Slippery Rock's Chad Kuhn caps college career as one of Division II's top defensive linemen

Slippery Rock’s Chad Kuhn fit the mold.

The 6-foot-3, 240-pound high-energy defensive end was one of eight national finalists for the 2021 Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year Award, presented annually by the Manheim Touchdown Club.

Kuhn’s strength, speed, mobility and ruggedness on the gridiron, along with a tireless high-motor approach to the game, propelled him to national prominence.

A redshirt senior from Vandergrift, Kuhn joined offensive tackle Brandon Nicholson from Notre Dame (Ohio) as the two representatives on the national ballot from Super Region One, which includes all schools in the Pennsylvania State Athletic, Mountain East, Northeast 10 and Great Midwest Athletic conferences.

“It’s a great, great accomplishment to be considered one of the best D-2 linemen in the country,” SRU coach Shawn Lutz said. “It’s just an awesome achievement for Chad. It’s all about his work ethic. He’s such an explosive football player. He’s so quick off the ball. He’s really a mismatch.

“He’s just like a linebacker blitzing off the end. He was double-teamed a lot, similar to T.J. Watt of the Steelers.”

Senior offensive and defensive linemen from all schools in Division II are eligible to be nominated for the award, which is voted on by the nation’s sports information directors. The top two vote-getters in each of the four NCAA Super Regions advance to the national ballot.

“Being named a finalist for the Gene Upshaw Award was a tremendous honor,” Kuhn said. “The finalists are the top linemen in all of Division II, so to be recognized as one of them was awesome.”

Slippery Rock has had a national finalist in eight seasons since the award’s inception in 2004. Kuhn was the sixth SRU player in the past eight years to be named a finalist.

“The person I tried to emulate in my football career is probably T.J. Watt,” Kuhn said. “We have similar body types, and he has a relentless motor. Good things happen when you have a good motor.”

A four-year letterman in football and wrestling at Kiski Area High School, Kuhn was a first-team all-conference selection for the second year in a row after anchoring The Rock’s defensive line with nine sacks and 11 tackles for loss this fall. He also forced four fumbles and finished with 52 stops.

Kuhn was a consensus preseason All-American following a 2019 campaign in which he earned All-American honors from both the Associated Press and Division II Conference Commissioners Association.

After never playing a snap on defense before going to Slippery Rock, Kuhn embraced the change from high school quarterback to defensive end and became one the best linemen in the country. Over four seasons, he racked up 29 career sacks and 45 tackles for loss.

Kuhn helped lead Slippery Rock to three PSAC West titles, three trips to the NCAA playoffs, including two to the quarterfinals, and one trip to the national semifinals. SRU went 41-10 over his four seasons.

“My senior season was kind of bittersweet,” Kuhn said. “I really wanted to win another PSAC championship, and it hurt to fall short. However, making the playoffs again was an honor and I loved this season with my boys. My career at Slippery Rock was just simply amazing. Aside from all the championships and accolades, the very best thing about my career here is definitely the relationships I made with my lifelong friends who started out as teammates.

“I would like to say ‘thank you’ to all my teammates, especially my boys on the D-line. I would not have had the career I had without them. We pushed each other every day, and that great competition is what made us all better.”

Kuhn ranks third in program history in career sacks and forced fumbles, and fourth in tackles for loss.

“He was our team captain on defense,” Lutz said. “He’s had a great career, that’s for sure. He is going down as playing with one of the most successful senior classes in Rock history.”

Kuhn sat out a redshirt season in 2016 as a 6-2, 200-pound linebacker. He is a PSAC Scholar Athlete and a safety management major.

Dylan Pasquali, an offensive tackle at Ferris State, was announced as this year’s winner of the Gene Upshaw Award. He received an automatic invite to participate in the 97th annual East-West Shrine Bowl, which will be played Feb. 3 in Las Vegas.