Noah Fifita’s 3rd 4th quarter comeback win ensure a 13th game for Arizona
HIGHLIGHTS: Arizona 24, Kansas 20
TUCSON — Quincy Craig scored on a 24-yard touchdown run untouched with 39 seconds left to give Arizona a 24-20 Big 12 victory over Kansas on Saturday in front of a Homecoming crowd of 41,115 at Arizona Stadium.
BRENT BRENNAN POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE
Craig’s run followed his 18-yard burst and capped an 80-yard drive that took eight plays and two minutes as Arizona (6-3, 3-3) became bowl-eligible with the victory.
Kansas (5-5, 3-4 Big 12) attempted a Hail Mary pass at the end but Jalon Daniels’ pass from the Jayhawks’ 47-yard line fell incomplete near the goal line as time expired.
Kansas sacked Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita five times and limited Arizona to less than 100 yards rushing going into the fourth quarter. The Wildcats reeled off 78 of their 165 rushing yards rushing in the final quarter as they erased a 20-17 deficit.
Fifita completed 16 of 31 passes for 158 yards with two touchdowns. His latter touchdown pass, an 8-yard connection to Craig with 23 seconds left in the first half, tied him with Nick Foles and Willie Tuitama for Arizona’s career record of 67 touchdown passes.
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Sam Olson caught a 16-yard touchdown pass from Fifita with 7:15 left in the first quarter before Arizona’s offense struggled and Kansas started to produce.
Arizona Postgame Download: Taye Brown & Quincy Craig
Kansas’ last three possessions of the first half featured Daniels scoring on a 1-yard run, Daniels completing a 24-yard touchdown pass to Emmanuel Henderson Jr., and Laith Marjan converting a 46-yard field goal to take a 17-7 lead at the 4:15 mark of the second.
Daniels was 15 of 29 for 199 yards with one touchdown. He also led the Jayhawks with 74 yards rushing on 14 carries.
Two plays before Craig’s touchdown catch at the end of the first half, Kansas’ Leroy Harris III intercepted a Fifita pass and returned it 77 yards to the end zone — but the play was nullified because of a defensive holding call on Jalen Todd.
Each team scored a field goal in the third quarter with Michael Salgado-Medina converting from 41 yards to tie the game 17-17 and Marjan from 50 yards out to put Kansas back on top.
Kansas tried to put insurance points on the board in the fourth quarter. The Jayhawks converted a third-and-1 and a fourth-and-1 during their 67-yard drive that started with 9:24 left, but it ended on Marjan’s missed 30-yard field-goal attempt with 2:39 remaining.
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POSTGAME NOTES
- With the win, Arizona is now bowl eligible for the first time since 2023.
- QB Noah Fifita’s two touchdown passes moved him into a tie for first in program history with 67 career touchdown passes.
- Saturday marked his third consecutive game without an interception; he has six such performances this year, two more than last year and tying his career high from 2023
