LOS ANGELES — The Wildcats' first score in Saturday's game against USC came from an unlikely place: A receiver playing quarterback.
Jamarye Joiner launched a 73-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tayvian Cunningham in the first quarter. It marked Joiner's second touchdown pass of the season; his total ties full-time quarterbacks Will Plummer, Gunner Cruz and Jordan McCloud.
Joiner completed 2 of 4 first-half passes for 75 yards and a score while running once for minus-3 yards. Saturday's game was still being played when the Star went to press. For more, visit Tucson.com.
“Once you’re a quarterback, you’re always a quarterback,” the fourth-year sophomore said amid preparations for Saturday’s game at USC. “It’s something that you don’t lose. It’s like riding a bike.”
Joiner's involvement in the offense comes after coach Jedd Fisch and offensive coordinator Brennan Carroll indicated he'd see a larger role in the Wildcats' offense. The Wildcats are down to one scholarship quarterback, Plummer, following season-ending injuries to Cruz and McCloud.
Joiner played quarterback at Cienega High School and began his Wildcats career under center before switching to receiver.
Servite quarterback Noah Fifita, right, fades back to pass over St. John Bosco defensive end Malachi Finau during the first half of Friday night's game in Bellflower, California.
Future Wildcats struggle in nationally ranked showdown
One of the featured high school football games of the year Friday night featured three future Wildcats. Their Anaheim Servite team fell to St. John Bosco 24-10 in the regular season finale.
Servite, ranked fifth nationally, was held scoreless in the second half by the fourth-ranked Braves.
Servite quarterback and UA 2022 commit Noah Fifita completed 10 of 24 passes for for 88 yards and one touchdown; he was intercepted once. Fifita’s 88 yards was the lowest he’s had since his freshman debut in 2018. Tight end Keyan Burnett and linebacker Jacob Manu, both UA commits, also played Friday night for the Friars.
Servite finished the regular season 8-2. The team could face Bosco in the CIF Southern Section playoffs.
“The only good thing about tonight is that we’re going to see them again in a couple of weeks,” Fifita told the Star after the game. “Our season doesn’t end here. It’s going to be rough watching the film, but we just gotta watch it and get better. I made a lot of mistakes today, and I think that’s why the offense struggled so much.”
Other L.A.-area commits who played Friday night include four-star linebacker Sterling Lane II (West Lake Oaks Christian), three-star cornerback Tacario Davis (Long Beach Millikan) and three-star wide receiver A.J. Jones (Ontario Colony), who’s playing quarterback for the Titans.
Khalil Tate returns
Speaking of quarterbacks, one of Arizona's recent signal-callers was on the sideline Saturday night. (And, no, he doesn't have any eligibility left).
Khalil Tate, a Los Angeles native, watched the game from the field. He posed for a photo with McCloud, who made the trip to the Coliseum weeks after undergoing leg surgery.
Former UA quarterback Khalil Tate is in attendance for Arizona-USC! (📸 Brandon Sanders) pic.twitter.com/rQAFl88NBI
— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) October 31, 2021
L.A. high school scores in triple figures
Across town Friday night, Inglewood High School quarterback and UCLA commit Justyn Martin threw for 13 touchdown passes, a CIF Southern Section record, in his team's 106-0 win over Morningside.
Inglewood led 52-0 at the end of the first quarter and 86-0 at halftime. CIF released a statement critical of the rout on Saturday morning, saying “a score of 106-0 does not represent these ideals.”
“The CIF-SS condemns, in the strongest terms, results such as these," the statement said. "It is our expectation that the Inglewood administration will work towards putting in place an action plan so that an event such as this does not repeat itself.”
The big number
12
Seasons since Arizona last beat the Trojans in the L.A. Coliseum. The previous time the Wildcats beat the Trojans in L.A. was when Nick Foles quarterbacked Arizona to a spot in the 2009 Holiday Bowl.
Another big number
60
It's been 60 years since USC first incorporated the “Traveler” as the Trojans’ mascot. Since 1961, USC has used 10 Spanish Andalusian horses.
USC coaching odds
When asked if interested in the USC head coaching vacancy, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin fired back with, “Never say never, but never.” Tomlin called any source of information relating him to a college football job “a joke.”
“Why would I have any interest in coaching college football? That will be the last time I address it — not only today but moving forward.”
Leaders have emerged in OddsChecker.com’s latest list to replace the fired Clay Helton and current interim head coach Donte Williams, who formerly coached defensive backs under Rich Rodriguez at the UA, leaders. Penn State’s James Franklin (+450), Cincinnati’s Luke Fickell (+450), the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Urban Meyer (+500), Iowa State’s Matt Campbell (+950) and Minnesota's PJ Fleck (+1,000) rank among the most likely men to get the job.
George Lucas museum
Just northwest of the L.A. Coliseum sits the $1 billion Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. Founded by award-winning filmmaker George Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson, a co-CEO of Ariel Investments, the Lucas Museum of Art will feature a personal collection of the filmmaker’s art, cinematic art, digital illustration, state-of-the-art theaters, event space, retail shops, restaurants and a Star Wars exhibit.
COVID-19 protocols have slowed down the museum’s construction, but it’s set to open in 2023.
