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“On Wednesday I was trying to figure out how to pay my bills and that’s something I don’t have to worry about for a little bit now,” he said. “I feel like I’ve always had the odds stacked against me, I’ve been stressed about paying bills, I’ve had everything on my shoulders, but I kind of feel like I just evened the odds a little bit. I’m gonna work harder in the gym, but everything else just got easier.”
I guess the million-dollar question is, why?
“I guess I just don’t know how to quit or I’m too dumb to quit or however you want to look at it,” said Croom. “It’s what I love, and this is the only thing I’ve ever wanted. I remember being a 15-year-old, before I had ever actually watched an MMA fight, just knowing that there was something called Ultimate Fighting, and just knowing that’s what I wanted to do. This is the only thing I’ve ever wanted, it’s the only life I’m okay with living, so I was gonna give it my all. And f**k man, nailed it.”
Truer words have never been spoken, and while he’s retired “The Hard Hitting Hillbilly” name for the moment in favor of “Crash,” Croom has never forgotten where he came from and never takes for granted what MMA brought to his life. And now, he’s more than willing to have his story be a light for anyone who needs it.
“MMA saved my life,” he said. “In no uncertain terms, I’m pretty reasonably sure I would be in prison or dead if I hadn’t found MMA. I was heading down a bad path, found MMA and it gave me a reason to not go out and get messed up. It really changed my life. So because of that, I’m very pro helping people change their life. I know what it’s like to not come from the greatest circumstances and have a lot of pent-up aggression and not know what to do with it. And I got very lucky and blessed to find something that really helped me out and has given me an amazing life. My story is about persistence and dedication and you gotta be able to persist.”