National Football League

Cruz's rise to stardom not without bumps

Published Jan. 5, 2012 12:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Victor Cruz grew up just 15 minutes from MetLife Stadium. But his journey to NFL stardom with the Giants took much longer.

Straying from football and quitting could have been an easy way out for the Paterson, N.J., native. But it’s been Cruz’s resolve that’s helped him rise to the top of the league this season.

“It’s his ability to bounce back,” said Benjie Wimberly, who coached the half-African-American, half-Puerto Rican Cruz at Paterson Catholic High School. “I think that blue-collar work ethic is what got him to the point he is with the Giants and not quit.”

The first hurdle he cleared was in his own hometown, where Cruz didn’t succumb to the wayward life of his peers.

“Living in the heart of the city, he understands many of his friends sell drugs or were arrested,” Wimberly said. “Many of his friends have taken the wrong route, and he’s learned from it.”

Godfather Jimmy Salmon credits Cruz’s mother, Blanca. “She was always supportive of him being an athlete,” Salmon said. “She didn’t want him getting caught up in the street life.”

A standout high school career garnered local attention from Rutgers, which had him on its list as a possible recruit. However, the university gave its last scholarship to future NFL first-round pick Devin McCourty.

Cruz decided on UMass, where academic problems held him back once again. With a 1.7 GPA in 2006, he was declared ineligible and was kicked out of school.

“A lot of it had to do with me being a knucklehead and Mom not being there and me being on my own,” Cruz told the AP recently.

While he tried to focus, another potentially crippling roadblock appeared — Cruz’s father, Mike Walker, died suddenly.

“I think it was a wake-up call. It makes you realize you’re vulnerable,” Wimberly said.

Cruz worked his way back to the university, only to be suspended for five games in 2007. After just one catch that year, he finished the rest of his collegiate career in spectacular fashion, finishing with 131 career catches in essentially two seasons. Pro scouts took notice.

“He’s always been someone who wants to learn and wants to get better,” said Brian Crist, Cruz’s receivers coach at UMass. “What gets lost in his story is how much he changed and matured as a person to get to the point that he’s at today.”

Cruz went undrafted, signing with the New York Giants. As a relative unknown, Cruz needed to put himself on the map.

In a preseason game against the Jets in 2010, he did just that with six catches for 145 yards. Three of those grabs went for scores, matching his jersey number at the time.

After the game, cameras from HBO’s “Hard Knocks” caught Jets coach Rex Ryan telling Tom Coughlin, “Hey, I don’t know who No. 3 is, but holy s—t!”

He couldn’t carry the momentum. Cruz went on injured reserve with a hamstring injury after suiting up for three games, playing mostly on special teams.

“It seemed like after he got on IR, all the Giants were getting hurt,” Wimberly said. “I was saying, ‘This was his chance.’”

But Cruz received one more opportunity and was rewarded for overcoming his struggles — he finished with more receiving yards this season than all but two wideouts in the league and shattered Giants records.

Even those who have watched Cruz over the years say he’s added weapons to his arsenal they’ve never seen, like the speed he displayed against the Cowboys in Week 17 on a 74-yard touchdown.

“He used to take these short, little strides,” Crist said. “Those weren’t short little strides.”

Now, just a quick drive from his hometown, Giants fans are in the throes of Cruz-mania. They shout his name after every reception and roar at his touchdown dance — the salsa, which he does to honor his Puerto Rican grandmother. It’s become so popular that none other than NBA star Kevin Durant used it in a flag football game.

“He’s very, very competitive and self-assured,” Salmon said. “I think he’s one of those guys that just always felt, ‘man, if I ever get that chance, I’ll show the world.’”

Even Cruz can’t believe how far he’s come. “I think it kind of hit me this past week,” he said to the Bergen County (N.J.) Record. “I’m like, ‘I wasn’t even thinking about the Pro Bowl. I was just thinking about trying to get a lot of playing time.’ It’s surreal.”