Indiana University Athletics
Dominating the Way – Coy Cronk Plays to IU’s High Offensive Line Standards
7/24/2019 7:35:00 AM | Football
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By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
Coy Cronk is dressed for impact in a blue suit, white shirt and matching tie. He shrinks the Big Ten football kickoff platform the way you'd expect a 6-5, 321-pound guy would.
Cronk is an Indiana senior on pace to rate among the best offensive linemen to ever play for the Hoosiers, a big statement given the program's recent run of NFL-caliber big men.
Jason Spriggs (Green Bay Packers), Dan Feeney (Los Angeles Chargers), Wes Martin (Washington Redskins), Brandon Knight (Dallas Cowboys) and Rodger Saffold (Tennessee Titans) have set a standard of excellence only the most driven can emulate.
Cronk fits that dominating mold -- strong, determined, technically sound, athletic and a leader. He's on the preseason watch list for the Outland Trophy, presented annually to the nation's best interior lineman. He's started all 36 games he's played left tackle, missing one game because of injury.
Beyond that, he's a guy who, during a practice last spring, when a defensive back intercepted a pass and bolted toward the end zone, Cronk tried to run him down rather than watch as most offensive linemen do. Those are among the reasons why he was one of three Hoosiers to make the Big Ten trip to Chicago.
"He was the first young man to be a 13-game starter as a true freshman on the offensive line," head coach Tom Allen says. "We've never had that happen before in our program's history. He's a young man I have a lot of respect for."
Respect comes without flash and statistics. Offensive linemen thrive in obscurity, often gaining attention only when messing up. Cronk understands this even as he contemplates moments when he's been, in so many ways, the baddest guy on the field.
"I had a couple of plays that stand out. Early last season we were playing Ball State. I was responsible for the defensive end, but the blitzer came, and I was supposed to pick him up, too. I saw him out of the corner of my eye, and at the last second I went high and clipped him just right and he fell over. That felt pretty good.
"I thought I had strong games against Ohio State and Michigan. I didn't think I played my best against Michigan State and Penn State. Those are two games I want to get back. You always want to build off the successes you've had against some of the upper echelon teams in the Big Ten."
Still, Cronk's biggest moments might come as mentor to such offensive linemen as true freshman Matthew Bedford and redshirt sophomore Caleb Jones. Both have potential to dominate.
Take the 6-6, 284-pound Bedford, who graduated high school in December and enrolled at IU in January
"He has a lot of talent," Cronk says. "I see a lot of myself in him. He asks a lot of questions. He has to get into a flow. I'm hoping he can get some game reps this year. I think that will benefit him a lot."
The 6-8, 360-pound Jones, a former Lawrence North High School standout, appears ready for a breakout season after seeing action in 11 games last year following a redshirt.
"He's one of those freakish guys," Cronk says "He's a monster of a human being. He's huge. He has good feet, soft feet. He can really move them.
"Caleb has a good demeanor. His problem is he was the big dog in high school, he was the No. 1 guy in Indianapolis, and he pushed people around. When you get to college, it's a different speed, a different level. I've helped him get over that. Instill that confidence he had in high school. Getting that fire back that we'll need from him this season."
Fire includes a renewed weight room commitment.
"It's tough, especially with our strength staff because they push you to the limit every day," Cronk says. "It's not a huge rah-rah, congratulate-you place. You're supposed to go in there and work. That's the expectation. Anything less than that and they ask you to leave the weight room, which is awesome.
"It takes away egos. There are no egos in the weight room.
"Caleb was a little bit heavier than he needed to be. He was struggling. He would lose weight during the week and gain weight on the weekends. That cycle was holding him back from being a good player. We had a couple of talks, but mostly it was him. He found that drive. He's keeping the weight off. He's lifting hard. I lift with him every day. I'm happy where he's come from."
This is the kind of leadership IU coaches were hoping for when they lured Cronk, a Lafayette Central Catholic High School standout, away from Purdue. He did have a big Cream & Crimson connection -- his father, Nick, was a graduate assistant under Bill Mallory in the early 1990s.
Cronk displayed impressive athleticism at Central Catholic. He earned all-state honors as a linebacker and an offensive lineman, as well as a baseball catcher.
In football he became the school's career leader in tackles, led the team in blocking percentage as a junior and senior, and played on state title-winning teams in 2012 and '15.
ESPN rated Cronk as the No. 6 prospect in the state of Indiana and the No. 53 offensive lineman nationally.
And the Hoosiers won him over.
Cronk came to Bloomington seeking to help turn a traditionally struggling program into a consistent winner.
The Hoosiers have come frustratingly close.
They went to a bowl game his freshman season, but lost to Utah to finish 6-7. They have gone 5-7 the last two seasons under Allen, losing seven games by eight or fewer points.
