The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Midview grad Crum answers call for Kent State
It appears backup quarterback Dustin Crum is forcing Kent State coach Sean Lewis to think twice.
As for the Midview graduate, it’s unclear if Crum is even the backup anymore.
Lewis isn’t letting on about the state of the Golden Flashes’ starting QB situation, but it appears Crum is definitely in the mix after the best performance of his career on Sept. 7.
“That’s what Coach Lewis preaches, compete constantly and just go about your business in practice. Be ready for the moment. That’s what I tried to do and it worked out for me.” — Midview grad, Kent State QB Dustin Crum
Woody Barrett, a transfer from Auburn, emerged from spring ball and August camp as Kent’s starting QB, but after a Week 1 loss to Arizona State, Lewis told Crum just before the team kicked off against Kennesaw State he was starting.
The 6-foot-3 native of Grafton responded with a clutch performance that gave the Golden Flashes (11) their first win of the season.
Against Kennesaw State, Crum — who holds Lorain County records for career passing yards (8,585) and touchdown passes (103) — was 17 of 23 passing for 193 yards and a TD, and added 21 rushing yards and another
score.
Crum’s biggest moment of the game was with Kent trailing by three late in the fourth quarter. He orchestrated a 49-yard drive in the final 1 minute, 47 seconds of regulation that produced the game-tying 38-yard field goal by Matthew Trickett. The team later won, 2623, in overtime.
“It was really cool to be a part of that drive, and trust in my teammates,” said Crum by phone Sept. 10. “It was great to see everything come together as a group. Everyone felt the weight come off our shoulders getting the first win of the season.”
Lewis didn’t give Crum much time to think about the start, which came as a surprise since Barrett started every game in 2018. That coaching decision might have caught Crum by surprise,
but it didn’t mean he wasn’t ready, and the proof was in his performance.
“(Coach) let me know, and I got locked in and was ready to go,” said Crum. “That’s what Coach Lewis preaches, compete constantly and just go about your business in practice. Be ready for the moment. That’s what I tried to do and it worked out for me.”
Crum described the moment just before kickoff as nervous excitement, but it wasn’t a first-time experience. As a freshman, he started two games, and then in 2018 saw action in nine games as Barrett’s backup.
That time as a backup “trained” Crum for his big moment against Kennesaw State, and that mindset likely won’t change going forward this season.
Lewis told reporters during
his weekly news conference on Sept. 9 his team has “two really good quarterbacks. We’re going to play them both, and we’re going to find a way to win by playing them both.”
Crum said he expects not much to change from a preparation perspective for Kent’s Sept. 14 game at Auburn.
“Just trying to give my coaches and teammates confidence in me,” he said.
Lewis hinted who starts each week will be determined by performance in practice.
“It’s about the results in the day in and day out preparation for things,” he told Ohio.com. “Playing time’s not going to be handed to anyone. They’ve got to earn it, the same way you have to earn things in life. It’s like that with every single position on this team.”