KEVIN DELUCA: Worth the wait

Kevin DeLuca's football career has been filled with shadows. Growing up in the shadows of his two older brothers, and playing in the shadows of two all-Ivy linebackers at Penn, DeLuca has finally been given the opportunity to show what he can do on the gridiron. It has been well worth the wait. After two seasons of anonymity, senior linebacker Kevin DeLuca has burst onto the scene like an uncaged bull. His development hindered by a season-ending injury his sophomore year, and a frustrating logjam at linebacker during his junior season, DeLuca has emphatically established himself as a bona-fide star. DeLuca's superb play and relentless style have helped bolster a stifling Penn defense that ranks first in Division I-AA, allowing only 6.8 points and 211.8 yards per game. He is currently second on the Quakers in tackles (behind senior linebacker Pat Goodwillie), and has solidified the middle of the defense. DeLuca recorded nine tackles (and one sack) during the Quakers' 20th consecutive win over Harvard -- a typical performance for the 6-foot-1, 205-pound linebacker. After last May's graduation of all-Ivy linebacker Andy Berlin, a void existed for Penn. Goodwillie returned, but there was no one else proven at the position. DeLuca has since taken the reins and has erased any traces of anxiety over Berlin's replacement. "There was a lot of hype in the beginning of the year over who was going to fill Andy's shoes," senior offensive lineman Kevin Lozinak said. "DeLuca stepped in and has done a great job, and I don't think anyone had a question that he could do just that." DeLuca has turned more than a few heads with his play, and has left running backs wishing they never suited up. His big games have been huge -- witness DeLuca's 22-tackle thrashing of Dartmouth, or his 20-tackle afternoon against Yale -- devastating numbers for one man to record. "I think that Kevin has stepped in and has done as good a job as anyone in the league," Penn defensive coordinator Mike Toop said. "I wouldn't trade him for any other linebacker." Weighing in at barely more than 200 pounds, DeLuca receives plenty of wisecracks about his slimness. After all, a linebacker is supposed to be in the mold of Dick Butkus, a hulking beast with fire shooting out of his nostrils. But don't let DeLuca's lack of bulk fool you, he packs as big a punch as anyone. "People try to run the football right at him," Toop said. "What surprises a lot of opponents is that he is much stronger than people give him credit for." Penn's defensive scheme is partly responsible for DeLuca's eye-popping numbers. The interior defensive linemen take on as many blockers as humanly possible, setting up DeLuca and Goodwillie for dozens of tackles. But this is easier said than done, and DeLuca has responded with a relentless desire to always be around the ball. "If there's anyone who I don't mind taking on blocks and tackling offensive linemen for, it's Kevin," Penn senior nose guard Chris Johnson said. "There's no one else I'd rather have behind me making the tackles." · That Kevin grew up to be a linebacker seems genetic. He was raised in a linebacker-rich family. His father, Ronald, played at Kutztown, and his two older brothers were collegiate linebackers: Brian at Boston University and Ron at Gettysburg. Beginning at age seven, DeLuca played linebacker in a Pop Warner league. During this time, his two brothers played together through high school, constantly teaching Kevin the tricks of the trade. Being the youngest, he was often pushed around, but he is grateful to his brothers for their guidance. "To this day, they were the best linebackers I've ever seen," DeLuca said. "They used to give me old high school game films and taught me how to play." It seems fitting DeLuca ended up at Penn because of attention given to a teammate. Defensive ends coach Ray Priore had been viewing films of one of DeLuca's teammates at Lenape High School in Medford, N.J., and was intrigued with DeLuca's play, and eventually gave him a call. "I thought that it was a joke," DeLuca said. "I was being recruited by several Patriot League schools, Bucknell and Fordham, and thought that Penn was only looking at my friend. After visiting the school and meeting the amazing class that been had recruited, I fell in love with the school." His family still comes to watch Kevin carry the torch of the DeLuca linebacking clan. As his final season winds down, Kevin takes it all in stride. "I think that it's going to hit me later on that my football career is over," DeLuca said. "When it does hit, it's going to hit like a ton of bricks." This year's seniors will undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest classes in the history of Penn football. They have risen to the top of the polls and have equaled the Division I-AA record for consecutive victories. When the names are read, the loudest applause will likely be for Terrance Stokes or Pat Goodwillie, but waiting patiently for his moment in the sun, casting a shadow of his own, is Kevin DeLuca.