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Noah Fifita

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Noah Fifita
Fifita in 2022
Arizona Wildcats – No. 11
PositionQuarterback
ClassRedshirt Sophomore
Personal information
Born: (2003-07-28) July 28, 2003 (age 21)
Huntington Beach, California, U.S.
Height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight188 lb (85 kg)
Career history
College
Bowl games
High schoolServite (Anaheim, California)
Career highlights and awards

Noah Malakai Fifita (born July 28, 2003) is an American football quarterback for the Arizona Wildcats.

High school career

[edit]

Fifita attended Servite High School in Anaheim, California.[1][2][3] During his senior season, MaxPreps ranked Fifita the 8th-best high school football quarterback nationally for the 2021 season.[1] On April 4, 2021, Fifita committed to play college football at the University of Arizona, over offers from California, Colorado State, Fresno State, Hawaii, Idaho State, New Mexico, and Utah State.[2][3] In his high school career, Fifita finished with 7,273 passing yards and 83 touchdowns, while also setting school records for career passing touchdowns, yards, and completions.[4]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Noah Fifita
QB 		Anaheim, California Servite High School 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Apr 4, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 stars   ESPN grade: 76
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "ESPN commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  • "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 3, 2023.

College career

[edit]

2022

[edit]
See also: 2022 Arizona Wildcats football team

Fifita played sparingly in his first season at Arizona, serving as the backup to Jayden de Laura. Fifita made his collegiate debut on September 10, near the end of the fourth quarter of a 39–17 home loss to Mississippi State.[5] He went completed 4 of 8 passes for 56 yards.[5] Fifita threw his first career touchdown pass to high-school teammate Tetairoa McMillan in the fourth quarter of a 45–20 road loss to #14 Utah.[6]

2023

[edit]
See also: 2023 Arizona Wildcats football team

Fifita began 2023 as a backup but stepped up in Week 4 after Jayden de Laura got injured, leading Arizona to a narrow win over Stanford.[7] He impressed in his first start against #7 Washington, throwing for 232 yards and three touchdowns, followed by a strong performance against #9 USC with over 300 yards and five touchdowns, earning Pac-12 Freshman of the Week honors.[8][9][10] Fifita won the award again after winning his first game as a starter the following week in a 44–6 rout of #19 Washington State in Pullman, Washington.[11][12]

After a bye week, Fifita started against #11 Oregon State, despite de Laura's recovery, and led Arizona to a 27–24 upset win with 275 yards and three touchdowns, earning his third Pac-12 Freshman of the Week award in October.[13][14] The following week, Fifita threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns in a win over #19 UCLA, making Arizona bowl-eligible and securing the program's first-ever three-game win streak against AP Top 25 teams.[15][16] After beating Colorado on the road, Fifita led a 42–18 rout of #22 Utah, as he finished with a QBR rating of 97.6.[17][18] Against Arizona State, he broke the single-game school record with 527 yards and five touchdowns in a 59–23 victory, improving their win streak to six games.[19]

On December 5, Fifita was named the Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year, becoming the second player in school history to earn the award, joining J. J. Taylor.[20] Against #12 Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl, Fifita threw for 354 yards and two touchdowns in a 38–24 comeback victory, concluding the season on a seven-game winning streak and securing the Wildcats' fourth ten-win season in program history.[21] Fifita finished the season tied for fourth in completion percentage (72.4) among qualified quarterbacks,[22] as well as the fifth-most passing yards (2,869), second-most touchdown passes (25), second-fewest interceptions (6), and highest rating (165.9) among qualified freshman quarterbacks in the FBS.[23]

2024

[edit]
See also: 2024 Arizona Wildcats football team

Despite the departure of head coach Jedd Fisch, Fifita announced that he would return to Arizona for the 2024 season.[24] In the season opener against New Mexico, Fifita threw for 422 yards with four touchdown passes in a 61–39 victory.[25] After winning against Northern Arizona, Fifita and the Wildcats saw their nation-best nine-game winning streak come to an end on the road against #14 Kansas State. Fifita threw for 268 yards on 26-of-42 passing but was intercepted once and had zero touchdowns as they lost 31–7.[26]

Following a bye week, Fifita threw for 197 yards and two touchdowns against #10 Utah, including key third-down completions of 41 and 35 yards during a touchdown drive in the fourth quarter that kept the Wildcats ahead, winning 23–10 in Rice–Eccles Stadium.[27]

