Joe Crosby adds spice to NGU Crusader Club
“Coach” announces partnership and makes personal gift

TIGERVILLE , SC —North Greenville University announced a partnership Thursday with Coach’s Low Country Brands to offer Crusader-branded bottles of seasoning to fans in the area. NGU also announced Joe Crosby, owner and founder of Coach’s Brands, will be joined by Dick Sheridan, Sam Wyche, Willie Jeffries and Art Baker on a special advisory board to the Crusader Club.

Two dollars from the sale of each Crusader bottle of seasoning will benefit North Greenville University . One dollar will be donated to the Crusader Club for student-athlete scholarships and one dollar will be donated to academics.

“It is such an honor to have guys like Joe Crosby and coaches Sheridan, Wyche, Jeffries and Baker helping us promote and build up our athletic program so we can edify, equip, and excel,” said Dr. Wilson Nelson, new Director of the Crusader Club.

Twenty-three ounce bottles of the Crusader seasoning will be available at Bi-Lo stores in Travelers Rest, Taylors and Greer.

Coach's Low Country Brands, owned and operated by "Coach" Joe Crosby, is headquartered in Seneca. Crosby is a former college football coach and student-athlete who is known for his generosity to educational institutions.
 
“Being a coach with a mother as an educator, supporting both athletics and academics is one of the only things I know to do,” noted Crosby . “It is fitting because I went to school on a scholarship. So I want to make sure my brand gives children the same opportunities that I had because you can’t go to school for free.”
 
His brand’s collegiate program currently partners with several South Carolina and North Carolina schools. Other schools in the southeast have also approached him.

Crosby surprised the crowd of over 100 gathered in the President’s Box at Younts Stadium for the press conference by presenting the Crusader Club with a check for $10,000. The gift will be used for student-athlete scholarships.
 
Crosby and the other members of the special advisory board will work with Nelson to raise athletic scholarships for more than 250 student-athletes who represent NGU in 13 NCAA Division II sports.
 
Sheridan is a former Furman and NC State head coach. He won six Southern Conference Championships from 1978 to 1985 at Furman, where he was 69-33-2. He was named NCAA Div. 1AA Coach of the Year in 1985. From 1986 to 1992, he coached at NC State and complied a 52-39-3 record.
 
“I’ve been involved with NGU for about a year now and I want to do whatever I can to help improve the athletic department and football program,” said Sheridan . “It is fun to contribute to such a fine university and athletic program.”
 
Wyche, a former Furman quarterback, is one of four individuals to have reached the Super Bowl as a player, assistant coach and head coach. After playing in the NFL for nine seasons, Wyche led the San Francisco 49ers passing game as an assistant coach. He guided the Cincinnati Bengals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers as head coach, including a run to Super Bowl XXIII with the Bengals.
 
Willie Jeffries is the former head coach at SC State. In 19 seasons (1972-78, 1989-01) he had a 122-72-4 record, winning numerous conference championships. When he was hired at Wichita State in 1979, Jeffries became the first African-American head football coach at a NCAA Division 1-A university. In five seasons at WSU, he had a 21-32-2 record. He also coached at Howard University from 1984-88.
 
Baker is a former head coach at Furman (1973-77), The Citadel (1978-82), and East Carolina (1985-88). He has also worked with South Carolina ’s Gamecock Club.
 
For more information on North Greenville University athletics or the Crusader Club visit www.ngcrusaders.com, email CrusaderClub@ngu.edu or call Nelson at (864) 977-7017.