Hau'oli Kikaha

Hau'oli Kikaha
No. 44New Orleans Saints
Position: Linebacker
Personal information
Date of birth: (1992-07-24) July 24, 1992
Place of birth: Laie, Hawaii
Height: 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight: 246 lb (112 kg)
Career information
High school: Kahuku (HI)
College: Washington
NFL Draft: 2015 / Round: 2 / Pick: 44
Career history
Roster status: Reserve/PUP
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2015
Total tackles: 52
Sacks: 4.0
Forced fumbles: 4
Interceptions: 0
Player stats at NFL.com

Hau'oli Kikaha is an American football linebacker for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Washington.

Early years

Kikaha attended Kahuku High & Intermediate School in Kahuku, Hawaii. He played defensive end and tight end. As a senior in 2009, he was named Honolulu Star-Bulletin's' defensive player of the year.[1] Kikaha was rated as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com.[2] In January 2010, he committed to the University of Washington to play college football.[3]

College career

Kikaha played in all 13 games as a true freshman in 2010, making seven starts. He finished the season with 49 tackles and three sacks.[4] He started the first four games of his sophomore season in 2011, before tearing his ACL causing him to miss the rest of the season.[5][6] Prior to 2012, Kikaha torn his ACL for a second time, causing him again to miss the season.[7] Kikaha returned in 2013 and started every game for the Huskies. He finished the season with 13 sacks and 70 tackles.[8] As a senior in 2014, Kikaha broke Daniel Te’o-Nesheim school career sack record of 30.[9] In 2014 as a result of being named a first-team All-American by the AP, FWAA, AFCA, the Walter Camp Football Foundation and The Sporting News, Kikaha became the sixth unanimous All-American in school history.[10]

Professional career

New Orleans Saints

2015

Hau'oli Kikaha was drafted in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft, 44th overall.[11] After having a strong training camp and pre-season, Kikaha began the season a starting outside linebacker for the Saints. He recorded his first career sack in Week 2 when the Saints played the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Kikaha sat out Week 9 with an ankle injury and then only played 8 snaps in Week 10. After a Week 11 bye, Kikaha came back healthy, recording three tackles in Week 12.[12]

Kikaha finished his rookie season with 52 tackles, 4.0 sacks, and four forced fumbles.[13]

2016

Kikaha tore his ACL on June 9, 2016, and was ruled out for most if not all of the 2016 season [14] He will face a lengthy recovery, as he has dealt with a torn ACL twice during his college career.[5][7]

Personal

Kikaha was known as Hau'oli Jamora before changing his name in 2013.[15][16]

References

See also

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/30/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.