Arizona QB Noah Fifita Named 247Sports ‘Next Wave of Superstars’
Stardom in college football is fleeting, and perhaps even more so now than it ever has been. Up until about a decade ago, college football fans were almost guaranteed three years of their team’s star quarterback or running back.
Now, in the age of the transfer portal, early draft declarations, and bowl game opt-outs, you’re lucky to get anything more than a season with star players, as there’s a more than fair chance that he’ll be on another campus playing out his final year of eligibility.
So, college football star players come and go quickly, but we still can’t wait to project who the next wave of studs will be every offseason.
247Sports’ Chris Hummer did just that on Thursday, releasing a list of 16 players set to emerge in the 2024 season.
Among the list of 16 players set to break out as certified stars in 2024 is Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita, who Hummer suggests could be legit Heisman contender next season.
“The Pac-12 had the best quarterback play in college football last year, and Fifita was a huge reason why,” Hummer writes. “He might lack the name recognition of Michael Penix Jr. or Bo Nix, but Fifita played as well as them down the stretch.
“After taking over as Arizona’s starting QB on Sept. 30, Fifita finished the regular season completing 71.7% of his passes for 2,800 yards and 25 touchdowns against six interceptions. Arizona went 7-2 during that run, with its only losses coming by a combined seven points to USC and Washington.
“Fifita is small. He’s listed at 5-foot-11 and is certainly shorter. But he’s a baller whose dynamic playmaking projects to have the Wildcats in the mix for a Big 12 title next season.
“Don’t be shocked if you see him in New York City. He’s that type of elevating talent for the Arizona program.“
Fifita was an electric playmaker for the Wildcats last season and exhibited a wildly accurate arm for a player of his youth. What Hummer failed to mention was that Fifita was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year in 2023. That’s right, he was a freshman.
Heading into 2024, Fifita will immediately become one of the top quarterbacks in the Big 12 and will have an impressive contingent of playmakers around him, including All-American wideout Tetairoa McMillan, who’s coming of a season in which he recorded 90 receptions for 1,402 yards and 10 scores.
Fifita is definitely a name you should be aware of, and if Arizona is on your team’s schedule in 2024, you might want to start preparing yourself for a challenging day defensively.
