Scruggs Ready to Put Spring Behind Him
June 16, 2011 | Football
June 16, 2011
Louisville, Ky. - "The Pit" is a place where no one wants to be. It's a three-letter word that no University of Louisville football wants to hear that they are headed to when practice starts. What looks like Muscle Beach or maybe something more of a prison yard, "The Pit" is basically an outdoor weight room equipped a bench press station, pushing a stair master with your hands, medicine balls and dumbbells. It's every injured player's nightmare.
For senior Greg Scruggs, it's a place that gives him the shakes every time he thinks of it. The 6-4, 280-pound defensive lineman had surgery on his groin that caused him to miss the entire spring, which is hard for a player with Scruggs' passion and work ethic. Scruggs was stuck in there from the start of spring until end, but it's something that made him bigger and stronger.
"I was in there with Coach Pat Moorer," said Scruggs. "For two-and-a-half hours, we would work out while everyone practiced. I was one of those guys. It felt like punishment. The purpose is to weed out people with ticky-tack injuries. It's for the people who tweak their ankle and are just trying to miss practice. So he is trying to make it harder than practice. In the spring, we had 13 or 14 of us who had surgery, so we were getting extra workouts in. That was not fun, but it had to be done. It made me better."
Scruggs had surgery on Jan. 21, and it was difficult for him to keep his mind off not practicing. He has been so accustomed to practicing hard and being with his teammates. Scruggs proclaimed the video game Call of Duty his best friend after being sidelined for the spring. But now that he's healthy, the three-year starter's priorities have shifted.
"Call of Duty, I haven't logged on in like two or three months," Scruggs said. "Something had to give, man. It's a sacrifice now, but I've seen it pay off in the past, and I'm hoping for the same payout."
As Scruggs heads into his final season, he knows his role on this team has changed. For a senior, the off-season no longer is about kicking back and going out with his friends. After sitting down with assistant coach Clint Hurtt and discussing his role with the squad, Scruggs said he's stopped hanging out on the weekends. He's more likely to go to head to the stadium or hang with friends.
"My leadership role is a big one," said Scruggs. "Coach Strong has already told me if I don't play well, the team won't play well. I know a lot of my teammates are looking up to me to lead. On defense, I will play a critical role to the success of our team this year, which is why I'm so serious with workouts, school and football in general. I'm serious in my approach to the game."
Added Scruggs, "When I was younger, I treated the off-season as just that. I would go work out and then just hangout. However, now, I'm the one organizing the players lifts. I'm going to the stadium to watch film. It's a different approach to the game. I'm bearing the weight on my shoulders. I'm taking the role of being the best player on the team."
That mindset has helped Scruggs earn the respect of his teammates. The Cardinals took a recent anonymous survey listing the "Top Five" players on the team and the "Bottom Five" players on the team. Scruggs was selected the second-best behind senior tight end Josh Chichester.
Finishing second on a team of 100 would be outstanding by most measures, but Hurtt didn't think that was acceptable. He wanted his fourth-year senior to top that list. That is where many people think that Scruggs should be because he has the demeanor and the attitude that draws people to him.
Hurtt, who has coached All-Americans and first-draft picks has told the product of Cincinnati, Ohio, that he has a lot of those characteristics of a lot of those All-Americans and top draft picks.
"He's been a big part of my development," Scruggs said of Hurtt. "He expects the best out of me at all times -- he won't let me settle for being second or being last," Scruggs said. "With that, he also gives me confidence. He tells me I can be the best player in the BIG EAST. He tells me I can be an All-American. He said I have all the intangibles that other All-Americans and first and second rounders that he has coached have."
The product of St. Xavier High School had an interception, a fumble recovery and a tackle for loss against the Bearcats. It was a standout game in an otherwise average season for Scruggs, who finished with 14 tackles and two sacks while playing defensive tackle.
He's moved back to defensive end this season and feels as if he can build on the progress he made toward the end of last season, but Scruggs will also play the same tackle position that he played a year ago, when he had 14 tackles, a career-high two sacks and two fumble recoveries.
"I may not have made all of the plays, but I started to show up in more pictures," Scruggs said. "I started to get more pressures and started to be closer to making those plays -- plays this year he'll expect me to make."
Scruggs has been in the lineup since his true freshman season and has improved each season, with his best year coming in 2009 when he recorded 24 tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss. His senior is his last chance to help the Cardinals win a BIG EAST title and a BCS bowl, and if it's going to happen, much will rely on how Scruggs and the rest of the senior class continues to develop.
"I realize a lot is on my shoulders; although I have seniors with me, I see it as I'm bearing the weight of the team on my shoulders," he said. "And if I see it as such, then I make the job easier for the rest of my seniors, because I'm taking it personally to take on the load of being the best player on the team."
