Lucas: Scruggs didn’t miss a beat on journey to Madison
February 21, 2023 | Football, Mike Lucas
Badgers’ new defensive line coach thankful to all who helped him along the way
BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. – A passion for playing the drums. An ambition to fly military planes. A commitment to himself and his mom to earn a college scholarship. A couple of Super Bowl rings. A trip to the College Football Playoffs. An exposure to another level of coaching in the NFL.
There have been sources of inspiration and sign markers on Greg Scruggs' road to becoming Wisconsin's defensive line coach. Along the route, he has interacted with some former Badgers – Pat Muldoon, O'Brien Schofield, Chris Maragos, Russell Wilson, James White and Troy Vincent.
It has left Scruggs with a good impression of the environment that he can expect in Madison. So has UW head coach Luke Fickell, who had Scruggs on his Cincinnati staff for four years (2018-2021); the first two as the Director of Player Development and the last two as the D-line assistant.
"I love the way that he does things," said Scruggs, who has rejoined Fickell after spending last season as an assistant defensive line coach with the New York Jets. "I love his commitment to pushing the needle and always wanting to go forward and challenge the norms, no matter what they are.
"I like being challenged. I'm a competitor. I don't like to lose. But I also don't like to get complacent because I'm scared of it. And I feel like coach Fickell never allows you do that. If this was just any other coach calling me to come, I would not be here."
The interviewing process was much different this time around than it was at Cincinnati.
"I didn't know him (back then)," Scruggs said. "I applied cold turkey. I went to the web site and put in an application. I asked my high school coach if he knew this guy and what he was about and if it would be a fit. He ended up connecting us. I talked with coach Fick several times over the phone.
"I rerouted a flight from one of the jobs I was working and caught a red-eye to Cincinnati."
Scruggs interviewed for two days and Fickell hired him.
"I consider coach Fick," Scruggs said, "a mentor of mine in this profession."
He has another. The aforementioned high school coach, Steve Specht, a proven winner at Saint Xavier in Cincinnati. If it wasn't for his influence, Scruggs truly wouldn't be coaching here today. "I owe him a tremendous amount of gratitude," he said, "because football has changed my life tremendously."
&&&
Scruggs' older brother got a snare drum when he was 4. Scruggs fell in love. His passion for percussion instruments – music in general – was only heightened by the 2002 movie release of "Drumline" starring Nick Cannon as Devon Miles. Scruggs could relate to the lead character.
"When I went to Saint X, I wanted to continue playing drums," Scruggs said. "At the time, Saint X had a very formal marching band and I could not read a lick of music. At lunch time, I had a buddy who could read and would play the whole piece for me and I would learn by ear and memorization."
Scruggs performed in the band for three years. At halftime, he was the consummate showman, an accomplished freelancer on the marching quints drum set. He also played varsity basketball. It wasn't until his senior year that Specht was able to convince him to come out for football. Smart decision.
In 2007, Scruggs started every game at defensive end for a Saint X team that went 15-0 and won the state title. That defense featured a couple of hard-hitting underclassmen, Luke Kuechly and Muldoon, who earned four letters at Wisconsin and later served as Badgers graduate assistant coach.
"I didn't want to leave any stone unturned in my life and look back and see what would have happened if I did decide to play football instead of going to the military or playing basketball in college," said Scruggs, who took flight lessons when he was 15. He discovered that he was just too big to fly jets.
"So, I was going to fly C-130's to Germany – cargo planes – and after a successful career in the military, I wanted to retire and become a Delta pilot. That was the goal." But he summarily added, "My only goal really was to make sure my mother (Anita Felton) didn't have to pay for me to go to college.
"Coach Specht assured me that he could make that happen. And he didn't lie."
When he was a youngster, Scruggs lost his father in a car accident. His mom wanted to make sure her son was in a structured learning environment, a classroom and living setting that would serve his needs and provide a broader life experience, which she found in Boys Hope Girls Hope of Cincinnati.
It paved the way for Scruggs to get a football scholarship to the University of Louisville, where he started games on the defensive line all four years. In the 2012 NFL draft, he was a seventh-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks. Among his teammates were three ex-Badgers – Schofield, Maragos and Wilson.
