’ll get a lot more coverage disguises, a lot more post-snap rotation and movement so kind of getting a feel for that.”
He got a taste of some of those things playing against Oklahoma in postseason competition following the conclusion of the 2023 regular season.
After making the adjustment, Fifita set several personal goals for himself as a signal-caller, many of which involve becoming better on the run.
“Definitely need to get better at running and using my legs to extend plays, but for the most part, just trying to get the ball to top playmakers. We have probably the best player in the country as our number one receiver [Tet McMillan], a really good running back room and a really underrated tight end room.”
Currently 2-1 after suffering just their first loss of the season, a 31-7 loss to Kansas State, Fifita and the Wildcats will look to get back on the right track as they face the No. 12 Utah Utes up next on the schedule with a lot of football still left to be played.
Crissy Froyd is a sports reporter of over 10 years who specializes in quarterback analysis at the high school, college and NFL level. She was mentored by Mike Leach and learned the Air Raid offense and quarterback evaluation largely under the legendary head coach. Froyd has appeared in and worked with multiple publications, including USA TODAY SMG, Sports Illustrated, NBC Sports and Saturday Down South. She also covers canine journalism for Showsight Magazine and resides in Wisconsin with her three dogs -- two German Shepherds named Faxon and Bo Nix, and one Siberian Husky named Stetson "Balto" Bennett.
