Collected Wisdom: Eric Crouch

Published: April 13, 2008

One of the most memorable plays in Nebraska football history turned out to be a forgettable one for Oklahoma.

Quarterback Eric Crouch caught a 63-yard touchdown off a wide receiver reverse pass for the game-winning score against the Sooners in 2001.

Crouch would go on to win the Heisman Trophy that season — thanks in part to that play — and led the Cornhuskers to the national championship game where they lost to Miami.

But like several other Heisman winners, Crouch, an option quarterback, never made it in the NFL. He left the St. Louis Rams, the team that drafted him as a wide receiver, after only a week following a leg injury.

Crouch had stints with NFL Europe and the Canadian Football League, and last fall signed to play in the upstart All-American Football League. But the AAFL postponed its inaugural season to at least 2009.

After he was signed and summarily released by the Green Bay Packers in 2003, Crouch got involved with a small business in Omaha, Neb., that sells recreational equipment.

But Crouch hasn't ruled out playing pro football again.

He was in Norman last week to throw passes to former Sooner wide receiver Malcolm Kelly at OU's pro day in front of more than 35 NFL scouts. Crouch is hoping the opportunity might lead to at least one more chance of playing football.

When I think about Nebraska-OU I just remember the rivalry. Those were always big games, something you get pumped up for. It was enjoyable. When I look back at my college career, I look at those games.

Since the Big 12 came along, the rivalry has slid, you don't see Oklahoma every year, you see them every couple of years. But it's still a rivalry. They're a great program with great tradition, the same as Nebraska.

It's an honor to come through here and look at the players on the wall and get a feel for what Oklahoma goes through compared to what I had in Lincoln.

There's really not another play that sticks out like the throwback pass. There were a couple of runs that I had my junior year I remember, which I see once in a while at Nebraska when they pop it up on the big screen.

The most memorable play seen by a lot of people was the throwback pass. That basically won the game for us in 2001.

What Bo Pelini brings to the table is a guy who relates to the players. I think he's a young guy; he just turned 40, so he's a pretty young coach. What I noticed best about coach Pelini is that players are motivated by him, they listen to him. He's a fiery guy, a guy you want to go play for. A lot of similarities in the fire and motivating Frank Solich brought to the table.

He's going to bring some of the tradition back to Nebraska. He's going to run the ball a little bit more, and that's the thing Nebraska has founded itself on. Nebraska is known for being a physical team and dominating in the fourth quarter, which is something that we lost. I think we were more of a finesse team, throwing the ball 75 percent of the time. It's going to take some time, but I think there are some great players in that system.

The first thing you notice when you see Malcolm Kelly is his size and stature. He's a big guy, which is what the NFL is looking for. He's a big kid, a strong kid. You can tell by throwing with him that he has a motor and a heart and he wants to win games. That's what it's all about, winning.

Usually winning the Heisman Trophy has to be brought up to me. I'm not the type of person who wakes up every morning and says, hey, I won the Heisman Trophy. I look at it as a great achievement. It's an honor every day to still have that award. It's been an honor for me.

You get labeled as a Heisman winner, but for me it's not what you've done in the past, but what you're going to do, how I'm going to get better. I always wanted more, which I think is human nature. You accomplish one thing, then you try and go and achieve the next thing in life, which for me was trying to make it in pro football, which has been a struggle for me.

The Heisman Trophy is at home in Omaha. It's only left my house once.

I think I would've turned down the offer to come out here and throw to Malcolm if I wasn't still interested in playing. Since I was in shape and throwing it was a good opportunity for me and for Malcolm. I still believe in my abilities to throw the football; that's the reason I'm here. I truly believe that this is the place for me as far as my professional career is concerned, so if I get an opportunity out of this that would be great, and if not, I'm OK with that.

I was 23. I was young and dumb. I wish I had made the decision then to play quarterback. Being 29, I would've said, I'm playing quarterback, this is what I want to do. But you look at things around you, this is the NFL, I just need to get my foot in the door.

But it wasn't the right thing for me, it really wasn't. When I was drafted as a receiver in St. Louis, I knew it wasn't right for me. But I could've handled it differently. I didn't have to leave within a week. I could've asked to be traded, gone on (injured reserve), taken a leave of absence. But being 23, a little hurt and a little bit burned out from my college career, all those things came together. It's been tough, but I've enjoyed playing in a lot of different places and meeting a lot of different people.

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