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Both of them
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 10,225
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'You have to have that urgency'
http://www.nola.com/saints/t-p/index...840.xml&coll=1
Quote:
Nobody on the Saints' training camp roster followed a more unconventional path to get to the team than new safety Kevin Kaesviharn.
When he came out of college 10 years ago, Kaesviharn didn't get any invites to try out at NFL camps. He went back to his alma mater, Division II Augustana in South Dakota, and did some assistant coaching.
But he still had the itch.
So he began playing in the Arena Football League while spending his offseasons as a substitute teacher. Then he hooked up with the ill-fated XFL, which earned him a tryout with the Green Bay Packers, who released him soon after.
Finally, in October 2001, he earned a spot on the Cincinnati Bengals' practice squad, and he stuck around for six productive seasons before signing a four-year, $10 million deal with the Saints in free agency.
Kaesviharn talked about his long and winding road, his cerebral approach to the game and the origin of his name, among other topics.
Was there ever a time when you said, "This is not worth it. I might need to quit trying to fulfill my dream"?
Not really. I mean, I knew there was only a small window in which you can do something like this, and I figured this is the time to do it. So let's give it all we got this time. If it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out.
Besides the money, what else brought you to the Saints?
Well, there's a lot of things. Obviously, the first thing we looked at -- we being my family -- is whether or not the team had a good shot at winning, because that's what it's all about. And this was obviously a team, as well as Cincinnati, that we felt had a good shot at winning the championship. And then you look at where you're going to fit in on the team and how you're going to contribute. And I felt like the situation here would be the same as Cincinnati. And then you look at how the city is, and obviously there's a lot in New Orleans that still needs to be done. But I feel like I've been called to maybe help out in that endeavor.
You've had a knack, especially last year, for making plays and forcing turnovers. How do you account for that?
I just think it's preparation and hard work, and those are things that Coach Payton has definitely stressed throughout the time I've been here. A lot of the picks I had and turnovers I had, you just try to get to the ball and be around the ball, and good things usually happen. And your game plan, your game study of the opponent, it's going to give you an idea of what they're going to try and do to you. Even if it's just that one time that you can see a play that you recognize on tape and you have a good idea that they're going to run that route, then you take that educated guess-risk. It's not a guess. It's an educated guess. And once that play comes, you're ready for it. And it might just be that one play all game, but it's the one that might make a difference.
Was that an educated guess when you intercepted Saints quarterback Drew Brees in the end zone last year?
Yeah it was. . . . We knew in the red zone they like to run the tight end on the out and up. It's a typical route in the NFL, and I tried to jump outside to make it look like I was going to jump the out route, knowing I was going to try and stay over the top and come back in. So it's things like that.
What is the origin of your name?
My dad's from Thailand, and it actually means 'top of the mountain' in Thailand, so it's kind of unique. You pronounce it 'kay-VEE-hahn,' like in Thai, but we've Americanized it I guess and said, 'CASE-vi-harn.' And you know, I'm proud to say that my dad's from Thailand, and I think it's unique and different, and I like it.
Who got their name screwed up more last year, you or Houshmandzadeh?
Probably T.J., because they probably called it out a little more than mine.
What about the origin of the nickname "Quesadilla?" Has that followed you places, or does Mike McKenzie get credit for that?
Yeah, that started back in the Green Bay camp when Mike was there, and there was another linebacker there, K.D. (Williams). He was one of those characters who just said whatever came to his head without thinking about it. And the first thing that came to his head was Quesadilla.
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'You have to have that urgency'
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