Behind every game is the unsung grounds crew

Goals, nets, hurdles and bleachers. Playclocks, scoreboards and lights. Jadwin Gym, Baker Rink, Dillon Gym and DeNunzio Pool.

That's just a small list of all the things the groundskeepers of Princeton University are responsible for in addition to keeping all the athletic fields and their immediate surroundings neat and tidy.

"They call them groundskeepers, but that really doesn't do them justice," John Cruser, Jr., says of his team.

Cruser is the foreman of the athletics grounds crew at Princeton University — that is to say, a grounds crew of six — which makes the fact that those six take care of all of Princeton's athletics facilities all the more remarkable.

This fall marks Cruser's 39th year working at the University. Both of his parents worked here, as well as his identical twin brother, Dave, so Cruser found Princeton a natural fit.

"I graduated from Princeton High School on a Thursday, and the following Monday I started working at the University," he said.

After the summer had passed, he stayed on as a full-time employee. Cruser spent five years in the housing department before switching to athletics to become a groundskeeper, eventually working his way up to his current position as foreman.

As foreman, Cruser is responsible for ensuring that the facilities needed for a particular sporting event are ready to go before the game begins. The habits of particular coaches and teams, as well as the weather, contribute to the complexity of the tasks he must manage.

"You really have to pay attention to what's going on. When outdoors we have to keep one eye to the sky all the time," he said.

Last week, Cruser worked part of Tuesday and into Wednesday evening to ready Princeton Stadium for football's Saturday game against Penn. Cruser had to calculate around the expected rain Thursday and the fact that the team usually holds a practice in the stadium Friday in deciding when to get his work done.

The complexity of the grounds crew's tasks is always challenging and often detailed.

For example, all the painting done on the ice in Baker Rink besides the white paint is done entirely by the hands of the grounds crew.

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The mowing patterns on the fields, including Lourie-Love field and Princeton Stadium, is the work of groundskeeper Matt Conti. Cruser and Conti said that they "didn't want to give away any trade secrets" as to how the patterns were created, but added that the particular mower used in certain directions across the field is key.

Mowing, however, is only one of the many roles the grounds crew fulfills.

"Ninety percent of athletics events require our attention," Cruser said, noting the crew's responsibility for items such as scoreboards, playclocks, gates, programs, and even the press box in Princeton Stadium.

Late fall is always the most difficult time of year for the crew. The overlap of fall sports ending and winter sports gearing up provides Cruser and his team with more than enough to do.

"All those people need attention every day," he said.

Year after year, though, Cruser has successfully met the challenge, driven by a passion for his job and the University he has called home for nearly four decades.

"I get great satisfaction of walking up into the seats in Jadwin gym and looking down on the floor after an 8 hour day of getting bleachers up and things set up and ready to go for a basketball game," he said.

Sitting around their office eating lunch, the other members of the crew echoed Cruser in his love for the job.

"It's a fast-paced day," one starts. "But it's worth it. We're working for the kids. They frequently express gratitude — it really makes it all worthwhile," finished Conti.

"It was a real thrill to be associated with the women's final four [in lacrosse] last year," groundskeeper Jim Ogden said, referring to the tournament held last spring.

Cruser, himself, takes a great deal of pride in his job — "All those lines you see on those fields, I did them," he said with the pride of a father.

As Cruser approaches probable retirement sometime next fall, one thing is certain: this unsung coach of a different sort of team has for many years been a key supporting force behind Princeton's success on — and around — the field.