Puka Nacua's path to the NFL started in Provo, Utah where he set state football records for receptions (260), receiving yards (5,226), and receiving touchdowns (58). He was awarded the Utah Gatorade player of the year, and was also named the 2018 Polynesian Bowl high school player of the year. He would begin his college football career at the University of Washington, but his freshman season would be cut short by a broken foot. He finished his sophomore season with 19.9 yards per reception on 16 receptions. Eventually, he would choose to enter the transfer portal and would be playing closer to home at BYU.
Nacua's nack for big plays continued at BYU in 2021. He finished three receptions behind the leader, but had almost 300 yards more of receiving (805) and scored six touchdowns. He also showed versatility by adding 148 yards on the ground and averaging 10.6 yards per carry. In his final season in 2022, Nacua led the team in receptions (48) and receiving yards(625), while scoring five touchdowns. He added an additional 209 yards and five touchdowns on 25 carries. Puka's athletic testing did him no favors, and he finished in the bottom 10% of agility scores for wide receivers. His burst score and catch radius landed him in the bottom 25% of all wide receivers. He would be drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the 5th round of the 2023 NFL draft. Nacua has a wide open depth chart that he can climb, but he will need to prove that he can overcome his sub-par athletic metrics to take a step forward as a professional NFL receiver.
