https://www.ocregister.com/2021/10/23/video-review-reveals-that-capistrano-valley-qb-trey-kukuk-set-oc-record-for-passing-yards/

Video review reveals that Capistrano Valley QB Trey Kukuk set OC record for passing yards

Kukuk finished with 615 yards passing, breaking the OC record by 2 yards

​​​​​​​

By OCVARSITY SPORTS STAFF and MICHAEL HUNTLEY | mhuntley@scng.com |

PUBLISHED: October 23, 2021 at 12:29 p.m. | UPDATED: October 23, 2021 at 4:10 p.m.

Capistrano Valley quarterback Trey Kukuk did break the Orange County record for passing yards in a game Friday night, finishing with 615 yards, Coach Sean Curtis said Saturday morning.

The Cougars originally had him with 611 yards, short of the county mark of 613 yards set by El Toro’s Conner Manning in 2012.

But after watching a video of the game and doing a play-by-play review of the stats, Curtis said, it was discovered that Kukuk had passed for 4 yards more than he had been credited with on Friday night.

Kukuk’s record-setting effort came in a wild Sea View League contest against Trabuco Hills, which the Cougars won, 59-56, with Dane Benedix’s 30-yard touchdown catch with six seconds left.

Kukuk completed 40 of 61 passes with six touchdowns to go with the eighth-most passing yards in state history. He also rushed for 102 yards on 18 carries with two touchdowns.

The completions, passing attempts and total touchdowns are all school records.

Curtis said that because the Cougars were in such an intense game, no one on his staff realized that Kukuk was closing in on the county record.

“Fourth quarter, we knew he was at a decent number,” Curtis said, “but we just had to keep fighting and clawing to get as many points as we could.

“It wasn’t like we were blowing a team out and kept airing it out. We needed every completion, we needed every first down. He was really feeling it and took the reins and made a couple audibles which was good to see.”

Curtis said that OCVarsity reporter Manny Alvarez informed Kukuk after the game that he nearly broke the passing record.

“I was laughing because when Manny told him that he was a couple yards short he said, ‘I guess I’ll have to go break it next week,’ which I thought was a pretty cool response,” Curtis said. “That’s just how he is.”

Kukuk said that he also was entirely focused on trying to get the victory and had no idea that he was closing in on the all-time mark.

“I was just focusing on getting the win, and that final drive was insane and an amazing play by Dane Benedix (for the winning catch),” he said.

“Owen Taylor, Mark Hopkins and Dane Benedix all had over 100 yards and at least two touchdown catches. All three of them really stepped up. My offensive line did an amazing job in that last drive holding up strong. All the credit goes to them.”

Kukuk received a lot of praise and congratulations via social media late Friday night and Saturday morning.

“It definitely didn’t hit me last night, but it’s starting to sink in today,” he said. “It’s really humbling to have that record. I’m still just thinking about the win and how we needed that for the playoffs.

“It felt special doing what we did against a very good team in Trabuco. It made it that much more special for the team to come out like that against a league opponent in a must-win situation.”

Cougars offensive coordinator Dan Selway commented that Kukuk’s strengths go beyond his physical skills.

“His number one skill set is his leadership and competitiveness, all of that is just so elite,” Selway said. “That’s why this is so rewarding because he is humble and such a great kid.”