Kevin Robert Kaesviharn (born August 29, 1976) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly dif ...

. He was signed by the

Iowa Barnstormers The Iowa Barnstormers are a professional indoor football team based in Des Moines, Iowa. They are currently members of the Indoor Football League (IFL). They play their home games at Wells Fargo Arena, known in indoor football circles as "The ...

as a

street free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 1998. He played college football at Augustana. Kaesviharn was also a member of the

San Francisco Demons The San Francisco Demons (originally named San Jose Demons) were a short-lived springtime American football team based in San Francisco, California. This team was part of the failed XFL begun by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment and ...

, Green Bay Packers, Cincinnati Bengals,

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

and

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

Early years

He was born in

Paramount, California Paramount is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. According to the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 54,098, down from 55,266 at the 2000 census. Paramount is part of the Greater Los Angeles Area and is bord ...

. His father is an immigrant from

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

.Cincinnati Enquirer: "Math teacher adding to Bengals lore - Kaesviharn has 3 interceptions - tied for best on team" By John Erardi
January 5, 2002 At Lakeville High School in

Lakeville, Minnesota Lakeville is an exurb of Minneapolis-Saint Paul, and the largest city in Dakota County, Minnesota, United States. It is approximately south of both downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul along Interstate Highway 35. Starting as a flouri ...

, Kaesviharn

lettered Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

in football, track, and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

College career

Graduating in 1994, he attended Augustana College in

Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...

, an

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

school and was a three-year starter for the Vikings. He finished his collegiate career with 167 tackles, six interceptions, and 34 passes defensed. As a freshman, Kaesviharn was credited with seven tackles (four solo) and one pass defense. In 1995, he started at cornerback, recording 45 tackles (29 solo), two interceptions, 10 passes defended and two fumble recoveries. He had a stand out year in 1996, and was named an All-

North Central Conference The North Central Conference (NCC), also known as North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, was a college athletic conference which operated in the north central United States. It participated in the NCAA's Division II. History The NCC ...

Second-team defensive back, picking up 47 tackles (26 solo), two interceptions and 11 passes defended. Kaesviharn finished his collegiate career at

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

in 1997 as a four-year

letter winner In sports or activities in the United States, a letterman is a high school or college student who has met a specified level of participation or performance on a varsity team. Overview The term comes from the practice of awarding each such parti ...

. Shortly after his senior season he participated in the Division II All-Star game and was named First-team All-North Central Conference at cornerback, Academic All-North Central Conference,

GTE GTE Corporation, formerly General Telephone & Electronics Corporation (1955–1982), was the largest independent telephone company in the United States during the days of the Bell System. The company operated from 1926, with roots tracing furth ...

Academic All-American District VII Second-team and

Daktronics Daktronics is an American company based in Brookings, South Dakota that designs, manufactures, sells, and services video displays, scoreboards, digital billboards, dynamic message signs, sound systems, and related products. Founded in 1968 by ...

Division II All-Midwest Region Second-team. At season end, he was ranked third on the team with 68 tackles (44 of which were solo), and led the team with two interceptions and 12 pass breakups. As a member of Augustana's Track and Field Program, he placed fourth in the

triple jump The triple jump, sometimes referred to as the hop, step and jump or the hop, skip and jump, is a track and field event, similar to the long jump. As a group, the two events are referred to as the "horizontal jumps". The competitor runs down th ...

and sixth in the

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a ...

in the North Central Conference Outdoor Championships. Kaesviharn graduated with a degree in Mathematics and

Physical Education Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorat ...

Professional career

Iowa Barnstormers

After going undrafted in the

1998 NFL Draft The 1998 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 18–19, 1998, at the Theater at M ...

, Kaesviharn spent one year out of football where he worked as a long term substitute teacher at Sioux Falls (SD) Washington High School, before signing with the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

. In 1999, Kaesviharn was named the Barnstormers' Rookie of the Year, leading the team with five interceptions for the season despite having played in only 10 games before breaking a bone in his foot. His strong success continued into 2000, when Kaesviharn was named to the All-Arena First-team at

Defensive Specialist In arena football, a specialist was a player, other than a quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive plato ...

, as the third player in AFL history to register more than 100 tackles in a single season. His 107 tackles were ranked second in the AFL overall. He set a Barnstormers record that year with 10 interceptions (for 81 yards) in one season. In his two years with the Barnstormers, Kaesviharn recorded 133 tackles, 15 interceptions, 19 pass deflections, one fumble recovery, and caught six passes for 93 yards as a wide receiver.

San Francisco Demons

In 2000, Kaesviharn was drafted by the San Francisco Demons for the inaugural season of the XFL. Over the course of the season he was credited with 41 tackles (32 solo), three interceptions and three passes defended. He recorded 3 punt returns for a total of 25 yards (averaging 8.3 yards per carry). The Demons went 5-5 for the season, finishing second in their division and going on to the

Million Dollar Game The Million Dollar Game, also known as the (2001 or 1st) XFL Championship, was the lone championship of the original 2001 incarnation of the XFL. The game was played on Saturday, April 21, 2001 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Western Div ...

vs. the

Los Angeles Xtreme The Los Angeles Xtreme was a professional American football team based in Los Angeles, California. The team was a member of the XFL, begun by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment and by NBC, a major television network in the United Stat ...

. On April 21, 2001, the Xtreme defeated the Demons 38-6.

Green Bay Packers

In 2001, Kaesviharn started his NFL career signing as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

with the Green Bay Packers, but was waived just before their season opener.

Cincinnati Bengals

He was signed to the Cincinnati Bengals' squad four weeks later. During his stretch with the Bengals, Kaesviharn played in 87 games and logged 363 tackles (286 solo), six sacks, 15 interceptions, 28 passes defended and four fumble recoveries; one of which resulted in a touchdown when he returned the ball three yards on a Lee Suggs fumble in the second quarter vs. the Cleveland Browns on October 17, 2004. In 2006, he had his best year as a Bengal, despite only playing in 14 games, and starting in seven of them. Kaesviharn recorded six interceptions, along with four sacks for the season.

New Orleans Saints

On March 13, 2007, after five full seasons with the Bengals, Kaesviharn signed a four-year contract with the

. He was released on March 26, 2009.

Carolina Panthers

Kaesviharn was signed by the

on August 24, 2009 after

Charles Godfrey underwent surgery on a broken hand. Wide receiver Jason Carter was waived to make room for Kaesviharn on the roster.

Tennessee Titans

Kaesviharn signed with the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their hom ...

on September 29, 2009.

References

External links

Math teacher adding to Bengals loreCarolina Panthers bio

Tennessee Titans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaesviharn, Kevin 1976 births Living people Sportspeople from Los Angeles County, California Players of American football from California Players of American football from Minnesota American football cornerbacks American football safeties Augustana (South Dakota) Vikings football players Iowa Barnstormers players San Francisco Demons players Cincinnati Bengals players New Orleans Saints players Carolina Panthers players Tennessee Titans players American sportspeople of Thai descent Green Bay Packers players People from Paramount, California