OLIVESBURG — He’s a year older, a year wiser and if Crestview’s season-opening win was any indication, quarterback Hayden Kuhn is in complete command.
A senior and second-year starter, Kuhn was masterful in the Cougars’ 49-14 win over Loudonville. He completed 14-of-19 passes for 203 yards and two touchdowns as Crestview blew out to a 35-7 halftime lead.
The younger brother of former All-Ohio signal-caller Ross Kuhn, Hayden took the reins last fall and led the Cougars to one of the most successful seasons in program history. Crestview was a perfect 10-0 in the regular season, won an outright Firelands Conference championship and reached the Division VI, Region 22 semifinals before falling to eventual state champ Carey.
Kuhn completed 90-of-133 passes for 1,594 yards and 19 touchdowns while throwing just three interceptions. He also rushed for 136 yards and a touchdown on 50 carries, earning a spot on the All-Ohio third team.
As impressive as they are, the statistics only paint a partial picture of what Kuhn means to the Cougars. The calming presence he brings to the field can’t be overstated.
“He’s just a natural leader,” Crestview coach Steve Haverdill said. “He does a very good job of getting in and out of the huddle and making sure the guys know what they’re supposed to be doing and staying calm.
“You don’t see him get frustrated at all. He is ‘Joe Cool’ out there and I think that brings the butterflies down with the other guys.”
That calm demeanor has served Kuhn well on the wrestling mat. He is a two-time state placer in Division III, taking third at 126 pounds in 2021 and fourth at 132 last winter.
For Kuhn, the difference between year one as Crestview’s starting quarterback and year two is like night and day.
“Last year, at the beginning of the year, the game was really fast for me. I hadn’t played any varsity up until that point,” Kuhn said. “This year it just felt a lot slower. I knew my reads going out there and everything had slowed down.”
Kuhn benefitted from a cozy security blanket last fall in the form of running back Connor Morse. The workhorse rushed for 1,949 yards and 32 touchdowns on 292 carries.
Morse has since graduated, but Kuhn liked what he saw out of the rushing attack in the opener. Crestview rushed for 179 yards and four touchdowns on 41 attempts. Adison Reymer, who transitioned from receiver to feature back, ran for 124 yards and two touchdowns while fullback Wade Bolin added a pair of short scoring runs.
“We’re definitely a run-first team team. We’ve been that way for as long as I can remember,” Kuhn said. “Connor was a really good back last year. Adison is going to be a really good back this year. He’s just got to get in the groove of things.”
With Kuhn leading the charge, Crestview is expected to challenge for its third straight Firelands Conference crown — the Cougars shared the championship with Norwalk St. Paul and Monroeville during the pandemic-abbreviated 2020 season. Another deep playoff run could be in the offing.
About the only thing that went wrong during last week’s opener was a Kuhn interception that resulted in Loudonville’s first touchdown late in the first half. The Redbirds carried the momentum into the second half and cut Crestview’s advantage to 35-14 midway through the third quarter.
“We fell asleep a little bit at the end of the second quarter and going into the third quarter, so we’ve got to work on that,” Kuhn said. “We’ve got to put a complete four quarters together if we’re going to beat some of these good teams coming up.”
