Tetairoa McMillan Makes History In Arizona's Week 1 Win Over New Mexico

Arizona's dynamic duo of Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan have been torching defenses together since they were in middle school, and on Saturday, they did so at a historic rate.

The No. 21 Wildcats welcomed New Mexico to town to kick off the Brent Brennan era, and were able to win in a big way. Despite it being a three-point game at the half, Arizona went on to win 61-39. A significant reason for the second-half surge was the Fifita-McMillan connection.

McMillan ended up with 10 catches for 304 yards and four touchdowns, while averaging 30.4 yards per catch.

The stellar line made him the first player ever to average 30 or more yards per reception, record 10 or more catches, total 300 or more receiving yards, and total four or more touchdowns in a single game, according to Stats Perform . His 304 receiving yards were also good enough to become the second-most in a single game in Big 12 history.

Both McMillan and Fifita became fan favorites across college football this offseason after they chose to remain at Arizona following Jedd Fisch's departure.

When it was revealed that Fisch was taking the job at Washington, the expectation was that his two stars would follow. Instead, they chose to remain in Tucson and build on their special 10-3 season in 2023. A decision that Brennan certainly seemed to appreciate, as he said McMillan was "incredible" when speaking to the media after the game.

"The yards after catch," Brennan replied when asked what stood out the most about McMillan. "Those big explosives were just incredible. Outran the whole secondary on the big one down the sideline. He’s an awesome competitor, and he’s also not satisfied. He thinks he can play better. It’s what you hope for.”

McMillan and Fifita will return to action next week as they welcome Northern Arizona to town in a game that could see them light it up again.

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