Cronk Wants to Spark the Fanbase During Senior Season

Written by Amanda Pavelka

Going into his senior year at Indiana, Coy Cronk has three things on his mind, and none of them involve himself. The Indiana Hoosier fan base, developing mental toughness and being an influential leader to his teammates is what the left tackle cares the most about for leaving a legacy in Bloomington. 

Cronk remembers his fourth game ever as an Indiana Hoosier. He remembers storming onto the field when Griffin Oakes hit the field goal in overtime that would take the Old Brass Spittoon back from Michigan State. The glory that comes with a huge win is unforgettable, and it is one of his priorities going into his final season. 

“I want our fans to experience a really big victory like we did my freshman year against Michigan State. That was awesome,” Cronk told Hoosier Huddle at Big Ten Media Days, “I want our fans to have that experience— being able to rush the field, being able to have that environment. I really want that for our fans, so I really want to win our home games.”

Not only does Cronk want to win the home games with the fans in mind first, he hopes to steal the Old Oaken bucket back from his hometown of Lafayette to gain postseason play and bragging rights. 

“When I go home, the nice little snarky comments like ‘At least we have a bucket,’” Cronk said on Media Day, “I wish we had it too. It’s a point of emphasis especially at that point of the year. I think it could really capitalize on my senior year as far as the team success. It’s obviously a goal every year to win the game. The last two years of having bowl implications on the line and our season getting cut short, that’s a whole month we could have played more so it stings a lot.”

As an experienced offensive lineman, rather than setting the bar at a bowl game, Cronk has taken a different route in determining the definition for success this season. 

“I think the important thing is not focusing on the wins and losses, but focusing on how I can get better everyday,” Cronk explained, “That’s something I’ve been preaching to the younger kids. For this season I really want us to play 60 minutes of just physical, tough football with no mental mistakes. I think a couple mental mistakes on the offense and defense and special teams side of the ball has cost us games in the past. So, just being able to play 60 minutes of that.”

Cronk has been working with the freshmen offensive linemen this spring and summer as their go-to guy and he’s taken pride in investing time to help the young guys grow.

”Every new offensive lineman minus Tim Weaver came in during spring, so I’ve had a lot of time with them. I had a lot of time to draw up plays, different mistakes they showed, give them clips of what happens in games and what’s different from practice to games and stuff like that,” Cronk explained, “I’ve tried to do my best. Sometimes they leave more confused than they did when they walked in. But for the most part I’ve done a good job of showing them the right way to do things and what is expected of them when they’re an Indiana University offensive lineman.”

Humble and selfless, Coy Cronk is the epitome of an Indiana Hoosier and it will be a highlight to see the product of his offseason grind during his final season in Bloomington.