By the time the 2024 season ended, Arizona’s defense was being held together by duct tape. Because of all the injuries that piled up, only three Wildcats started every game on that side of the ball.
While one of those—cornerback Tacario Davis—could be headed to the NFL, another has decided to see what options he has at the college level.
Junior defensive lineman Ta’ita’i Uiagalelei has put his name into the NCAA transfer portal, the fifth UA player who started at least four games this past season to do so.
The 6-foot-4, 280-pound Uiagalelei started 18 games for Arizona in three seasons, appearing in 30. This season he logged 35 tackles, including a team-high eight for loss, with 2.5 sacks, logging 554 of 807 defensive snaps.
Uiagalelei was the top returning member of the Wildcats’ 2023 D-line rotation and was expected to be a centerpiece of the defensive front next season. Instead he joins fellow defensive starters in the portal in linebacker Jacob Manu and cornerback Emmanuel Karnley as well as offensive lineman Wendell Moe and tight end Keyan Burnett.
Since the portal opened Monday the Wildcats have seen 22 players from the 2024 roster enter. Last year Arizona had 11 go in during the initial December window, though another 16 entered in January after Jedd Fisch took the Washington job.