Tucson Standard

Arizona Football head coach Brent Brennan, quarterback Noah Fifita, wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, linebacker Jacob Manu, and safety Gunner Maldonado represented the Wildcats at the Big 12 Media Day on Wednesday at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, home of the Las Vegas Raiders. This marked the Wildcats' first media day as new members of the Big 12 Conference.

Brennan, who was named head coach of Arizona Football in January, expressed his enthusiasm during a news conference. "I could not be more excited to be at the University of Arizona," he said. "It's an incredible opportunity, something that I've thought about for a very long time, and I'm excited about everything that's happening there right now."

Brennan highlighted the leadership within the athletics department under director Desiree Reed-Francois and emphasized the momentum from last year's football team. "A lot of those players chose to stay together and move forward together, which I think is rare and one of the best stories in college football this season," he added.

During the news conference, Brennan responded to various questions:

When asked about retaining key players like Noah Fifita despite changes in coaching staff, Brennan credited other players for their commitment. "TMac (Tetairoa McMillan) and Jacob Manu and Jonah Savaiinaea and Gunner Maldonado had more to do with keeping Noah Fifita there than I did," he said.

Fifita had organized a meeting with about 25 players to get acquainted with Brennan upon his hiring. Brennan described these interactions as crucial for building rapport. "They asked me a thousand questions in a two-hour span... It was a really great kind of icebreaker for all of us to get to know each other," he recounted.

Discussing standout player Tetairoa McMillan, Brennan praised his competitive spirit and talent. "TMac's body control, his ability to finish 50/50 balls... makes TMac extremely rare," he noted.

Regarding familiarity with new conference teams such as Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah, Brennan acknowledged it would help ease the transition but also looked forward to introducing opponents to Arizona Stadium's atmosphere.

On recruiting strategies moving forward into new markets opened by joining the Big 12 Conference, Brennan stated: "It gives us a chance to get into some new markets where we're going to play multiple games a year."

Lastly, addressing his coaching staff's composition featuring former Arizona players like Duane Akina and Dino Babers among others, Brennan stressed its importance. "It's so important for me that there are players that played in the uniform... involved with our team," he emphasized.

A version of this article originally appeared on the Arizona Athletics website.

___