Puka Nacua blocking, jet sweeps, screens, getting things done pic.twitter.com/rM8znBOl5T

— RAMZILLA (@elitster) April 29, 2023

PUKA NACUA | BYU 6015 | 201 lbs. | 4SR Provo, Utah (Orem) 5/29/2001 (age 21.91) #12

BACKGROUND: Makea “Puka” (Poo-kuh) Nacua (Nah-koo-uh), who is one of six children, was born and raised in Las Vegas and started playing pee wee football at age 5. When Puka was in seventh grade in 2012, his father (Lionel) passed away at age 45 after a lifelong battle with diabetes. Nacua’s mother (Penina) moved the family to Provo, Utah, in 2013 to be closer to family. Nacua attended Orem High School, where he saw immediate varsity reps as a freshman wide receiver, posting 23 catches for 265 yards and two scores. As a sophomore, he registered 48 receptions for 977 yards and five touchdowns, earning honorable mention All-State honors. As a junior, Nacua led Orem to a 12-2 record and the 4A state championship, earning first team All-State honors with 87 catches for 1,692 yards and 24 touchdowns. As a senior, he set single-season school records with 103 catches for 2,336 yards and 26 touchdowns. Nacua led Orem to back-to-back 4A state titles, and he cleaned
up on the award circuit, including the 2018 Utah Gatorade Player of the Year, Utah’s Mr. Football and first team All-American. He finished his career with the Utah high school records for receptions (261), receiving yards (5,270) and receiving touchdowns (57). Nacua lettered in basketball and earned second team All-State honors as a junior. He also lettered in track and broke the 46-year-old state record in the long jump (23 feet 10.25 inches) to win the 4A state championship as a senior. Nacua finished his career with personal bests in the 100 meters (11.01) and 200 meters (22.38). A four-star recruit, Nacua was the No. 22 wide receiver in the 2019 recruiting class and the No. 1 recruit in Utah. With family ties at BYU and Utah, he received offers from both schools after his freshman year of high school. Nacua had his pick of just about any West Coast school and initially committed to USC the summer before his senior year. However, he kept his recruitment open and officially flipped to Washington on signing day, mostly because of his relationship with wide receiver coach Junior Adams (who helped develop current Rams receiver Cooper Kupp at Eastern Washington). After two seasons with the Huskies, Nacua decided to transfer to BYU in 2021 to be closer to his family, specifically his maternal grandmother, who had cancer. His older brother (Kai) played safety at BYU (2013-16) and went unselected in the 2017 NFL Draft but has played for six NFL teams over the past six seasons, most recently with the New York Jets in 2022. His older brother (Isaiah) was a defensive lineman at BYU (2014). His older brother (Samson) walked on and played five years as a wide receiver at Utah (2016-20) before transferring to BYU for his final season in 2021 (teammates with Puka). Nacua accepted his invitation to the 2023 Senior Bowl but suffered a concussion during the first practice and missed the rest of the week.

YEAR (GP/GS) REC YDS AVG TD DROP NOTES
2019: (8/3) 7 168 24.0 2 1 Washington; Missed the final five games (broken foot)
2020: (3/0) 9 151 16.8 1 3 Washington; Led team in receiving; Missed one game (COVID)
2021: (12/7) 43 805 18.7 6 3 BYU; Led team in receiving yards, TDs; Missed one game (injury)
2022: (9/8) 48 625 13.0 5 3 BYU; Led team in receiving; 5 rushing TDs; Team captain; Missed four games (right ankle, hamstring)
Total: (32/18) 107 1,749 16.3 14 10

HT WT ARM HAND WING 40-YD 20-YD 10-YD VJ BJ SS 3C BP
COMBINE 6015 201 31 1/2 9 1/2 74 7/8 – – – – – – – – (no workout – right toe)
PRO DAY 6016 210 32 9 5/8 75 1/2 4.56 2.64 1.62 33 10’1” 4.36 7.32 15

STRENGTHS: Smooth athlete with quiet, controlled upfield strides … saw a high volume of screens and quick-throws to take advantage of his vision and toughness (five rushing touchdowns in 2022) … outstanding body control and feel when the ball is in the air, allowing him to adjust/high-point … catch timing and focus help him make grabs over defenders … doesn’t shrink from route contact and maintains his focus to secure contested catches (see 2022 Boise State tape) … displays crafty footwork mid-pattern to leverage defenders out of position or expose space in zone … voted a senior captain and has the pedigree of a competitor (NFL scout: “Our coaches are going to love this guy.”) … benefits from the “older brother” theory with three older brothers who played high-level college football.

WEAKNESSES: More quick than sudden and doesn’t have the top-end speed that scares defenses … the burst out of his breaks is average … occasionally false steps and exposes his chest vs. press coverage … can be baited into extra contact downfield … marginal experience on special teams coverages … NFL scouts have voiced concern about his durability as he battled numerous minor issues in his career … suffered a sprained right ankle in the 2022 season opener (September 2022) and missed the following two games; he also missed time after suffering a hamstring injury (September 2022); a broken foot in practice (October 2019) ended his freshman season and required surgery; pulled out of the Senior Bowl after one practice because of a concussion (January 2023); unable to test at the combine because of a right toe injury (March 2023).

SUMMARY: A two-year starter at BYU, Nacua was an inside and outside receiver in offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick’s balanced scheme. A record-setting athlete in high school, he spent two seasons at Washington before transferring to Provo, where he led the Cougars in receiving as a junior and senior despite battling multiple injuries. With his body control and focus, Nacua can win one-on-one situations on the outside or provide an underneath target as a zone-beater. Though there aren’t questions about his ball skills, he might lack the pure speed that teams covet outside the numbers and the suddenness desired in the slot. Overall, Nacua needs to prove he can stay healthy and on the field at the next level, but he is smart, tough and athletic with the locked-in concentration that gives him a fighting chance to earn an NFL roster spot.

The Rams took Puka Nacua with the 177th overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft and here’s our instant analysis of the selection. https://t.co/ba1tXxQISV

— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) April 30, 2023

Look at Nacuas concentration! 🤘🏼 pic.twitter.com/fENC4uJChH

— Lit Ram (@Lit_Ram_42) May 4, 2023

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That was 4th down and a game winner…

— RAMZILLA (@elitster) May 4, 2023

Puka Szn?

Nacua, a fifth-round rookie, has stood out in OTAs and was called "pretty special" by Cooper Kupp https://t.co/opzNwdoZfL

— Cameron DaSilva (@camdasilva) June 7, 2023