Aaron Crawford answered the media’s questions with a sense of swagger at the 2018 ACC Football Kickoff in Charlotte in mid-July.
The redshirt junior defensive tackle was excited about what he and the rest of the North Carolina defensive line could do this season.
“I feel like we have some of the best depth in the country,” he said. “We have eight guys that can rotate through and really get after it with minimal drop-off.”
With the entire unit back, excluding graduated defensive end Dajaun Drennon, Crawford's optimism was justified. But less than three weeks later, UNC announced suspensions for 13 players for selling team-issued shoes. Three of the 13 were defensive linemen — Malik Carney, Tomon Fox and Tyrone Hopper. Each will serve four-game suspensions.
To make matters worse, this month, Crawford suffered a knee injury in practice that will sideline him for an estimated four weeks, according to Inside Carolina. Crawford, along with Carney and Fox, was expected to start alongside senior defensive tackle Jalen Dalton.
However, the NCAA approved a request to stagger Carney and Fox’s suspensions. Carney will begin his four-game suspension on Sept. 8 against East Carolina University, and Fox will begin his on Sept. 27 against the University of Miami.
Crawford's loss is felt immediately. He was tied for third on the team with three sacks and tied for fourth with five tackles for a loss. The 6-foot-1, 310-pound veteran leaves big shoes to fill, but one possible candidate to sub in for Crawford is redshirt junior defensive lineman Jason Strowbridge.
Strowbridge had 12 solo and 22 assisted tackles, with five and a half for loss last season. The Deerfield Beach, Fla, native says he and Crawford used to work on pass rush moves together on off days, and the two still bounce ideas off each other.