By then, Scruggs had grown to 6-3, 285. He also grew as a professional in the company of veteran warriors like Red Bryant and Brandon Mebane, "Those two guys were undoubtedly the best leaders that I could have ever been around," he said, also singling out Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril.
"As you get into those other guys, you see the commonalities of multi-successful people that I've been around which are winners and always prepared," Scruggs said, referencing the Legion of Boom, namely Earl Thomas, Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, Brandon Browner and Byron Maxwell.
He was appreciative of their support though his real nurturing was in the D-line room. As a Seahawks rookie, Scruggs had a couple of sacks. But the following season, he tore his ACL and was on injured reserve when the Seahawks rolled past Denver, 43-8, in Super Bowl XLVIII. He was later waived.
Scruggs caught on with the Chicago Bears and converted to tight end before finding his way to the New England Patriots where his locker was not far from Sweet Feet – White. As it was, Scruggs tore up his other knee and was inactive for the Pats epic "28-3" rally against Atlanta in Super Bowl LI.
At that point in his injured-riddled career, it was an easy decision. Scruggs retired. While still rehabbing, he contacted Vincent, the NFL's Executive Vice President of Football Operations. They had first met at an event honoring Specht with the 2013 Don Shula NFL High School Coach of the Year award.
Scruggs nominated Specht for the honor. What made it even more special was that Vincent played for Shula in Miami. The moment was framed and preserved in a snapshot of Specht, Scruggs, Vincent and the legendary Shula, the winningest head coach in NFL history. He passed away in 2020.
Vincent got Scruggs into the NFL Legends Development Program. He moved to New York City and was exposed to many fresh networking opportunities in branding and community services in coordination with Tracy Perlman, the senior Vice President of Football Communications and Marketing.
After a year in this NFL position, he returned home to Cincinnati to work for Fickell. During his two seasons of on-field coaching, the Bearcats went 22-2, won back-to-back American Athletic Conference titles and were the first Group of 5 team to advance to the College Football Playoffs.
Following that breakthrough year – in which UC's defensive line set the tempo for a unit that recorded 39 sacks and ranked No. 5 nationally in scoring defense (16.5) – Scruggs accepted a job offer from New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh, who had been a quality control coach in Seattle.
"He understands when to listen and when to put his foot down as a head coach," Scruggs said of Saleh. "He's not so old school that it's 'My way or the highway' and he's not so lean and loose that the players kind of run the show.
"More than anything, I learned how to try and read a room and how to figure out the best way to motivate guys day-in and day-out."
The similarities between Saleh and Fickell are in their attention to detail and preparation, he said. "It's how they prepare for games, how they really try to cross every t and dot every i. Questions are asked not to question the staff but just to make sure that we're confident in our teachings."
Scruggs credited Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich and D-line coach Aaron Whitecotton for showing him the ropes as a pro. Moreover, he was grateful to his players: Quinnen Williams, Solomon Thomas, Nathan Shephard, Tanzel Smart, Vinny Curry, Michael Clemons, Jermaine Johnson, et al.
"Quinnen and I have a really good relationship," he said of the No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 draft. "I'm very proud of him for accomplishing the goals we set out for him back last March – which were All-Pro and Pro Bowl – and he Facetimed me when he found out. It kind of warmed my heart."
So does discipline, work ethic, production – the points of emphasis for UW's defensive line.
"I have standards that I set for guys no matter where I've coached," said the 32-year-old Scruggs. "One, they have to be a disciplined group of young men both on and off the field. Secondly, they have to play with their hair on fire and be the hardest working guys on the field.
"That's just who I am by nature. That's how I was able to make it to and through the National Football League for as many years as I did. It was not because I was a freak athlete. It was because I worked my tail off at every single thing that I did."
Last but certainly not least on his "To Do" list, Scruggs emphasized, "Obviously, we have to produce. I'm not here to coach a bunch of people to hold gaps. I expect our guys to produce but that ultimately falls on me as a coach to put them in the best position to produce."
Scruggs is still learning about his UW players – a mutual education this off-season – and how the various pieces will be molded into a rotation. He knows that the returners have played hard and tough against all-comers. He was told that by other coaches who have dealt with the Badgers in the trenches.
