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Aug 30, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita (1) points up to the sky after scoring a touchdown during the third quarter of the game against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

Quarterback Grade: Arizona's Noah Fifita vs. Hawaii

Originally posted on Arizona Wildcats on SI
By Troy Hutchison | Last updated Sep 1, 2025 8:30 AM ET

The long offseason finally came to an end and the Wildcats’ were back in action looking to start the season on a high note and wash away the memories of the underwhelming 4-8 season in the first year of Brent Brennan as head coach.

After many chances to the coaching staff with the hirings of Seth Doege (offensive coordinator), Danny Gonzales (defensive coordinator), Josh Miller (tight ends coach), Josh Bringuel (linebackers coach), Joe Salave’a (defensive line coach) and Craig Naiver (special teams coach), the Wildcats were looking to see how the changes were going to play out on the field.

After a first drive stop of Hawaii and forcing them to go 3-and-out, Arizona’s offense directed by Doege went to work and put together a balanced 4-play drive that was capped off by a 13-yard rushing touchdown from running back Kedrick Reescano.

From that point on, it was all Arizona as both sides of the ball were clicking and setting the tone early in the game. The Wildcats were able to take care of business in an impressive 40-6 win over the Rainbow Warriors

The energy that Gonzales’ unit brought was something that really wasn’t seen last season. Defenders were flying to the ball and making things difficult on the Hawaii offensive line.

Arizona was able to have its way with the offensive line and got into the backfield and recorded five sacks and 10 tackles for loss. In comparison the Wildcats totaled 28 sacks during the 12-game season averaging 2.3 per game.

As a team, the defensive had five players get in on the sack party.

Offensively, the Wildcats were led by quarterback Noah Fifita, who was coming off an underwhelming 2024 season. Against Hawaii, Fifita was able to get on track, tossing for 161 yards on 13 of 23 and recorded a touchdown pass.

Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

Although there was some passing success for the Wildcats with Fifita finding eight different targets on the night, it was the running game that took control for Arizona.

The Wildcats saw their top three running backs go off for 199 yards on 23 rushing attempts and logged a touchdown each. Overall, Arizona finished with 183 yards on the ground and it was RB Quincy Craig, who led the way with his 125 yards and a touchdown run of 55 yards on just seven touches.

The offensive line was highly successful in the running game and allowed just two sacks against the Hawaii defensive unit.

In comparison, Fifita was sacked 28 times last season. So, if the Wildcats line holds the two per game number, that would be four less than the 2024 season.

Not only did the Wildcats cause issues in the backfield for Hawaii, they were able to create chaos on the field and came up with five turnovers and five different players in Jack Luttrell, Chase Kennedy, Taye Brown, Julian Savaiinaea and Gavin Hunter getting their hands on the ball.

Still, the offense had its issues in the passing game with miss chances at completions and some defensive lapses that led to a couple of chunk plays for Hawaii.

However, when you are able to walk away with a 34-point season opening win, it was a good day for the program.

We at Arizona Wildcats On SI broke down Noah Fifita’s performance with our three takeaways from his game:

Grade: B-

Noah Fifita has already matched his rushing TD total from last season!pic.twitter.com/DhybjnpPId
— Arizona Wildcats On SI (@ArizonaOnSI) August 31, 2025

Timing

At times, it seemed that the timing of his throws were just a little off throughout the night. Fifita missed open receivers that he just put the ball too high, or didn’t see them break open to begin with. Still, there is room to grow in this offense.

Leadership

Arizona’s offense was clicking from the start, the Wildcats were able to score on their opening drive and never looked back rolling Hawaii the rest of the way. A large part to that was the leadership of Fifita being able to get his teammates in the right positions throughout the night.

Legs

One thing that Fifita was working on during the offseason was his legs and using them more in the offense. He was able to record a rushing touchdown against Hawaii but still finished with negative yardage on the night.

This article first appeared on Arizona Wildcats on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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