Puka Nacua makes bold prediction for BYU in 2026 NCAA Tournament
Mar 16, 2026, 2:53 PM | Updated: Mar 17, 2026, 11:07 am
PROVO, Utah – NFL star Puka Nacua believes his alma mater is going to make an incredible run in the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
The former BYU football star filled out a bracket for the NCAA March Madness official social media accounts. Nacua’s bracket features BYU making it all the way to the National Championship Game and winning it all.
Puka Nacua's bracket!
BYU wins it all 😺
Hawaii makes the second weekend 🌈
Duke and North Carolina meet in Indy ⚔️ #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/mSTlaLKcQE— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 16, 2026
Puka Nacua shares NCAA Tournament picks
In Nacua’s bracket, BYU defeats its first-round opponent, either Texas or NC State, then upsets No. 3 seed Gonzaga in the second round. Nacua also has BYU, causing more chaos by taking down No. 2 seed Purdue, followed by another upset of Big 12 Champion Arizona in the Elite Eight.
The Los Angeles Rams star, who just completed his third season in the NFL, has BYU taking down Michigan in the National Semifinals at the Final Four. Then the magical run is capped off with a win over the No. 1 overall seed, Duke, in the National Championship Game.
With a star like AJ Dybantsa leading the way for BYU, anything is possible. The last time Nacua saw BYU in person was on February 24 against UCF, a game BYU lost at home. That clearly hasn’t slowed Nacua down from rolling with his Cougs.
Nacua sees BYU taking down three No. 1 seeds in its pursuit of what he believes is BYU’s first National Championship.
Past BYU basketball picks from Puka Nacua
Two years ago, Nacua had BYU advancing to the Sweet 16 in this same bracket exercise for NCAA March Madness socials. Instead, BYU likely caused Nacua to tear up his bracket after the Cougars were bounced in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by Duquesne.
Puka Nacua played for the BYU football program from 2021 to 2022 after transferring in from the University of Washington.
The Provo native has since become one of the best players in the NFL after being selected by the Rams in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL draft.
This past season, Nacua received his first All-Pro selection for a season that featured a career-high 1,715 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns.
BYU vs. NC State/Texas
First Round – 2026 NCAA Tournament
Location: Portland, Oregon
Arena: Moda Center
Tip-Off: 5:25 p.m. (MT)
TV: TBS
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM in Utah) — Pregame begins at 4:30 p.m.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSL and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio.
Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYUathletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper.
