Where are they now? Catching up with former State College football standout Kevin Kurzinger
Editor’s note: The Centre Daily Times plans a recurring Q&A series to catch up with homegrown athletes. To share ideas about who we should feature, email cdtscores@centredaily.com.
Former State College defensive end Kevin Kurzinger is coming into his own at Duquesne.
The freshman defensive end finished his first full collegiate season in fall 2021 with 38 total tackles (22 solo), eight tackles for loss, four sacks and a quarterback hit. He previously played one game during the 2021 spring season against Wagner.
While with the Little Lions, Kuzinger made the PIAA 6A state quarterfinals in 2019 with an 11-2 record, a 6-1 record in Mid-Penn conference play and a district title in his senior season. He had 138 career tackles, nine sacks and an interception return for a touchdown. Kurzinger was named as a PIAA 6A Coaches Select All-State honoree and as a Mid-Penn First Team selection.
He recently spoke to the Centre Daily Times about what he’s been up to since leaving State College.
CDT: How was your experience at State High? You guys accomplished a lot while you were there.
Kurzinger: So, it was a really good experience I think, coming from a school that is in a higher ranking division. It’s a 6A school, we played a bunch of bigger schools that have a good competition. I think our year had a very good competition level in comparison to some others than how we’ve done in the past. We’ve always had the success that we’ve had every year. So, we just kept it going. The athletes that we had that year kept everything moving throughout the year. We didn’t stop for anyone, we didn’t take our foot off of the gas. We just kept it going. Having that mentality and having the amount of teammates that we did to work to that goal, it made the experience better than most high school appearances for kids. I really appreciate everyone for doing that with us.
CDT: I know when your brother (Kyle) got to the playoffs, I saw you there watching with him from the sidelines. How did you enjoy being able to watch your brother get as far as he did? (Kyle Kurzinger played tight end and defensive end for the Little Lions. His 2021 team made it to the PIAA 6A state semifinals.)
Kurzinger: I was really proud of him. I think he’s accomplished a lot through his high school career, going through a lot of injuries. Having an older brother, it’s not always the easiest to be the youngest brother or the younger brother in the sense that you have to fulfill two things. I think he did that really well. I really applaud him for that. I really appreciate everything that he’s done for me and everything that he’s taught me throughout the years. Even now he’s teaching me things that I would’ve never learned without him. I give him applause for being as good as he was and doing everything that he could to the best of his ability. That class this year, I was really proud of them with the way they came together and fought through everything they had. Through all of the adversity with COVID, through all of the stuff that was thrown at them through the previous year, it was just amazing to see. I really do think he has potential to go places and go far with his career. He just needs to take that mindset and keep going. I think it came down to me setting the pathway and him just following that path until he makes his own.
CDT: How did you end up with Duquesne? What was the decision-making process when it came to picking a school and figuring out that Duquesne would be the best fit?
Kurzinger: I was supposed to go to West Chester the weekend after I came up here (Duquesne) for an official visit. I had a defensive line coach — Tony Papley — he went to Edinboro. Two years ago, he recruited me here. I love the guy. He was a great influence and he had great energy. The coaches that I had at State College, he reminded me so much of them. I thought that this is just like home to me. I came up here for an official visit, I loved the campus, I loved the people that I met and I went out to go see Pittsburgh a little bit. I loved the city feel and everything just kind of matched up. I ended up not going to West Chester that next weekend and ended up committing on the spot because I loved it so much.
CDT: How was your first year at Duquesne? You had a lot of success in your first year and it was a good experience for you team-wise as well. You guys had a pretty successful season.
Kurzinger: These past two years, the spring season and this season, it was a weird turnaround. I had never played a season back-to-back of the same sport. It was weird to do that, but it was really good. My first year in the spring season we had, I didn’t play much. It was the spring season where we practically helped the older guys win as much as we could, I did my part and that was as far as what I did. In the next year, I ended up coming in and playing every game, starting every game and it was just one of those things where I proved myself on the field the previous year. Through time, I’m going to just keep doing that here on out.
CDT: Where do you see your career going at Duquesne? I know it’s very early on, but with the success that you’ve already had, where does it go from here?
Kurzinger: My career — I’m hoping that I can take it as far as I can. I’m hoping that I can make it to that next level, whether that be the NFL, the XFL, the CFL, whatever it is. I just want to keep playing. I love this sport, I love having all of the teammates around, I love the energy that everyone has — it’s an amazing feeling. I’m hoping that I can do that. For here, I’m going to give it my all every day. It’s just one of those things where it’s a mindset and determination thing and something that I put myself to and I hold myself accountable to be the best I can for this program. Hopefully it’ll end up being something that goes down in the history books.
