Fremont Native Shapes USF Football Success

D.J. Crowther, a California-born running back who spent four seasons at Dartmouth, has quickly become one of South Florida’s most trusted new pieces this spring. (gousfbulls.com) Crowther joined the Bulls in January 2026 after 31 games at Dartmouth, where he totaled 1,312 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns. In 2025 alone, he ran for 929 yards and 10 scores, then earned first-team All-Ivy recognition. (gousfbulls.com) (dartmouthsports.com) South Florida brought in 41 transfers in the January portal window under first-year head coach Brian Hartline, and the class was ranked No. 1 in the American Athletic Conference by 247Sports, according to the school. Crowther arrived as one of two transfer running backs in a roster remake that added 58 new players overall. (gousfbulls.com) By the end of spring practice, Hartline was already citing Crowther as part of a running-back group that produced “multiple big plays” in the April 19 spring game at Corbett Stadium. South Florida’s offense beat the defense 39-34 before 3,878 fans, and Hartline said the run game can “change the energy of a game.” (gousfbulls.com) Hartline also pointed to the room’s off-field work, saying he was proud of the running backs’ 3.3 grade-point average. Four months into 2026, he said Crowther was already one of the backs “we can rely on” and called him “smart” and “very mature from a mentality standpoint.” (gousfbulls.com) (tampafp.com) Crowther said he chose South Florida after considering Eastern Washington, California-Davis and Cal Poly, even though those options would have kept him closer to home. He told Tampa Free Press he enrolled in a master’s program in entrepreneurship after finishing his undergraduate degree in sociology at Dartmouth. (tampafp.com) His path to this point started long before the Ivy League. South Florida lists him as born in Fremont on March 11, 2004, though his athletic bio identifies Sacramento as his hometown and Christian Brothers High School as his prep school. (gousfbulls.com) At Dartmouth, Crowther became the kind of back who could carry an offense for stretches. He opened 2025 with 143 rushing yards and three touchdowns against New Hampshire, then closed the year with 197 yards and two scores against Cornell. (gousfbulls.com) (dartmouthsports.com) South Florida is coming off a 9-4 season and a third straight bowl appearance, but Hartline’s first roster overhaul has changed much of the offense around him. In that churn, Crowther has entered spring as an older transfer with production, a graduate degree in progress and a role coaches already describe in terms of trust. (gousfbulls.com) (tampafp.com)