Wisconsin Football WR Trech Kekahuna Shined When Lights Came On

A slew of transfer portal entries opened the door for Wisconsin football freshman wide receiver Trech Kekahuna to earn his first extended playing time on the Badgers offense in the ReliaQuest Bowl against LSU. 

Kekahuna was intially a Wisconsin Badgers commit under Paul Chryst, before de-committing after his dismissal. The Hawaii native would later commit to the Arizona Wildcats before finding his way back to Madison in a surprise move on National Signing Day.  

As a senior, Kekahuna hauled in 61 catches for 1,330 yards and 22 touchdowns for powerhouse program Bishop Gorman. The Badgers staff felt he could be a dangerous weapon in the slot, given Kekahuna’s elite start and stop ability on tape and his high-end speed. 

On New Year’s Day, Kekahuna finally got this chance, and boy, did he deliver for the Wisconsin football offense. 

Wisconsin Football WR Trech Kekahuna Stepped Up in the ReliaQuest Bowl 

The Wisconsin Badgers had many options they could feature in the slot during the season, which is why Trech Kekahuna didn’t crack the rotation.

Will Pauling, Skyler Bell, and Vinny Anthony were all ahead of him on the depth chart. But Bell entered the portal, and Anthony moved out to the boundary to accommodate Chimere Dike’s departure. That allowed Kekahuna to become the No. 2 slot behind Pauling for the bowl game.

The 5-foot-10 wideout answered the call by catching all four of his targets for 64 yards in 20 offensive snaps (all from the slot). Kekahuna also had a 37-yard kickoff return on special teams.

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— Badgers Film Clips (@Badgers_Film) January 2, 2024

Pro Football Focus gave the freshman pass-catcher an 89.5 grade, which is considered elite by their grading metrics. Notably, Kekahuna was the highest-graded player on the Wisconsin football team’s offense.

His 3.56 yards per route run was also the highest on the team, and he registered an ADOT of 13.0. Kekahuna’s longest reception went for 24 yards, and he was also credited with forcing a missed tackle. Not too shabby.

After the game, Wisconsin Badgers head coach Luke Fickell was among the many people who came away impressed with Kekahuna.

“I mean, it’s one of those opportunities that we talk about guys that are just fearless, and maybe you haven’t seen enough of them, but he [Kekahuna] got an opportunity today, and boy, did he perform,” Fickell told reporters after the game.

“Some of these situations are really great for as to see guys that maybe didn’t have some of those opportunities, you know, and that’s where we look at ourselves as coaches and say, probably should have had him [Kekahuna] in there a lot earlier in some of those situations,” Fickell continued. “But the reality is that you find guys that when the lights come on, they play at a higher level, and I think he’s one of those guys.”

Final Thoughts

Even though Trech Kekahuna played in five games for Wisconsin football this season, he will retain his redshirt status and be a freshman for the 2024 season. Thankfully, this status remains because the final game Kekahuna participated in was part of the postseason and doesn’t count toward his eligibility.

It was a short but much-anticipated debut for the freshman wide receiver, but Kekahuna looks like he’ll be a fun piece for the Badgers’ offense to incorporate over the next couple of years. He could provide some much-needed playmaking ability to UW’s WR room as early as next season.

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