The ASU football team has built quite a tradition in recent years with its "hogs" taking their game to the next level.
In the last four years, the Sun Devils have had seven offensive linemen continue their careers in the NFL. Now, senior right guard Regis Crawford appears to be the most likely hog to carry on that tradition.
With three games remaining in a four-year career that has seen him lay out opponents to make way for Sun Devils like Delvon Flowers, Jeff Krohn, Andrew Walter and Loren Wade, Crawford appears to have the résumé to make it in the NFL.
"He'll definitely have the opportunity to play at the next level," offensive line coach Jeff Grimes said. "When, where and how long, you don't know. A lot of those things have to do with luck, but I think he'll definitely go on and have a successful career in the NFL."
Last season, despite being asked to play out of his natural position and assume the role of ASU's left tackle, Crawford was told by an advisory committee that he would have been picked in the fourth round of the recent draft had he forgone his senior season and turned pro.
"Regis bypassed going to the NFL after his junior year and sacrificed for the team last year by playing left tackle," ASU head coach Dirk Koetter said. "I will always have a spot in my heart for Regis for doing that."
After returning to his natural position on the interior line this season, 304-pound Crawford's stock appears to have increased.
"If a guy really only plays one position that limits your marketability," Crawford said. "The more positions you play, the more valuable you are to a team. I definitely think [playing tackle last season] helped me.
"It's been my dream to play in the NFL. If it happens, it happens, but I got a long way to go before it happens. It all depends on a lot of stuff in the off-season."
Crawford, who said he would either play guard or center at the next level, has plenty of role models for making the transition from college to professional football. When Crawford was a sophomore during the 2001 campaign, he was the only starting lineman who was not a senior.
The following April, Crawford witnessed four of his fellow offensive linemen, or the "forefathers" as he refers to them, picked in the 2002 NFL draft. Among them, Cincinnati Bengal Levi Jones, San Francisco 49er Kyle Kosier and Philadelphia Eagle Scott Peters currently all play pivotal roles on their teams.
"They're telling me to stay focused on the season and good things will happen for me," Crawford said. "[They say] don't look so far into the future because it will mess up what's going on right now."
Crawford added that he has diverted all inquiries regarding professional representation to his parents in San Diego because "I don't want to have to worry about someone calling me every single day about picking [an agent].
"When my season is over, I'll go home and try to make a decision with [my parents]," he said.
As for now, Crawford's sights are set on the final times of his Sun Devil career that he will get to don the maroon and gold. He has seen a lot in his four seasons as a mainstay on the Sun Devil offensive line, including a coaching staff change from former skipper Bruce Snyder to Koetter.
But perhaps more important, Crawford has been a link between two generations of hogs. After the four "forefathers" left after 2001, Crawford was the only returning starter last season.
After 2002, the Sun Devils had a streak of four straight years in which at least one offensive lineman was drafted into the NFL. The streak was snapped a year ago when no seniors started. As a result, the team returned all five starters for this season.
Ironically, while the 2001 team had four linemen go pro, the Sun Devils finished the season just 4-7. Last year when Crawford was the only lineman with experience as a starter, the team went 8-6.
"[The 2001 class] were big, strong guys that were really nasty," Crawford said. "That was their first year with the [new] coaches, and I don't think they had time to get down the technique. We've had a lot more time with the technique, and we're better technicians."
Although his senior year was not what Crawford envisioned as ASU's record stands at 4-5 and 1-4 in conference, he said he is satisfied with his season.
"Just playing with this team and going to work with these guys every day, in that aspect it hasn't been very disappointing," Crawford said.
Aside from memories of the Sun Devils' 45-42 upset victory over Oregon last season and a 33-31 come-from-behind win at North Carolina this year, Crawford said what he will miss the most from his days at ASU is hanging out with his fellow linemen.
"I'm not really a limelight type of guy," Crawford said. "I'm more of a behind-the-scenes guy.
"I'm proud to be an offensive lineman. It's hard work, banging guys every play. But everyone else gets their shine off of us. We're the ones opening the gaps. I'm just glad to be one of them."
Reach the reporter at christopher.drexel@asu.edu. Andrew Bernick contributed to this story.
