A match made in heaven

Cager freshman Joe Crispin wanted PSU since childhood

Susan Crispin was lying in bed last March when the phone rang at about 11:10 at night. It was for her son Joe.

The voice on the other end said: "This is coach Dunn from Penn State."

When she heard Penn State basketball coach Jerry Dunn say what he said, she felt like dropping the phone. It was the call Joe Crispin had been wanting for nearly three years.

"It was pretty ironic," Susan said of the call. "Two or three years prior to this Joe had said he wanted to play basketball at a place like Penn State. When I got that call I said, 'This was going to be it.' "

While on his way to becoming the All-South Jersey Player of the Year last season and scoring 2,625 career points at Pitman High School, Crispin would always find the time to watch Penn State basketball games when they were on. What he paid attention to the most was the play of Nittany Lion point guard Dan Earl -- a south Jersey boy himself.

Crispin, who was visiting William & Mary at the time of the call, always had faith his day would come. He knew certain people had to see him play for him to be recognized as a potential big-time basketball star.

Fortunately for Crispin, Bobby Hurley Sr. coached St. Anthony's High School against Crispin and his Pitman Panthers. It was Hurley who informed Dunn of the "diamond in the rough" at Pitman.

The decision to play at Penn State was such a "no-brainer" for Crispin he didn't even make an official visit until after he signed his letter of intent.

The "cocky" kid, as he was known by some, led the Panthers to the New Jersey Group 1 Championship his senior year and scored 56 points and dished out 12 assists in the title game against Bordentown High School.

Crispin isn't quite putting up the numbers in college he did in high school, but nonetheless has made an outstanding transition. He averages 9.7 points and 2.8 assists to go along with his 33 percent 3-point shooting for the Lions.

The "cockiness" has translated into confidence on the court. There is nothing Crispin thinks he can't accomplish, especially when it comes to basketball. The speed he possesses makes his ball handling seem that much more incredible.

In pickup games in high school Crispin would tell his buddies the move he was going to make before he even started -- it didn't matter.

"The result," said Kevin Bonner, a close friend and former teammate, "it wasn't even close. He destroyed me."

Bonner has set up The Unofficial Joe Crispin Homepage at www.angelfire.com/nj/JC3.

To say he is the pride of Pitman would be an appropriate assessment.

The tiny town located just 17 miles south of Philadelphia has a population of a little more than 9,300. One woman in Pitman has gone as far as to make a Joe Crispin doll.

The rag dolls are sold at craft fairs in and around Pitman. Crispin claims to have a doll, but says it is a prototype of his brother Jon, not him.

The doll originally had dark hair and dark eyes but has since been remodeled. His mother said the doll with spiked, sandy-blond hair and green eyes sporting a gray varsity jacket and a Pitman jersey with Crispin's No. 3 on it is very popular among teenage girls in Pitman.

Crispin claimed it was nothing to make a fuss over.

"(Pitman) is a small town," Crispin said. "I didn't have anything to do with that (the making of the dolls). I guess me being up here is a big deal."

The point guard, who claims to be 6-foot with sneakers on, has taken his fame in stride. If someone told him a year ago he would be the starting point guard for Penn State he would have said, "You're crazy."

Well, Joe, look who's crazy now.