Fashioning himself an NFL career based mostly on his ability to attack at the line of scrimmage, former Nebraska tight end Travis Vokolek has now called it quits. The Ex-Husker isn’t retiring because he doesn’t have the same passion he once did. Instead, he’s being forced to end his football career out of medical necessity.
Vokolek, who played three seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, posted his retirement note to social media Wednesday night. He injured his neck during the 2025 season and had consulted with neurologists in recent months.
"I am extremely grateful and blessed to have been able to live out my childhood dream of playing football at the highest level for the past three years," Vokolek wrote in part. "Football has taught me many life lessons and given me unforgettable memories."
Vokolek transferred to Nebraska in the summer of 2019 after spending his first two collegiate seasons at Rutgers. The tight end played in 19 games in his two seasons with the Scarlet Knights, catching 17 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns. He played in seven games as a true freshman in 2017, hauling in a 14-yard reception at Indiana. As a sophomore in 2018, Vokolek had 16 catches for 184 yards, and he caught a pair of touchdown passes.
Former Nebraska tight end Travis Vokolek ends three-year NFL career
He tied for the team lead in touchdown receptions, was third in receiving yards and fourth in receptions. Vokolek had multiple catches in four of the Scarlet Knights' nine Big Ten Conference games, including a career-high 5 receptions against Illinois and a career-high 69 receiving yards on 4 catches at Michigan State.
After sitting out 2019 due to pre-portal transfer rules, Vokolek played in every game of the 2020 COVID season as a junior with four starts. He caught nine passes for 91 yards. Even before he made his Husker debut, the big-bodied tight end was named the Nebraska Offensive Scout Team MVP as he prepped his new teammates for their games.
In total over his three seasons with the Cornhuskers, Vokolek had 40 catches for 458 yards and two touchdowns. He then moved on to the NFL as an undrafted free agent and floated around several teams’ practice squads before catching on with the Cardinals.
Over three seasons, the former Nebraska football player made eight appearances at tight end and on special teams, logging two tackles for the Cardinals.
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