Another defensive player has committed to Arizona's 2023 recruiting class.
The Wildcats landed three-star defensive lineman Nicholas Fernandez on Wednesday. The 6-foot-4-inch, 265-pound San Pedro, California native selected the UA over Boise State, Colorado State, Army, Air Force, Washington State and UNLV, among others.
Fernandez becomes the sixth defensive lineman to commit to Arizona's '23 recruiting class, joining Tristan Davis (Lake Oswego, Oregon), Lucas Conti (Corona, California), Dominic Lolesio (Long Beach, California), Julian Savaiinnaea (Honolulu) and Tylen Gonzalez (Carlsbad, New Mexico). The Wildcats' defensive-heavy '23 class is now up to 14 defensive commits.
The influx of defensive linemen will be added to the young nucleus of freshmen who've gradually been integrated in defensive coordinator Johnny Nansen's system. Last week at Utah, the Wildcats at one point had four defensive linemen in the game, edge rusher Tai'ta'i Uiagalelei, Russell "Deuce" Davis, Sterling "Deuce" Lane and Jacob Rich Kongaika.
A senior at San Pedro High School, Fernandez has 28 tackles and four sacks for the 10-0 Pirates this season. Fernandez, who also plays tight end, is second in receiving for San Pedro with 309 yards and five touchdowns.
Arizona currently has 19 commits for 2023.