Enough is enough, Cronk says.
"You lose sleep over it. It makes you nauseous. You think of plays I made or someone else on the offensive line made. That eats you up, especially when you play such good competition. You prepare; you work hard; and you come up short. Then come up short again. Now it's three years of coming up short. It's not where I wanted to be. It's not what I signed up for."
Like so many other Hoosiers, Cronk yearns for a winning season that will jump start the program into a run of postseason opportunity not seen since the Bill Mallory glory years of a generation ago.
The way to make it happen, he says, is more mental than physical.
"A big thing we've done, especially on the offensive line, is instead of thinking about what's coming next -- and that's human nature, we've done this, now what's next or the season is coming up or we play a Top-5 team next -- we're focused on what can we do today.
"Every team lifts. Every team runs and works hard. What can we do to separate ourselves?
"For us, maybe it's stretching, maybe it's an exercise, a squat or benching, extra jump ropes or sprints, but it's something extra every day. Make a conscious effort to do that. I think those little things will add up to wins on Saturday."
Winning at least six games to qualify for a bowl remains a top priority, so much so that Cronk almost wishes it wasn't.
Almost.
"It's something we talk about a lot," Cronk says, "and something I wish we did not talk about. It's not a secret when you win five games and have three games left and need to win one. It's easy to get distracted when you think that way.
"That's why I've been taking the offensive line and refocusing us on day to day. What can we do to be better today? Take care of the little things and hope it will create more opportunities for tomorrow.
"If you keep doing that over seven to eight months, hopefully it creates wins on Saturday."
Easy to say, not always easy to do.
"It's really tough, especially when you have a younger team that hasn't been to a bowl game," Cronk says. "They're excited and want to do it. All of a sudden, you lose a game you thought you could win, then it's like, 'Wow, how do you recover?' That negative thought process starts."
It needs to end, he adds.
"It's the Big Ten. Anything can happen."
Anything starts on Saturday, Aug. 31, when IU opens its season against Ball State at Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium. It's the site of Cronk's high school state championships, and also will be the Hoosiers' first chance to blast away the sting from the season-ending loss to Purdue that cost them a bowl opportunity.
"I have some great memories of Lucas Oil Stadium from my senior year when we won a state title there," Cronk says. "I remember leaving that field at the time thinking it was the best moment of my life.
"Hopefully we go back there and recapture that feeling, get a W and finally get that Purdue loss off our backs and get the season started. I'm really looking forward to that."
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
Coy Cronk is dressed for impact in a blue suit, white shirt and matching tie. He shrinks the Big Ten football kickoff platform the way you'd expect a 6-5, 321-pound guy would.
Cronk is an Indiana senior on pace to rate among the best offensive linemen to ever play for the Hoosiers, a big statement given the program's recent run of NFL-caliber big men.
Jason Spriggs (Green Bay Packers), Dan Feeney (Los Angeles Chargers), Wes Martin (Washington Redskins), Brandon Knight (Dallas Cowboys) and Rodger Saffold (Tennessee Titans) have set a standard of excellence only the most driven can emulate.
Cronk fits that dominating mold -- strong, determined, technically sound, athletic and a leader. He's on the preseason watch list for the Outland Trophy, presented annually to the nation's best interior lineman. He's started all 36 games he's played left tackle, missing one game because of injury.
Beyond that, he's a guy who, during a practice last spring, when a defensive back intercepted a pass and bolted toward the end zone, Cronk tried to run him down rather than watch as most offensive linemen do. Those are among the reasons why he was one of three Hoosiers to make the Big Ten trip to Chicago.
"He was the first young man to be a 13-game starter as a true freshman on the offensive line," head coach Tom Allen says. "We've never had that happen before in our program's history. He's a young man I have a lot of respect for."
Respect comes without flash and statistics. Offensive linemen thrive in obscurity, often gaining attention only when messing up. Cronk understands this even as he contemplates moments when he's been, in so many ways, the baddest guy on the field.
"I had a couple of plays that stand out. Early last season we were playing Ball State. I was responsible for the defensive end, but the blitzer came, and I was supposed to pick him up, too. I saw him out of the corner of my eye, and at the last second I went high and clipped him just right and he fell over. That felt pretty good.
"I thought I had strong games against Ohio State and Michigan. I didn't think I played my best against Michigan State and Penn State. Those are two games I want to get back. You always want to build off the successes you've had against some of the upper echelon teams in the Big Ten."
Still, Cronk's biggest moments might come as mentor to such offensive linemen as true freshman Matthew Bedford and redshirt sophomore Caleb Jones. Both have potential to dominate.
