Pick your poison.

That's the cruel dilemma facing defensive coordinators when they plan against the potent Saint Louis offense.

Senior wideout Billy Ray Stutzmann's speed kills. Slotback Lucas Gonsalves is a swerving dervish, a scoring threat on both kick returns and receptions.

Austin Wakinekona runs tough after hitting the holes busted open by the Crusaders' bruising offensive line. And heady junior quarterback Jeremy Higgins already has turned in two 300-plus-yard passing performances and shown impressive command of coach John Hao's run-and-shoot offense.

“;In this type of offense, if a guy is open, the ball's gonna go to him,”; Hao said.

Saint Louis sits atop the Interscholastic League of Honolulu at 2-0 (4-0 overall), after the top-ranked Crusaders claimed a hard-earned win over No. 3 Kamehameha, 28-20, on Friday.

Higgins was 22-for-33 for 330 yards with four touchdown passes, connecting with Trevor Mau and Gonsalves on scoring passes in the first half. Then he hooked up with Stutzmann twice in the second half, the last in gut-check time at fourth and 2 from the 3-yard line to help clinch the win.

Take Stutzmann or Gonsalves away, as Punahou tried to do, and Higgins will go to one of the other capable Crusaders receivers, like Jordan Fukumoto, who racked up nine catches for 119 yards and a score.

“;We don't have any 'lock' routes,”; said Hao. “;It makes the offense deadlier.”;

The previous week, the lefty picked apart Punahou with 360 yards passing, three scoring tosses and a 35-yard touchdown run as time expired.

For the season, Higgins has 14 touchdowns (11 passing, 3 rushing). His lone interception came in the Crusaders' first game at Mililani last month.

“;Jeremy's very smart,”; Hao said. “;He's like a coach in a player's body.”;

Higgins' football pedigree undoubtedly helped his development.

Jeremy's brother Cameron (Saint Louis '06) also quarterbacked the Crusaders and now is flinging it around as a sophomore starter at Weber State.

“;(Cameron) helps me a lot,”; Jeremy said. “;He calls me before and after every game.”;

Jeremy's brother Zach (Saint Louis '07) is a redshirt freshman defensive back at Weber State, and his father, Jim, played for Ron and Cal Lee at Kaiser in the 1970s. An uncle, John Higgins, was Hao's teammate at Saint Louis and UH.

“;Football is in the blood,”; said Hao of the Higgins clan.

After serving as Micah Mamiya's backup last year, Higgins worked hard over the summer to take the helm of the Crusaders offense.

“;My dad told me, 'A lot of guys out there dream about being Saint Louis quarterback. When you get your shot, you gotta make the most of it,'”; Higgins said.

Jeremy and Cameron trained together every day during the offseason, working on timing and technique.

“;It looks like all that hard work paid off,”; Cameron said. “;He's doing a heck of a good job, leadership-wise.”;

Of course, it helps to have pass catchers like Stutzmann and Gonsalves, who are threats to score every time they touch the ball.

“;With Billy, when someone's pressed up on him, I know he's gonna go by them,”; Higgins said.

Mindful of Stutzmann's speed, opposing defenses have keyed on stopping him this season.

“;Everybody knows about Billy, and that opens up everything else,”; said Hao. “;A lot of times, (defenses) take him away and when they finally go 1-on-1 with him, it's 'See ya.' “;

Stutzmann put his breakaway ability on display with an 85-yard touchdown reception against Punahou, the highlight of a five-catch, 139-yard effort.

On Friday, he came up big again with the two clutch second-half scoring catches against Kamehameha.

Still, it can't be easy being Billy Ray Stutzmann.

After all, the eyes of the Crusader nation have been upon him since he was playing youth football for the Kapahulu Raiders, and he grew up watching his brother Craig star at Saint Louis and UH.

“;There's a little pressure, but it's mainly motivation, because you want to do good for (the fans and alumni),”; Stutzmann said. “;It motivates you to be your best.”;

The 6-foot-1, 170-pound Stutzmann has honed his speed on the track and soaked up tips during offseason workouts with the receivers at UH, where Craig now is a graduate assistant.

Stutzmann also credits advice from his big brother for his strong work ethic.

“;(Craig) tells me that you just have to try your hardest every day and keep working to get better,”; said Billy Ray, who made an oral commitment to play for Hawaii in July.

The reserved Stutzmann lets his on-field accomplishments speak for him.

“;To me, actions speak louder than words,”; he said. “;I just like to work hard and do everything I can to help the other guys out.”;

A second team All-State selection last year, Stutzmann has four scoring grabs this season among his 16 catches (309 total receiving yards) and gaudy 19.3 yards per catch average.

With all the attention Stutzmann attracts, the multipurpose Gonsalves almost gets lost in the shuffle.

But the 5-foot-9, 165-pound Gonsalves leads the team with 25 catches for 338 yards and four touchdown receptions.

The do-everything slotback, also a second-team state pick last year, is just as dangerous on kick returns as he is after catching the ball. Against Farrington, Gonsalves returned a kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown. He even serves as holder on kick attempts.

Gonsalves, who plays guard for the Crusaders basketball team and second base for the baseball team, uses perceived slights about his lack of size to fire himself up.

“;It just makes me hungry to do good, because everybody's doubting me,”; Gonsalves said.

A hungry Gonsalves is bad news for Saint Louis foes. He has scored in all four of the Crusaders' games this season and hauled in nine catches for 142 yards and a second-quarter score against Kamehameha.

The Crusaders have a bye this week, but the trio isn't looking past anyone.

“;You gotta take it one game at a time and prepare for each team every week,”; Stutzmann said. “;You can't look forward and you can't look backwards.”;

“;We went through losing the state championship the past two years, so we're hungry for that,”; Stutzmann added. “;We want to make a statement this year.”;