It’s hard to believe that Dalton Crossan hadn’t played in a football game since the Suffolk County Division I championship at Stony Brook in November 2011, but redshirting your freshman season will do that. The wait was worth it though for the Sachem alum.
On Saturday, Crossan, now a redshirt freshman at New Hampshire, came out of the gates in full force, scoring his first career college touchdown and putting up 81 rushing yards on just 7 carries (11.6 yards per carry) in a win over Colgate. Using his elusive and shifty footwork that became legendary at Sachem, Crossan beat defenders off the line, cut left and bit the corner hard facing pressure as he dove into the end zone.
“It was nice to get out there and play in a live situation, which I haven’t done since my senior year high school, so it was awesome to be back on the field,” Crossan told The New Hamsphire Online. “Felt good to be out there, but there were a few things I saw that I could have done better, which I will go back and try to fix.”
Crossan’s touchdown came on an 11-yard rush with 52 seconds left in the third quarter to put New Hampshire ahead, 47-14.
Crossan graduated from Sachem North as its single-season leader in rushing yards (2,186) and career touchdowns (50), and set a handful of other records. He won the Hansen Award as the top football player in Suffolk County.
The Wildcats are off next week and hit the field again September 28 at Lehigh University. They’ll make their way to Long Island on October 26 to play Stony Brook.
VIDEO: Watch highlights from UNH win (1:28 for Crossan TD)
RELATED: Read official UNH release from the game
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro