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Jim Dedmon/CWNG photo<br />
by Aaron Garcia<br />
aaron@carolinaweeklynewspapers.com<br />
It would be excusable if Monroe’s Jamison<br />
Crowder walked around town with a little<br />
more swagger. But for all his ability, for all the<br />
spectacular catches and hits and jukes he puts<br />
on opponents whenever he gets an opportunity,<br />
for all the game-changing returns he takes deep<br />
into opponents’ territory, Crowder is as low-key<br />
and understated as they come.<br />
“He’s one of those kids, like a couple of these<br />
kids, that don’t do a lot of talking,” said Monroe<br />
coach Johnny Sowell of the Redhawks’ star<br />
return man/receiver/safety.<br />
“(Crowder) just takes it and goes. He’s a<br />
special player.”<br />
Special indeed. Last season, Crowder<br />
surfaced as one of the state’s top return men<br />
after collecting four kicks for scores and constantly<br />
giving his team an advantage in the<br />
field- position battle.<br />
Versatile Monroe senior Jamison Crowder has committed to Duke<br />
University.<br />
www.unioncountyweekly.com<br />
Big Man on campus Campus<br />
In a game against Parkwood, Crowder<br />
racked up 116 punt return yards and another<br />
125 in kickoff returns. In all, he topped 80 punt<br />
return yards five times last season as a junior.<br />
And although teams often avoided him on<br />
kickoffs, he still managed to average 52.5 yards<br />
per return on four tries.<br />
Oh, yeah, he also caught 10 touchdowns,<br />
notched two interceptions and deflected six<br />
passes.<br />
This summer, Crowder decided to accept a<br />
scholarship offer from Duke University. He<br />
turned down North Carolina, N.C. State, East<br />
Carolina, Wake Forest and Illinois to become<br />
a Blue Devil.<br />
Yet another reason to walk around with the<br />
proverbial big head.<br />
But according to those around him, what<br />
keeps Crowder grounded is the same quality<br />
that’s allowed him to emerge as one of<br />
the state’s top playmakers: He enjoys playing<br />
and does so with a hard-nosed approach<br />
to whichever position he’s<br />
competing, whether he’s<br />
playing his myriad positions<br />
on the gridiron or guiding<br />
the Redhawks to the Class<br />
2A state championship in<br />
basketball.<br />
“We call him ‘the Old<br />
Man,’” chuckled Sowell, who<br />
noted that Crowder is constantly<br />
icing down some part<br />
of his battle-weary body after<br />
games and practices.<br />
When asked which<br />
position he enjoys playing the<br />
most, Crowder admits that<br />
returning kicks and punts is<br />
his first love. But then, one of<br />
the area’s foremost offensive<br />
weapons throws a curve.<br />
“I like defensive back<br />
because I feel like, on the<br />
defensive side of the ball, I<br />
have a lot of fun, and I don’t<br />
really have to time everything,”<br />
said the 5-foot-10<br />
Crowder. “I can make plays<br />
for myself then. They throw a<br />
pass and I’m trying to go and<br />
get it and make a tackle.<br />
“I’m not that big, but I like<br />
being physical.”<br />
You see, what keeps<br />
Crowder grounded despite<br />
the gaudy numbers and<br />
the attention from college<br />
recruiters is the fact that he<br />
loves the game and places as<br />
much value in a drive-ending<br />
tackle as he does an 80-yard<br />
scamper for a score.<br />
And perhaps most important,<br />
that keeps him hungry<br />
for more. q<br />
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UNION COUNTY WEEKLY • FALL 2010 9
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