If they reach his standards and expectations, he will bang the drum for them. Literally.
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. – A passion for playing the drums. An ambition to fly military planes. A commitment to himself and his mom to earn a college scholarship. A couple of Super Bowl rings. A trip to the College Football Playoffs. An exposure to another level of coaching in the NFL.
There have been sources of inspiration and sign markers on Greg Scruggs' road to becoming Wisconsin's defensive line coach. Along the route, he has interacted with some former Badgers – Pat Muldoon, O'Brien Schofield, Chris Maragos, Russell Wilson, James White and Troy Vincent.
It has left Scruggs with a good impression of the environment that he can expect in Madison. So has UW head coach Luke Fickell, who had Scruggs on his Cincinnati staff for four years (2018-2021); the first two as the Director of Player Development and the last two as the D-line assistant.
"I love the way that he does things," said Scruggs, who has rejoined Fickell after spending last season as an assistant defensive line coach with the New York Jets. "I love his commitment to pushing the needle and always wanting to go forward and challenge the norms, no matter what they are.
"I like being challenged. I'm a competitor. I don't like to lose. But I also don't like to get complacent because I'm scared of it. And I feel like coach Fickell never allows you do that. If this was just any other coach calling me to come, I would not be here."
The interviewing process was much different this time around than it was at Cincinnati.
"I didn't know him (back then)," Scruggs said. "I applied cold turkey. I went to the web site and put in an application. I asked my high school coach if he knew this guy and what he was about and if it would be a fit. He ended up connecting us. I talked with coach Fick several times over the phone.
"I rerouted a flight from one of the jobs I was working and caught a red-eye to Cincinnati."
Scruggs interviewed for two days and Fickell hired him.
"I consider coach Fick," Scruggs said, "a mentor of mine in this profession."
He has another. The aforementioned high school coach, Steve Specht, a proven winner at Saint Xavier in Cincinnati. If it wasn't for his influence, Scruggs truly wouldn't be coaching here today. "I owe him a tremendous amount of gratitude," he said, "because football has changed my life tremendously."
&&&
Scruggs' older brother got a snare drum when he was 4. Scruggs fell in love. His passion for percussion instruments – music in general – was only heightened by the 2002 movie release of "Drumline" starring Nick Cannon as Devon Miles. Scruggs could relate to the lead character.
"When I went to Saint X, I wanted to continue playing drums," Scruggs said. "At the time, Saint X had a very formal marching band and I could not read a lick of music. At lunch time, I had a buddy who could read and would play the whole piece for me and I would learn by ear and memorization."
Scruggs performed in the band for three years. At halftime, he was the consummate showman, an accomplished freelancer on the marching quints drum set. He also played varsity basketball. It wasn't until his senior year that Specht was able to convince him to come out for football. Smart decision.
In 2007, Scruggs started every game at defensive end for a Saint X team that went 15-0 and won the state title. That defense featured a couple of hard-hitting underclassmen, Luke Kuechly and Muldoon, who earned four letters at Wisconsin and later served as Badgers graduate assistant coach.
"I didn't want to leave any stone unturned in my life and look back and see what would have happened if I did decide to play football instead of going to the military or playing basketball in college," said Scruggs, who took flight lessons when he was 15. He discovered that he was just too big to fly jets.
"So, I was going to fly C-130's to Germany – cargo planes – and after a successful career in the military, I wanted to retire and become a Delta pilot. That was the goal." But he summarily added, "My only goal really was to make sure my mother (Anita Felton) didn't have to pay for me to go to college.
"Coach Specht assured me that he could make that happen. And he didn't lie."
When he was a youngster, Scruggs lost his father in a car accident. His mom wanted to make sure her son was in a structured learning environment, a classroom and living setting that would serve his needs and provide a broader life experience, which she found in Boys Hope Girls Hope of Cincinnati.
It paved the way for Scruggs to get a football scholarship to the University of Louisville, where he started games on the defensive line all four years. In the 2012 NFL draft, he was a seventh-round pick of the Seattle Seahawks. Among his teammates were three ex-Badgers – Schofield, Maragos and Wilson.