Take the 6-6, 284-pound Bedford, who graduated high school in December and enrolled at IU in January
"He has a lot of talent," Cronk says. "I see a lot of myself in him. He asks a lot of questions. He has to get into a flow. I'm hoping he can get some game reps this year. I think that will benefit him a lot."
The 6-8, 360-pound Jones, a former Lawrence North High School standout, appears ready for a breakout season after seeing action in 11 games last year following a redshirt.
"He's one of those freakish guys," Cronk says "He's a monster of a human being. He's huge. He has good feet, soft feet. He can really move them.
"Caleb has a good demeanor. His problem is he was the big dog in high school, he was the No. 1 guy in Indianapolis, and he pushed people around. When you get to college, it's a different speed, a different level. I've helped him get over that. Instill that confidence he had in high school. Getting that fire back that we'll need from him this season."
Fire includes a renewed weight room commitment.
"It's tough, especially with our strength staff because they push you to the limit every day," Cronk says. "It's not a huge rah-rah, congratulate-you place. You're supposed to go in there and work. That's the expectation. Anything less than that and they ask you to leave the weight room, which is awesome.
"It takes away egos. There are no egos in the weight room.
"Caleb was a little bit heavier than he needed to be. He was struggling. He would lose weight during the week and gain weight on the weekends. That cycle was holding him back from being a good player. We had a couple of talks, but mostly it was him. He found that drive. He's keeping the weight off. He's lifting hard. I lift with him every day. I'm happy where he's come from."
This is the kind of leadership IU coaches were hoping for when they lured Cronk, a Lafayette Central Catholic High School standout, away from Purdue. He did have a big Cream & Crimson connection -- his father, Nick, was a graduate assistant under Bill Mallory in the early 1990s.
Cronk displayed impressive athleticism at Central Catholic. He earned all-state honors as a linebacker and an offensive lineman, as well as a baseball catcher.
In football he became the school's career leader in tackles, led the team in blocking percentage as a junior and senior, and played on state title-winning teams in 2012 and '15.
ESPN rated Cronk as the No. 6 prospect in the state of Indiana and the No. 53 offensive lineman nationally.
And the Hoosiers won him over.
Cronk came to Bloomington seeking to help turn a traditionally struggling program into a consistent winner.
The Hoosiers have come frustratingly close.
They went to a bowl game his freshman season, but lost to Utah to finish 6-7. They have gone 5-7 the last two seasons under Allen, losing seven games by eight or fewer points.
Enough is enough, Cronk says.
"You lose sleep over it. It makes you nauseous. You think of plays I made or someone else on the offensive line made. That eats you up, especially when you play such good competition. You prepare; you work hard; and you come up short. Then come up short again. Now it's three years of coming up short. It's not where I wanted to be. It's not what I signed up for."
Like so many other Hoosiers, Cronk yearns for a winning season that will jump start the program into a run of postseason opportunity not seen since the Bill Mallory glory years of a generation ago.
The way to make it happen, he says, is more mental than physical.
"A big thing we've done, especially on the offensive line, is instead of thinking about what's coming next -- and that's human nature, we've done this, now what's next or the season is coming up or we play a Top-5 team next -- we're focused on what can we do today.
"Every team lifts. Every team runs and works hard. What can we do to separate ourselves?
"For us, maybe it's stretching, maybe it's an exercise, a squat or benching, extra jump ropes or sprints, but it's something extra every day. Make a conscious effort to do that. I think those little things will add up to wins on Saturday."
Winning at least six games to qualify for a bowl remains a top priority, so much so that Cronk almost wishes it wasn't.
Almost.
"It's something we talk about a lot," Cronk says, "and something I wish we did not talk about. It's not a secret when you win five games and have three games left and need to win one. It's easy to get distracted when you think that way.
"That's why I've been taking the offensive line and refocusing us on day to day. What can we do to be better today? Take care of the little things and hope it will create more opportunities for tomorrow.
"If you keep doing that over seven to eight months, hopefully it creates wins on Saturday."
Easy to say, not always easy to do.
"It's really tough, especially when you have a younger team that hasn't been to a bowl game," Cronk says. "They're excited and want to do it. All of a sudden, you lose a game you thought you could win, then it's like, 'Wow, how do you recover?' That negative thought process starts."
It needs to end, he adds.
"It's the Big Ten. Anything can happen."
Anything starts on Saturday, Aug. 31, when IU opens its season against Ball State at Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium. It's the site of Cronk's high school state championships, and also will be the Hoosiers' first chance to blast away the sting from the season-ending loss to Purdue that cost them a bowl opportunity.
"I have some great memories of Lucas Oil Stadium from my senior year when we won a state title there," Cronk says. "I remember leaving that field at the time thinking it was the best moment of my life.
"Hopefully we go back there and recapture that feeling, get a W and finally get that Purdue loss off our backs and get the season started. I'm really looking forward to that."
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