It took a while longer than Arizona would have liked, but in the end Jedd Fisch landed a potentially program-changing recruit Friday as five-star wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan flipped his commitment from Oregon to the Wildcats on the last day of the early signing period. Arizona announced the addition to its 2022 class Saturday morning to make his decision official.
UA was edged out by the Ducks back in August when McMillan made the decision to go with his childhood favorite program over the team that now will feature three of his teammates from Servite High School in Anaheim, California.
However, the recent coaching change in Eugene changed the outlook with McMillan allowing the Wildcats to make their move.
“The thing with me is coach [Mario] Cristobal, he left, and there’s a lot of uncertainty with Oregon right now,” McMillan told GOAZCATS.com this week about why he ultimately decided to delay his signing until Friday. “Of course, all the promises they made are still there, but there’s still uncertainty. With Arizona, they’ve been with me since day one. They’ve always tried to reach out to me.
“They’ve been recruiting me, committed or not."
Arizona's addition of McMillan marks the first time a five-star prospect has committed to the Wildcats since Jalen Tabor picked the program back in January 2014. Tabor never signed with UA and instead ended up at Florida.
Louis Holmes was the last five-star recruit to sign with the Wildcats back in 2006.
McMillan will now have the opportunity to play with his high school teammates Noah Fifita, Jacob Manu and Keyan Burnett, who all signed with the Wildcats on Wednesday at a ceremony attended by McMillan.
McMillan and Burnett are the two highest-rated commits in Arizona's class while Fifita, McMillan's best friend, is a high three-star quarterback who was one of the earliest commits in the Wildcats' class after giving the program his pledge in the spring.
Fisch and his staff have been focused on adding all three players to the offense since early in the recruiting cycle. The plan finally came to fruition Friday, and UA was able to pull McMillan away from a Pac-12 foe.
The 6-foot-4 receiver, who also shined at cornerback this season, is rated as the top recruit in California and the second-best receiver in the 2022 class. He was recently named the Gatorade Player of the Year in California.
His senior season at Servite came to a close with impressive stats. McMillan caught 88 passes for 1,302 yards and 18 touchdowns during the 2021 season to go with 35 tackles, two tackles for loss and eight interceptions as a cornerback.
> DISCUSS the article with other Arizona fans as the Wildcats continue Building The Tradition
> WATCH the latest videos from GOAZCATS.com and subscribe to our YouTube channel
> FOLLOW us on Twitter (@goazcatscom, @MattGOAZCATS, @THutch1995, @AverieKlonowski)
> FOLLOW us on Instagram (@goazcats)
> LIKE us on Facebook
> SUBSCRIBE for all the latest Arizona Wildcats team and recruiting news (subscribe now)