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PROVO — Ryan Rehkow knows how most fans feel when he trots out on the field, the collective groans that sometimes emanate from LaVell Edwards Stadium, because — sigh — the punter is here.
For that reason, he doesn't necessarily blame head coach Kalani Sitake for limiting his snaps. He'd just like a few extra chances per game.
But even he didn't think he'd see the work he did in the Cougars' season opener against Sam Houston.
The junior from Veradale, Washington, punted nine times in BYU's 14-0 win over the Bearkats, a win secured by the defense, obstructed at times by the offense, but often highlighted by the boomer from the Pacific Northwest.
Rehkow knows more focus after the game was on an offense that averaged 3.8 yards per play than a punter who netted 49.1 yards per kick. But he's the punter who teammates have long called "unbelievable" to be around for a bail-out, nonetheless.
"If you would have told me Sam Houston would be a nine-punt game, well, I was hoping for like two," Rehkow said with a laugh. "Selfishly, punting a lot was great. But, obviously, I'm just grateful that we got the win. I know that's not going to be a common thing, especially with the offense that we have. I think it's a one-off.
"I'm grateful to get opportunities," he added. "But it's definitely not going to be expected that way every week."
Through the first week of the season (or two, for a handful of Week 0 teams), Rehkow tops the list nationally with 479 total punt yards, and ranks fifth with a 53.2 yards per punt average.
It's a small sample size, but not small in usage; his nine punts against Sam Houston matched the first three games of the 2022 season for the Veradale native.
Ryan Rehkow is a WEAPON pic.twitter.com/YGzMaB1OxU
— Cam Mellor (@CamMellor) September 3, 2023
It was noticed, too, after Rehkow became the first BYU football player to win Big 12 weekly honors when the conference named him special teams co-player of the week after Week 1. On Wednesday, Rehkow was also named national punter of the week by the Augusta Sports Council and the Ray Guy Award.
For Rehkow, punting isn't necessarily a special-teams role. He's the first line of defense.
"When the other team is starting with really good field position, I feel like that kind of falls on my shoulders," he said. "Whatever I can do to set the defense up, I'm going to do the best that I can."
The 6-foot-5 junior has been one of the Cougars' ultimate secret weapons at a position where most don't want to be noticed. Punters are people, too, but the nature of the position can make some coaches (and fans, more likely) hesitant to lean on them too much.
Still, BYU recognizes what they have.
"Ryan Rehkow is as good a punter as I've ever seen, and I've coached Ray Guy Award winners and some big-time guys," said defensive coordinator Jay Hill, who was the special teams coordinator at Utah when the Utes brought in three-straight Ray Guy Award winners in Tom Hackett and Mitch Wishnowsky. "Ryan's a great player."
Like Wishnowsky, who is entering his fifth season with the San Francisco 49ers, Hill sees a pro future for the punter with a personal-best 83-yard punt and a 350-yard tee shot (in golf).
"There's a reason why there are so many NFL scouts watching him," Hill said. "He's a weapon, and he's got big-time ability. He stays poised, even when we were backed up, he just hit huge bombs. I still think his best football in his future; that guy is just scratching the surface of who he can become. But he's a true weapon, and a big-time leg that doesn't come around every year."
Hill isn't the only one. Head coach Kalani Sitake has regularly joked about how he likes to take risks — during an appearance once on ESPN's national championship coaches' telecast, he joked with the room that he would never punt against you guys with a group that included Syracuse's Dino Babers, then-Baylor coach Matt Rhule and former Boston College coach Steve Addazio, among others.
"He's always been a team player. It's not about him," Sitake said. "But I know one thing: if we need him to make a play and make a kick, he can do it."
When you have a weapon like Rehkow, even Sitake admits the bubble wrap will come off the punter regularly. And his teammates are happy about it.
"People forget how much of a difference that is," said BYU cornerback Marcus McKenzie, who also players gunner on punt return. "When you have a guy that can just fliop the field every single time, it puts the defense in a wonderful position. It just makes it a lot easier for everyone else to make plays like that. It's awesome to have a punter who can put it in the air for 10 seconds."
A finance major with a 3.74 GPA, Rehkow is a junior with another year of eligibility but a senior academically (with the COVID-19 season of 2020 affecting his eligibility). He says he hasn't decided if he'll return next year or try to turn pro.
It might not be an easy decision come season's end, either.
"We'll see how it goes. I'm just enjoying every single moment like it's my last. If it is, great; if not, I've still got time. It's really just one game at a time."
