Almarion Crim had already gone through the recruiting process once.
As a standout offensive lineman for Minor High School in Adamsville, Alabama, he was ranked among his state's top 100 college football recruits before signing with Houston in December 2020.
When Crim entered the NCAA transfer portal last December, he was just ready to play.
The former three-star prospect had built a relationship with University of Tennessee at Chattanooga offensive line coach Kevin Revis back when Crim was a sought-after athlete who was committed to Duke before flipping to Houston. Crim then spent two years waiting and working for an opportunity to get on the field for the Cougars.
When it appeared that opportunity wasn't coming, UTC provided a nice landing spot.
"I'm questioning myself," Crim said of his struggles at Houston, which went 12-2 in his first season — with an appearance in the American Athletic Conference title game against Cincinnati, a College Football Playoff participant that year — and 8-5 in 2022.
"To go from being the dude in high school to coming into college and you're not playing, I got down on myself because I know I can play, so why am I not playing?" Crim added. "It was just really tough for me, but you know, God put me through some tough times and now I'm here. I love it here and I'm playing, so my dreams are coming true — I'm playing college football, and I love it."
UTC Athletics photo by Laura O'Dell / UTC offensive lineman Almarion Crim (52), shown during the Mocs' 24-23 win at Virginia Military Institute on Oct. 28, has started all 10 games this season at right guard.Crim had to work his way through a preseason injury, but the 6-foot-2, 295-pounder has started all 10 games at right guard for the Mocs (7-3), who will enter the final weekend of the Football Championship Subdivision regular season ranked in the top 20 in both national polls.
"He's gotten a lot better since he's been here," UTC head coach Rusty Wright said. "I'm not sure how he thinks he's doing, but he's worked really hard and has a really good opportunity to continue to get better. He might be playing out of position at guard — tackle may be more natural for him — but we needed somebody in there, and he's run with it and done well."
Crim joined the Mocs with three years of eligibility remaining, giving him time to develop as he makes up for what might seem to him like lost time.
"This offseason is a huge one for him towards getting stronger, but it's the first time he's ever had a chance where he had to go be the guy," Wright said, adding that Crim has "gotten better from week to week. He's doing better in the classroom and doing those things right. He's got two more years, and he's got a bright future ahead, he really does.
"I think football is important to him; he acts like it is. He's got a chance to be a really good player before he leaves here."
The 24-team bracket for the FCS playoffs will be revealed at 12:30 p.m. Sunday on ESPNU, and after missing out on the Southern Conference's automatic bid, UTC must wait until then to see if it will receive an at-large berth. Before that, though, the Mocs will wrap up their known schedule with a road game against a Football Bowl Subdivision power: eighth-ranked Alabama (9-1), both the sport's standard for more than a decade and one of the hottest teams in the country.
Crim grew up about an hour away from Tuscaloosa and will have a lot of family in attendance, likely equally as excited to watch him play as he is to contribute.
"I love it here," Crim said. "I'm playing, I love the coaching staff, love the fans, love everything about Chattanooga. I'm happy that I'm here, I love Coach Wright and how he runs things here, and I really like this team and I'm planning on doing big things here."
"I'm excited (about playing Alabama). I'm a competitor, and I know these guys are great. Their D-line is great. I'm just looking at this as another game, another opportunity for me to up my game and get better."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com.