College statistics

[edit]
Arizona Wildcats
Season Games Passing Rushing
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg TD
2022 3 0 — 9 19 47.4 128 6.7 1 0 121.3 0 0 0.0 0
2023 12 9 7–2 241 333 72.4 2,869 8.6 25 6 165.9 38 −33 −0.9 0
2024 10 10 4–6 217 357 60.8 2,548 7.1 15 11 128.4 57 29 0.5 1
Career 25 19 11−8 467 709 65.9 5,545 7.8 41 17 145.9 95 −4 0.0 1

References

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  1. ^ a b Spears, Justin (July 10, 2021). "Arizona Wildcats commit Noah Fifita named top-10 QB by MaxPreps for 2021". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Combs, Brandon (April 4, 2021). "3-star California quarterback Noah Fifita commits to Arizona". Arizona Desert Swarm (SB Nation). Retrieved November 4, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Spears, Justin (April 4, 2021). "3-star Anaheim QB Noah Fifita commits to Arizona Wildcats". Arizona Daily Star.
  4. ^ Prakash Rajikiran, Satya (October 9, 2023). "Who Is Noah Fifita? Here's All You Need to Know About the Arizona Wildcats Football Quarterback". Sportsmanor. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Lev, Michael (September 11, 2022). "Mistake-prone Arizona falls to Mississippi State; Wildcats drop third straight home opener". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
  6. ^ Coles, Joe (November 5, 2022). "Highlights, key plays and photos from No. 14 Utah's 45-20 win over Arizona". Deseret News. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
  7. ^ Gugliociello, Stephen (September 23, 2023). "What a relief! Subs rescue Arizona against Stanford on the road". Arizona Sports. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
  8. ^ Pederson, Brian J. (September 30, 2023). "Arizona football hangs with No. 7 Washington but can't pull upset before Family Weekend sellout". Arizona Desert Swarm (SB Nation). Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  9. ^ Duhon, Mason (October 8, 2023). "Arizona football vs. USC recap: Wildcats fall short in triple-overtime thriller". Arizona Daily Wildcat. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  10. ^ Spears, Justin (October 9, 2023). "Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  11. ^ Clark, Colton (October 14, 2023). "Difference makers: Arizona freshman QB Noah Fifita plays like a veteran in rout of Washington State". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  12. ^ Pederson, Brian J. (October 30, 2023). "Arizona QB Noah Fifita wins Pac-12 Freshman of the Week for third time". Arizona Desert Swarm (SB Nation). Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  13. ^ Thamel, Pete (October 28, 2023). "Sources: Arizona likely starts QB Noah Fifita vs. Oregon St". ESPN. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  14. ^ Spears, Justin (October 30, 2023). "Mr. October: Arizona QB Noah Fifita named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week for a third time". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  15. ^ Knoblauch, Austin (November 4, 2023). "UCLA's offense struggles and Ethan Garbers is injured in loss to Arizona". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  16. ^ Spears, Justin (November 5, 2023). "Arizona Aftermath: Stats, storylines and quotes from the Wildcats' win over No. 19 UCLA". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  17. ^ "No. 17 Arizona routs No. 22 Utah to keep Pac-12 title hopes alive". Fox Sports. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  18. ^ Messman, Chas. "Arizona ranked #15 in latest College Football Playoff rankings". kyma.com. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  19. ^ Marshall, John. "Fifita throws for 527 yards, No. 16 Arizona blows out rival Arizona State 59-23". AP. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  20. ^ "Noah Fifita Named Pac-12 Freshman Offensive Player of the Year, 13 Wildcats Earn All-Conference". pac-12.com. Archived from the original on February 3, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  21. ^ Spears, Justin. "'We came a long way': Arizona's six takeaways lift Wildcats over Oklahoma in Alamo Bowl". Tucson.com. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  22. ^ "Noah Fifita Earns FWAA Offensive Freshman of the Year". pac-12.com. Archived from the original on February 3, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  23. ^ "Noah Fifita - 2024 Football Roster". arizonawildcats.com. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  24. ^ Scheer, Jason. "Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan announce return to Arizona next season". 247sports.com. Retrieved January 20, 2024.
  25. ^ Ziegler, Nick. "Arizona Wildcats Quarterback Noah Fifita Considered 'On the Radar' for Heisman". si.com. Retrieved September 14, 2024.
  26. ^ Pederson, Brian. "Arizona football blown out at Kansas State, snapping 9-game win streak". azdesertswarm.com. Retrieved September 14, 2024.
  27. ^ Pederson, Brian. "Arizona football opens Big 12 era with road upset of 10th-ranked Utah". azdesertswarm.com. Retrieved September 28, 2024.
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