How Arizona's Noah Fifita became one of the best quarterbacks in college football
By Mason Duhon
Taking the reins
Entering the 2023 season, Fifita was expected to back de Laura up for a second year. However, trouble was brewing beneath the surface for de Laura. Between some questionable decisions on the field and a litany of issues off of it, de Laura started to work himself out of the favor of both Arizona fans and the general public.
In Week 4, Arizona took to Palo Alto, California, to play a Stanford squad that just lost to FCS-level Sacramento State the week prior. With de Laura leading the charge, things looked precarious and the Wildcats looked poised to fall short. However, the entire trajectory of the Arizona football program changed when de Laura went down with an ankle injury at the end of the third quarter.
Fifita stepped in with Arizona down 14-17 in the fourth quarter and stabilized the operation rapidly. He orchestrated a nine-play, 67-yard drive capped off by a 2-yard touchdown run from D.J. Williams. Arizona was up 21-17, and Stanford's next drive ended in a field goal to bring the Cardinal within one point. Fifita and the offense pulled together a seven-play, 24-yard drive to clinch the 21-20 win — the first of many under his leadership.