Bad knee ends UC football career for Australian Crook

Lindsay Crook barged through several closed doors to pursue his goal of playing American football, and the dream came true when the Australian signed with the University of Cincinnati program in 2013.

Unfortunately for Crook, he never will play in a UC game. Crook recently was medically disqualified from football because of multiple injuries, including a fourth surgery on his right knee.

"I've had too many surgeries on my knee," Crook said. "It's better off that I not play. It will kind of save me in the long run a little bit, I guess."

Crook, who grew up on Australia's subtropical Gold Coast (Queensland), was a professional rugby player in his homeland. In coming to UC, he gave up a chance to play for Australia in the 2016 Olympic Games.

Crook became a professional rugby player about four years ago, as he was turning 18. He joined the Australian "sevens" team and played all over the world, including Dubai, London, South Africa, Samoa, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Scotland and China.

Crook said he watched American football on television while growing up, and that he was always intrigued by the game.

Crook eventually contacted several U.S. college football programs, with most of his emails and phone calls either ignored or not returned.

Eventually, the UC staff saw him on video and was intrigued by the athleticism of the 6-foot-2, 222-pound Crook. He was offered a scholarship by Bearcats coach Tommy Tuberville's staff.

UC planned to try him at linebacker, fullback and tight end, seeing where Crook might fit. But, Crook suffered a major knee injury (torn ACL) on the first day of preseason camp in 2013 and sat out the season.

As a redshirt freshman in 2014, Crook broke his wrist in preseason camp. Along with the knee troubles, it finally became too much.

Crook, a pre-law major, plans to stay and pursue his studies at UC. Crook has maintained his sunny disposition, figuring life has just thrown another curve.

"I think I'm going to give my body a little break for a while, about six months to a year," Crook said. "I'll see how I feel after that. I might go down the rugby path again, but the main thing is to finish up my studies. Ultimately, I want to stay over here. That's the goal."