Arizona Wildcats quarterback Noah Fifita (1) prepares to receive the ball in second quarter against the Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field in Boulder, on Nov. 1, 2025.

Ortege Jenkins didn't really have much of a pro career, but he will forever be iconic within the University of Arizona football program. He, along with Keith Smith, were the co-starting quarterbacks on the 1998 team that set a program record with 12 wins. It's one of the very few times that a two-quarterback system has actually worked, and both were recognized with induction into the Wildcats football Ring of Honor in 2022.

Jenkins signed an offseason contract with the Baltimore Ravens, as an undrafted free agent, but he was cut before the season started. He then played a couple years with the BC Lions in the Canadian Football League.

To this day he is top 10 all-time in Arizona Wildcats history in both passing yards and passing touchdowns. Arizona's current quarterback, Noah Fifita, is really good as well. On the season, he's completing 65.4% of his passes, good for 2,042 yards, 21 TD passes against only four interceptions. He has a season passer rating of 157.0 and a QBR of 72.8

“I think given the chance, when given the opportunity, he can relish. But I haven’t seen anything where he’s climbing on NFL boards,” Jenkins said in an exclusive with RG.org. “Yet I believe when someone takes a chance on him, they’ll get a jewel when it comes to the QB position. I believe he can make all the throws, hit football IQ is high, but the league is a different beast.”

It's a pretty blunt assessment by Jenkins right there. Typically, whenever someone sizes up an NFL Draft prospect from their alma mater, the assessment is not as brutally honest as what Jenkins said here. He's extolling the virtues of Fifita, while also pointing out that he doesn't have much company in doing so. Apparently, the Noah Fifita-is-a-NFL Draft prospect camp has a lot of vacancies right now. However, you can't argue with the results, and his stats are eye-popping; in a good way.

That said, Fifita has another chance, beyond this season, to get the price of his NFL Draft stock going north, and Jenkins believes Fifita will, and should, stay in school for his final season.

“I think Noah comes back another year,” Jenkins added during the same interview. “Especially if he maximizes his redshirt opportunity. I believe he’s one of one and can go as far as he wants to go.”

These days, there is much more added incentive for a fringe prospect to stay in school and work on improving their game. NIL has changed the entire outlook, as you could make good money as a college football player at a glamor position for a Power Four school.

Obviously, quarterback is the most glamorous position of all.

So what's wrong with Fifita's draft stock? Well, he's quite undersized, at 5'10" 186. He is somewhat similar to Kansas QB Jalon Daniels in this regard- an electric playmaker who gets it done and puts up numbers, but is just considered too small for the pro game. Unlike Daniels, Fifita doesn't have a durability concern, though, so the analogy isn't perfect.

While both signal callers need to show that they're tall enough and big enough for the next level, Daniels also has to show that he can consistently stay on the field.

This article originally appeared on Draft Wire: Noah Fifita receives blunt NFL Draft stock report from Arizona Wildcats QB legend

Reporting by Paul M. Banks, Draft Wire / Draft Wire

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