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Jul 9, 2025; Frisco, TX, USA; Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita speaks with the media during 2025 Big 12 Football Media Days at The Star. Mandatory Credit: Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images

What Has Fifita Done to Land On Maxwell Watchlist?

Originally posted on Arizona Wildcats on SI
By Nathaniel Martinez | Last updated Jul 29, 2025 7:00 AM ET

Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita was announced to be one of 80 players to be on the Maxwell Award preseason watchlist, an award that is given annually to college football's most outstanding player.

Fifita was on the watchlist last year after a 2023 season that saw him complete 72.4 percent of his passes for 2869 yards and 25 touchdowns en route to a 10-3 record and an Alamo Bowl victory over No. 12 Oklahoma.

The 5-foot-10, 188-pound Huntington Beach, CA native had a down year in the Wildcats' first season in the Big 12, completing 60.5 percent of his passes for 2958 yards,18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in a 4-8 season.

Altogether, in two years under center, Fifita completed 65.2 percent of his passes, 5955 yards, 44 touchdowns (One passing touchdown in 2022) and 18 interceptions.

During a Big 12 media day press conference, Brennan stated that Fifita's step back in his performance "Was my fault, not his. We didn't do a good enough job running the football and we didn't do a good enough job protecting him."

Despite the off-year, head coach Brent Brennan and his staff have made huge moves to improve the offense that surrounds Fifita, aggressively attacking the transfer portal to add depth on the offensive line, running back room and wide receiver corps.

In total, Arizona has 12 newcomers on the offensive line, eight at wide receiver and four at running back.

With such a heavy amount of transfers joining the Wildcats for the 2025-2026 campaign, Brennan feels that "A week into December, I think everybody in the conference, maybe everybody in America, will be talking about Noah Fifita."

Brennan added, "When you watch how he delivers the football, he's one of the cleanest throwers I've ever seen and I'm excited to see what he's going to do in Seth Doege's offense. This is the perfect fit for him and it's his time to shine."

Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

Seth Doege was hired as the offensive coordinator in place of Dino Babers, who announced that he wouldn't be returning as an assistant for Arizona in December 2024.

Doege brings with him an up-tempo, air raid offense that also utilizes the run game in order to tire out opposing defenses.

Under his leadership, the Marshall offense averaged 31.8 points per game, with 27 passing touchdowns, 21 rushing touchdowns and 382.8 yards of total offense on the way to the first 10-win season since 2015 and the first Sunbelt Conference championship game win in any sport since 2014.

Ever since Doege arrived in Arizona, he has had nothing but good things to say about Fifita's improvements and acclimation to a new offensive scheme.

"I have the best quarterback in the league without a doubt," Doege said of Fifita in a spring camp press conference. "This dude is different. He's picked up every single piece of information I've ever given him. Every now and then, he'll want a ball back or maybe a read, but it's not because he didn't know what to do...This dude is phenomenal, he's right where I want him to be."

There is no question that Fifita has earned the respect of his coaches, but what needs to be answered is what he has done individually to improve his game for the upcoming season.

Mike Watters-Imagn Images

Fifita was recently at the Manning Passing Academy, a training camp that invites the top quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and tight ends in the country.

Attending the academy was not the only thing that Fifita has done to improve himself. He has spent some time with his new offensive coordinator to learn the scheme, as well as the quarterback coaching group 3DQB.

"We have a lot of goals, a lot of expectations that we have for me individually, but most importantly for our team," Fifita said on his busy offseason. "I've done a lot of work with Coach Doege, like I said. I believe I work with the best quarterback coaches in this country and 3DQB with Taylor Kelly, Adam Dedeaux and John Beck. Then just kind of the offseason grind with the guys, building that culture."

Fifita has spent a lot of time with Doege in preparation for the season. He stated that he thinks "He (has)probably the best scheme I've ever seen from an offensive standpoint...He knows the Big 12 in and out. Played in it, now he's coaching in it. We're definitely going to lean on that leadership and experience."

Fifita is one of 80 players on the preseason watchlist. The semifinalists for the award will be announced on November 11, 2025.

The three finalists will be announced on November 25 and the winner will be crowned on December 11. Fifita's first opportunity to prove himself as a potential finalist will come August 30, when the Wildcats take on the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors at Arizona Stadium.

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

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