Noah Fifita sets Arizona Wildcats record with 68th passing touchdown

Noah Fifita stands alone.

With a 15-yard score in the fourth quarter of his team’s 30-24 win over Cincinnati on Saturday, Fifita reached 68 career passing touchdowns, breaking a three-way tie for most in Arizona Wildcats history.

The record was shared between Nick Foles and Willie Tuitama prior to this season. Currently, both players hold more passing yards than Fifita, but the redshirt junior only needs 1,563 yards to lead that category as well.

So far this season, Fifita has 2,494 yards and 24 passing touchdowns with only four interceptions.

Fifita’s career recap

Prior to Arizona, Fifita played four years of varsity at Servite High School in California and was teammates with former Wildcat Tetairoa McMillan.

Fifita accumulated 7,273 yards and 83 touchdowns, 34 of which came during his senior year. He was a three-star recruit who came to Tucson as a backup to Jayden de Laura.

After redshirting his freshman year, Fifita would get a chance to start following a De Laura ankle injury in Week 4 of 2023.

Following back-to-back one-score losses against top 10 opponents, including a triple-overtime loss on the road against No. 9 USC, Fifita would lead the team to seven-consecutive wins to end the season.

Arizona would beat Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl and finish the year as the 11th ranked team in the country. Fifita would be named Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year.

That offseason, head coach Jedd Fisch departed for Washington. Brent Brennan was hired in his place.

When asked Monday what some of his favorite moments with Fifita have been, Brennan said it was right after he took the job when Fifita and McMillan told him they would be staying at Arizona.

The Wildcats and Fifita had expectations going into 2024 as the 21st ranked team in the country. The team disappointed, though, going 4-8 while Fifita saw worse production in completion percentage (-11.9%), touchdowns (-7) and interceptions (+6).

Looking back on the struggles, Brennan noted Fifita’s work ethic when the times were hard.

“The demand’s on him, the pressure, the public scrutiny, all that stuff,” Brennan said. “And all that young man does is work his tail off, show up every single day, lead the team, get up in front of the media, take the bullets when it doesn’t go right.”

Fifita has bounced back this season, raising his completion percentage by 5%, while throwing eight fewer interceptions and six more touchdowns so far than 2024 in three fewer games.

In a college football landscape where spending a full career with one school is becoming rare, Fifita is an example of loyalty leading to success and growth for a player.