FRESH FACES ON THE D-LINE: A LONDONER PLAYING FOR AMERICA’S TEAM
The first Cowboys defensive lineman to record a full sack during the 2014 season arrived on the roster via a circuitous route from London, England to Big D. That’s right, the Cowboys have an Englishman on the team: #58 defensive end Jack Crawford.
Born & raised in London, England, Crawford grew up in a place where ‘football’ is soccer, and the game played by the Cowboys is called ‘American Football’. His favorite sport, however, was basketball. He was awfully good at it, too. Crawford played on England’s National Team for ages under-16 and under-18. He wanted to be an NBA star in America, so he made a huge leap of faith.“I moved to the United States in 2005, my sophomore year of high school,” recalls Crawford. “I was 16 years old when I left home so it was tough for my mom when I moved to a different country. But I was so set on following my dream that she didn’t want to hold me back.”
Crawford moved to Longport, New Jersey and lived with a host family. He found a warm welcome at the home of the D’Andrea family. “The D’Andrea family are the nicest people in the world,” says Crawford. “So they are like my own family and I can never repay them. I wouldn’t be here today if they had not taken me in.”
During his junior year of high school, he started playing American football. He excelled, obviously, and was offered several college scholarships. He chose to attend Penn State where he was teammates with Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee.
After starring in college, Crawford was drafted in the 5th round by the Oakland Raiders in 2012. He spent his first two NFL seasons with the Raiders, but was released by the team this summer at the end of training camp. Two days later he was signed by the Cowboys and practicing at Valley Ranch.
Crawford did not play in the regular season opener against the 49ers, but he’s been part of the gameday rotation along the defensive line since the Week 2 win at Tennessee. In the Week 4 huge win over the Saints, however, Crawford recorded the first full sack of the season by a Cowboys defensive lineman. It came when he tackled the Saints punter on a fake punt. Because the punter was behind the line of scrimmage, and was attempting to pass, Crawford got credit for a sack.
So the first sack came from a dude from London…on a fake punt. Seriously, who can figure out this crazy game? And, yes, Crawford is well aware of the fact that the Cowboys will play in London on November 9th at Wembley Stadium.
The hometown boy will be the most popular player in the stadium on that day…a Londoner playing American football for America’s Team.
5 Oct
2014
Born & raised in London, England, Crawford grew up in a place where ‘football’ is soccer, and the game played by the Cowboys is called ‘American Football’. His favorite sport, however, was basketball. He was awfully good at it, too. Crawford played on England’s National Team for ages under-16 and under-18. He wanted to be an NBA star in America, so he made a huge leap of faith.“I moved to the United States in 2005, my sophomore year of high school,” recalls Crawford. “I was 16 years old when I left home so it was tough for my mom when I moved to a different country. But I was so set on following my dream that she didn’t want to hold me back.”
Crawford moved to Longport, New Jersey and lived with a host family. He found a warm welcome at the home of the D’Andrea family. “The D’Andrea family are the nicest people in the world,” says Crawford. “So they are like my own family and I can never repay them. I wouldn’t be here today if they had not taken me in.”
During his junior year of high school, he started playing American football. He excelled, obviously, and was offered several college scholarships. He chose to attend Penn State where he was teammates with Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee.
After starring in college, Crawford was drafted in the 5th round by the Oakland Raiders in 2012. He spent his first two NFL seasons with the Raiders, but was released by the team this summer at the end of training camp. Two days later he was signed by the Cowboys and practicing at Valley Ranch.
Crawford did not play in the regular season opener against the 49ers, but he’s been part of the gameday rotation along the defensive line since the Week 2 win at Tennessee. In the Week 4 huge win over the Saints, however, Crawford recorded the first full sack of the season by a Cowboys defensive lineman. It came when he tackled the Saints punter on a fake punt. Because the punter was behind the line of scrimmage, and was attempting to pass, Crawford got credit for a sack.
So the first sack came from a dude from London…on a fake punt. Seriously, who can figure out this crazy game? And, yes, Crawford is well aware of the fact that the Cowboys will play in London on November 9th at Wembley Stadium.
The hometown boy will be the most popular player in the stadium on that day…a Londoner playing American football for America’s Team.
This post was written by sports