By then, Scruggs had grown to 6-3, 285. He also grew as a professional in the company of veteran warriors like Red Bryant and Brandon Mebane, "Those two guys were undoubtedly the best leaders that I could have ever been around," he said, also singling out Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril.
"As you get into those other guys, you see the commonalities of multi-successful people that I've been around which are winners and always prepared," Scruggs said, referencing the Legion of Boom, namely Earl Thomas, Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, Brandon Browner and Byron Maxwell.
He was appreciative of their support though his real nurturing was in the D-line room. As a Seahawks rookie, Scruggs had a couple of sacks. But the following season, he tore his ACL and was on injured reserve when the Seahawks rolled past Denver, 43-8, in Super Bowl XLVIII. He was later waived.
Scruggs caught on with the Chicago Bears and converted to tight end before finding his way to the New England Patriots where his locker was not far from Sweet Feet – White. As it was, Scruggs tore up his other knee and was inactive for the Pats epic "28-3" rally against Atlanta in Super Bowl LI.
At that point in his injured-riddled career, it was an easy decision. Scruggs retired. While still rehabbing, he contacted Vincent, the NFL's Executive Vice President of Football Operations. They had first met at an event honoring Specht with the 2013 Don Shula NFL High School Coach of the Year award.
Scruggs nominated Specht for the honor. What made it even more special was that Vincent played for Shula in Miami. The moment was framed and preserved in a snapshot of Specht, Scruggs, Vincent and the legendary Shula, the winningest head coach in NFL history. He passed away in 2020.
Vincent got Scruggs into the NFL Legends Development Program. He moved to New York City and was exposed to many fresh networking opportunities in branding and community services in coordination with Tracy Perlman, the senior Vice President of Football Communications and Marketing.
After a year in this NFL position, he returned home to Cincinnati to work for Fickell. During his two seasons of on-field coaching, the Bearcats went 22-2, won back-to-back American Athletic Conference titles and were the first Group of 5 team to advance to the College Football Playoffs.
Following that breakthrough year – in which UC's defensive line set the tempo for a unit that recorded 39 sacks and ranked No. 5 nationally in scoring defense (16.5) – Scruggs accepted a job offer from New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh, who had been a quality control coach in Seattle.
"He understands when to listen and when to put his foot down as a head coach," Scruggs said of Saleh. "He's not so old school that it's 'My way or the highway' and he's not so lean and loose that the players kind of run the show.
"More than anything, I learned how to try and read a room and how to figure out the best way to motivate guys day-in and day-out."
The similarities between Saleh and Fickell are in their attention to detail and preparation, he said. "It's how they prepare for games, how they really try to cross every t and dot every i. Questions are asked not to question the staff but just to make sure that we're confident in our teachings."
Scruggs credited Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich and D-line coach Aaron Whitecotton for showing him the ropes as a pro. Moreover, he was grateful to his players: Quinnen Williams, Solomon Thomas, Nathan Shephard, Tanzel Smart, Vinny Curry, Michael Clemons, Jermaine Johnson, et al.
"Quinnen and I have a really good relationship," he said of the No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 draft. "I'm very proud of him for accomplishing the goals we set out for him back last March – which were All-Pro and Pro Bowl – and he Facetimed me when he found out. It kind of warmed my heart."
So does discipline, work ethic, production – the points of emphasis for UW's defensive line.
"I have standards that I set for guys no matter where I've coached," said the 32-year-old Scruggs. "One, they have to be a disciplined group of young men both on and off the field. Secondly, they have to play with their hair on fire and be the hardest working guys on the field.
"That's just who I am by nature. That's how I was able to make it to and through the National Football League for as many years as I did. It was not because I was a freak athlete. It was because I worked my tail off at every single thing that I did."
Last but certainly not least on his "To Do" list, Scruggs emphasized, "Obviously, we have to produce. I'm not here to coach a bunch of people to hold gaps. I expect our guys to produce but that ultimately falls on me as a coach to put them in the best position to produce."
Scruggs is still learning about his UW players – a mutual education this off-season – and how the various pieces will be molded into a rotation. He knows that the returners have played hard and tough against all-comers. He was told that by other coaches who have dealt with the Badgers in the trenches.
If they reach his standards and expectations, he will bang the drum for them. Literally.
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