The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Crozier a bright spot in a rough season
STORRS — Considering the obstacles Ryan Crozier has faced, not one of his teammates or his coaches would have even raised an eyebrow if he informed them a year ago that he was ready to transition to the next chapter of his life.
Crozier was still recovering from his second serious knee injury when he saw his teammates, including some with a season of eligibility remaining, take part in the 2017 Senior Day festivities.
Even though Crozier had months of grueling rehabilitation ahead of him, it never crossed his mind to hang up his cleats at the end of last season.
“It is just my love for the game, I don’t plan to stop playing until somebody tells me I can’t,” Crozier said.
Crozier’s final game at UConn will come on Saturday when Temple comes to Rentschler Field for a 3:30 p.m. game. He will be among the departing players greeting family members in a ceremony before the game.
It is easy to recite the individual statistics of classmates like quarterback David Pindell, receiver Hergy Mayala and tight end Aaron McLean, but it is harder to quantify the impact Crozier has made this season and in the previous five years. However, one good place to start is the fact that UConn is on pace to set a program record for best yards per carry average and likely to finish with the third most rushing yards in program history.
“I like what he’s done for us at center, he makes all the calls,” UConn coach Randy Edsall said. “Ryan plays with a little bit of an edge to him which we need and need more guys to have. He is a competitor, it is important to him.
“From a coach’s perspective, you really appreciate a guy like Ryan Crozier. You can tell how
important football is to these guys. For Ryan to have the issues that he’s had from an injury standpoint and for him to just keep working and battling back, doing the things that he did in his rehabilitation to get back on the field, it tells you how much he loves the game and how much he loves to play the game and how much he loves what the game is about. You know you are always going to get an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay when it comes to Ryan Crozier. He is not going to cheat the system.”
Edsall isn’t alone in singing Crozier’s praises. Pindell and Crozier were roommates on UConn’s road trips and the recordbreaking quarterback couldn’t come up with one annoying tendency about his roommate. Starting right tackle Matt Peart and Crozier will be a part of the same starting offensive line for the 27th and final time against Temple. Peart didn’t need much prodding to rave about his teammate.
“His approach to the game is crazy,” Peart said. “His preparation is so stout, I try to bump up my preparation to match him. He is also cool and composed when it comes to the
field, when everything goes haywire he is the guy to rally the guys.
“I feel like he is the best center I have ever worked with. He is definitely my brother for life, his legacy is solidified here and it is tough because the end of the season is what it is, but if you look inside and see how he approaches every workout, you can see he is a hard worker and I wish him nothing but success.”
Crozier came to UConn from the tradition-rich St. Thomas Aquinas High School program in Ft. Lauderdale, a program that has 16 alums on active NFL rosters. Crozier was a member of two state championship teams, but the wins have been harder to come by at the college level for Crozier. It hasn’t helped that Crozier has played for four different offensive coordinators and four different offensive line coaches.
“I take it as such a positive because I have been able to learn so much stuff offensive line wise with all of those coaches, just different things that stick with you and just being able to take that with your game and it elevates that so much,” Crozier said.