Cole Kenna Hikutini (born June 11, 1994) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense (sports), offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide ...

for the

Michigan Panthers The Michigan Panthers were a professional American football team based in the Detroit, Michigan area. The Panthers competed in the United States Football League (USFL) as a member of the Western Conference and Central Division. The team played i ...

of the

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

(USFL). He played college football at the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...

Early years

Hikutini attended Pleasant Grove High School in

Elk Grove, California Elk Grove is a city in Sacramento County, California, located just south of the state capital of Sacramento. It is part of the Sacramento–Arden-Arcade– Roseville Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 Census, the population o ...

, where he was a two-way player. As a senior, he collected 27 receptions for 536 yards and six touchdowns, receiving second-team All-Delta River League honors as a

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

. He had 143 receiving yards and one touchdown against Lincoln High School.

College career

Hikutini accepted a football scholarship from Sacramento State. He was

redshirted Redshirt, in United States college athletics, is a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen their period of eligibility. Typically, a student's athletic eligibility in a given sport is four seasons, aligning with the ...

in 2012. As a freshman in 2013, he appeared in nine games, starting the last four, while registering 21 receptions and five touchdowns. He had five receptions for 42 yards and two touchdowns against the

University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. UM reported 10,962 undergraduate and graduate students in the fal ...

. He transferred to

San Francisco City College City College of San Francisco (CCSF or City College) is a State school#United States, public community college in San Francisco, California. Founded as a Junior college#United States, junior college in 1935, the college plays an important local ...

in 2014. He posted 40 receptions for 658 yards and four touchdowns. He transferred to the

after his sophomore season. As a junior, he appeared in 11 games (three starts), making 19 receptions (fourth on the team) for 348 yards (fourth on the team) and three touchdowns (tied for second on the team). As a senior, playing alongside Heisman Trophy winner

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Lamar Jackson Lamar Demeatrice Jackson Jr. (born January 7, 1997) is an American football quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Louisville, where he won the Heisman Trophy during his s ...

, he recorded 50 receptions (led the team) for 668 yards (second on the team) and eight touchdowns (led the team). He suffered a knee injury during the 9-29

Citrus Bowl The Citrus Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida. The bowl is operated by Florida Citrus Sports, a non-profit group that also organizes the Cheez-It Bowl and Florida Classic. The ...

loss against

LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...

College statistics

Professional career

San Francisco 49ers

Hikutini was signed by the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

on May 4, 2017. He was waived on September 2, and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on October 14. In Week 7, in the 40–10 loss to the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divis ...

, he had his first career NFL reception, a five-yard catch. He was placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

on November 6. On September 1, 2018, Hikutini was waived by the 49ers.

Minnesota Vikings

On September 3, 2018, Hikutini was signed to the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansio ...

' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Vikings on January 2, 2019. He was waived on August 31, 2019.

Dallas Cowboys

On September 2, 2019, Hikutini was signed to the

practice squad. On December 30, 2019, Hikutini was signed to a reserve/future contract. On September 4, 2020, Hikutini was waived by the Cowboys and re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Cowboys on January 4, 2021. He was waived by the Dallas Cowboys on March 19, 2021.

New York Giants

On March 30, 2021, Hikutini was signed by the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...

, reuniting with offensive coordinator

Jason Garrett Jason Calvin Garrett (born March 28, 1966) is a former American football player and coach and current broadcaster. He previously served as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys for the 2010s from 2010-2019. Garrett has also been offensive coordi ...

, who was his head coach with the Cowboys in 2019. He was waived/injured on August 24, 2021 and placed on injured reserve. He was released on September 2.

Michigan Panthers

Hikutini signed with the

of the

on October 6, 2022.

Personal life

Hikutini has lived in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, Elk Grove, and Wilton.

References

External links

New York Giants bioDallas Cowboys bioLouisville Cardinals bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hikutini, Cole 1994 births Living people American people of French Polynesian descent Sportspeople from Elk Grove, California Players of American football from San Francisco American football tight ends Sacramento State Hornets football players City College of San Francisco Rams football players Louisville Cardinals football players San Francisco 49ers players Minnesota Vikings players Dallas Cowboys players New York Giants players Michigan Panthers (2022) players