Hau’oli Kikaha made his mark on the Washington Huskies and the Saints, but ended his career with the XFL’s Dallas Renegades on his own terms
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Things haven’t gone well for former New Orleans Saints players in the XFL, the upstart spring football league, with Super Bowl 44-winning Saints kicker Garrett Hartley suddenly medically disqualified after having signed a contract and finished his first practice with the Seattle Dragons. Now, he’s joined on the list of former XFL players by Hau’oli Kikaha, New Orleans’ 2015 second-round draft pick.
Kikaha was drafted highly by the XFL’s Dallas Renegades, along with former Saints teammate Tommyle Lewis (Lewis declined the opportunity to compete in the XFL, eventually returning to the Saints on a reserve/futures contract offer for 2020). The Washington Huskies product saw his NFL career undone by a third ACL tear, following two such injuries suffered in college. The Renegades announced Kikaha’s decision to retire on Tuesday, which was something of a surprise; he’d already notched six tackles (one for a loss of yards) as well as a sack and a forced fumble in their first three games. He was making a positive impact.
It’s disappointing to see Kikaha’s playing career flame out like this, but he has to do what’s best for his future. And given his extensive injury history (which included a season-ending high-ankle sprain in 2017), it might make more sense for him to put his playing days behind him. Kikaha was always a technically-sound pass rusher, so maybe coaching lies in his future. Whatever the case, here’s our best to one of the best names (and hairstyles) in Saints history.
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