Racking up the yardage
Nearly two years ago, junior Kevin Curtis was wondering what would happen with his football career and what school he would attend.
He had just returned home from a mission in England for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and was no longer eligible for the scholarship BYU offered him before he left.
Curtis had limited his choices to Utah State University, the University of Utah, Arizona State University and BYU, but because USU showed the most interest in him, he decided to make Logan his second home.
Even though USU showed more interest than the others, as a walk-on he still wasn’t a priority of the team, football Head Coach Mick Dennehy said.
“We felt all along that Kevin was going to be an outstanding player,” Dennehy said. “I’d be lying to you if we said he was going to be good enough to lead the country though.
“He exceeded all of our expectations, probably everyone’s but his own,” he said.
His first season with the Aggie football team Curtis took the option to red-shirt and learn more about the way Utah State plays. He did learn, Dennehy said.
“He’s kind of like a sponge. You can’t get him enough information,” he said.
When the last season’s practices began, Curtis wasn’t sure what was going to happen, he said.
“Going into the season my goal was to work my way into the starting position,” Curtis said.
Through his efforts Curtis was able to achieve his goal from the opening game and ended up being a leader not only on his team, but also in the country.
“I always felt I could play, but I didn’t get the chance until recently,” Curtis said.
Offensive coordinator Bob Cole said, “He’s extremely intelligent and a hard worker. He makes your job real easy. If we had 75 guys like that we’d be in great shape. But Curtis doesn’t take all the credit for himself.”
There were many people who were responsible for his accomplishments, Curtis said, including starting quarter back Jose Fuentes.
“He touches the ball before me and is responsible for a lot of my success,” he said.
At the beginning of the year, Curtis and Fuentes didn’t know what to expect from each other, Fuentes said, but after the first game they knew they had something going.
“Every time I threw it to him I knew he was going to make a play, no matter what,” Fuentes said. “Even if I threw him a hitch I knew he’d take it for another 40 or 60 yards, maybe a touchdown.
“He’s one of the best receivers I’ve ever played with,” Fuentes said. “He’s probably the fastest and he has great hands. He works hard and I know he’s going to come to play every game.”
In Curtis’ first year playing at USU he was named third-team All-American by the Associated Press, he led the nation with 9.1 receptions per game and was third in the country in receiving yards per game with 139.2.
He also set two USU records for the most receptions in a single season with 100 and the most receiving yards in a season with 1,531.
For his accomplishments Curtis has been named the Statesman’s male athlete of the year.
“Awards are one way to kind of measure success, but there’s a lot of people that deserve the credit,” Curtis said.
Although he enjoys receiving the awards for his efforts, Curtis said he wants to make sure he doesn’t get too hung up on them and alter next season.
“He’s a humble guy,” Cole said. “I don’t think it goes to his head. I think it probably just motivates him to do better.”
In the future Curtis is hoping to be able to continue playing football on a higher level and just wants to end his college career on a high note.