With Jedd Fisch and Arizona Football continuing to build towards the future, the Wildcats welcome 2022 quarterback Noah Fifita.
One of Jedd Fisch’s very first commitments for the 2022 recruiting class was quarterback Noah Fifita. He committed to Arizona Football back on April 4, 2021, at the same time the Cats were in their Spring ball period.
Fifita talked to and/or had 16 offers from schools around the country, yet throughout his process, he remained loyal and steadfast in his decision to attend the University of Arizona.
Fifita is one of the first few recruits for Fisch as the head coach at the University of Arizona, and just days ago Fifita made it official as he signed his national letter of intent to attend the U of A on December 15, 2021, sealing his commitment to be a Wildcat.
After watching several video clips of him playing, being interviewed, as well as seeing him graduate high school and give his remarks. He has an outgoing personality, an infectious positive attitude, he’s a role model teammate, and he displays leadership traits that are highly desired at Arizona.
Throughout his high school career, Fifita played in the elite Trinity League in Southern California, as Servite was one of the best high school programs in the country in 2021, finishing 3rd in a tough league with a 10-3 record.
He comes from a football family, as two of his uncles played at Utah, and he started playing football at age five with his dad being his head coach until the age of fourteen.
Here is what head coach Jedd Fisch had to say about him in an interview on Pac-12 Network:
- “Special dude, the guy has a gravitational pull towards you, electric personality, leader, great energy on the field, he can run”.
2021 Statistics at Servite High School:
- 2,974 yds passing
- 34 TDs to only 8 INTs
- 228.8 yds per game
- 206/334 61.7% completion percentage
- 93 rushes for 496 yards (5.3 yds avg.)
- 9 rushing touchdowns
Here is my scouting report and thoughts on him:
Hometown: Anaheim, CA
High School: Servite, Anaheim, CA
Height / Weight: 5-foot-10 / 175
- First of all, love his personality, excitement, and leadership skills, especially for a true freshman.
- Sufficient arm strength and accuracy.
- He’s a Dual Threat QB with the mobility to scramble and run.
- Best out of the shotgun due to height.
- Team Player that even helped recruit his friends and teammates to Arizona.
- Confident and highly motivated.
- Loyal.
- Needs to bulk up for the Power 5 level, gain muscle as all true freshmen do. Arizona’s strength & conditioning coach Tyler Owens will take on that challenge and will start him on a full-time plan in short order upon arriving on campus.
As of right now, heading into April spring ball, Fifita will have to compete against Jordan McCloud, 6-foot-even 200, Junior (assuming he is healthy).
Will Plummer, 6-foot-1, 204, Sophomore. Plummer, who stepped in and became the teams’ starting Quarterback after McCloud and Cruz were injured, he stepped up and showed his toughness starting seven games for the Cats in 2021 and expected to compete.
Lastly, there is Gunner Cruz, 6-foot-5, 227, Sophomore. Both McCloud (knee) and Cruz (hand) are still recovering from surgery and although unclear at this time, hopefully, both will be ready for spring ball and fall camp to compete with Fifita for the starting QB position. As of right now, Arizona has not picked up a QB from the transfer portal.
Regardless of a QB competition, Arizona needs to fix the offensive line issues. The offensive line continues to be my No. 1 concern. I envision guys like JT Hand, Josh Baker, and Leif Magnuson making big strides in the offseason with time now under their belt, and after competing strongly against the 2021 starting upperclassmen for bigger roles on the offensive line.
Josh Baker saw the most playing time in 2021 on the offensive line, and incoming offensive lineman Grayson Stovall, an Arizona kid from Chandler will add depth as well as compete as a true freshman.
Jedd Fisch has shown that he and his staff can recruit, as proven in their first year out, signing the first official Fisch class in 2022.
This Arizona class now ranks second in the Pac-12 compared to a ranking of eleventh in 2021, after flipping big-time 5-star recruit Tetairoa McMillan from Oregon, huge progress made. The Cats are only 2nd to Stanford in the 2022 Pac-12 recruiting class rankings.
As of right now, Arizona has added 21 new recruits, and there are high hopes for the future with this class. However, most kids coming in from high school were a superstar on their team or a huge contributing factor to their teams’ success if not the main superstar on the team.
Arizona fans need to realize and remember kids going from high school to Power 5 football, especially in the Pac-12 is a huge leap and transition.
Now, this is where coaching comes into play. The recruiting process is over for these 21 kids and now they look to the coaching staff for mentorship, development, and guidance.
Plummer and McCloud’s experience will play a factor in the QB competition. Fifita knows he is in for a competition stepping in as a true freshman. However, he will be ready and prepared for a full-on battle for the starting QB job.
Luckily, Noah is scheduled to arrive on campus on January 6th, 2022, and I expect Fifita Fever from fans as he is such a likable person and an exciting player with a bright future ahead. I am excited about his opportunity and am very much looking forward to his time as an Arizona Wildcat. As always, Bear Down Arizona and GO Cats!