Arizona star quarterback Noah Fifita and wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan broke their silence following former UA head coach Jedd Fisch’s departure from the Wildcat program after three seasons to take over the Washington football team.
In Fifita and McMillan’s latest episode of their “Island Time in the Desert” podcast, a program the quarterback-receiver tandem started as true freshmen in 2022 on the “Game Network” mobile app, the Arizona standouts addressed “the 24 hours that affected us big time,” but didn’t disclose what their future holds, whether it’s entering the transfer portal and potentially following Fisch or staying in Tucson to play for new head coach Brent Brennan, who was officially hired on Tuesday.
“It’s still kind of new,” said Fifita, the Pac-12’s Offensive Freshman of the Year in Wildcats’ final year in the conference, as well as the Football Writer’s Association of America’s national Offensive Freshman Player of the Year, which was announced Tuesday. “We don’t got too much to say on the topic. We know a lot of people are wondering how we’re feeling about this. Like (McMillan) said, we don’t take the easy way out. We’re going to lock arms, hunker down and face it head-on.
Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan drags Oklahoma defensive back Reggie Pearson for an extra yard or two after his one of his 10 catches during the 2023 Alamo Bowl in San Antonio.
“We don’t got a lot to say about it, but we’re definitely going to address this topic. There’s a big elephant in the room right now and we’re not going to avoid it.”
The disappointed McMillan, who is the highest-rated signee in UA history in the modern recruiting era, said Arizona “had such a good thing going over here.”
In Fisch’s third season at Arizona, which was Fifita and McMillan’s second year with the team after signing in 2022 out of Servite High School in Anaheim, California, Arizona went 10-3 and became one of four teams in school history to win at least 10 games. After beating Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl, Arizona finished No. 11 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, the highest season-ending ranking since 1998.
McMillan ended his sophomore campaign with the second-most receiving yards (1,402) in a season by a UA receiver, and Fifita emerged as one of the top passers in college football, quarterbacking the Wildcats to seven straight wins to end the season.
With most of its starters expected to return, including Fifita and McMillan, the Wildcats were among the favorites to win the Big 12 in 2024 and potentially contend for a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff.
“We ended this season 11th in the country. We were going into next season possibly Top 10 in the country with a chance at winning a national title,” McMillan said. “It was weird seeing everything unravel the way it did. We had a lot of things going for us. It’s crazy.”
Fifita said Fisch leaving Arizona for Washington “all just happened so fast.”
“It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions,” the Arizona quarterback said. “We’ve been through every single emotion. We don’t know what’s left, what’s right, right now. We’ve been through every emotion. It’s been interesting and we’re leaning in on our faith, spending a lot of time with each other.”
McMillan and Fifita noted Fisch’s goodbye meeting, which lasted roughly three minutes, “was a good meeting.”
“People are going to go on social media and bash Coach Fisch because it was short. To me, he said everything he needed to say,” Fifita said. “You don’t gotta beat around the bush.
“There’s no hard feelings. That was a good meeting for us,” he added. “What I like is everybody showed up and that speaks to the culture that we have.”
Added McMillan: “If the meeting would’ve been longer, it would’ve been him trying to defend himself on why he made the decision. Like you said, he didn’t beat around the bush. He got straight to the point with what it was, what it wasn’t. It was cool.”
So, what’s next for Fifita and McMillan?
Although UA wide receivers coach Kevin Cummings attended Fisch’s introductory press in Seattle, he hasn’t been officially announced as an addition to Washington’s staff. Cummings played for Brennan at Oregon State and coached under him for four seasons at San Jose State before joining Arizona. Cummings’ relationship with Brennan could possibly keep Fifita and McMillan in Tucson.
After Brennan’s initial team meeting on Tuesday, Fifita was spotted by KVOA’s Jenna Fink leaving Arizona Stadium on a golf cart with Brennan’s wife — a development that bodes well for the UA.
“The culture is shining through right now, for sure,” Fifita said on “Island Time in the Desert.” “Everyone is staying together.
“We’re going to see what happens. We don’t have any answers for ya’ll right now,” he said. “We’re in a good spot right now.”
VIDEO: Alamo Bowl: Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita delves into the connection he shares with wide receivers Tetairoa McMillan and Jacob Cowing, both of whom finished with more than 150 yards receiving as the No. 14 Wildcats’ defeated No. 12 Oklahoma in the Valero Alamo Bowl on Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023, in San Antonio, Texas. (Courtesy Valero Alamo Bowl)
