Noah Fifita aims to take Arizona to promised land in final chapter as a Wildcat

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When you think of some of the great Arizona football quarterbacks of all time, names like Nick Foles and Willie Tuitama come to mind. Now, there is only one name that comes before both of those Wildcats legends, and that name is NoahFifita.

When Fifitacame in for an injured Jayden de Laura in 2023 against Stanford, all fans were hoping for was to leave Palo Alto with a win. Fifita took care of the ball and helped get Arizona the win.

Absolutely no one thought that Fifita could become a generational quarterback for the Wildcats. Since that Stanford game, he has led Arizona to an Alamo Bowl win, a Holiday Bowl appearance, and has broken the Arizona career passing touchdowns record.

It’s a rarity for a college football player to choose one school over and over again. With the transfer portal and NIL, many players choose to leave a school for “greener pastures.” 

Fifita has created his own green pasture in the Tucson desert, and that’s something head coach Brent Brennan thinks separates Fifita from any other player in the nation.

“I think it’s amazing to be in a situation where you have a Heisman caliber candidate quarterback returning,” Brennan said. “I think that’s one of those things that doesn’t get talked about enough, is that this young man continues to choose the University of Arizona, and he’s done it time and time again.”

Every season has brought statistical improvements for Fifita. While there may have been a dip in on-field results in 2024, that only motivated him to keep getting better. 

Finally having a coordinator for multiple seasons with Seth Doege does bring a confidence for the offensive gameplan, something that Fifita may not be used to.

“I’ve been able to play more confidently, I’ve been able to play faster,” Fifita said. “Guys today were telling me that the ball is getting out super fast, and to be honest, even I didn’t really realize that. Just playing in the offense, playing in a scheme, trusting coach Doege’s coaching points allows you to play free and at the end of the day the scheme just works.”

Throughout last season, Doege said on many occasions that he had never seen any quarterback pick up on a new system as fast as Fifita did. Going into this season, there is almost no doubt between the duo of how much production this offense can create.

“Our relationship is about as tight as it can be,” Doege said. “I completely trust him. You know, we’re talking some elite level football right now with each other, which is a ton of fun. He’s the best quarterback I’ve ever been around.”

Doege knows that the leadership position Fifita is in did not just fall into his lap. It was earned through hard work, dedication to the game, and a mindset of always trying to be better.

“This kid’s really special because he’s so talented, and he’s so talented because he’s worked at it,” Doege said. “He’s earned that right to be called talented. Our chemistry is like I said, I think it’s unmatched. I trust him completely.”

Coming off a 3,228-yard and 29-touchdown season, Fifita aims to keep improving as he’s done every season in Tucson. One of the biggest improvements he’s made is in his leadership and that leadership will be needed to mesh with the new players brought in over the offseason.

“I think every player, every person, has a chance to grow and improve,” said Brennan. “I think if you don’t have that mindset, you’re playing the wrong game. We have new tight ends, new running backs and new receivers, and so there’s a lot of chemistry that needs to be built up there too.”

If Fifita can continue his improvement trends, it might lead to something that Foles, Tuitama, or any other Arizona has ever done. The promised land of the Rose Bowl has forever eluded the Wildcats, but it could be a legacy cementing accomplishment for the senior quarterback.

“I want my legacy to be a Big 12 championship and Rose Bowl,” said Fifita.

However, in typical Fifita fashion, he did not make things about himself. He makes everything team oriented and “Redline” focused.

“I love Arizona, and there’s a reason I’ve chosen, I mean, we’ve chosen as a team to stay, this day and age the transfer portal is real for players and for coaches at the end of the day,” said Fifita. “Everybody’s had an opportunity to leave, and everybody’s either chosen to come here or chosen to stay here. So it’s not just about me, it’s about this team, the coaching staff and the players, but what we have is special.”

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