 TORONTO, ONTARIO - A onetime Marine is proving that you're never too old to pursue a dream. At age 31, Brandon Crawford, a former Marine, is playing football following his military career.
Crawford is a 6-foot-3, 248-pound starting defensive end with the Ball State University Cardinals, who are living out a dream of their own playing in their first Bowl game in more than 11 years.
The Cardinals play the Rutgers University Scarlet Knights in the 2008 International Bowl at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario on Saturday, January 5, 2008.
"It's a great feeling, words can't explain it," he said this week in preparation for the game. "Just to be able to here, to have a successful season in order to be eligible to even be selected to play in a Bowl game, words can't explain it. I'm living in the moment right now, just trying to work hard every day so that we can be successful at the end of the day."
The elder statesman of the team, who said he doesn't feel like an outcast on the team because of his age, joined the Marines in 1999, three years after graduating high school in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The native of South Bend attended boot camp in San Diego, California, did combat training just north of that in Oceanside and was later stationed in North Carolina. He worked in a clerical position, processing orders from commanding officers, putting packages together and auditing record books. He worked behind the computer most of the time in an office and worked his way up to corporal.
Four years after joining the Marines, he had a burning desire to pursue his education and play football, so he enrolled at Ball State and tried out for the football team as a walk-on.
"I wanted to just go out and see if I had a possibility to play and it just so happens it worked out for me and I was able to," he said. "I always had that one desire in my heart. I just knew if I had the possibility to do it, I was going to go out and try and work hard and see how everything worked out for me.
"I was 10 years removed from the game, so being able to come back and learn how to play correctly (was an adjustment). I always played sports as a young kid, but it was just being able to do it the right way and help my team out."
He was red-shirted his first year, so he officially began playing last year and this year became a starter. He leads his team with 17 tackles for losses and eight sacks and is tied for 21st in the nation with 1.33 tackles for loss per game. He posted a career highlight this year blocking a potential game-winning field goal against Navy in the final play of regulation. Ball State prevailed in overtime.
His remarkable success is quite impressive, but Crawford is able to put into perspective.
"I don't focus on it too much," he said. "I want to keeping working hard because there's still more stuff I want to do. I don't try to dwell on it too much, but it is a great feeling. It is a great experience."
He sees himself as a role model for people, in particular kids, to pursue their dreams, regardless of their age.
"For those kids who had dreams and desires growing up, don't quit on yourself," he said. "Don't give up just because things don't go as textbook planned or as they say it should go. Don't just stop and say, ‘I can't ever do that.' There's other options. There's other ways. If you just search and look for them, you might be able to find them.
"In the Marine aspect, there's other opportunities when you want to get out. If you want to pursue your education, you don't have to stay in the Marine Corps if you don't want to your whole life. You might be able to get back into a sport if that's something you like to do."
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